Hyperbaric Oxygen Treatment and an intro.

[drobie]

My first post.  It’s great to have found this group.  It’s no fun on other forums getting flamed by the big pharma stooges for having an open mind about health care.

This is going to be long-winded, but a forum veteran pointed me here and suggested I tell of my tale.

So here's my story...

Like others here I was told by several physicians in the 80s that my liver test showed elevated function, but there was no cause for concern.  Finally, about four years ago, my then general practitioner finally tested for HVC.  From the beginning my liver function tests were bad and Peg interferon was immediately recommended.  Being a genotype I, and after doing some research, I decided to resist interferon treatment.  It didn't seem like a 20% chance of success with a high probability of recurrence was worth the trade-off in side effects and the risk of permanent damage.

I had a great GP who supported my decisions and related the story of one patient who Pegged up and is still suffering from depression almost 2 years later.  I just read a new study that indicates success with Peg "Interference" across all Genotypes is currently at 50%.  I like the description Lloyd refers to:  "A drug looking for a disease to cure."

Early in 2005, I had a GI bleed in my stomach/esophageal area.  It was pretty easy to stop with a quick outpatient procedure, but alarmed them enough to point me towards the transplant list.  This, even though my MELD score was less than 10.  Another factor in that transplant decision was revealed in a CT scan.  They detected lesions on my liver, and were worried they would become cancerous.  They wanted my liver right away before that happened.

I'm bouncing around here a bit but I hadn't mention that immediately upon hearing my diagnosis, I started researching alternatives and found Lloyd's book and site, I also read several others including Stephen Bruner's.  I embraced the programs and started weekly acupuncture.

Back to the transplant list….   The evaluation is a six week process.  Toward the end of the evaluation, they took another CT scan and it showed that the lesions were “less conspicuous”.  My hepatology decided to wait 90 days and do another CT scan.  The next one showed no evidence of the lesions.

I credit that to Lloyd and Bruhner.

The next incident was a spontaneous bacterial peritonitis (SBP), a very serious infection which starts in the fluid backed up into your ascites (the adominal cavity around your organs for those who are new to HVC).  When in the hospital being treated with antibiotics, I was told that it would probably have killed me within a few weeks.  Within days or hours,  it would have spread to a heart valve and trashed that.

I dodged a lethal bullet on that one.

I've since found that if the heptologist had followed standard protocol, that could have been avoided.  I've read that standard protocol indicates that a bleeding varices is a strong indicator of the possibility of, and significantly raises the risk of developing SBP.  Patients are supposed to be put on a mild diuretic and a low dose antibiotic to prevent that.  I was prescribed those drugs after I was almost killed by not having them.  Go figure.

The infection occurred last August ‘06.  When I first got out of the hospital, I felt great.  Within weeks I'd developed 24/7 abdominal discomfort of an intensity that would drive the majority of the population to the emergency room.  Nausea, cramps, gas pains, bloating, burning pains, etc.  I just learned to play hurt, taking an Oxycondone when it got really bad. 

During this time I also first detected a gradual decline of my energy level and by February 07 my quality of life was on a steep decline.  If I had to put a number on it, I’d say my energy level was 60% of “normal”.`You are

Then someone told me about Fucoidan.  I started taking a form of Fucoidan developed by the Russians called Modifilan.  For those who haven't heard of it, Fucoidan is the beneficial part of brown seaweed harvested off the NE coast of Japan.  It is stripped out of the stem and processed into capsules.  Gonzo nutritionists would recognize Kombu and Wakame, two varieties of those brown seaweeds.

Modifilan was developed by the Russians when they were desperate to treat Chernobyl survivors for the toxic effects of radiation poisoning.  Fucoidan has been observed by Japanese researchers, in the lab, killing fast-growing cancer cells in 72 days.  It does that through a process of apoptosis, meaning the cancer cell disintegrates into membrane.

