LE after shoveling

I would be more nervous to shovel heavy snow. My PT told me not to lift heavy items. Do you see a lymphademia specialist? If so, I recommend calling as soon as possible.

Hi, B123,

Here's some information about the kind of infection we can develop when we're at risk for lymphedema (it's called cellulitis):

http://www.stepup-speakout.org/Emergencies_and_Med...

Almost all insurance, even medicare, will cover lymphedema treatment, but many (including medicare) won't cover the garments we need to control it. So you should be able to see a lymphedema therapist and have it covered by your insurance. Do check it out! You need a referral from any member of your medical team. Here's how to find a well-trained lymphedema therapist near you:

http://www.stepup-speakout.org/Finding_a_Qualified...

Please keep us posted and let us know what you discover.

Gentle hugs,

Binney

Yes, cellulitis, it's really dangerous. I got this after upper leg lymph nodes removed and I developed seromas, I didn't even have Lymphedema. Before the red skin rash showed up, I had a high temperature and the chills all night. The red rash kept spreading despite being given IV antibiotics at the ER, and antibiotic pills the next morning. The infection went right into the seromas within 24 hours which required immediate surgery to get the infection cleared up. My white blood count was off the charts also. If you ever have this see your doctor or ER right away.

I don't recommend shoveling snow unless your in fine shape. The sudden shovelling puts to much stress on your arm and sends in lymph fluid quickly. This is ok if you have nodes to clear but us being nodeless it isn't good.

If you must dig then do a couple minutes. Raise your arm straight in air and pump slowly 25 times every so often. Drink tons of water to wash out stagnant lymph fluid and rest the arm during and after.

Much easier to have someone else do it so you don't get a le flare and spend much money trying to fix it. Hire Boy next door. It's cheaper in long run!

Suzanne, sounds like your proactive which is such a good example for us! Good thing you pack your sleeve and hopefully gauntlet wherever you go! Your an inspiration to all!

There's no uniform, absolute rule about what you can or cannot do with lymphedema. Everybody's different.

That said, the studies that have shown benefit to exercise ramped up the amount of exercise, starting at a low level of challenge. If you're not in great shape and exercising regularly, shoveling snow is like jumping into working out at a pretty high level of challenge.

Have you seen anybody about this? I recommend you get a referral to a good lymphedema therapist and get back in to be seen again. If you're not familiar with how to manage your own lymphedema, it's normal to need guidance. https://www.stepup-speakout.org is a great website created by some very wise women who have been involved with this discussion board. It's really well-researched, and it includes some things doctors always seem to forget to tell you.

Finally, I too like Veeder have been really sick with cellulitis and ended up in the hospital. Cellulitis is different than just a flare of lymphedema swelling, and sometimes the symptoms can be different than cellulitis in other parts of the body since surgeries for breast cancer often damage sensory nerves. Both times I've had it seriously, I've had loads of bacteria in my blood, a high fever, felt miserable, yet not been able to feel any pain from the red patches on my arm. I'm now in the habit of looking at my arm in the mirror if I start to feel cruddy.

Good luck, and I wish you endurance dealing with this. Having learned that I can exercise really as much as I want (given I work up to it) and having dealt with some flares and been able to bring them down again (I use bandaging if it's bad, my night garment if it's mild), I don't feel the panic and despair I felt when it was first diagnosed.

MLD=Manual lymphatic drainage. Search for it on this board for links to videos.