Doctors with ambitions

I work with a variety of ages, women and men, with a variety of diagnosis. Some of those diagnosis include: various types of cancers, chronic venous insufficiency, lymphedema, phlebolymphedema and chronic wounds. 

Too many of my clients come into my office with the same complaint: “Why did it take me so long to find someone who could help me?.” They discuss physical issues such as: swelling in legs/arms, which affects their ability to fit into normal shoes or clothes. They report multiple infections which cause them to be hospitalized or frequent the Emergency Room (ER). Clients also report difficulty with standing and sitting for prolonged postures which affects their ability to work or participate in many basic activities. My clients also discuss difficulties not only coping with a chronic disease such as lymphedema or chronic wounds but how frustrated they are with the lack of awareness regarding lymphedema in both the medical and civilian communities.

My most favorite love is the opportunity to empower clients to reconnect with their body, maximize their function and independence in management of their disease processes. I love to see them put on their compression garments and shoes and walk out! 

The frustration from lack of understanding from my medical community regarding lymphedema diagnosis and its treatment. It is infuriating how little most people know; far too many people suffer too long before they ever get treatment. 

In a typical day I start work at 8 am and usually don’t leave till 6 pm. I wear a few hats as I have my own physical therapy office inside a vein center, Lymphwell. The spectrum of my duties involve: working with lymphedema and wound care clients, office manager duties, as well as clinic marketer. I am fortunate to work alongside physicians and medical staff that specialize in treating patients that have venous insufficiency. I also consult for a home health company and serve as a supervising physical therapist to one of the only home health companies in the central Texas region.

Since L&R offers the most comprehensive line of bandaging, lymphedema and wound care products I use so many of their products. Some examples include: Rosdial K, Cellona Plaster of Paris, Idealabinde, Debrisoft and products of the “Solaris Collection” like TributeNight, ReadyWrap, Exo­Strong and ExoFusion.

The body is a so smartly designed, and all of it fascinates me; so it seems endless on things I want to learn. With that said; I have been a lymphedema specialist for 15 years and I believe there is so much more to learn regarding lymphatic system and how crucial it is to so many systems in our body. I am most passionate to learn more on how the lymphatic systems role in immune response and especially its role with chronic wound healing.

I am particularly interested in helping others learn how to treat lymphedema. We are now able to visualize the superficial lymphatic system which is exciting. With that said, there is still a large gap of information when it comes to research and lymphatics. I would love to contribute to the understanding of how to best prescribe compression dosage to a variety of shape, sized bodies as well as various tissue qualities so clinicians can achieve maximum results for their clients. I also would love to contribute to best practice recommendations for patients with chronic wounds and phlebolymphedema.

Cure for lymphedema! At a minimum, much better awareness on lymphedema and its treatment!