Thank you all for your kind notes and support following my surgery last Thursday. (If you missed last week's newsletter, click here for the lowdown.) I feel great and honestly have been since I left the recovery room! There's no pain at the incision site and I'm getting around well on my crutches, even if I'm counting the days (7!) until my sutures come out and I can walk again! 

At 7:30 a.m. ET this morning, I am undergoing a lymphovenous anastomosis (LVA), which is a microscopic sugical procedure to bypass my lymphatic veins into my circulatory veins. We're talking about veins that are the width of human hair (!!!). The goal is to create "exits" for the lymphatic fluid in my left leg to alleviate the swelling and achy, heavy feeling I constantly experience. Although there is no cure for lymphedema, I'm cautiously optimistic about the results.

On March 6, 2023, I had never heard of lymphedema or World Lymphedema Day, yet I was mere days away from exhibiting the symptoms. On March 6, 2024, I was just getting over my denial and out of hiding. Check out the short video I filmed around that time. Today, I'm proud to celebrate lymphedema and help to spread awareness about this chronic condition. Thank you all for your support.

I shut off the faucet, took off my dish gloves, and paused the audiobook. I opened the junk drawer and took out paper and a pen to write down the quote I had just heard: "The stories you choose to tell are the stories that make up who you are." When I heard this, I thought: "Whoa. I'm going to use that one day." That was last week, so I just didn't realize how soon that would be.