You know how when you are desperate you will try most anything, even if it seems like a last straw? I think that is where I must have been when I allowed someone to put me on a gurney, slide me into a cylindrical clear tube, seal me in and put me under extreme oxygen pressure for an hour at a time.
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| Empty HBOT Chamber |
Now, if that sounds as though I didn't like going in for my Hyperbaric Oxygen Treatments, you would be wrong, for the most part, I think the treatments were helpful in many ways but if you are a claustrophobic, it can be challenging. For me, I had to watch Wings, you know, the old sitcom. Sometimes I would watch the British sitcom As Time Goes By but regardless, it had to make me laugh and keep my mind off the fact that if I had a spasm, it was going to take six minutes to decompress the chamber to get me out. For most people, they won't have difficulties with spasms and such but with my issues, it was difficult at first. By the end of the therapy, I was having less troubles and able to make a full hour without spasms.
I think the HBOT was very helpful in keeping my internal organs all working at their height and reduced inflammation. It was particularly helpful in flushing my liver and keeping it working at an optimum level, even with the morphine keeping it depressed. For a Lyme patient, it would be well worth a try. It definitely helped with my eyesight. I could not see very well at first, my sight was very blurry, and I gained my sight back as well as the lessening of other minor symptoms.
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| ME! inside during an hour long 'Dive'. You are covered in blankets because it gets very cold under pressure. |
The biggest drawback with the HBOT therapy is it is expensive and as with most Lyme treatments the insurance will not pay. We paid $326 a Dive, (a session in the chamber is called a 'Dive'), which includes the shots afterwards to help process the toxins after the treatment. It was a stretch and we are still paying off the cost of nine months of treatments. So, if you want to try HBOT therapy, it will probably be something you will need to pay out of pocket and it won't be cheap.
To be honest, I received more benefit from going on a strict Gerson Therapy diet than I did from the HBOTs. There were definitely benefits from the HBOT, but for me, they were not great enough to justify the cost of the treatment. I received pain relief within a two week period of starting the Gerson diet and it had the added benefit of killing the cancer as well.
The other huge dilemma for me was the huge Breast Cancer I had on my left breast. During my HBOT treatments the tumor did grow bigger but it is not known as to whether it was worse with the treatment or would have grown at the same rate regardless since it was an aggressive tumor anyway. If you have cancer, this is something you would need to discuss with your doctor and make your own determination.
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| After a Dive waiting on shot before going home. |
Overall, if someone could afford to try HBOT Therapy, I feel it would be a good thing. It holds a lot of potential and helps to transmit medication deep within the body where it can do the most good. I have many layers and it might be more affective on someone who is dealing with straight Lyme. If you would like to begin research on this therapy, here is a good starting place:
*** Autism ***
One area the HBOT has proven to be very effective is with Autism. Researchers aren't 100% sure why it works but it does work. We saw children who had never spoke a word in their six little years of life begin to talk after going through HBOT treatments and end up in regular classes at school. The positive effect of HBOT on children of Autism is amazing and should be researched by every parent of an Autistic child. The good news about the HBOT for Autism is most insurances are starting to pay for at least the initial series of Dives so the parents can determine if it is working for their child. We are grateful that at least the insurance companies are beginning to recognize the benefits of HBOT for Autistic children so more children may benefit from this life changing therapy.
If someone wanted to start research, the following is a good starting point. This is one area where, after seeing the results in these children for 9 months during my own treatments, I would highly encourage any parent to at least try this path!!!
I definitely believe HBOT treatments are worth a look and possibly a try. One day, maybe the insurance companies will be inclined to pay for some initial treatments for Lyme patients as well giving more people access to this treatment. Until then, I am afraid, it is going to be out of reach for most patients due to the high cost.
May God Bless and Keep You in His Grace,
Lynne
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