A woman says she 'cannot live like this anymore' after spending years suffering from a 'humiliating' health condition which has left her in constant pain.
Stacey Dickens, from Northwich, suffers from Stage 3 lipoedema which causes fat cells to abnormally build up across her body. The 32-year-old says she has gained seven stone throughout many years, despite only eating a single meal a day and laments that she will never get married or gave children because of the condition.
The condition is so severe that Stacey tries to hide from people in the street because of the humiliation she feels. Speaking to Cheshire Live, she said: "I have tried to hide myself for so long. I have been pretending I am someone else.
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"It has got to the point where I hide from people. If I want to go to the supermarket, I go 20 minutes before it closes so I don’t have to see anyone - so I can hobble across the car park in peace.”
Stacey's lipoedema has caused her to gradually gain weight on her limbs over the years despite going through intense dieting and exercise plans. She also suffers from intense pain with bruising and pinched nerves whenever she sits in a certain position for too long.
The self-employed nail technician said she decided to leave employment after being forced to take so many sick days when the pain in her legs made them become 'rock hard'. She added: “People think I’m ‘just fat’ or ‘just overweight’.
"I have lived off one meal a day for years trying not to put on weight but every time I weigh myself I am heavier. It doesn’t affect my hands and feet so my wrists are normal but then my arms aren’t. I get bruises just from wearing leggings - even when they aren’t tight.
"I have starved myself over the years to the point where I now need my gallbladder out. I don’t eat like a normal person. The thought of having three meals a day - I couldn’t do it. Whatever I do, whatever I eat just makes it worse.
“I’m like a little old lady. I can’t kneel on the floor because of the bruising so I know I won’t be able to have kids because I can’t be on the floor or roll around and play with them.
“I don’t want to get married or have kids because it’s going to make it worse. The thought of me in a wedding dress.”
Stacey says her condition began after she went on the coil in her 20's which caused a shift in her hormones. However, by the time she had the contraceptive device removed, she claimed the 'damage was already done'.
“It tends to run in families and my nana had it,” she said. “She didn’t walk for the last 35 years of her life.
“This has consumed my life for the past six years - it has taken the best years of my life. I just don’t go out anymore. I can’t live like this anymore.”
Stacey desperately went to the doctors multiple times due to the condition, however, they believed that all she needed was a better diet and more exercise. Despite this, Stacey claims she was putting on 'two to three pounds a week' in her 20s and even went on a milkshake-only diet for three years.
Her mum eventually took her to the GP with her where a doctor agreed to examine her MyFitneessPal notes to see what could be improved. “She said I couldn’t be doing any more to help myself,” she said.
“It got to the point before the heatwave where I could get in the bath and there would be space around me. But I would get so swollen I couldn’t get out. I had to get my boyfriend to get me out, it was humiliating.”
Soon after, Stacey received her haunting diagnosis and was referred to a surgeon who explained that the treatment she needed was not available on the NHS. Now, Stacey is hoping to self-fund her operations which she will need to travel to Madrid before.
However, Stacey is in a race against time as she needs the surgery before the condition spreads to her lymphatic system. If this happens, she will no longer be able to have the damaged cells safely removed which will result in the condition worsening, potentially restricting her movements.
She claims she is already unable to bend her legs as they 'look and feel like they will burst'. She added: "I am not ready to admit defeat yet.
"Literally everyday life is a struggle currently, even getting around the house. The thought of being in a wheelchair before I’m 40 isn’t how I thought I’d spend my life. Without surgery, this is the way it’s heading.
“I feel like I have got someone else’s body now, it has completely taken over my life. I don’t want to live like this anymore.” The operations alone could cost Stacey around £25,000 - she also hopes to get a machine which will help drain her lymphatic system to keep her condition stable once the surgery is completed.
“The fat can’t be metabolised,” she said. “It’s just there and the only way to have it sorted is to have it removed.” She has now bravely come out about her condition on social media.
To donate to Stacey’s fundraiser, follow the link here .
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