Here's the kicker: the day after I started taking Modifilan virtually all of my abdominal discomfort disappeared.  That's all I can tell you.  Almost nix, nada, zero, none.  That has continued to date.  My MELD score, which was 17 in Dec, dropped to 15 last month.  Could be "normal" fluctuation, won't know until the next test.

Now to my latest adventure: Hyperbaric Oxygen Treatment (HBOT).  I learned of this only a few weeks ago when several people from different circles who knew my condition started asking me if I was aware of it.  Turns out there was an interview on local public radio with a physician from New Orleans who is a huge proponent of the treatment.  The subject of the interview was Dr Paul Harch, who just released a book title “The Oxygen Revolution”.  I will post the link to the interview at the bottom.  The book is at Amazon.  A must read for those with aging parents.  Lots on stroke, dementia, heart disease etc.

It was a call-in show.  A woman called in and asked if HBOT had been used to treat hepatitis and liver damage.  When I heard Harch’s answer, I immediately paused the interview and started looking for a clinic that would allow me to try HBOT.

I can't tell you a lot so far, but many might find this interesting.  Modifilan cleared up my abdominal discomfort but again, so far hadn't done anything for my energy level.  I had to nap about 2 hours every day, I couldn’t even mow the lawn for more than 15 minutes, I would get severe dizzy spells that included hot and cold sweats would have to lay down until it passed.  My day was done at 5...I mean DONE.  Couch time was about all I could do.

I had my first HBOT treatment last Thursday (6/21).  My protocol is for a series of 40 sessions, 1 hour each day for 40 business days.  I was treated again on Friday.

This past weekend after two treatments my energy level not only improved, but returned to as near-normal as I can recall.  I over did it Saturday, 7 AM to Midnight, but without any indication that I was even tired let alone suffering from chronic fatigue.  I wasn’t just awake, I mowed the lawn, cut wood, planted a tomato bed, shoveled a bunch of landscaping rock.

Sunday was same, although I took it a little easier.  (US F1 Grand Prix and the US Open.)

My wife was stunned.  I am stunned.  I’m sitting here on the short list for a liver transplant and feeling as near-normal as I have in five years.  My wife says the my appearance changed almost overnight. 

If a liver came up today, I’d have to refuse it pending the REAL outcome of the whole protocol.

To me HBOT is stupidly simple.  We all know that Band-Aids have holes in them because wounds need oxygen to heal.  When being treated with HBOT, pure oxygen is pumped into the chamber, and then the pressure is raised to 1.5 times (in my case) normal atmospheric pressure.  The premise is that the pressure moves highly oxygenated blood further into your body than your compromised circulatory system can.

Please note that I don't expect HBOT to rid me of HVC.  However, in all the reading I've done about the subject, I am 120% sure that I will derive some benefit from it.  The FDA approves HBOT in 14-15 indications and insurance companies pretty much adhere to those in terms of coverage.  HBOT is most often used to treat neurological disorders especially in children.  Treating stroke victims is big, wound healing is big.  (Michael Jackson had a chamber.  I’m sure he was hoping to grow a new nose or melt the rest of his face off; but more than likely, it was prescribed to assist in healing the effects of all his surgeries.)

My hope going in was to simply recover a bit of my energy.  That happened in two days.  Now what?

I still have more questions than answers.  And many of those answers won't come until late August when I'm due for my next blood work.  Coincidentally, that coincides with the end of my first protocol, i.e. 40 sessions in the chamber.

Is what I'm feeling temporary due simply to breathing oxygen for an hour a day?  I don't know and frankly for now, I don't care.  I’ll take the normalcy while I can get it.  HBOT is safe under clinical supervision and there are NO side effects.  Accidents happen with O overdose when people buy they're own machines and exceed recommended protocols.  I believe that now, machines they sell for home use can't exceed 1.5 times atmospheric pressure.

Another bonus for me is that the M.D. who conducted my initial consultation is about my age (I’m 55, he’s 60), and has been a general practitioner for his entire career; until he decided a few years back to move his practice towards alternative medicine.  Hard to find those types.

