Puberty is universally recognized as the worst time in every adolescent's life. Any small embarrassment is a million times more awful when you're dealing with peer pressure, schoolwork, and changing bodies all at once. I remember being particularly traumatized by the overwhelming acne I suffered thanks to some bad luck in my gene pool. My brother? He maybe got a blemish or two, but me — it was like a minefield on my face all throughout middle and high school.
However, that seems like a petty thing to complain about now that I've seen what this poor woman had to endure after being diagnosed with a rare, debilitating disease at age 15. Meagan Barnard woke up one morning to notice her foot was slightly swollen. Since it didn't hurt at the time, she brushed it aside and thought nothing of it. Unfortunately, the swelling didn't stop there.
After several visits to the doctor, it was confirmed she was suffering from a condition called lymphedema.
As a teenager, the news was devastating.
The lymph node in her right leg either never developed fully in puberty or was injured in some way around the same time. This means the fluid that would normally be processed instead remains retained within her leg, causing her to carry around up to three liters of excess fluid on a daily basis.
It got so bad that by the time she was 20 years old, she seriously considered taking her own life. Barnard went so far as to write a note to her father explaining she was "going to end it."
Barnard hid her condition from others for over 10 years.
She refused to wear anything other than large, baggy pants to conceal her leg, never daring to wear a dress or skirt after someone at her school called her "the Michelin man." Barnard was even able to keep her leg hidden from her boyfriend for six months by using some clever tricks to obscure the condition.
When she finally revealed the truth to him, he had no idea she had been keeping something from him at all.
But now, she isn't hiding anything anymore.
After going public with the condition and allowing everyone to finally see her leg, she feels like a weight has been lifted. However, in order to obtain surgical treatment that would make that more of a reality, she needs to raise several thousand dollars.
Insurance companies deem the liposuction, which would potentially cure Barnard of the achey joints and extreme pain she endures every day, as a cosmetic procedure and therefore refuse to help with payment.
So, she's hoping to raise the money herself.
Currently, her only treatment is painfully wrapping her leg in cushions and ace bandages as well as using a compression machine for an hour every day, all of which does little to actually relieve her symptoms. As an aspiring model, she hopes that sharing her story and photos will inspire other youngsters going through the same daunting diagnosis not to go down the same dark path she did.
You can hear more from Barnard in the video below and help her reach her goal by donating to her GoFundMe account.
And please be sure to SHARE this story with your friends and family who may be able to lend a hand as well!
