My personal experience with the condition Lipedema
To give you an idea of how I work, I believe it's important to provide insight into my personal "lipedema story." I only discovered that I had lipedema around my thirties. However, when I look back at photos from my teenage years or recall the symptoms I began experiencing during that time, it's clear that I've been dealing with lipedema since my teenage years.
To give you an idea of how I work, it’s important for me to share my personal “lipedema story.” I only discovered I had lipedema around my thirties, but looking back at photos from my teenage years or recalling the symptoms I experienced during that time, it’s clear that I’ve been dealing with lipedema since my teenage years.
As a teenage girl, I despised my thick legs.
They were different from my friends’ legs—bulkier and seemingly disproportionate to my upper body. Although now, I would do anything to have those legs I had as a young girl, back then, I found them dreadful. I loathed my legs!
I vividly remember the advice I received from my doctor when I tried to understand why my legs were different from those of the girls around me. “You’re retaining water, nothing to worry about. Elevate your legs in the evenings and reduce salt intake,” or “Here’s a referral for compression stockings. And maybe cut down on sweets?” Utterly useless advice, and not once did any doctor examine my legs to truly understand what was going on. I didn’t feel understood. Frustrated and alone, I just wanted to be like everyone else. As a teenager, you don’t want to stand out.
Even though science still doesn’t fully understand the triggers for lipedema or why some women develop it while others don’t, it seems clear that hormones play a role. In my case, it was a period of hormonal fluctuations during which my symptoms increased significantly. During my pregnancies with my two sons, not only did I start expanding enormously, but the pain in my legs became unbearable. At that time, we lived above my workshop where I worked as an automotive upholsterer, and climbing those stairs felt endless at times. Yet, still, nobody could tell me where my symptoms were coming from…
Finally, my legs were given a name.
Until I coincidentally ended up at a physiotherapist after a roller derby accident, who remarked during one of my treatments: “There’s something wrong with your legs.” “Yes, I know,” I replied, “I retain water.” “No,” he said, “I think you have a form of edema. And probably the worst kind; Lipedema.” For the first time in over 20 years, someone put a name to my legs, to my symptoms. When I got home, I immediately sat down at the computer to learn more about this, until then, unknown condition to me. And it was as if everything fell into place. I recognized myself in all the symptoms described. There was no doubt anymore, I have lipedema.
It felt incredibly liberating for me to finally know what was going on with my thick legs after over 20 years. But now what? How do I move forward? Is there a solution? My online search in the beginning was discouraging. You’ll just have to learn to live with it was the prevailing message. I couldn’t believe that there was nothing to be done. After weeks of searching, I came across messages about a manual therapy that miraculously was also offered here in the Netherlands. The reviews sounded promising. I immediately made an appointment, but even then, there was already a waiting list. So when I finally got an intake appointment with Alyna Eekema, I was filled with anticipation. But Alyna quickly put me at ease. And even though that first treatment was far from painless, I’ll never forget how I felt afterward. As I walked back to Central Station, my legs felt like they were half their weight. As if I was walking on clouds. My legs had never felt like this. I noticed immediate relief. This moment truly marked a turning point in my life.
It didn’t take long for me to realize that this was where my future lay. All women with lipedema should experience this relief. I soon decided not to invest my savings in treatments, but instead, I chose to undergo the four-year training to become a Quadrivas therapist. And in 2017, the time had finally come. After ten years, I quit my business as an automotive upholsterer and opened my practice as a Quadrivas therapist.
A holistic view of Lipedema.
As of now, in 2024, my practice has been around for over six years. In this period, I have assisted hundreds of women in their battle against the debilitating condition of lipedema. During this time, I have gained a tremendous amount of experience and developed my own method for tackling lipedema. By combining my personal experience as a lipedema patient, my own journey, with the experiences of all those women I have treated, it has become clear to me that an optimal recovery from lipedema requires a holistic approach, addressing both the physical and mental aspects of lipedema. So, Body, Mind, and Spirit. One cannot exist without the other. From this, the ‘Holistic Lipedema Method’ emerged, where, in addition to a golden combination of two manual massage therapies, we also focus on the lifestyle of the patients. We approach lipedema from all four directions, to achieve optimal results:
- The Golden Combination
- A Sustainable Eating Pattern
- The Power of Movement
- Unity of Body and Mind
That’s my personal story as an expert by experience.
For a specific insight into our holistic treatment method where the above four pillars come together, you can click the button below.
