OLBinNJ

mags,

     I don't sweat at all in the arm-pit on my surgery side (I also had rads).  MY LE arm sweats mostly in the forearm area.  My LE has always been under control (hopefully since I caught it early), but I've had this weird sweating for years.  My LE is very mild, and only someone trained in LE would even notice it if I didn't point it out.  No one seems to have any idea what it is (is it lymph fluid, or actual sweat?).

bomber,

     I do the same, I hook my thumb in the belt loop or waistband of my pants, or keep my hand in the pocket of my jacket (if it's cool enough to be wearing one).  I also do the pumping and flexing while I walk, so swelling isn't a major issue. 

I've noticed for a long time that when I exercise, my LE arm sweats way before my other arm.  Even on a slow walk, before I can work up a sweat, my LE arm is wet - my mother would say that it is weeping.  Does anyone else have this?  Is it good? Bad? Or just what it is?  No MD understands what it is, so I thought I would ask the experts here on this board.

Joni,

     Buy the underwire bras you like and make a small slit to remove the underwire.  I also like the leisure forms for swimming and in some bras.

Nancy - try a leisure form like the Amoena 126.  They are inexpensive, and good in the heat.

I use Amoena 126 leisure forms for swimming as you  can wear them in a hot tub as well.  The silicone forms can't be worn in a hot tub, and the regular swim forms are heavy, and have a hollow back which leads to "boob farts" if you lie on your stomach or someone hugs you.  The leisure forms soak up a lot of water, so when you get out of the water, wrap a towel around yourself, cross your arms over your chest, and hug yourself to smoosh all the water out of the form.  They are also inexpensive and can be used in a mast bra so you can have a back up for your regular form.  They are concave, so I have to put something behind it for projection, but after years of trial and error, this works best for me at this point.

     Call your doctor and get a script for a glove as well as the sleeve.  If you wear the sleeve without the glove you may make your hand swell even more.  Also, when you put the sleeve and glove on, I was told to put my hand and arm above heart level, put the glove on first then put the sleeve on.  Put your hand through the sleeve, turning the sleeve over itself, so it's folded in half, pull the sleeve on and slowly turn it right side out as you pull it on.  I hope this makes sense to you.  Some women find that benadryl helps with the swelling.  Also, keep your arm elevated as much as you can, and you can LIGHTLY stroke your arm up to your shoulder and across your chest to help distribute some of the fluid.  Call your therapist and have her teach you MLD, you need to know how to do it.  You should also learn how to wrap your arm, that helps a lot and gives you some control over the LE.  Your therapist should measure you for the sleeve, and call your insurance company to find out how much they will cover, it is considered Durable Medical Equipment  or Durable Medical Goods in insuranse speak.  I'm sure Binney, the resident LE expert will have even more and better advice for you.  You are not alone, and leave the dishes for now.

I'm a 34 A/B and use a 5 in bras, and  a 6 in some bathing suits.  I'm flat/concave, so I get "bra cups" to put behind the 126 for a little more projection.

I had surgery last year, and made it a point to tell everyone that they could not use my LE arm.  The surgeon noted it in his chart and I told everyone who even looked at me on the day of my surgery.  Everyone was very understanding and agreed.  As I started to drift off from the anesthesia, the anesthesiologist tapped me on the shoulder and told me to slip my arm out of the gown.  I asked him why, and he said "So I can use it for your blood pressure"!!!!!!!!  I was lucky to still be awake enough to tell him "NO! I have lymphedema!  He put the blood pressure cuff on my other arm while I struggled to stay awake to make sure he did it.  The next day, I sent him info on LE. 

Susan,

     I have the Amoena contact lite and have also had the stickiness diminish.  I use fashion tape or wardrobe tape that helps add a little stickiness.  You can get it at Bed Bath and Beyond, Victorias Secret, or the Hahnes outlets.

On Barbara's suggestion, I tried the Amoena 126 Leisure forms, and found them to be the best for swimming.  The silicone swim forms have the hollow back that traps air.  If you lie on your stomach or someone hugs you, you have the dreaded "boob farts" and a vacuum packed boob that then needs to pop back out.  Not the most attractive sight.  The leisure forms are light and don't stretch out the swim suit.  They do soak up water, so when you get out of the water, wrap a towel around yourself and hug.  That drains the water from the form.  They do take a while to dry, so I have a spare.  I also found that I need different sizes for different suits.  I had recon and deconstruction a year later, and am very flat/concave on one side, up to @ 2" from my colar bone.  This makes finding swimsuits rather difficult.  I found the Lands End high neck tankinis to work best for me.  I get the regular suits and sew in a pocket when they are out of the mast suits.