A Perth mother had always dismissed her unexplainably bruised legs until a shock diagnosis finally offered answers.
Registered nurse and personal trainer Taylor O’Malley discovered just two weeks ago that her years of leg bruising were a result of little known condition, lipoedema.
The 30-year-old woman posted about her diagnosis in a now viral TikTok video, explaining in the caption that she had ‘always felt strongly it was abnormal how easily I bruise’.
‘My legs constantly look [bruised] and I can’t even explain how most of the bruises got there,’ she said in the video, which has been viewed over 12.1 million times.
‘Easy bruising is one of the main symptoms of lipoedema. It all makes sense now.
‘There’s no way to stop the bruising but at least I know I’m not crazy.’
According to Health Direct, Lipoedema is a chronic (long-term) health condition that causes an abnormal build up of adipose (fatty) tissue in the body. It most often affects the legs, thighs and buttocks.
The condition is believed to affect around one in nine females in Australia.
Perth mother Taylor O’Malley, 30, pictured with daughter Abigail, had her constant bruising and bigger, uneven toned legs dismissed as ‘normal for her and her body’
Ever since she was a teenager, Taylor, 30 has struggled with unexplainable bruising on her legs
While there’s no known cause of lipoedema and no specific medical test to diagnose the condition, there are numerous common symptoms, including bruising easily, build-up of fatty tissue, leg pain and swelling of the legs.
FEMAIL spoke to Taylor about how she finally found out about the condition and why it took so long to confirm she had it.
The nurse said she’d always had ‘really chunky legs compared to my waist’ ever since her teenage years – and simply put down the uneven appearance of her thighs as ‘bad cellulite’.
‘It just never really went away with diet or exercise, even though I’ve always been very fit and active,’ Taylor said.
‘I was always able to lose weight from my waist but never really from my legs.’
In hindsight, Taylor says the most obvious missed symptom however was the constant bruising on her legs.
‘It was a running joke among my friends about how I always had bruised legs,’ she said.
The health care worker said she’d dismissed the bruises until a few years ago after falling pregnant with her first child. Suddenly, she noticed she was bruising more easily than usual.
Lipoedema often occurs hormonal changes like puberty, pregnancy, IVF or menopause.
Perth mother Taylor O’Malley, pictured here with her children Abigail and Nash, told FEMAIL that it was only recently that she learnt she had chronic health condition, lipoedema
Although initially disheartened by the chronic health condition diagnosis, the registered nurse and personal trainer is adapting to lipoedema management options, which includes low intensity exercises
Despite raising her concerns with doctors, her blood tests showed no anomalies and doctors advised Taylor that her bruises were simply what was ‘normal for her and her body’.
The penny finally dropped for Taylor when she chanced upon an Instagram post shared by a woman who had lipoedema.
Discussing the possibility with her GP, Taylor said the doctor admitted to knowing very little about the condition – but connected her with several specialists in the area.
Eventually, a physiotherapist specialising in lipoedema examined Taylor.
‘Since I was diagnosed, everything in my life now makes sense,’ she said.
The confirmation was a bittersweet moment. On the one hand, Taylor said it was ‘disheartening’ knowing she would never achieve the ‘long, lean legs’ she’d always been working hard to achieve, and would probably always feel self-conscious wearing a swimsuit.
But on the flip side, it meant she now had clarity around the best management approach.
Although lipoedema is a chronic and incurable condition, Taylor said she is embracing a range of health, lifestyle and medications management options.
Taylor has pivoted her personal training and online health coaching business to specialise in helping others going through similar lipoedema health journeys
‘You have to wear compression pants every single day and perform lymphatic drainage massage,’ Taylor explained.
‘The Mediterranean diet is also proven to help, so you want to be removing carbs from your diet.
‘Exercise is important, but it should be low intensity exercise, like walking instead of running.
‘I’ve also been recommended to use a vibration plate for 10 to 20 minutes a day to help lymphatic flow and drainage.’
She said there has also been recent discussion around the potential benefits of semalgutide injections, like Ozempic and Mounjaro, but was yet to personally explore it.
‘The last resort is liposuction to remove the fatty cells,’ said Taylor.
‘That’s a path I really don’t want to go down until a lot later in life if I have to.’
For now, Taylor said her diagnosis has also sparked a pivot in her personal training and online health coaching business, inspiring her to focus specifically on helping others going through similar health journeys.
She also regularly shares lipoedema updates and advice to her social media accounts under the handle @pt_tayloromalley.
‘What I’m hoping to achieve, is to make people more aware of this condition, because no one really knows about it,’ Taylor said.
‘I’ve always loved helping people, hence why I’ve trained in nursing and personal training,’ she added.
‘The silver lining of my lipoedema diagnosis is that me working through it can hopefully help so many other girls out there working through it too.’