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Hyperbaric Oxygen Treatment for Lyme Diseas

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Posted 7/2/2014 4:03 AM (GMT 0)
My doc wants me to have hyperbaric oxygen therapy for the Lyme that I've had for decades.

In the 80's, I was diagnosed as having fibromyalgia. In the 90's, the diagnosis was Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, which morphed into Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Immune Dysfunction Syndrome. I finally got the Lyme diagnosis about 2004.

The following year I had shingles as the Lyme had weakened my immune system so much that the chicken pox of my childhood came back from hiding in my body to take another run at me.

Had a lengthy course of antibiotic treatment in 2006. It was quite tough as I had a lot of herxing (worsening symptoms as dying Lyme spirochetes release toxins). It was worth it as the treatment improved my immune system from 3 % of normal natural killer (NK) cells in blood (think it's called the CD57 test) up to 33 % of normal NK.

Still, I wish I had the concentration and mental acuity of 25 to 30 years ago.

Has anyone had the Oxygen therapy? I wonder how much it improved your concentration and mental acuity. Did you have herxing and how bad was it?
Posted 7/2/2014 8:57 PM (GMT 0)
Hi HWposter!
Welcome to our community!! I know of someone that was healed from Lyme using low pressure HBO. I'll email them and let them know that you are looking for more info. They will post here in this thread most likely, so please watch for it!!
Posted 7/3/2014 3:25 AM (GMT 0)
Hi HW Poster...

Wow....I am impressed that your doctor suggested HBO...that is a rare and beautiful thing! 

Mild hyperbaric (home chamber) gave me my life back from a severe, 8 year long battle with Neuro-Lyme and coinfections, which left me housebound for over 5 years.

I have my health back fully now, very active, no restrictions, no meds.  I now do what I can to help spread the word about this therapy...and find more affordable ways to access it.

The key to my success was using mild pressure with supplemental 02 for 1 hour daily...and CONSISTENTLY...(in fact, I didn't miss a treatment for an entire year...and then it was for just a few days).  I still use my chamber frequently, and although I don't feel I "need" it to maintain wellness, I feel I still benefit from using it.

There are questions to ask your doctor, including:

What pressure does he recommend you to treat at? (Mild pressures have been proven to be more successful with neurological conditions, but not all clinicians recognize this.)

How many treatments does he predict you will need? (The typical 40 sessions is typically not nearly enough for a chronic Lyme patient, although this is a typical "block" of treatments given in a clinic.)

Would he consider writing you a prescription for a home chamber and supplemental oxygen?  (This is more cost effective over the long term.)

A good resource to learn more about hyperbarics is "The Oxygen Revolution" by Dr. Paul Harch.  He has been researching HBOT for over 20 years, and includes some fantastic before and after SPECT scans.  He also has a website:  hbot.com

Let me know your thoughts, and if I can answer any questions you might have...

 

Posted 7/3/2014 3:47 PM (GMT 0)
And... phoiph is here again!!! Thank you so very much for responding again! It's so nice to be able to call on someone who has used this! :-)
Posted 7/3/2014 4:04 PM (GMT 0)
In addition, to answer your question about mental acuity and "herxing"...

Regarding mental acuity...it took me from not being able to distinguish my washer from my dryer anymore, and 100% convinced I had permanent brain damage, back to "normal"...

It is used with great success on traumatic brain injuries, stroke, autism, etc., which are all conditions where brain function is impaired. It increases brain perfusion, reduces inflammation, releases stem cells, and promotes neural regeneration (the only treatment that is known to do this)...plus triggers many other healing reactions.

Regarding "herxing", I recommend going "low and slow" to minimize healing reactions...this is why I take issue with high pressure treatment. It is too much for many people with chronic Lyme...and causes many people to discontinue the treatment too early. Plus, there have been studies that show regression with people with neurological conditions when using pressures that are too high:

More is Better: The Recurrent Illusion of Higher Pressure HBOT in Chronic Brain Injury, by Dr. Paul Harch: http://www.netnet.net/mums/Harch2.htm
Posted 7/6/2014 4:16 AM (GMT 0)
Thanks, Traveler and phoiph.

I'm glad it worked so well for you, phoiph. I will check out the Harch article and also try to figure out the answers to the questions about number of treatments and the pressure used in my doc's suggested treatment.

