Lymphedema update

I realized that i haven't blogged about lymphedema recently. I am pleased to report that it has hardly bothered me at all since getting the big blue Jovi Pak arm sleeve. My last post on lymphedema issues appears to have been in October 2010.

I wear the sleeve every night, adding extra foam pieces to break up edema as needed or to improve the sleeve's fit. Because this sleeve was made to measure, and I bought it when I was in the middle of a flare up, it is just a tad larger than I need now that my arm is stable, particularly in the hand.

I wash it weekly, and so on Sunday nights it fits beautifully, having shrunk the tiniest bit in the dryer. In the next day or so I begin to add extra padding on the back of my hand. By the end of the week I am wrapping some bandaging around the hand, wrist and forearm to provide extra compression, and then I wash it again and start the whole process over.

It was very easy to put on at the airport for our recent flight to Toronto. That meant I could go through security with a naked arm; give myself the injected lovenox an hour before flying; and put on the gizmo and wrap my arm at the end of all these precautions. When flying, I wore it with a glove to provide enough compression in my hand. That was a little too tight, but it did prevent me from having any issues when we landed.

All in all it's been a good purchase, and I am delighted to have full use of my arm during the day when I'm active, in exchange for compression at night when I am sleeping.

Now if only I could get some better sleep. But that's a story for another day.