Yes, you did read that correctly ~ I do indeed have leaking legs! Granted, the photo above is a slight exaggeration of what is happening to my own legs but it was the best image I could find online, as I really didn't want to inflict a photo of my own pair of pins on you LOL
So I went to see my GP yesterday since I figured it couldn't really be quite right to have leaking legs. She told me that I have folliculitis, which is basically an inflammation of the hair follicles, commonly caused by shaving. I think I may have set it off when I shaved my legs last weekend, as I used a new razor and managed to cut myself. She prescribed a week's course of antibiotics, so hopefully it will clear up soon.
She has also put me on a diuretic, as my feet and ankles have been swollen for a while now. I am suffering with dry skin in various places over my body since I entering these delightful menopausal years, and my lower legs/ankles/tops of feet seem to get particularly bad. The area feels even more itchy when the skin is stretched with the water retention and often I find that I start to scratch before I can stop myself. I think I may have damaged the skin somewhat, which the shaving has probably exacerbated *sigh*
Of course, I probably wouldn't get the fluid retention (or at least, it wouldn't be so bad) if I were to lose weight. Yes, it's back to that old topic yet again, I'm afraid. I can't pretend to myself any longer that I am going to be okay just carrying on the way I have been. In my heart-of-hearts I also know that I really do have a "problem" with wheat ~ I think the bloating and skin irritations when I eat a lot of bread, etc, would rather prove the point, don't you? It's just so hard to make the changes I know need to be made, changes that will have to be for a lifetime rather than a quick fix. I'm having other issues as well, such as the IBS occurring more frequently, my back pain not going away, and recently my knees/hips have started to ache much more than they ever have done before.
I am currently the heaviest I have ever been; I never dreamed I would get to weigh this much! I am scared, too, that if I do manage to lose the weight I will be left with masses of ugly sagging skin ~ but, of course, I can't deny that I have brought it all upon myself by not tackling the problem years ago. I will just have to hope that if I manage to lose all the weight that I need to and find that as a result I am left with loose skin, then perhaps I will be able to have it removed. If not, then I will just have to live with it ~ at least being so much slimmer will be healthier.
I'll let you know how I decide to tackle this once-and-for-all in an upcoming post :-)