He also recommended mega-doses of vitamin C with instructions on how to calibrate the dose, acidophilus after every meal to aid digestion, and a very high-quality protein supplement derived from whey.  When your digestive system gets as screwed up as mine, getting enough protein becomes an issue.  (Yes I am aware of the relationship between excess protein and ammonia.)

Here's one of my "quack" thoughts…   Anyone heard of Accupoint Injection Therapy?  It’s a procedure that injects herbs directly into the target meridian during acupuncture.  My brother lives in SE Asia and tells me they’re getting excellent results in treating HVC with it in Thai clinics.

What if HBOT could work the same way, i.e. the pressure moves the remedies we are taking deeper into the affected areas where they can do more good?  Does that seem far-fectched?  Maybe, but not to this kid.

At any rate, I’m enjoying the experience.  After two days in the tank, I watched the documentary “The New Medicine”.  After seeing that, I ordered a home study course on Qigong from Amazon.  Avg Rating 5 of 5 stars, including some very creditable people.  The chamber is a great place for meditation and breathing excercises and I need to learn more.  (I’ve “dabbled” with Yoga in the past but it’s time to get serious.)

BTW, that “The New Medicine DVD (you can Google and purchase it.) should be required viewing for every health care consumer in the US.  Amazing stuff on the resurgence in interest of the mind/body connection in health. 

Here is the link to the interview.  Look for the 5/17 show with Larry Meiller interviewing Dr. Paul Harch about HBOT.  You have to be a donor to download, but you can stream the interview online.  After that, go to Harch’s site mentioned in the interview by him and watch the video of the Curt Allen case.  If you aren’t impressed, I might suggest a crowbar to open your mind a bit.   

http://wpr.org/webcasting/audioarchives_display.cfm?Code=mlr

I’d be glad to answer any questions, but remember that I don’t have many of the BIG answers yet.

I’ll keep you posted on how it’s going.

Cheers.

Doug

[19Dragon52]

(((Doug)))

First of all I'd like to Welcome You to the board!

This is some interesting stuff you've layed out in terms of Alternative Treatment.  I know you will be having others come along to comment or ask questions.  I am still digesting what I just read.

We are very glad you are here and already sharing so much with us.  We are supportive of whatever way one chooses to treat...whether standard or alternative.  I myself will be very interested in keeping up with you on this present journey.  I hope you will take time to read what others have posted in the different Forums.  There is a wealth of information.

Much Love & Support.....

[Helen]

Hi Doug and 
 And yes indeed you do have a very interesting story, I know about Lloyd but not about the HBOT. I havent done anything to much out of the norm. No tx. here, just vitamins, suppliments and just trying to have a healthier lifestyle in hopes of holding out for a gentler tx.  But after my biopsy a little over 3 years ago I was a stage 1 grade 0 after over 30 years so feel comfortable with my decision so far.

 Im always interested in what others do and what works for them and there are others here who feel the same so please keep us posted. 

 Helen

[Ella]

Hi Doug, and welcome.  Thankyou for sharing your story - you've really been through a rough time.  I'm very interested in the modifllan and will follow that up, but it's really interesting what you say about the HBOT, because I've just been researching it for someone else.  Over here (in Australia) there are units in most hospitals, but they are generally used for people suffering 'the bends' after diving.  There is one in Brisbane however, where people are having tremendous success with recovery from strokes, heart attacks etc.  I hadn't thought about it having a beneficial effect on the liver, but it stands to reason that a cellular increase in oxygen will benefit any disease state.

Is it uncomfortable at all?  From what I can make out, the worst thing about it is boredom as it takes a few hours - but you can always take a book. 

I'll be really interested to hear how you get on with this - please keep us informed.  And the very best of luck with the treatment, I hope you will be able to avoid a liver transplant.  The accupoint injection therapy sounds interesting as well.

Thanks so much for the info and the link - I'm going to check it out now.

