Some miscellaneous updates here with no real punchlines, all regarding lymphedema, my new new hobby – my old new hobby having been cancer. (I guess moving from a deadly disease to an annoying lifelong condition is progress…??)

I exchanged email with the doc at another clinic (UCSD) who I mentioned in my previous post. He responded quickly, stating that he is new to UCSD and is still in the process of obtaining the surgical equipment he needs for this procedure. While that’s not exactly reassuring, I still think seeing him first (the only local doc I’ve found trained in these techniques) is my best first step. I can grill him for more info and opinions, find out whether or not I’m a candidate, etc. As I mentioned in my previous post, my current clinic faxed all my info over to UCSD so I’ll call on Monday to see if I can get an appointment.

I visited a new lymphedema therapist, outside of the hospital system (read: pay out of pocket). I liked her, and she seemed competent, but surprise surprise, she was two weeks away from moving to NorCal. Yay. She was the first therapist to see me since I’ve been wearing the compression garments, and she was unhappy with them – the gauntlet was biting in to the web between my middle and ring fingers, and the base of the gauntlet was constricting my wrist. Both of these things are bad.

So the next day I visited the medical supply store and picked up a gauntlet from a different manufacturer. It is better but still not perfect; I’m now putting padding between my fingers, and it helps a little but it’s not perfect.. The vendor says people with long, thin fingers (like mine) have the toughest time with gloves. Once I get the whole thing dialed in I’ll probably end up with a custom glove. Also need to figure out what insurance is going to cover since, damn, these things are expensive.

The garment vendor woman, who is rapidly becoming my new BFF, told me that one of the best lymphedema therapists in San Diego is the owner of Beauty Kliniek, which is ironic – this is the spa that is around the corner from my old house in University City. In fact I got my mani/pedi at that place the day of my wedding. So, another phone call to make next week…