Palliative care is my passion. It was a career I had always wanted to pursue after my beloved grandfather died of throat cancer all alone on a busy, general ward, miles away from home and the family who loved him dearly. I have always wanted to try and right that wrong. I joined a hospice […]
Discovering Lipoedema while working as a therapist Read More »
The decision by NICE [The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence] that there is not enough evidence to provide treatment and support for this life-changing condition is wrong. Please, NICE, come and spend a day in my shoes. When I was diagnosed with Lipoedema in July 2023, it came as a complete shock. However,
‘Please, NICE, come and spend a day in my shoes’ Read More »
As a child, I was sporty, did a lot of Highland dancing and did suffer growing pains for a time. As a teenager, I went to the nearest academy, but at 12 or 13, I was off school for around three months because I was not feeling well (I did have an accompanying raised temperature).
Pai Masendu says the London Marathon is an experience she’ll never forget. Will she do it again? ‘If I manage to get liposuction, then I’ll consider another marathon,” she said. ‘But for now, I’ll stick to half marathons.’ Pai was diagnosed with Lipoedema after many years of being told she was obese. ‘I hated my
In my early teens, I was told by a consultant at St Thomas’s hospital that my ‘large and lumpy’ legs were just puppy fat, and that they would go ‘back to normal’ after puberty. They never did, and it wasn’t long before I was trialling every diet invented in my attempts to change the appearance
After being diagnosed with Lipoedema in 2011, Suzanne Evans set up Lipoedema UK with the support of Professor Mortimer and his team at St George’s Hospital. This is her story. In 1979, I was 14 years old and the dreadfully sexist single, Nice Legs, Shame About Her Face by The Monks, was at no 19
NHS Stars Series ‘Having had my second leg operation, I continue to wear full leg compression underneath my scrubs’ Last year consisted of a lot of change for me. I graduated from Brighton University with a degree in Midwifery, I was single for the first time in five years, and I was adjusting to my
Reflecting on Covid, working as a midwife, and Lipoedema Read More »
I was born in Johannesburg, South Africa, the middle child of three siblings. As I approached puberty, I noticed I had much heavier legs than my friends. I had been teased relentlessly at school about my ‘elephant’s legs’, and I found this very hurtful and, as a result, I didn’t mix very well with others,
Hi, I’m Jenny. I am 39 years old and I have Lipoedema. My first memory of feeling different was when I was 10 years old at primary school. A friend was carrying me ‘piggy back’ style around the playground when another friend said, ‘Urgh, put her down! Her big knees make me sick.’ That comment
Neither my friend nor I had seen legs like mine in 25 years of working in the NHS, and I now realise that it was because we weren’t looking for a medical condition. Over the years, I had become convinced by other medical professionals that the way my legs were was my responsibility. I was
