ALL THINGS Gloves and sleeves
Comments
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I just ordered a donning aid for arms to use after my DIEP surgery. It is great! I think I got it at Lymphedemaproducts.com or something like that. I bet they have leg ones.
GMAFoley, so sorry you're dealing with this!0 -
Hi GMA, Here is the link for Easy Slide. It is fairly inexpensive and works so well. I have one for my arm sleeve and wish I had found this during the first year I was diagnosed. I wouldn't have punched myself in the face so often! It is really easy to use and I can get my sleeve on in a minute flat now, without a black eye! http://www.bandagesplus.com/prd/156/878/Easy-Slide.html
The parachute material goes on your limb first, then you pull the compression over it and adjust the garment to be exactly where you want it. The you use the loop at the bottom to start to pull the parachute fabric out from under the garment, while holding your hand on the top of the garment so it doesn't slide down in the process.
Hope this is helpful
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Maxine, this looks interesting. Does the parachute material go right up on your skin? And then you pull it out between skin and sleeve? Does it irritate skin more? I'm still bandaging most of the time, trying to develop a plan for my beach vacation that starts in 10 days.
I put a call in to Nancy at BrightLife, but she hasn't returned my call yet. I am going to ask her to help me figure out a good glove/sleeve combination that will give me the least wrist compression, so that I can enjoy a few hours a day at the beach without bandages. Would really prefer to enjoy beach with NO encumberments, but being realistic and not wanting to do further damage or regress, I will try to be compliant as best I can. When this started over 2 months ago, I figured I would be greatly improved by now, but without good LE therapist and no plan, I am in the self-directed learning mode, realize I am the one who owns this useless appendage that requires hours of care each day, and as long as I am stuck with it, I better learn as much as I can so it doesn't cause me too much more pain.
As far as the night garment: I do have some of that hand curling issue, but not bad. I was thinking of using the very thin glove - the microfine from Farrow with the Solaris Tribute, but wonder if the wrist compression would be too much .... any thoughts? I know Farrow doesn't do returns, and it is $86.0 -
Maxine, I have an Easy Slide for my nighttime leg garment, which doesn't cover the toes. It's a great thing, and sturdy enough to last a long time. But with a stocking with the toe in it there's no way to pull an Easy Slide out, so it doesn't work for that.
Another good donner is the Ezy-AZ, which can be used for either sleeves or stockings:
http://www.ezyasabc.com/product-info.htmlGma, I don't use a donner for my stockings, but the Ezy-AZ would be a good option if you need it. The problem with stockings is the heel. I don my Allegros by sitting down securely and then gathering the stocking (using both hands) clear down to near the heel. Then I point my toes and put them all the way into the toe of the stocking (at this point the heel will be bunched up under the arch of the foot). Then, still holding the gathers, I move my fingers down under my foot and start to tug the heel into place. After fuming for a few moments I can finally feel it slip toward the heel. I just keep on tugging until it rounds the heel, then bend my foot up at the ankle to pull the rest of the stocking up into place.
I don't know what compression level you got, but I got the 15-20 mm/hg, and it wasn't enough, so I started wearing them double, one over another. Any time you double a compression garment it doesn't create 2 times the compression, but only about one-and-a-half times. So two 15-20s actually equals somewhere around a 20-30. Getting a 15-20 on, even one over the other, is much easier than getting a 20-30 on. And a 20-30 is easier to get on than a 30-40, and so on. So maybe, if you continue to have a rough time with it, doubling up on a lower compression would make it easier. BrightLife allows you to try these things out and then return them if they don't work. Nice!
Hope that wasn't too confusing!
Hugs,
Binney0 -
Binney - Would double compression work with arm sleeves too?
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Dawne, same theory for arm sleeves. But they're a lot easier to get on, so there's not much need to do it. In fact I've never heard of anyone doing it for arms, but because stockings for leg LE usually need to be a higher compression (think: gravity), doubling leg garments is fairly common. Trying to pull on a 30-40, especially when your leg is huge and clumsy, is a real bear.
On the other hand, tugging on leg garments doesn't put your jaw in danger like arm garments do!
I forgot to mention--and it's important--that if you're putting a second stocking on over the first, you have to be alert to any wrinkles in the first one. I use rubber gloves to make sure they're smooth and no wrinkles in either.
I am busy trying to be grateful for all my garments, which allow me to control this stupid LE
--but this summer heat makes it a real challenge
!Hugs,
Binney0 -
Thank you Binney I took the ones I received to my LE Therapist and he said to send them back. I will try a different style. The ones you suggested was on backorder so i tried something else. He also gave me some pointers on how to keep the swell down.
