One thing that frustrated me most after Lipedema spread to my arms in my mid-30s was that no matter how consistently I lifted weights, the muscles I was building stayed hidden beneath diseased tissue. That changed after surgery. One of the biggest reasons I chose my surgeon was his unique awake approach. During surgery, I was actually flexing my arms so he could carefully sculpt around the natural muscle contours rather than simply removing tissue. We also treated my axilla (underarm) area and the bra bulge along my upper back, which completely changed how my arms and upper body look. The muscles were always there. They were just hidden. Today I still lift because strength matters to me. Surgery didn’t replace the work… it finally allowed the work I’d been putting in for years to show. For anyone living with Lipedema… I know how discouraging it can feel when your body doesn’t seem to reflect your effort. Don’t stop taking care of yourself. 💜 #Lipedema #LipedemaAwareness #StrengthTraining #LipedemaSurgery #WomensHealth