Yesterday, I did something I’ve been gearing up to do for a while: I wore a dress with my compression garment! And I have the photos to prove it, too:
I’ve been hoping to do this for a while although working up the courage to finally do it was a struggle. I had been wearing pants and long dresses all year, but with the weather starting to warm up here in Arizona, I didn’t want to suffer from the heat anymore due to my own self-consciousness. So yesterday I bit the bullet: I donned a dress and pulled on my garment and, taking a deep breath, stepped out the door.
I wore the garment all day on my busy college campus and only three people asked about my leg, which genuinely surprised me. When they asked what was “wrong” with it, they did so with genuine concern and were happy to learn about lymphedema. Most people acted as though they didn’t even notice the garment; it felt like an episode of The Twilight Zone because it was so different from my usual experience when wearing it out in the open like that. There were no stares, no discomfort – just general acceptance. It was great!
I’m lucky to be a part of a college community where people are so accepting of differences, because that helped me feel really comfortable wearing my garment. My next step is to wear it out in public, downtown, but that might take a little more gumption. I’m working on it, though – one garment-clad step at a time!
Have you had any milestones lately?
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