Hats off to any that wrap

I just posted in the Exercise/Self Care thread how frustrating I am finding this process. I actually did a better job the first couple of times I did it. How can that be? Last night I had myself wrapped pitifully, and tonight I gave up out of total frustration. I have been using the same finger wraps, and I think I figured out that they are shot and that is part of the problem. Visited therapist today and she gave me four rolls while I am waiting for my supplies to arrive in mail. I'll let you know how it goes.




Oh, and Hugz, I ate an entire large bar of dark chocolate in three days and was wishing I had more tonight! This is not like me. I am getting another bar for the practice round I am doing tomorrow afternoon vs waiting until nighttime, which is when I am supposed to wear it.

Ugh ma111--the leg too?

Keep at it all of you newbie wrappers.  It does get easier and faster.  Wish it were a hobby hugz.  Would be one I would quit!  I use my chin too!  I sit in the middle of my bed in case the bandage gets out of control.  I take a deep breath each time I have to start over.  I play some slow music.  What I hate the most is when I got it on and could tell it was not on correctly and compressed correctly.  Than I had to start all over.  I do not have to wrap all of the time now but I do wrap over my jovipak each night.  So I only have to deal with bandages.

Hugz, I am using Transelast, which catches on everything, pills, pulls, gets dirty real fast. A trip for groceries does a real number on the stuff. I know there is a cotton alternative that can be washed and holds up better, and I plan to ask my therapist about using. Since I now have a new sleeve and glove, I will only be wrapping for bed, and this should prevent it from getting gross as quickly. Having just slept in my new Solaris night vest for the first time last night, I totally understand why a night sleeve for the arm would be such a welcome thing compared to bandaging!! 

Ma111, dealing with the leg as well as arm must be so time consuming! Thanks for the time estimate for doing the arm, as it helps to have some reference from someone who has been doing.

Becky, I think music is a good idea. I definitely have to take a deep breath to stay calm when I realize once I am done that it's too tight or wrong in some way. Either that, or I end up in tears!

My therapist showed me a technique on how to use the wall to stabilize the bandage roll when half way around. It allows you to take up the slack when you pick up the roll again from the top. I am rolling toward myself, if that makes any difference. Does that make sense? 

I am abandoning the negative self talk about my wrapping skills. I will exercise Nordy's suggestion to practice, practice, practice!!

Actually, if they were tie-dyed, it might look pretty cool! Kind of like the multicolored yarns that weave an interesting pattern in a sweater. 

I took me several, several months to get the hang of it and it still doesn't come easily for me, but I am much better at it than I was when I first started.

 Just don't give up - keep practicing!  And after over a year and a half of doing it, I still can't match the neat job of my therapist, but it gets the job done. 

Hang in there, wrappers. 

 Yes the leg too. I have inflammatory bc and it travels vie the nodes. So when it clogs the nodes I wrap them. I find the leg much easier to wrap then the arm. I use my chin to hold the wrapping to re grasp to go again for the upper arm. Lower arm I use my leg.

My bandages are washable, so tie dying is an option for me. The web of my fingers I find the hardest part. Sometimes I don't do them if my fingers are too swollen. It will still get some fluid out. If you do it that way though, make sure you elevate. I have also found that using the first one to just keep the foam and stuff in place then use more for pressure helps.

My therapist gave me written instructions.  I also videotaped her wrapping me.  It helped a lot!  I did also have the Rovig DVD that showed how to wrap but my therapist wrapped a little differently.  I talked it out loud to myself at first.

Binney--I would love to have something to roll the bandages. 

Anyone looking for a bandage roller can find them at www.dressageextensions.com. Just enter "bandage roller" where it says 'Enter keyword' and you'll go straight to it. It's $10.95. Actually if you have a good/decent tack store in your area, they should have them. I can be mouunted on a wall or a board and then you crank it. Leg bandaging is common among some disciplines so there is lots of bandage rolling done for some.



I'm surprised at how many are saying they are having to figure out wrapping at home. The first 3 times I saw my LE guy he wrapped me, the next time he had me wrap myself while he instructed and the rest of the times I saw him before my garments came in I wrapped myself with him watching. He did give me a print out of how to do it but don't know how good it would have worked without actual help in learning.



I'm also not understanding why wrapping every night? Why not a night garment? Honestly - I don't know the price of the wrapping supplies vs a night garment, but seems like it would be a lot more expensive (plus inconvient) in the long run (6 mths or more) to be continually buying supplies vs a night garment (mine is 2 yrs and is faded but still functional).




(Edit for spelling)

Galsal, I have had my chest wrapped only a few times, but it never stays in place, and most of the time it falls down. Until recently (for night or during flare), I wore a compression tank and round channeled inserts placed to the side of my chest just below the underarm area. That works pretty well and can be concealed somewhat for daytime use/workout. The night vest is now the better tool for sleeping, but I can resort to the tank and inserts in the day when needed. I now have a new favorite tank I wear daily, and the way it fits seems to negate the need for the inserts, so far.