[drobie]

6 treatments out of a planned 40.

My wife is stunned at the change.  I pinch myself everyday.  I feel NORMAL with a normal energy level that I haven't felt in several years.  Kathy walks around smiling and shaking her head when observing me and my full days of activity without fatigue for the first time in as long as I can rememer.

I told her a few days ago I wanted take a close up of my spider angiomas before and after just to see if something happens.  (They weren't real bad but noticeable up close.)
I looked carefully in the mirror last night and I think it's too late for the before pic.  They're harder to detect after 1 week.

The clinic staff tells me that it might be temporary due to the HBOT controlling inflamation and I might have to continue to maintain the benefits.  Thanks OK with me.  I won't look a gift horse in the mouth, even when that horse might withdraw the gift.  I have my summer back and it beats the limbo of waiting to get worse so I can get an organ.

I'll take while I can get it.  I'm hugely but guardedly optimistic about this.

We've already decided to get a home chamber.  They have safety features built in and are harmless if you don't exceed recommend doses.  Those safety features actually prevent that from happening.

If anyone is curious, here is a vendor who also makes the big solid chambers that my clinic uses.  http://www.oxyhealth.com/

I plan on having Hyperbaric Barbeques.  Invite some friends over and give them a shot at it over burgers.  Or maybe a Hyper Happy Hour.  Draw a name everyday and let the winner come have an oxygen cocktail.   

Cost is about the same as a late model used car and there is $6,000 rebate on the big machine for anything I spend at the clinic up to that 6k.  I think the medium size machine is about 12k after rebate.

Ella, the machine is completely comfortable.  They tell me the pressure I'm being treated at (1.5 times atmospheric) is about equivalent to scuba diving to 18 ft.  The home machines machine are capped at 1.3 times, about the same as diving to 12ft, or sitting on the bottom at the deep end of a pool that has a high dive.  One's ears pop when the pressure is raised in the beginning and released at the end, but that's it.  It's about the same as landing and taking off in a plane.  You don't at all feel the pressure, because there is no water weight pushing on you.

I do breathing excercises, nap, meditate, listen to my iPod or read.   The first more than than the others.  I try to use guided imagery in my breathing, concentrating on the oxygen driving the bugs out of my abdominal organs.

Most of the patients at the clinic I go to are young children.  I've seen Mom and 3 kids go in together to keep the one being treated company.  Those keeping company simply get a free benefit.

Kathy went along for my initial consultation and we were suprised that it ended with the first treatment.  They asked Kathy if she wanted to go in with me.  (She had to get back to work, but will probably "take a dive" on her next weekday off.)

That's all the news from Lake Wo-Be-Went.

Doug

[willy]

Thanks for posting this thread Drobie, I've found it VERY interesting.  I've meant to answer it for a few days but I'm having some sort of computer issues..... I think a wireless router actually.  For some reason I keep getting kicked off.  It's really a terrible thing to have a long post all done review it and then get bumped off.  The real pisser is when it happens more than once on the same thread; beyond frustrating.   I'll have to re-write a post but I did copy and e-mail myself a few links before trying to post them.  A good thing too since when I tried these I got bumped off line again. 

Here are a few;

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperbaric_medicine

http://woundcare.org/newsvol1n3/ar8a.htm

http://www.drcranton.com/hbo.htm

http://www.drcranton.com/hbo/conditions_treated.htm

Sorry.....I've been working a bunch and got to do it again tomorrow (Saturday) all day.  It's funny, I've been thinking; crap!! I could build one!!        Start with an oxygen tank, an old volkswagen (make sure the windows are rolled up.......)     Maybe I'll check out old back issues of the Mother Earth News. 

Sorry, just kidding.  I used to own a welding shop and have a creative bent.  Seriously, I've enjoyed reading this and an eagerly awaiting reading more about your experiences with it and more about the therapy, the equipment and how or why it works for heppers.  I sure wish I had the old post but oh well......I'll see if I can reformulate it.

best,
Willy

[drobie]

I think I lost both of the posts above and had to redo them.  Inadvertently moved my mouse and suddenly, I'm back at the main section page.  It's good no one is around to here what comes out my mouth.

