Edema and lymphedema are separate medical diagnoses, but all edema is essentially lymphatic in nature. The medical community and patients with these conditions should know that edema is part of the lymphedema continuum. In this article, I’ll review the basics of edema and how it relates to lymphatic system overload. I’ll discuss what is meant by the lymphedema continuum, introduce the VAIL concept, and how to use these ideas in clinical applications.