Did I not mention that my sluggish lymph fluid has made my brain slow and stupid when it comes to wrapping!? LOL! (I know, I promised no more negative self talk.) My therapist wrapped me and explained how to do. I was to return with arm wrapped by myself and she checked. I did it very well the first time, only minor corrections. She only had me wrapped for a two day period to take down swelling, as it was not extreme. Anyway, since I did so well the first time wrapping, she told me to practice. Well, I seem to have gone downhill in my ability and will forget parts, the hand wrapping in particular. I also get confused when I start to run out of finger wrap halfway through, where to end, etc. Once I have the fingers and hand done, most of the time I am home free. Twice at recent appts I have had my therapist watch me wrap my fingers and hand again, and last time I wrote notes to remind myself where I usually go wrong. But I think I was right about my finger wrap being shot and that was part of problem. It was much easier last night with the new stuff. I am wondering if I can get someone to use my iPad to video my therapist wrapping me, or her coaching me while I wrap myself.




My truncal LE became chronic in April 2009, but my arm only changed in volume enough to require wrapping about a month ago. It was stable for a couple of weeks, but it became impatient while waiting for custom sleeve and glove to arrive and misbehaved again. So, it's really only been a week that I have been supposed to wrap nightly. Wrapping is actually considered the "gold standard" when it comes to treatment. It is like having a completely new custom hand and arm garment each time/night that helps bring down swelling. Right now my arm and hand are a little unstable, and wrappping allows for small fluctuations in volume. Ultimately, my therapist thinks my arm will calm down and that I will only need a sleeve and glove for exercise, flying, or if I feel any symptoms of swelling. I would love to have a night sleeve instead of this wrapping, but hopefully I will not need it. In the meantime, custom sleeve and glove during the day + wrapping at night is the most aggressive treatment to get my arm back to its original state. It seems to be working.




Edited multiple times because typing with the glove is making it difficult to express myself clearly!

Hugz, I am laughing out loud about 'Olymphics!'

So, events so far: wrapping, bandage-chasing, bandage winding, hulking, kegel-breathing, ball-bouncing, and on another thread, today someone explained 'jiggling.'  Then there's sleeve donning, swell-spot inserting, not to mention more conventional sporting events such as walking, running, stair-climbing. And in the spirit of pie-eating contests, we simply must include chocolate eating.

I'm sure I have missed a few.

I'm taking it easy today; trying to give my fipples some quality healing time, so walked at a moderate pace, less than I expected, and my biggest LE care objective for today is to get a decent night's sleep.  For whatever reason, I'm pooped!

Carol

Tina, I think you should dye some of your finger-wrap discards, cut into pieces, many, many vibrant colors.  And then make some collages--sort of like your avatar drawing, only three dimensional.

This afternoon I thought of something else wrap-related.  The artist Christo makes millions of dollars wrapping objects in the name of art.  Somehow it should be possible for all you LE wrappers to get together for an installation art project. Wrap a chair, or a car, or a building like he does.  And make millions. 

Seriously, what could you wrap that would evoke an emotion appropriate to how everyone here feels about LE? That would in my opinion, make a very compelling work of art.

Carol

Hmmmm. How many doctors do you think we'd need to put this installation together? If we each donated one or two (or three or half a dozen) from our own local healthcare system, we'd have enough, don't you think? The beauty of it is how a display of mummy-wrapped, bulgy-eyed, blue-fingered doctors could fit any artistic space available, whether a gallery or a traveling show for arboretums and zoos. You KNOW this is going to be in high demand everywhere, no doubt even internationally.

The first million we earn goes to our foundation for buying wraps and garments for those whose insurance doesn't cover it. After that, it's all gravy. We might even be able to buy ourselves a few good researchers--heaven knows everybody else does, and for much less worthy causes.

Who's collecting doctors? I've got a couple I can send right away...
Binney

We have to think of a catchy name for the wrapped-doctors art piece. Something that contains or evokes 'rooters.'   Maybe 'Rapped Rooters'  --as in make them take the rap for being so ill informed. There must be a better name!  And of course the wrapped doctors have to eat, type, and put on clothing as part of the installation.

Okay, middle of the night check in because I woke up and couldn't get back to sleep. Just a simple report of compliance in wearing new garments and wrapping. I shaved off 15 min tonight in wrapping. I felt like Goldilocks again, it's too tight, it's too loose, not just right. I was completely done three times and had to undo. The last time I went all the way back and started over with the hand. The fingers went on one, two, three, no hesitation. I fumbled with the hand the most, but I am hoping tomorrow it will be easier. 




This Olymphics event is making me giggle and the art suggestions are even funnier! We need MLD, water drinking, and insect swatting included as events.




I have an idea for the art project that can travel. I will create a jail out of wrap, and doctors will be forced to stand inside like sardines. Meanwhile, a loudspeaker will repeatedly blare, "That's not LE, it's just post-surgical swelling. You're too thin to have LE. You can't get LE since you only had one sentinel node removed. You can't get truncal LE if you don't have it in your arm. There's no such thing as truncal LE. We've never had a patient at our hospital get LE from a sentinel node biopsy. I've never seen anything like that before. The pain will go away, give it more time." The jail can be disassembled and reconstructed in each city that the torch bearer passes through (Nordy is elected to carry). This will allow for maximum imprisonment of rooters throughout the country. Cities with the most rooters nominated win special prizes. We need to determine the location of the games, ideally it's the city with the most rooters or surgeons in denial.