Here's a link to a video of a case that is one of the most astounding medical "miracles" that I've ever seen.  http://www.harchhyperbarics.com/downloads.htm 

Click on the image on the left.  It says "Download", but it will stream on the site.  I'm also reading Harch's book, which you'll see on that page.

Great links, Willy.  I've been busy reading Harch's book and learning Qigong, so the continuing research is welcome.  AND....it's great to see Cirrhosis listed as a condition being treated.  That's hard to find in the US. 

So I'm going to reveal a secret DREAM....a DREAM that dances with hope but isn't even in the "expected result" neighborhood.  What if Cirrhosis is reversible?

"Hope does not disappoint."  --Romans 5.5  (I think.)

They used to think that once a brain cell was dead, it was gone.  Now they're finding that HBOT wakes them up.  One of the articles you point to Willy shows that HBOT increases stem cell activity 7 fold.

I'm sure there are those that will give me a pathology lesson riddled with reasons why it's impossible, but man would explode if he hit the sound barrier and the world used to be flat too.

My optimism will remain intact until I'm wheeled into the OR for transplant.  After that, it will shift to focus on longevity.  One thing I'm absolutely sure of us is that HBOT will always be part of my future.  If they don't have one at the hospital by the time I have surgery, I'll bring my own.  Kathy and I are already looking at a home chamber and have pretty much decided we'll drive our cars into the ground so we can get one.

[willy]

Great links, Willy.  I've been busy reading Harch's book and learning Qigong, so the continuing research is welcome.  AND....it's great to see Cirrhosis listed as a condition being treated.  That's hard to find in the US. 

I'm glad you saw that on the last link.  I also saw a number of other of what are sometimes referred to as extra-hepatic diseases or symptoms listed.

I'm sure there are those that will give me a pathology lesson riddled with reasons why it's impossible, but man would explode if he hit the sound barrier and the world used to be flat too.

Yes, there are sometimes lots of reasons that these things don't work.  There is also often scientific evidence to the contrary.  And yet sometimes these assumptions and postulations turn out to be incorrect.  Take the very true statement that too much oxygen can kill you or become toxic.  Suffice to say the same can be said of water, tylenol, or likely any of the drugs used for TX. 

I don't know whether the Hyperbaric chamber can help with HCV but I'd suggest that this is a relatively new disease.  They are still figuring out how to treat it.  They are still figuring out what works, what doesn't and why.  If you are having good results with it I think it's great that you are sharing them with us.  I also like having an easy to access thread that we can keep adding information or experience.

All truth passes through three stages:
First, it is ridiculed;    Second, it is violently opposed; and
Third, it is accepted as self-evident.    -- Arthur Schopenhauer (1788-1860)

"When you're one step ahead of the crowd you're a genius.
When you're two steps ahead, you're a crackpot."
-- Rabbi Shlomo Riskin, (Feb. 1998)

best wishes,
Willy

[drobie]

Brilliant quotes, Willy.

[Rainbow]

I credit that to Lloyd and Bruhner.

I wonder if it's the same Lloyd whose website Willy and I checked out the other day.  Probably not, the one we looked at had old info from 2003.  And the "Baylor" study on Milk Thistle it said was currently being conducted, had finished in 2006. 

HBOT is safe under clinical supervision and there are NO side effects.  Accidents happen with O overdose when people buy they're own machines and exceed recommended protocols. 

I dare to differ.....and "accidents" CAN happen because hyperbaric oxygen is a fire hazard. 


