Hi Leslie,,,  My best advice is to do and take what your doctor tells you to
take.    I do not think you are taking your swollen ankles serious enough.
We are talking about your life here.......  Seee your doctor about the
problem.
Harv

I'm right there with you.  More water helps, believe it or not.  Asparagus
and cranberry juice help get the water moving.  A little lemon juice in your
water helps.

Most of my problem is  my right leg.  That foot swells all the time.  It
ain't graceful but I watch TV lying down on the sofa, with my head propped
up on its arm and my foot on the back.

A recliner all the way back helps too.   With a pillow on the foot rest to
get the foot/feet a little higher.  I've got the GERD problems too so you
can end up looking like a pretzel.

I read or watch TV in the bedroom with a large pillow under my legs.  I
can't sleep that way at night, but I can nap that way.

If the swelling in my foot gets really persistent I'm wrap it in one of
those elastic sports wraps over night.  Not too tight.  Just enough to
remind it what size its supposed to be.

This is why I wear Birks.  You can adjust the width separately.  But I try
to do any shopping or anything like that early in the day while I can still
get my shoes on.

Walking, if you can manage it, even a little bit helps a lot too.  You need
a bit of muscle tone to keep thing circulating.

But I cannot take diuretics.  They are a ticket straight to hell for me.  I
will have the worst, most painful muscle cramps on earth.

Jo

Movement helps with the lymphatic return from the feet and ankles.
Contraction of the lower leg muscles pumps the lymph back up and as such
reduces swelling.

Also, without enough salt the kidneys have a hard time functioning. Ask
your doctor if having too little salt could be contributing to this
problem. Also, drinking too much water, alone or in combination with too
little salt, may end up contributing to your problem.

considering this can be caused by all sorts of other unpleasantness, it
really is a good idea to talk to your doctor.

Regards,

Ari

Sorry, no suggestions for a natural diuretic, but if you're not allergic to
medicines, I would seriously consider having your doctor prescribe you a
pharmecuetical diuretic.  Why?  Letting the swelling go too long can
increase your blood pressure, and the summer months are very hard on those
who have swelling.  When my BP was sky-rocketing some years ago and I ended
up in the progressive care unit of the hospital, and the doctor had
experimented with several different BP meds, he decided to give me a mild
dosage of a diuretic, and it was the magic button to bring my BP down to a
safe level.  I still take it, with no ill effects, and my BP has been at
safe levels ever since.  Nanny