Looking different from your peers makes it easy to feel excluded, discriminated against, and inferior. Mahogany Geter suffers from lymphedema, which has caused her left leg to swell tremendously. The 23-year-old Texan has been ridiculed and trolled for years because of her illness.
She created a reaction film responding to a nasty question directed at her.
“Why don’t you amputate your leg because ‘it will look better,’” she remarked in the post. Aside from that, Mahogany admits that she has been called other derogatory names.
“It has been quite difficult to rise above these cruel people, but I have no choice.”
Mahogany has always had low self-esteem due to how people insulted her. However, she found support in the lymphedema community, particularly from her family. Her mother, Timika Geter, helped her recognize how gorgeous she was on the inside and exterior. “It means I can do everything I can to inspire others to love themselves and recognize how beautiful they are.”
However, it might seem overpowering at times. She “takes steps today to build herself up” when she is down. But one thing she always does to feel better when she’s down talking to her mother because “she’s like my therapist.”
Mahogany Geter is now a successful model!
Lymphedema occurs when extra fluids accumulate, most typically in the limbs, due to a blockage in the lymphatic system. There is no cure for this illness, and it has the potential to progress to lymphangiosarcoma. This issue was discovered in her shortly after delivery. At worst, the extra fluids can add up to 100 pounds (45.3 kg) to her weight. She’d “never felt attractive” as a child.
“I used to think God cursed me,” she admitted, recounting her early memories.
“I felt hideous, like a freak of nature, and cried in private so many times. Then I realized that I was given this problem because I am emotionally strong and capable of dealing with it.”
“I’ve been learning to accept and celebrate myself since then.”
Mahogany is currently focused on physiotherapy to help her leg heal. She now spends more time painting, listening to music, and making TikTok or YouTube videos. However, she does have to deal with skin infections surrounding swollen regions occasionally. “Dealing with flare-ups can be stressful because I just want to live my life more freely, and it feels like I can’t.”
Her ambition is to purchase a home for her mother! When she is more financially secure, she wants to give back to people who have helped her throughout the years and raise awareness about lymphedema.