Risks of Hyperbaric Oxygen

The potential risks and risk-benefit ratio of hyperbaric oxygen have often been underemphasised in therapeutic trials. The side effects are often mild and reversible but can be severe and life threatening. In general, if pressures do not exceed 300 kPa and the length of treatment is less than 120 minutes, hyperbaric oxygen therapy is safe. Overall, severe central nervous system symptoms occur in 1-2% of treated patients, symptomatic reversible barotrauma in 15-20%, pulmonary symptoms in 15-20%, and reversible optic symptoms in up to 20% of patients.

Reversible myopia, due to oxygen toxicity on the lens, is the commonest side effect and can last for weeks or months. Epileptic fits are rare and usually cause no permanent damage. A suggested carcinogenic effect of hyperbaric oxygen has not been substantiated in extensive studies.

Risks of hyperbaric oxygen
 
Fire hazard (Most common fatal complication )

General features
Claustrophobia
Reversible myopia
Fatigue
Headache
Vomiting

Barotrauma
Ear damage
Sinus damage
Ruptured middle ear
Lung damage

Oxygen Toxicity
(Brain)
  Convulsions
  Psychological
(Lung ) 
  Pulmonary edema
  hemorrhage
  Pulmonary toxicity
  Respiratory failure (may be irreversible when due to pulmonary fibrosis)
 
Decompression illness
Decompression sickness
Pneumothorax
Gas emboli

Pulmonary oxygen toxicity with chest tightness, cough, and reversible falls in pulmonary function may occur with repeated treatment, particularly in patients exposed to high oxygen levels before treatment.

Hyperbaric oxygen has been tried in numerous conditions and is often reported to be beneficial. However, in many of these situations the scientific evidence is flimsy and use should be restricted to randomised controlled trials. Hyperbaric oxygen has been clearly shown not to be beneficial in several diseases including multiple sclerosis and senility.

http://bmj.bmjjournals.com/cgi/content/full/317/7166/1140

What if HBOT could work the same way, i.e. the pressure moves the remedies we are taking deeper into the affected areas where they can do more good?  Does that seem far-fectched?  Maybe, but not to this kid.

Deep.....perhaps to the bone marrow and spleen where it affects hemopoiesis.... the formation of blood cellular components....


1994 Oct;43(10):1493-505.

Effects of hyperoxic exposure on hemopoiesis

Suzuki K. Department of Anesthesiology, School of Medicine, Iwate Medical University, Morioka.

Effects of oxygen inhalation on hemopoiesis were investigated in mice and following results were obtained. 1) The numbers of pluripotent hemopoietic stem cells (CFU-S) and granulocyte-macrophage progenitor cells (GM-CFC) in murine bone marrow and spleen decreased significantly from day 1 of exposure to 70% and 100% oxygen. 2) The numbers of CFU-S and GM-CFC did not recover in mice that were exposed to 100% oxygen for 1 and 2 days followed by air exposure for 7 days. These results suggest that inhalation of more than 70% oxygen for 1 day induces inhibitory effects of the hemopoietic stem cells, and 100% oxygen exposure over 1 day can cause irreversible damage to the hemopoiesis.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/7815699?dopt=Citation



Or deep into the brain where it can cause lesions.....



Adv Ther. 2006 Nov-Dec;23(6):1009-15.

Incidence of ischemic brain lesions in hyperbaric chamber inside attendants.

Ors F, Sonmez G, Yildiz S, Uzun G, Senol MG, Mutlu H, Saracoglu M.
Department of Radiology, Gulhane Military Medical Academy, Etlik, Ankara, Turkey.

Concern is growing about the negative long-term effects of hyperbaric exposure on the central nervous system of divers. This study was conducted with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to evaluate attendants that work inside hyperbaric chambers (known as inside attendants) for hyperintense brain lesions. Ten inside attendants and 10 healthy nondiving subjects were included in the study. A questionnaire was used to obtain information about subjects' medical history, hyperbaric exposure history, alcohol intake, and smoking habits. T1-weighted, T2-weighted, and fluid-attenuated inversion recovery images were acquired with a 1.5-T MRI device. A lesion was included in the count if it was hyperintense on both T2-weighted and fluid-attenuated inversion recovery images. Although MRI revealed 3 hyperintense brain lesions in 2 of 10 inside attendants and in none of the controls, the differences between groups were not statistically significant (P=.147). The number of brain lesions counted did not correlate with the age of the inside attendants (r=0.007; P=.978), the number of hyperbaric exposures (r=-0.203; P=.574), or the duration of work as an inside attendant (r=0.051; P=.890).