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Binney - Thank you. The reason I ask is because I'm having fit issues. My old sleeves fit better than my newer ones...even though they're same brand and style. My old sleeves don't slip down but the compression is loose on my forearm. I've wondered if I could get by putting the new bigger sleeves over my old ones that stay up. I'm going to try it.
Totally hear you on the heat & sleeves.
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Binney, that's such an interesting point that doubling up gives you different results. Always good to know if i ever have to go up in class.
I actually found out something interesting. I always gauze wrap my fingers at night and on top a compression bandage but really not tight at all, so I don't even know if the latter gives any compression. i started that when I first began my LE journey, because I had a very painful spot on my hand which couldn't bear pressure. The other night I was too tired to start wrapping, so on impulse I put on my Active Imak (I think Purple does it) and in the morning my fingers were just as good as with gauze wrap. Pulling on the Imak takes 1 second. Wrapping takes me around 10 min so from now on Imak is for me the way to go. The pressure is light but apparently sufficient.
3 months ago I had this issue with one place on Amazon that had sent me the wrong Imak gloves. In the end they promised to send a refund. There was only 1 problem. It never came. I recently turned to Amazon's customer service even though it was past 90 days, and they could see from the whole series of emails between the vendor and me that I was right. So guess what. They got them to pay up and Amazon was really good.
For those who use the Farrow. Here in Israel they bring in the Farrow that is manufactured in England. I got 2 gloves, and then realized these were already pretrimmed which meant some of the fingers were kind of short for me. No problem. Called them and they told me to send them back. Within 3 days I received the right kind of Farrow where I trim the fingers. I just called them to compliment them on their service. It is good to know they are like that. On the other hand a representative for med95 has been giving me the runaround because of a second (double) charge - lots of money - which he knows he has to return. I noticed it very late, because I had never gone over the statement of that month. Doesn't he realize that I will not give him my business if I have an alternative? People are so dumb. Even if he honestly made the mistake and it can happen, he should put in max effort to set things straight. I am pretty sure I'l get it back. It's just annoying that I got to spend energy on that.
To finish with a great low-cal pick me up:
1/2 c. of cold milk, 1/2 c. water, 1 t coffe, 1 t cocoa mix (optional), sweetener if you like and 4-5 ice cubes. Put in blender till ice is crushed. You end up with 2 1/2 c. of cold ice coffee with very few calories.
(Someone wrote this hint for a quick cleanup - when done, put some water and dishwashing detergent in the blender and whirl for a few seconds. Makes cleaning a breeeze... )
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Hi everyone, i had check up today and i'm on a trial for Lymphedema as i had all nodes removed. Today they said it had increased by 15% so i need to see someone. I have been having physio on my scar tissue but nothing on my arm. It's a lot larger than my normal arm from the elbow to hand. It's not big but i have skinny arms so it does notice.
I'm very upset i may have to wear a sleeve because i just don't want too. I'm too vain and i don't want people knowing i've got a problem.
I just feel like everyone else why more **** to go through. I have pain in my joints all the time, blurred vision from chemo like the rest of you guys.
Feeling sorry for myself i know and maybe will come to terms with this.0 -
ali68 - [[[[[[hugs]]]]]]
You will be surprised at how oblivious a lot of people are. Eventually (once you see a LE therapist and she performs manual lymph drainage on you, and may bandage you for awhile) once you're in the sleeve/maintenance part of your therapy the sleeve may help you feel better. It is hard and it does really stink we have to deal with this but you'll get through it. We know. I've cried my share of tears and had more than my share of rants but we're hear to listen and cheer you on. You can do this and you're not alone.
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Ali, you sure don't have to come to terms with this all at once--give yourself some room to grieve and rant, and to struggle with the learning curve. Dealing with the emotional blow of this diagnosis isn't easy, but we sure are here for you. Tell us how we can help, please!
Here's an article about emotions and self-image that may help:
http://www.stepup-speakout.org/patoconnorcopng.htm
Dassi, thanks for calling Farrow to express your gratitude--it helps all of us when you encourage them to treat their customers well. I'm sorry about the Medi hassle, though, and I hope when it's settled you'll tell them calmly why they're losing your business, and what they might have done to keep our good will.The blender treat sounds great! But since when is chocolate optional?!
Hugs,
Binney0 -
Ali, so sorry to see you here - I just arrived here 2 mos ago with 20% volume increase, same area you are describing, also with skinny arms. This group is SO supportive and knowledgable - don't know how I would have gotten this far without them.
