My left leg is much larger than the right — and leaks due to rare condition

A British teenager with an enlarged leg has revealed the rude remarks she’s subjected to from strangers on the street.

Didi Okoh, 19, suffers from lymphedema — a rare medical condition whereby fluid builds up in the tissue of her left leg, causing severe swelling.

“People will often stop and stare at my legs,” Okoh told South West News Service in an interview released Monday. “Some will even come straight up to me and ask what’s wrong with me. I had a woman stop me in the street and tell me that I need to pray.”

Okoh was first diagnosed with the rare condition when she was just 13 years old after noticing that her left leg had ballooned to 1½ times the size of her right leg.

Lymphedema can occur without a clear reason and is often a long-term or chronic condition, according to Mayo Clinic.

Okoh has been living with the enlarged leg for the past six years, and was subjected to bullying during high school, with her classmates calling her “tree trunk leg.”

The young woman — who is now at college — thought the insults would stop as she got older, but she told SWNS that some bystanders still can’t help themselves.

“It’s quite rude and it used to bother me when I was younger, but now I think that people just don’t know enough about it and need educating,” she explained. “Rather than getting annoyed, I just explain to them that I have a condition.”

Okoh admits she’s struggled with some of the remarks in her younger years but is now trying to take them in stride.

“I’ve always been quite a bubbly and positive person, but after my diagnosis I did struggle,” she explained. “It was hard when I was around 15 as my leg was getting bigger and I was self-conscious, but when I turned 18 it just hit me that I can’t mope around and feel bad about it because it’s not going anywhere.

“I chose then and there to just embrace it, and I feel so much more confident now,” the teen defiantly added.

Okoh struggles to find jeans and shorts to fit her uneven legs but has discovered her own style with dresses and skirts that she can slip over her larger limb.

She also undergoes therapy to help manage swelling and subsequent pain.

“It’s a progressive condition; it goes in stages,” Okoh stated. “If I were to have no treatment or manage the condition, it would be much worse. Right now it’s 1½ times bigger than the other leg. It can sometimes reduce when I’m managing it, but it’ll never be the same size as the other leg.”

Because of the build-up of fluid, Okoh has to be careful of cuts or scratches, which can leave her leg leaking for days.

“It really freaked me out at first, but now [that] I know what it is, I understand that it’s just part of my condition,” she stated. “I’ve learned to get used to it.”

The headstrong college student used to be a talented athlete and is now back training — with dreams of becoming a Paralympian.

“It’s been amazing to be back doing what I love,” she declared. “It would be a dream come true to compete in the Paralympics, but more than anything I want to use my story to help others who might be struggling with their health or self-confidence.”