My doc wants me to have treatment in a chamber at a medical facility. It takes 10 minutes to bring the chamber to the right oxygen mix or pressure. Then treatment for 60 minutes. Then 10 minutes to depressurize the chamber.

I don't know at this point whether that means higher pressure then you had in your therapy, phoiph.

I'll post again when I find the info, probably next week.
Posted 7/6/2014 4:51 AM (GMT 0)
Great, HW...I'm looking forward to hearing what your doctor has to say...
Posted 7/6/2014 1:30 PM (GMT 0)
HWPoster:
I went for a consultation to a facility that does HBOT. They told me it would be 2 hour sessions 5 days a week and no guarantees. Also very expensive.

P.S. Is Poster your last name? That is my maiden name.
Posted 7/6/2014 4:26 PM (GMT 0)
This is why, as I mentioned in my above post, for long term, chronic conditions (like Lyme) that require ongoing treatments, a home chamber can be much more economical.

It is also an investment that can be resold.

I never had a clinical treatment; I became well with consistent use of my home chamber...
Posted 7/6/2014 4:47 PM (GMT 0)
Phoiph can you please email me I have questions about the chamber. Thank you!
Posted 7/6/2014 11:38 PM (GMT 0)
Wow Phoiph !!!

CONGRATS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Your story is inspiring and you are a HERO !!!
Posted 7/7/2014 4:33 AM (GMT 0)
Wow Tano....don't think if I deserve that...but thank you!!!
Posted 7/8/2014 4:39 AM (GMT 0)
APW:

As you noted, the HBOT treatment is very expensive and intense.

My last name is not Poster. Just adopted the name for the HW website.
Posted 7/8/2014 5:24 AM (GMT 0)
phoiph:

Would you please mention the approximate price of the home chamber? (I'm assuming the forum rules allow you to post such info, but don't know for sure?) Also did you need a Dr or medical professional to order the home chamber for you? (More on this last question below.)

The treatment at the HBOT facility is quite costly, so maybe a home chamber is a viable alternative for me?

The Dr owns (or partly owns) the HBOT facility. The Dr is very good, but I wonder what he would say about the home chamber.

The Dr's office has been treating me for elbow tendonitis using PEMF (Pulse Electromagnetic Fluctuation), 9 minutes of pulsing for $90, not covered by insurance.

I thought the treatment helped quite a bit so I looked up buying a PEMF machine. They cost about $20,000. My tendonitis came from playing racquetball with about 19 friends. I toyed with the idea of trying to talk the others into making a group purchase, but only 3 of us are over 60 and I'm not sure that the 30 to 50 year young-uns would need it as much. It can only be purchased by Dr office (hence my question about needed a Dr to purchase home chamber).

One of my rball player friends is a Dr (not my Dr), but I never asked him about jointly buying the PEMF machine.

I have probably spend 700 to 900 dollars on the PEMF therapy.

I haven't found the answer to your earlier questions about HBOT yet.
Posted 7/8/2014 6:16 AM (GMT 0)
there is a Oxygen Chamber Clinic here where i live now, in Est Europe.

the doctor has a large experience in Germany.

60 minutes is about 100 euro.

do you thing is expensive?

should i try it?
Posted 7/8/2014 6:17 AM (GMT 0)
Hi HWPoster...

The price of a chamber varies depending on the size, the age, and whether you buy a new or used unit.

I am not a company rep, nor do I take compensation, but I have been working on a cooperative hyperbaric project to provide a network for people to share costs, and take advantage of discounts on chambers. This project is described in my website (which is under construction...please excuse the "gaps"). It outlines options and general information on the cost of chambers.

The link is: freeradicalshyperbaric.com

Click on "Purchase/Rental/Discount/Cooperative options" under "Free Radicals Project".

You can also contact me with specific questions via the website.

You will need a doctors prescription to purchase both the chamber and oxygen concentrator (sold separately) which can be faxed to the vendors. A prescription is technically not required if you purchase from a private party, but is recommended for your own protection.

There is much controversy among "hard chamber/high pressure" clinicians and "soft chamber/mild pressure" supporters, so don't be surprised if you are given contradictory information.

Higher pressures are necessary for certain conditions (i.e. wound healing, carbon monoxide poisoning, etc.), and lower pressures are more effective for many chronic and neurological conditions (i.e., brain injury, autism, etc.). Each has its purpose...

