Why Won’t the Weight Come Off?

Keri Dryer and her husband Wes welcomed a Boone baby 12 years ago, their daughter Maddie. Keri started to gain a lot of weight with her pregnancy, but it seemed like a different kind of weight gain.

Then post pregnancy, Keri noticed she couldn’t lose weight in certain areas of her body. In fact, she noticed her body was getting larger, no matter how active she was. She didn’t know it at the time, but she was in the beginning stages of lipedema, a chronic condition characterized by an abnormal accumulation of fat tissue in the lower body, typically the legs, hips and buttocks. Because hormonal imbalances are believed to be one of the factors of lipedema, Keri believes her pregnancy is what kick-started the lipedema in her body. 

Lipedema is not related to obesity and is often misdiagnosed. The exact cause of lipedema is unknown; however, it is believed to be a genetic predisposition combined with hormonal factors. Common symptoms include painful or tender fat pads, swelling, especially in the lower legs, easy bruising, dimpling appearance of the skin, and an increased risk of lymphedema (swelling due to fluid buildup).

Lipedema is more common in women than men and is believed to affect about 11% of adult women worldwide, although prevalence is hard to determine due to the condition being underdiagnosed and often mistaken for obesity or lymphedema.

Even though Keri continued to struggle with her weight loss, she chocked it up to just aging and not being able to lose weight. Keri suffered with lipedema for close to a decade before finding relief. During that time, simple things like walking long distances were hard. Her legs would get really tired and heavy feeling, her knees would buckle and bow in, and she suffered from a lot of back and hip pain. 

With lipedema, the accumulation of fat tissues become hard nodules under the skin and are painful to the touch. Keri would bruise easily, and she found running difficult because she could feel all the pain from the nodules in her legs, hips and buttocks. 

“In 2023, someone at my work had a friend who had previously been through lipedema treatments and wondered if I had the same thing,” Keri said. “I had never heard of lipedema before, and I got in contact with the friend to find out more about it.”

In January 2024, Keri had her initial appointment with Thomas Wright, MD of Laser Lipo & Vein Center in O’Fallon, MO. After doing a thorough evaluation and taking pictures, Keri was officially diagnosed with lipedema. She had suffered with it for nearly 11 years. 

Unfortunately for Keri, her journey to relief was only just beginning. At that time, her insurance required quite a bit of hoops to jump through before agreeing to surgery, because lipedema was still not as well known. Keri had to have six months of actively trying to lose weight, she had to receive a second diagnosis, and she had to try weight loss remedies.

While she was doing the extra work over those six months, Dr. Wright recommended a Manual Lymphatic Drainage (MLD) therapist and told Keri that this would be very helpful in bringing her some relief from the pain until they were approved for surgery to remove the diseased tissue. 

Dr. Wright provided Keri with MLD therapists she could see, and it included a therapist from Boone Health. Excited to see a therapist from Boone Health, Keri made an appointment with Monica List, an occupational therapist and started seeing her in February 2025. MLD therapy is a gentle massage that reduces swelling and lymphedema. MLD can also be effective when combined with other therapies, such as compression garments and exercise.

“I scheduled weekly appointments with Monica and remember telling her after the first time she worked on my legs how much lighter I felt,” Keri said. “I was able to walk out of that appointment more comfortable.”

After six months, Dr. Wright and his team submitted all the documentation to insurance and waited. In July 2024, the insurance company responded, approving four of the five surgeries Dr. Wright had recommended. 

In August 2024, Keri had her first surgery on her inner thighs. Similar to liposuction, Dr. Wright used a device to break up the buildup of fatty tissue and suction it out of her body. After her first surgery, Dr. Wright removed nine liters (approximately 20 pounds) of diseased tissue from Keri’s inner thighs. 

After her surgery, Keri continued to see Monica during her time of recovery and found the visits helpful. Continuing to see Monica really helped Keri rebound the fastest post-surgery. 

In October 2024, Keri had her outer thighs and hips done, and then in December was her calves. She did take a little bit of a break, because as Keri puts it, it is a little bit taxing having to go to back-to-back surgeries and then to go through the recovery process. But in April 2025, she had her arms done. In September, Keri got the approval from her insurance company to have her 5th surgery, which was completed in November. 

Because Keri also had lymphedema, Monica was able to help Keri get fitted for compression pumps which she uses on her legs one-to-two times each day for one hour. This is a medical device that inflates with air to stimulate fluid movement and reduce swelling. It helps with lymphatic drainage, blood flow and moving fluid out of congested areas. 

“I’m in a good maintenance phase right now,” Keri said. “I eat a lower carbohydrate diet by eliminating carbs and starches from my diet which helps reduce inflammation, I use my compression pumps daily, wear compression garments as needed, and know Monica is just a call away if I need a therapy session.” 

And her weight is coming down. Keri says that she has finally started losing weight which has helped her feel stronger, better and healthier than she has in years. 

Even though lipedema can activate again with hormonal changes such as menopause, Keri’s not worried because she plans on continuing her active lifestyle, diet and compression. 

Keri’s success comes from finding the right care team. She feels blessed for being able to do some research and find Dr. Wright and Monica. Monica was able to help her understand what was going to happen along the way, and that was a huge part of her healing process. 

“If I know what to do and how to combat it, and I feel confident in my care team, then I’m going to feel confident in myself,” Keri said. 

Before her surgeries, Keri would struggle to keep up during family walks and they would have to slow down to keep her pace. Now, on family walks, Keri’s husband struggles to keep up with her!

The biggest change for Keri is how much more energy she has. She feels stronger and healthier, and has more energy than she had in her 20s. Before, it was painful for Keri to sit down and then get up, and now, she’s able to be outside with her daughter playing sports, which is very important to Keri. She’s finally checking items off her bucket list. It’s also been a positive boost for her mental health. 

Keri shares, “If you’ve been struggling with weight loss and have noticed disproportioned limbs, I would highly recommend finding a care team who specializes in lipedema. Many doctors are still not educated enough in the disease, and your suffering does not have to remain permanent. Women around the US (and world) have traveled, right here to Missouri, for treatment. Advocate for yourself and see your health transform before your eyes.”

“Honestly, I’m grateful for the opportunity this disease has provided me,” Keri said. “I use my social media platforms to share what a day-to-day life looks like living with lipedema. I feel blessed to have met other women who are now having their lives changed through the diagnosis of lipedema.”  By Erin Wegner

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