ELISE Sasso, a United States Virgin Islander, inherited a genetic disorder called lipo-lymphedema from her late mother. The condition, which is a combination of Lipedema and Lymphedema, causes an excess of fat to accumulate in different parts of the body. Growing up, Elise didn’t realise she had the condition as her mother was never diagnosed. She was often told to simply diet and exercise to lose weight. “It made me feel self-conscious," she told Truly. “I didn’t want to show off my legs." When she realised her condition was chronic, Elise created a not for profit organisation called Beauty is the Beast to raise awareness about the condition. She said: “I want to be the individual who breaks down the barriers that society has put up." Elise now feels confident to show off her legs in public so she is going to her friend Lisa’s shop to try on some clothes that reveal her legs. “It’s fun, it’s confidence, it’s freedom," she said.
Follow Elise here:
Website - https://beautyisthebeastinc.com/
Instagram - @countess_rose
Follow Elise here:
Website - https://beautyisthebeastinc.com/
Instagram - @countess_rose
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NewsTranscript
00:00Even before knowing what it was, I just knew that my legs didn't look normal.
00:04I normally wear, like, long dresses, stuff that don't cling to the legs.
00:09I had to learn to embrace it.
00:10Today is definitely a big day because I'm actually going to step out of my comfort zone times ten.
00:18Beautiful. You look awesome.
00:21Morning, my friend.
00:24This compression pump helps to stimulate my lymphatic system.
00:30Because of the lipolymphedema, the lymphatic system no longer drains,
00:36and that's what it's supposed to do as far as excrete fluids from the body.
00:41Now, this particular therapy, I do it every day, three times a day.
00:45So this is my first session for the morning, for 60 minutes each session.
00:49When I come over, usually we just get her organized on the pump
00:52because we know that's a big part of her day.
00:54And once she's on the pump, I just keep a close eye and just look out for any signs
00:58that she could be in any type of distress.
01:00Even before knowing what it was, I just knew that my legs didn't look normal,
01:06and I didn't want to have them out.
01:08I was always told to just exercise, which I did,
01:10and I never saw the results that I wanted, particularly in the legs.
01:16Why is it important to your life to do this therapy?
01:19It is very important to my life.
01:21It keeps the lymphedema under control to the point where I don't have to worry
01:27about too much water retention.
01:29After talking to the doctors and pictures and everything,
01:32I received a phone call from him personally stating that he needed me
01:37to go and see a vascular doctor.
01:39And I started to research what a vascular doctor was for,
01:43and I ended up coming across a lady's story.
01:46And I read her entire bio.
01:49And by the time I was at the end, I was in total tears because I was reading my life
01:56off of her story, and everything was so identical to what I was experiencing
02:01and didn't have answers to at the time.
02:04And now it was for me to let somebody know that, hey, I'm not just fat.
02:08I have a problem, and I'm sure that this is it.
02:12So it just went from there.
02:14This was a turning point in my life where I had to learn to accept that this is what
02:19it was going to be, and this is how I was going to be spending the rest of my life.
02:25There's no way I could disattach these legs and put on a new pair.
02:30I normally wear long dresses, stuff that don't cling to the leg.
02:35I normally do a lot of the palazzo pants.
02:38Again, comfort.
02:40You have the wide legs to worry about it clinging to the skin.
02:44All right, so today I'm heading over to my friend, Lisa, at her boutique at her essential
02:50store called Miss Ebony's, and I'm going to try on some of her new garments today that
02:56are going to be leg-revealing.
02:58So today I'm stepping out of my comfort zone.
03:01I need to do this in order for me to show that I am leveling up and becoming more comfortable
03:08with my lipolymphedema.
03:11In 2019, I decided I wanted to start spreading awareness because at this point I realized
03:17like a lot of people didn't know that this condition even existed.
03:24So I decided to create a platform where I would be able to share what this condition
03:29was.
03:30I mean, you see somebody there on the plus side, you just figure they're eating themself
03:33into an early grave, when in actuality it's actually something else.
03:37Hey, how are you?
03:39I'm good.
03:40Hi, Miss Ebony.
03:41Hey, babe.
03:42What brings you in today?
03:43Well, I got ready to do a photoshoot.
03:44You know your girl, always in front of the camera.
03:45So I'm looking for some nice stuff today because I really want to do this one.
03:52Good, good, good.
03:53Okay.
03:54Okay.
03:55You know I got you as always.
03:56Some pieces came in yesterday.
03:58What do you think about this?
04:02Look at that.
04:03Look at that.
04:05Beauty is the Beast was created off of the history of lipoedema as it pertains to myself
04:12and my mother.
04:13My mother, God rest her soul, passed away at the age of 31.
04:17It is now clear that she also had lipoedema by us looking back at pictures and other medical
04:23issues that she had growing up as a child.
04:27She was always told that she was just obese.
04:28I think it's safe to say at this point I inherited it from her.
04:32The logo is a picture of a lady with wings.
04:35The lady, of course, is myself and the wings represent my mother.
04:40It had to be used for something that would allow me to educate people and tell people
04:47you know how important it is to know your body, know yourself.
04:50Become a platform that went way further than I even imagined it could go and that's just
04:56in the space of what, two years?
04:59Beautiful.
05:00Beautiful.
05:01That's right.
05:02Beauty is the Beast has allowed me to open up a part of myself that allowed me to show
05:09my vulnerability to the world.
05:11I need to be able to own that I'm the lady with the legs.
05:27I've been one of her main photographers.
05:31Initially, she reached out to me about doing a photoshoot but she never told me what it
05:36was about and then she did her big reveal and I was like, wow, I didn't know this was
05:42happening.
05:43It's been my friend for so long and it's definitely, I'm glad that she was able to do this to
05:51put this out there as a message to everyone.
05:55I want to be that light, I want to be that torch, I want to be that energy, I want to
05:59be that push.
06:00I want to be that individual, that break down the walls that people, society, everybody
06:08has put up.
06:09I am so proud of a lot of things that Elyse has done because showing the world about her
06:13condition and showing her legs, I know that that takes a lot of courage.
06:17Of course, who doesn't want to have the cute bikini legs to go out there and show off?
06:21You know, I have the tree trunks but they're mine.
06:24It's exhilarating, it's nerve-wracking, it's excitement, it's fun, it's free.
06:32Especially for my legs, it's free.