Approximately 4 weeks ago my ankles suddenly began retaining fluid. Not just any fluid but lymphatic fluid. Nothing had changed in my diet, nothing had changed in life. I tried all the usual remedies for helping my poor feet. At first I assumed I had sprained my ankles, so I used ice packs…. which did not help. I tried using heat…. didn’t help either. I tried new insoles for my shoes…. big mistake. The insoles only made my feet hurt worse. I tried elevating my feet… still didn’t help any. My ankles and feet were the same size when I woke up in the morning, as they were in the evening….. something was seriously wrong. I had also developed a dry hacking cough.
After a week of swollen ankles I sought out the help of the medical field. I went to see my Primary Care Physician (PCP). After looking at my ankles he determined I must have thyroid issues, especially due to the family history of thyroid issues. They drew blood to run tests and would call me with the results the next day. The test results came back negative for any thyroid conditions…. the diagnosis was to take 3 ibuprofen 3 times a day……. I doubted ibuprofen was the answer to the problem.
I consulted others in the medical profession who also had their doubts about the ibuprofen remedy. I stopped taking the ibuprofen shortly there after. Especially after noticing the warning on the bottle advising against pregnant and breast feeding mothers from taking the medication.
My condition continued to deteriorate for the next two weeks. With each passing day my feet were becoming more enlarged from the fluid retention. It became so bad I was no longer able to wear my tennis shoes…. eventually my sandals were unable to fit on my feet. My women’s size 8 1/2 feet were so large I could only fit into a men’s size 12 flip flop…. even then the straps cut into the top of my feet causing pain. Around the same time the swelling was moving up my legs toward my knees. My knees became sore and I was unable to bend them without excruciating pain.
At the three week mark I sought the help of an Internal Medicine Doctor. Dr. Behrend initially thought based on the edema in my legs and ankles I had a heart condition. Post Partum Mycopathy was the diagnosis, but in order to know for sure he scheduled an Echo cardiogram for the next day. The dry cough was still a mystery, a chest x-ray was taken to get a better look at the lungs.
Shortly after the echo cardiogram was completed I received a call from the doctors office with the results of the chest x-ray. The x-ray revealed “enlarged” lymph nodes between my lungs. On the x-ray the heart was not enlarged, and looked normal. Due to the enlarged lymph nodes a CT scan was scheduled, and more blood work was ordered.
I had the CT scan and it confirmed what the chest x-ray had already shown. There were enlarged lymph nodes between my lungs. The doctor diagnosed me with Sarcoidosis. Sarcoidosis is an autoimmune disease which happens when immune cells produce antibodies that attack your own body’s cells. It results in inflammation of different tissues and organs in the body. In my case it appears in the lymph nodes.
After being diagnosed with Sarcoidosis the doctor prescribed a steroid, Prednisone, to reduce the swelling in the lymph nodes. He said it would also allow the lymph nodes to recover and drain the fluid that had built up in my legs.
There was a concern that it could also be Lymphoma, a cancer of the lymph nodes. In order to 100% rule out lymphoma, a biopsy would need to take place. The best place to remove a portion of the lymph node was do have a medianstinoscopy. With the medianstinoscopy they placed an incision at the top of my breast bone, and went down along side the windpipe and removed a lymph node. The surgery was performed the next day. The surgery went very well, but my body did not like the anesthesia. After being woken up I proceed to throw up….. twice……
After being in the hospital for 8 hours, I was finally allowed to go home. I’m recovering nicely. The incision rarely hurts, but where they put the 3 IVs in…. that’s another story. I have enormous bruises on both hand and wrists.
I see a pulmonologist on Monday to do a breath test and consult with the doctor.
Right now the incision is starting to itch…. which means it must be healing.
Good night all…..