Got my book on kinesiotape and a BIG roll of tape, DH and I are getting ready to try it. Yes, it says get a LE therapist, but mine said she doesn't feel comfortable doing the hand, but she did try it on my back once. Anyone know how long it takes to see if it is actually working? We are going ahead with it as we both have good backgrounds in anatomy and sports medicine. He does a nearly perfect job of bandaging, so I trust him with this. I want to give it enough time before I decide whether it is working or not, and therapist only tried once on back for 4 days, and it didn't do anythiing for hand or elbow in that length of time.
Today I am also trying a glove with my Tribue for a couple hours to see if it seems safe to do overnight - I keep waking up with bad finger swellong each morning and suspect the finger compartments may not be comfortabe or helpful enough to send it back for more "customization."
Finding each day easier to accept the diagnosis, easier to work on tratment and self-care, but not easier to accept current status as final - am willing to do the work to continue to improve.0 -
Thank you all so much can't stop the tears because I'm so angry. Are all the sleeve tan coloured heavy and uncomfortable? Why is there nothing light weight and invisible?
I've had terrible pain since the Nodes being removed and now this? Just when I was feeling good about myself and I was on top of my bone pain.
Linda you are a star always there with comforting words, bless you. How is your garden? I'm in mine doing things and I think that's why it's got worse. My problem is I do everything at once. Cut the grass, do washing and ironing, clean the car and vacuum the house all with my bad arm as I'm left handed.
I think because the last 12 months I couldn't do these things I just want to be normal again. Also my surgeon told me last week my outlook wasn't great which cheered me up no end.
Ok enough !! Hope your all doing well.
Is there a list of do's and don't to stop it getting worse? Having given up booze!!!0 -
All68 - I use juzos and they have seasonal colors I like the pink and blues they go with everything I wear but also Lymphedivas have great dressy type sleeves!
http://www.brightlifedirect.com/juzo-tie-dye-compression-armsleeves-20-30mmhg.asp
http://www.brightlifedirect.com/BRAND-LympheDiva-Armsleeves.asp
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Ali, I got mine flared up with gardening, too!!!! I had not problems for a year and a half, then, BAMMM! Just went out for a couple of hours, carried milk jugs to water my plants in (they weigh 8 lbs, NOT 10 lbs, so I was very careful to not exceed the 10-lb limit!!!!), and 2 days later my arm was huge. Was never painful until after starting therapy, hand was never swollen until after starting therapy and trying different garments. Am so understanding your frustration. We should write a book .... LOL.
My herb garden this week:
My "Grumpy Gardener" stone from DH:
Sorry, I know this is about sleeves & gloves, just had to share a little beauty and joy from my life despite the LE issues!
Hoping to get order from Brightlife today; I ordered 1-piece sleeve/gauntlet in both compression I and II, and a separate glove, all Medi95, but the class I are backordered. Am hoping to try both before trip to the beach to see if I can get out of bandages for a few hours a day (or even more). I wonder how much damage I will do or how fare I will set myself back by saying "to hell with it" for an hour each morning for a walk on the beach, early before it gets too hot .... is it worth the pleasure of doing this, enjoying life for a short bit, with how much risk of worsening overall situation?
Anyone using kinesio taping? I saw there were a couple of old threads on this, and should I start a new thread to discuss? I think it was on this thread someone posted the article from one of the LE organizations.
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Linda-n3 - I appreciate your beautiful garden! I know the challenges of gardening with Lymphedema. I've done ALOT of kinesio tape - my LE therapist taught me. Especially on my hand. Mine would start working immediately. After 6 months on and off of taping, fluid is no longer in my hand or fingers! YIPPEE!
I learned some taping techniques on the internet. And I learned to tape when I had Plantar Fasciitis left over from chemo. That worked like a miracle!
The only technique that didn't work for me was going around the fingers like cutting a ring out of the tape and putting it over your fingers. It would make them swell up like sausages.
The technique that worked best for me was taking a piece of tape, cutting it long ways so I had like 2 fingers - attached it about 2 inches below my wrist, then stretching with my hand curled and anchoring it over my fingers. It would be tighter and then work like a pump. It is hard to explain. I hope you can find a video!
Denise
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Since this has long been PURPLE32's thread I thought this might be a good place to pop in and tell you what I've heard from her. She saw her endo yesterday, who will be doing a raft of tests to rule out the scary stuff
and hopefully come up with a diagnosis that has an easy fix
. Please send hugs, prayers, and good thoughts her way, either here or by PM--she's struggling and could sure use our support!THANKS!
Binney0 -
Thank you for your post Binney!!! I think many have been wondering how she's doing. When I log on in the mornings usually her posts are her'e' to greet me. Now, not so much. I miss her. I hope she finds her way back even tho she's feeling low. We're here for her and she needs to know that. Hugs to all and right now, especially to Purple.
Edit to add an 'e' to her to make it here.
