Hey friends,

It’s been a quiet week in lipedema news. Check out the July Research Roundtable and learn how you may be able to participate in research if you’re in London. My essay is about the grief that comes with a lipedema diagnosis, and I’d also love your book recommendations.

I was excited when I got my lipedema diagnosis. I know it may sound strange, but after so many years of not understanding my own body, of doing what I was told and watching it not work, someone finally handed me an answer.

I felt so much relief after getting that diagnosis. I spent a great deal of time learning everything I could about lipedema and how to manage it. What I didn't see coming was what getting that diagnosis would slowly take from me.

I started to realize something.

I had been trying to make these legs smaller since I was a teenager, and I always believed that one day I would figure it out. The thin body I always wanted would eventually happen. It was only a matter of time. I just hadn't found the right approach yet.

Over time, I came to understand that the body I'd been working toward since I was a teenager was never going to exist. Nobody warns you about this part.

This grief is so strange. You're mourning a person who never existed, and never will. And lipedema makes it stranger, because the condition itself is so visible.

Whether the realization came slowly as mine did or hit you all at once, you're allowed to mourn the body you thought you'd have. You can be relieved and devastated at the same time, and most of us who've been through this were both.

So if you got your answer and then happiness turned into grief, you're not alone. There’s an entire community that gets it.

Do you love a good book? I’m currently listening to Dungeon Crawler Carl and love it so much. I also recently got the Kobo Libra Colour eReader. I love it because it will link directly to the Libby app, making it super easy to borrow books from my local library. I’m trying to decide what my first book to read on the Kobo will be. Hit reply and leave your recommendations. I’d love to know what you’re reading.

*The above links are not affiliate links. I will always let you know if I’m sharing any links that are monetized.

Thanks for reading.

Hit reply and tell me one thing you'd like to see in future issues. A topic, a question, a resource you wish more women knew about. Anything.

I read every reply.

See you next Friday. 💜

April

P.S.

If you’d like to share some of your lipedema journey in a future Lippy Notes, let me know by clicking reply.