3 lesions in 2 out of 10 attendants not clinically significant?  That's ridiculous.  I bet if it was their brain they wouldn't feel that way.

[Rainbow]

Hey Willy....look!  I used the quote button.  Aren't you proud of me?   

[drobie]

I guess it's time I chimed in with an update of my expierence.  I'll have to do this in piece, adding to this post over the next couple of days.  I'm backed up due to parecentesis yesterday, another appt today, and an MRI early tomorrow.

Rainbow, I have some things to say about your post too after having experienced about 60 treatments.  Due to safety factors built into the chambers and the O lines that feed them, I never once even thought about fire.

Hi,

I just finished 8 mo. of HBOT (Hyperbaric Oxygen Treatment).  I'll just teill my story and give my feelings about the HBO.

A review of some factoids might be helpful.  I was officially diagnosed for HVC 5 years ago.  I had a form of hep 35 yrs ago in the service, back when there was just an A and a B....serum and infectious.    (BTW I'm 56.)

By the time I was diagnosed, my liver was already in trouble.  I resisted Interferon (Genotype 1) and attacked with holistic medicine.  Started with Lloyd's program, read consistenly and adjusted when I started to see commonalities among experts.  BTW, today I consider Lloyd over the top in terms of what he says worked for him and pretty much only buy Milk Thistle and Alpha Lopoic Acid from him.

In a nut shell, among all that I've tried over 5 yrs HBOT is the BY FAR the MOST beneficial treatment I've ever used.  NOTE the word "beneficial" deliberately used instead of "effective" or something similar.

The sad news is that I had to suspend treatment in Nov 07 for financial reasons.  Everyday I long to return to the chamber, but have decided that purchasing my own is a better than sending another 7k+ to the clinic.  (I spent 6-8 which included separate fees for required initial "assessment" by onsite MD's.  I was lucky enough to meet with a fully holistic MD, but that's another part of the story.

I'm working on getting this:  http://www.oxyhealth.com/vitaeris-320.html.  22-24k retail.  I can get one for 15 because of a rebate program they have with their client clinics.  A dollar for dollar rebate up to 6k for everything you spend at a clinic.

Down to the nitty gritty of my experience when I can type some more.

[willy]

Hey Willy....look!  I used the quote button.  Aren't you proud of me?   

Good job and thanks for the feedback.  Now we'll get ya doing multiples in one post and then quoting different posts all in one reply.

I have some feedback too....but still have to work today....and it's also my son's 19th birthday.

I appreciate the feedback.  I think people are interested in this; both knowing whether it won't work or could in some way, in certain circumstances or for special populations.  What are the drawbacks (you've provided some) and are there any potential benefits? 

I'l write more later but thought I'd check in on this but a better reply than this may be a day or so off.

best,
Willy

[jody13]

Doug, That was a very interesting post. I'm thiinking of copying it and taking it to my Doctor. Glad to have you on board. Good bunch here. They put up with me so you would have an easy time. Jody13

[Rainbow]

drobie:

I'm sorry to hear that you're not doing well.  I know from your previous post that you're on the transplant list.  I just wanted to mention something you may not be aware of.  You can be listed at more than one transplant center as long as they are in different "regions".  Since the state of Wisconsin has 2 regions....that means that you can get listed at 2 different transplant centers (your transplant coordinator can help you do it).  Some of the transplant centers in your state transplant at a MELD of 18 while others do it at a MELD of 25.  

P.S.  I'm interested in finding out if the hyperbaric oxygen therapy caused any changes in your blood test results.