I still forget that I have to make changes



my lymphedema arm during physical therapy

 One of my favorite lines from one of my favorite movies is... "Youth is wasted on the young...". (Its from Its a Wonderful Life)  Whenever I find myself becoming wistful for my remember when days... that line pops into my head... "youth is wasted on the young". Today I am thinking it because it just dawned on me that I am at fault for aggravating my lymphedema this week. As a young person, you take good health for granted. You hurt yourself, you heal and then you bounce back... good as new. You rarely have to make lifetime adjustments to accommodate your changed body. Usually because your body just bounces back to its original state and you can keep it moving.

Well, I could not figure out why my arm was feeling so heavy. Or why it was swelling up. I was slightly alarmed but mostly annoyed. What in the world was going on? And how... HOW... was I going to deal with this crazy lymphedema if it just flared up for no reason like this?

Ha ha! No reason? No ma'am... there is always a reason, you just have to find it. Long story made short -- I aggravated my condition because I haven't been doing what I'm supposed to do. I haven't been walking every day like I should. I haven't been elevating my arm twice daily for 15 minutes. I haven't been doing my stretches and exercises. And ... I haven't been diligent about NOT carrying heavy bags on that side.

This past weekend, I attended (hosted actually) a brunch event for my meetup group. The sponsor of the event had supplied a few items to be given away to the participants. Since I don't drive and typically travel by subway, I moved the items from the box they were shipped in, to a bag that I could throw over my shoulder and keep moving. That's logical right? Wrong. At least... wrong for Nicole.

The giveaways were full size bottles of body wash and hair conditioner. I'll guess that with my regular stuff and the Dove prizes... I was probably carrying a bag that weighed maybe 15 pounds. Not super heavy... but too heavy for me to be carrying around on my bad arm. Which of course I did. Along with carrying my "I already know its too darn heavy" purse as well.

Ugh. I sooo hate it when I do stupid things because I'm not being aware and conscious. Carrying the products wasn't the worse thing ever. But it was part of a snowballing effect where I wasn't being a good caregiver for myself. I know better. I do. But I got comfortable and lax... and my body responded.

Sigh. I'll be taking my walk shortly. And elevating my arm. And wearing my compression sleeve. And I won't be pretending that I do not have to pamper myself and remain conscious that things are different now. I can do anything I set my mind to, I just have to be aware of how I do things and make accommodations for potential problems.