The bottom line is that chronic Lyme requires ongoing, regular treatments, and this is not cost effective in a clinical setting. I have a neurologist friend who runs a hyperbaric clinic, and she often recommends people purchase home chambers if they need ongoing treatment and can't afford to treat at her clinic for an extended period...
Posted 3/6/2015 9:50 PM (GMT 0)
I have been using Almag-02 for my lower back pains. It is a Russian made pemf device, very strong and with over 70+ programs for $4500 . I think you should definitely check it out http://www.almagia.com/shop/almag-2-vers-1-2

HWPoster said...
phoiph:

Would you please mention the approximate price of the home chamber? (I'm assuming the forum rules allow you to post such info, but don't know for sure?) Also did you need a Dr or medical professional to order the home chamber for you? (More on this last question below.)

The treatment at the HBOT facility is quite costly, so maybe a home chamber is a viable alternative for me?

The Dr owns (or partly owns) the HBOT facility. The Dr is very good, but I wonder what he would say about the home chamber.

The Dr's office has been treating me for elbow tendonitis using PEMF (Pulse Electromagnetic Fluctuation), 9 minutes of pulsing for $90, not covered by insurance.

I thought the treatment helped quite a bit so I looked up buying a PEMF machine. They cost about $20,000. My tendonitis came from playing racquetball with about 19 friends. I toyed with the idea of trying to talk the others into making a group purchase, but only 3 of us are over 60 and I'm not sure that the 30 to 50 year young-uns would need it as much. It can only be purchased by Dr office (hence my question about needed a Dr to purchase home chamber).

One of my rball player friends is a Dr (not my Dr), but I never asked him about jointly buying the PEMF machine.

I have probably spend 700 to 900 dollars on the PEMF therapy.

I haven't found the answer to your earlier questions about HBOT yet.

Posted 3/6/2015 11:55 PM (GMT 0)

HWPoster said...
My doc wants me to have hyperbaric oxygen therapy for the Lyme that I've had for decades.

Still, I wish I had the concentration and mental acuity of 25 to 30 years ago.

Has anyone had the Oxygen therapy? I wonder how much it improved your concentration and mental acuity. Did you have herxing and how bad was it?



I recently finished the standard HBO treatment for lyme (2.36 ata@90 mins 5x/week, 40 sessions total). I didn't experience any herx reaction and saw very little central and peripheral symptom improvements. However, within a month of starting the treatment there were remarkable changes in my blood work. My C4a dropped from 12000 to 1200, and my NK CD57 went from 7 to 60. I was also on the antibiotics at the time, but those biomarkers had actually gotten worse before I started HBOT.

Some things to keep in mind is that it is an experimental treatment and requires further research. Also, if you have any co-infections it may have an impact on how effective the HBO treatment is.
Posted 3/13/2015 2:29 AM (GMT 0)

phoiph said...
Hi HWPoster...

The price of a chamber varies depending on the size, the age, and whether you buy a new or used unit.

I am not a company rep, nor do I take compensation, but I have been working on a cooperative hyperbaric project to provide a network for people to share costs, and take advantage of discounts on chambers. This project is described in my website (which is under construction...please excuse the "gaps"). It outlines options and general information on the cost of chambers.

The link is: freeradicalshyperbaric.com

Click on "Purchase/Rental/Discount/Cooperative options" under "Free Radicals Project".

You can also contact me with specific questions via the website.

You will need a doctors prescription to purchase both the chamber and oxygen concentrator (sold separately) which can be faxed to the vendors. A prescription is technically not required if you purchase from a private party, but is recommended for your own protection.

There is much controversy among "hard chamber/high pressure" clinicians and "soft chamber/mild pressure" supporters, so don't be surprised if you are given contradictory information.

Higher pressures are necessary for certain conditions (i.e. wound healing, carbon monoxide poisoning, etc.), and lower pressures are more effective for many chronic and neurological conditions (i.e., brain injury, autism, etc.). Each has its purpose...

The bottom line is that chronic Lyme requires ongoing, regular treatments, and this is not cost effective in a clinical setting. I have a neurologist friend who runs a hyperbaric clinic, and she often recommends people purchase home chambers if they need ongoing treatment and can't afford to treat at her clinic for an extended period...


What kind of chamber did you use? I would like to purchase one for my home treatments.

Also, did you use everyday or 5 days a week.

Many thanks.
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