20 Pain Free Minutes

My leg continues to heal, but circulation problems are an issue. Tuesday I drove a few towns over to see a really good acupuncturist. Last time I had issues with my leg the treatments really seemed to kick start the final healing process.

He set up all the needles he let them do their thing for about 30 minutes. The first ten minutes were slightly uncomfortable. After that the pain went completely away. I haven't been completely pain free like that for months. Sometimes the pain has been acute. Other times it's been a dull background sort of thing. I'd forgotten what completely pain free felt like. That wonderful 20 minutes were worth the trip and cost right there.

Not only that, the swelling went down some. That's after just one treatment. I'll probably go see him for a few more visits.

It was the right time to see him. Had I made an appointment while my leg was massively infected, he'd have sent me to the doctor's. While he has treatments and herbs that help, he recognizes the power of modern antibiotics.

Right now my big issues are swelling and itching from the scabs healing. The itching can be annoying, especially when trying to sleep. One thing that helps a lot with that is Bag Balm. It's actually a product for chapped cow's udders. It's antiseptic and works wonders on a number of skin issues.

My medical treatments are an odd ball mix of modern medicine and alternative treatments. I don't rely on either one alone. I don't care if it's the placebo effect or not. My 20 minutes of pain free bliss was worth it.

-Sixbears

Acupuncture follow up

Last week, out of frustration with the slow rate of healing in my leg, I went to an acupuncturist. I was so happy with the results that I just had my second appointment. Also scheduled a third, but we will see how it goes after that. While the leg is far from all better, it is quite a bit better. There is less pain and swelling.

I'm finally able to stay on my feet more, walk further, and get more done. There have been a couple of unpleasant discoveries. One is that after months of being laid up, I'm out of condition. No surprise there. The only thing to do is to work and sweat until it comes back. It actually feels good to work up a sweat doing things.

The second thing that has to happen is learning to walk all over again. Sure, I've been walking, but with a constant limp. Getting my normal gait back requires being aware of how I walk. My balance still isn't 100%, but that too is coming.

My lovely wife, knowing my balance isn't quite right, talked me into hiring a friend to do a minor roof repair. As a pig headed independent cuss that wasn't easy to do. She is right, as the last thing I need is to get re-injured and have to start all over again.

-Sixbears

Alternative Medicine

The doctors have done what they could for my leg and foot. The infection is long gone, but my leg still swells up as the day goes on. I have to stop and elevate my foot above my heart until the swelling decreases. No idea how long it will be until that's under control.

Not being satisfied to just wait, I've employed the services of a licensed acupuncturist. My first treatment went well. I'm scheduled a second one for next week. Will it help? I hope so, but it can't hurt.

When my lungs were badly injured by smoke inhalation, the doctors mess around with me for months. Finally they basically threw their hands in the air and wrote me off. After that I had two years of intensive training with a martial arts master. He taught me exercises to strengthen my lungs and taught me how to breath again. Only then did I really start to get better.

I'm not against regular western medicine. For example, it's hard to argue with the effectiveness of modern antibiotics. However, once western medicine reaches the end of the line, I'm willing to try alternatives.

Even when using “normal” medicine, I tend to go with the least invasive practices. When I had a bad back injury I was told I had two alternatives. They could operate and I'd probably feel better in three weeks, but there would probably be more surgeries in my future. The other option was six months of intensive and painful physical therapy. The therapist did not sugar coat how painful it would be.

I took the physical therapy route. It was painful. My therapist would say: does that hurt? I'd say yes. He'd say: good, and then he'd smile. He acquired the nickname, the Prince of Pain. The guy seemed to like that. As painful as the therapy was, he did not lie. My back has been 100% ever since.

At least acupuncture isn't painful, so that's good.

It's all covered under my normal health plan: pay for everything myself out of pocket. One advantage is that I don't have to argue with insurance companies.

-Sixbears

Unconventional Medicine

I had a nice long phone conversation with a good friend of mine. About 6 years ago he had a massive stroke. For a time he was completely parallelized and was unconscious. Later, he came out of his comma. Speech was difficult and he'd often be lost for words. Doctors put him in a nursing home.

Over time, with some physical therapy, he was able to regain the use of his left side. Eventually he was able to move into an assisted living apartment. That was a big step up from the nursing home. His physical therapy stopped, which is normal in these cases. It's expensive and they only expect improvements during the fist year after a stroke.

That's where things stayed for a while. He didn't get any better, but didn't get any worse. He could watch TV, but struggled with reading. Anything longer than a short magazine article overwhelmed him. Reading was slow and he could not retain what he'd read.

Then he decided to do more about his health. He lost weight -about 100 pounds. That got him off insulin and most other drugs. An “energy worker” did some procedures on him. He started going to an acupuncturist on a regular basis.

One day he noticed some feeling in part of his right leg. It doesn't sound like much, but to him it was a big deal. Instead of just being something dragged around, his leg felt like his again. He has no control over it, but at least there's some sensation.

Life got busy and I hadn't heard from him in a while. We talked on the phone last night and he'd made another big improvement. Suddenly he got the urge to try and read a book. He was able to read, comprehend, and retain what he read. Now he's on his third and truly enjoying himself. It opens up a slice of life that had been closed off.

He didn't do alternative treatments instead of regular medicine, but when conventional treatments come to their end, what does one have to lose? The effort paid off for him.

It had also paid off for me when I was trying to recover from lung injuries from firefighting. A martial artist taught me exercises to strengthen my lungs. I learned how to breath all over again. In my case, conventional medicine had actually made matters worse for a time. Once they cut me loose from the system, I started to slowly improve.

The nation is struggling with this whole Obamacare thing. We talk about insurance, but not so much about health. If I've learned anything about health care over the years is that we are responsible for our own. Blindly listening to doctors is a trip to an early grave.

I'm paying more attention to my health as of late. For a time I was so sick that just feeling Okay was wonderful. Now that I've been enjoying sun and salt air and exercise, I see that I can feel even better. Talking to my friend has inspired me to do more.

-Sixbears