Once Bitten Twice Shy

Be careful with insect bites.

Two weeks ago I had a spider bite and overnight I gained so much fluid. Approximately 10 lbs. I honestly thought I was headed for cellulitis. Of course I went to the doctor right away, because I was taking no chances. Finished my antibiotics then started CDT this past Friday after finding out my right leg was up 5 cm, there was pitting for the first time since ’14, and obviously no bones could be seen.

I’m bilateral, and my left leg was doing GREAT thanks to some diet changes I was making called Keto. Lefty was not phased by the spider for some reason. Ha! Maybe because I was bitten on the right side of my trunk. Who knows?

After I was bitten, at first I tried to “walk it out”, then I tried to pump it out. Nothing took the place of a good full body MLD with a therapist and bandaging for 48 hours. Kinesiology tape was also applied to my back to help my trunk drain.

Friday’s surprise was my CLT put me on an exercise bike 🚴🏻 for 10 minutes and had me rebound for 10 minutes. I was rebounding wrong at home. Too fast. We saw a 1.6 cm reduction in my ankle from the beginning of MLD to the end. She took measurements twice.

I am lucky that my body still responds so quickly to treatment. There may come a time when it won’t, but I stay positive.

It doesn’t stop here though. I will continue to do this for the next month.

Normally I wear daytime compression stockings, but I only needed to be wrapped up to the thigh on the right leg. I used a knee high nighttime garment I got out of sheer luck last year on the left leg. Compression is expensive. I’ll wait until I can afford to buy non pantyhose style.

My trunk is also still up. I don’t post pictures of my trunk, because I share so much of my personal journey already. When I post pictures, sometimes I feel like it’s giving away a piece of me. Of course I do it for the sake of Lymphedema Awareness. That’s why I decided to name my Lymphedema “Lee”, after the abbreviation LE.

This is how “Lee” woke up today when bandages were removed. Good job! I see some ankle bones and knee bones again.

As usual, I will share the journey and the ups and downs. You are welcome to share yours too in the blog comments below.