Heidi’s Story
Heidi is a 40-year old nurse who works in a hospital setting in Dallas and lives an active life. So when her legs and feet began aching at night a few years ago, she just assumed it was work-related. On her feet for hours at a time in her position as an ICU nurse (a job she’s held for two decades!), Heidi just dealt with the discomfort and didn’t think too much more about it.
But when she was diagnosed with an autoimmune disorder in 2019, Heidi was doing her due diligence by working through a checklist of things her doctor recommended she do to stay as healthy as possible. “The condition puts me at an increased risk for blood clots, so my doctor recommended I see a vascular doctor as a preventive measure,” she said.
Heidi did some asking around among her peers and decided to make an appointment at The Vein Center at Lam Vascular & Associates. When she met with Dr. Russell Lam, he performed some diagnostic testing and determined she had significant venous insufficiency. “In fact, my veins were dilated up to three times larger than they should have been,” said Heidi. “I was shocked.”
Dr. Lam scheduled an ablation procedure, first on her right leg and a few weeks later, on her left. “I was retaining five pounds of fluid in my legs!” said Heidi. “Almost immediately, I felt better and my feet and legs no longer ached at the end of the day. The crazy thing is, I’m a nurse, and I didn’t even know there was something wrong!”
Today, Heidi has taken up running again, something she stopped doing years ago because of leg pain. “I really underestimated the impact this simple procedure would have on my quality of life,” she said. “I’m just so glad I went to Lam Vascular to get checked out.”
“I used to experience stiffness, three hours of throbbing feet at the end of a long shift and I just thought I had big legs,” she said with a shrug. “Now, I feel great and my legs look great, too!”
Heidi marvels at how simple the ablation procedure was. “It didn’t hurt at all and there was no downtime,” she said. “It’s amazing how such a small procedure can have such a dramatic impact!”
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Heidi was so impressed with her experience with the Lam Vascular team. “Not only was the procedure simple and painless, but the staff is so great,” she said. “They are very responsive, always get back to me quickly and I really appreciate that I see the same people every time I’m there. They know me by name and they know what’s going on with me.”
At The Vein Center at Lam Vascular & Associates, we love Heidi’s story because it illustrates not only the importance of vascular health but how vascular issues can be hidden and symptoms unnoticed. Think you may have an undetected vascular issue? Or dealing with varicose veins? Reach out to The Vein Center at Lam Vascular & Associates today.
