can anyone help? embarassing

[breezeharbour]

Hope this is the right place to put this, apologies for any spelling mistakes etc am on my phone.

Will try to keep this short. Left arm has always been bigger than the right. Not really a problem, not obvious. I was a size 12ish before pregnancy so arms were slim enough.

Got pregnant, everywhere ballooned. And for some reason, the left arm became huge. Right still slimmer but the difference was more noticeable (to me at least). A few weeks before birth, I got stretch marks on my left arm :( just the left!

6mo pp and it's now really noticeable. I'm losing the baby weight but despite exercise its not coming off my left arm. It's scarred with stretchmarks and fucking huge compared to the other one. It looks ridiculous. I know it sounds petty but it's making me so miserable.

Has anyone experienced anything like this? I've googled and no one else seems to have it. Does anyone have any tips, am considering surgery but DP says just keep exercising. Am worried next pregnancy it will keep happening. It's really embarassing/upsetting :(

[whatdoIget]

Ive heard of it happening to women who've had lymph glands removed on one side due to breast cancer, then subsequently developed lymphodoema which has caused one arm to swell. Does this apply to you? Or it could be lymphodoema even if you haven't had cancer treatment (I think, but don't know enough about it)
I think you should ask your GP though as its obviously been going on for a while without improving.

[TheCrazyDuchess]

I was going to suggest lipodema (different from lymphodema) but definitely agree with above poster and get to a GP to look at xx

[breezeharbour]

Thank you for your advice.
I've just looked both up and it doesn't look like that, it's not swollen it's almost like it's just loose skin? If I hold my arms out in front of me the skin fully hangs on that arm, like a proper bingo wing. I just don't understand where it's come from.

I don't even know if I'm expecting anyone else to have it, it's just so weird and cringey.

[TheCrazyDuchess]

The excess skin is probably where your arm blew up very quickly - rapid growth tends to damage the skin so it doesn't just "spring" back.

I hope your GP could put your mind at ease xx