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Purple, keeping you in my heart and prayers. Hoping for good outcomes for you. Thank you for starting this thread-you and Binney have been such a tremendous help to so many of us, it's not fair you should have to go through so much more right now, just know you are loved.
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I am sorry as I guess I missed she was having tests, wishing only the best for her, she is so much part of this thread
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Purple - Thinking about you! Can't say it better than Linda-n3 above ... yes, you are very loved.
[[[[[[purple]]]]]]]
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Purple, sending you positive thoughts and wishes for the simplest, easiest-to-deal with answers to what's been troubling you. Keep us posted!
Carol
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Welcome to Ali and all the other gardners that have overdone it while gardening. Love the garden picture. It calms me.
It is really tuff to quit gardening once you get dirty and get so involved. It is so restoritive. Here is my recipe that worked so far, no big flares that lasted.
Usually in the spring wearing LE gear I start out maybe only 20min-1 hour picking up dead leaves etc. After a few days I start the digging but only maybe 5 minutes and then I rotate to another task, maybe weeding 10 min and end up digging again for a few minutes. Eventually I increase the time. All the while I raise my arms above my head and pump my fists 20-25 times and deep breathe once in a while to. Once in the house I try and not do anything strenuous and elevate the arm. It is really hard for me to stop in the garden as I love to be out there and am a confirmed green thumb. Sometimes I get carried away and hope that I have not BLOWN it This year I gave up digging the big veg patch and gave my DH the honor. I have had to really scale back on plants and am considering putting in rock to eliminate all the work in order to save my arms. This is pity because gardening is my first love.
Regarding Purple, she is ever so grateful for a PM. She is having struggles with shoulder not sleeping well plus tests to. I really miss her and hope she pops in for a quick hello.Dang it anyway, when health issues get complicated the road certainly gets rougher.
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Does yoga make Lymphedema worse?
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Purple I have thought about you many times in the past few weeks...wondering where you were.
Hoping for some relief for you on your shoulder issues, much needed sleep & good test results!
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All68 - Yoga, I don't think, should make your LE worse BUT just saying that - every body is different - start out very slow and see - wear sleeves/garments while do any exercise. For me any weights picking up anything over 5 lbs does it to me.. Here are some basic precautionary things to keep in mind:
http://www.stepup-speakout.org/riskreduction_for_lymphedema.htm
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I would think some yoga movements might be a problem (then again some yoga poses are a problem anyway for me!)
but somehow think that yoga is something that is good for all folks, just need to know what you can and can not do!
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Ali, any pose that has you putting full weight on your arm and holding it for any length of time is more likely to cause problems, such as downward facing dog (which I LOVE and really miss!!!), but you can make adjustments, do more standing poses and restorative poses. I am sick of people telling me to "find a good yoga instructor" and they will help, because I live out in a very rural area and it's tough to find ANY yoga instructor, much less one that understands LE. But I did do yoga for 5 of 7 days of my vacation in June, 2 of the instructors were superb, the other just good. I have yoga tapes. I am just very mindful of any stress on the arm. My brain quit working this afternoon, so can't remember the names of some of the poses, but will see if I can find something for you. I actually went to a yoga class for cancer survivors at Gilda's club but it was too soon after treatment for me and it was an hour to get to it and over an hour to get home with city traffic. Is there a discussion thread for yoga anywhere on BCO? If not, maybe we should start one so as not to hijack this one.
Am anxiously awaiting the mail today to see if my order from Brightlife comes. And I see a new LE therapist tomorrow to see if we can get things sorted out. Today, I took each and every piece of LE garment and wrap and wrote notes on it as to what was helpful and what was harmful with each one and with combinations of them and plan to take the whole bagful in to the therapist tomorrow to see if we can come up with a better plan for some short breaks from wrapping. Also have custom Juzo glove and sleeve coming from the fitter, but have little hope the wrist will work.
DH and I did the kinesiotape of hand and fingers as shown on the Step-up-Speak-out site. Denise, you said you responded rapidly - does that mean within days, weeks, or months? I notice that my fingers respond within an hour if I get a good compression glove without wrist compromise, and they swell up within 20 minutes if the wrist gets tight. Hand has been doing better with wrapping and adding an extra foam compression over the top.
I can't remember where I saw it, but one commercial site sells "swell spots" and I wonder if anyone has any experience with them?
(((((Purple))))).0 -
Please check out the exercise handouts on the home page on stepupspeakout.org: http://www.stepup-speakout.org/
They are pdf's on the right hand side, and on the trainer one, it lists specific poses to avoid, this is a wonderful document created by our amazing Carol.
Yoga can make LE worse: avoid downward dog and other poses that put full body weight on the arms, but modify your practice and it can be a great thing to do.
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