Topic: Has anyone tried hyperbaric oxygen therapy?
sammy
Frequent Contributor (5K+ posts)
Member # 13952
posted
Has anyone tried hyperbaric oxygen therapy? I would like to learn more about this.
How many treatments/dives are necessary to put Lyme in remission? I've read that treatments can be once or twice per day, 5days per wk, for a total of 60 dives, is this correct?
Can multiplace chambers be as effective as monoplace chambers?
Has anyone tried this therapy with mulitple active coinfections including Babesia? I am trying to treat Babesia but it seems to be out of control right now.
Also, is it common to relapse after these treatments? Can you maintain progress made with HBOT by taking antibiotics?
I would love to hear any thoughts and experiences with this. Thanks so much!
Posts: 5237 | From here | Registered: Nov 2007
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Lauralyme
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 15021
posted
Check with some posts made a month or two ago from Wildcondor. She had the best experience and advice for HBO treatments. She also gives info on her blog.
-------------------- Fall down seven times, get up eight ~Japanese proverb Posts: 1146 | From west coast | Registered: Mar 2008
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I did 20 treatments, 5 days a week, in a monoplace chamber. 2 hrs each treatment. I was not taking antibiotics with the treatment but wish i had been.
After 20 treatments i stopped. I could not afford anymore. I felt like I herxed during treatment, and I was totally wiped out for the 4 weeks. My treatment was in Naples, Fl.
I told my LLMD that i had done this and he thought it was great. However, he told me that he thought it might take up to 120 dives.
I think that it can be very effective, even a cure for some people. I would not hesitate to do it again.
I agree with Laura that Wildcondor is a great source of info.
Jeff
Posts: 233 | From ft. myers, florida | Registered: Apr 2004
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sammy
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Member # 13952
posted
Thank you Laura
Jeff, did you notice any improvements after the herx? Were you able to hold on to those improvements or did you relapse quickly?
And did your doctor mention why you might need up to 120 dives? That is so expensive...
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I felt like I did just enough to stir up the bugs and make me feel miserable. It is hard to say if I improved. It was more like a worsening of symptoms and just a general wiped out feeling. Aftetrwards I sort of went back to how i normally felt.
After I had told my LLMD (midwest USA)I had done this and he asked me how many I had done, he told me that he had ben told by a very experienced person affiliated w/ a hyperbaric oxygen center that it might take 120 dives. That is why he mentioned it. He was only going by what he had been told.
I will say this. I think that it can be very, very effective and I would not hesitate to try it again. I initially tried it because a coworker of mine had a friend who had ben very, very sick w/ lyme and was eventually cured (her words) by HBO.
Jeff
Posts: 233 | From ft. myers, florida | Registered: Apr 2004
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posted
My husband did HBOT before he knew he had Lyme/Babesia. It created a severe flare, we believe due to the untreated Babesia. I think it's important to make sure Babesia has been treated if that's a possible co-infection.
Posts: 984 | From San Diego | Registered: Nov 2006
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WildCondor
Unregistered
posted
Thanks all!
Here is the info and articles I did, If you have any questions just email me [email protected] I am turning off private messages. Thanks!
timaca
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 6911
posted
I did HBOT (do a search using my member number). It helped while I did it, but it did not cure me. It was expensive, and the chambers were hours away from my home, so I stopped doing them. The improvements I made were lost when I stopped the dives. I did gain improvements again using antiviral medication.
Best, Timaca
Posts: 2872 | From above 7,000 ft in a pine forest | Registered: Feb 2005
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seekhelp
Frequent Contributor (5K+ posts)
Member # 15067
posted
Yes, Feelfit said HBOT destroyed her in one session due to Babs. Beware!!
Posts: 7545 | From The 5th Dimension - The Twilight Zone | Registered: Mar 2008
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WildCondor
Unregistered
posted
You can do HBOT with Babesia..I always did and it only made me better. There are plenty of rumors and false information about HBOT and Lyme...people just do not know the facts. One session is nothing. You can expect strong herxing...and quickly. It takes atleast 60 dives to make any sort of an impact. I would say dont even bother with HBOT unless # 1 you are educated about this and #2 you are on strong antibiotic protocols concurrently and #3 can commit atleast 60 dives with 5-10 every 6-8 weeks for follow up after than and continue as needed. It is not a quick fix...it takes time and understanding and compliance to truly use it properly.
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Rumigirl
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Member # 15091
posted
WC,
Is it important to do two sessions per day, or is one sufficient? I gather that two per day is much better.
I am considering doing it along with my abx protocol. However, two problems to overcome: I would have to take a nasal decongestant and use ear planes, as I have horrible ear problems with pressure changes (that is do-able). The other is that I get bad migraines with barometric pressure changes---not sure what to do about that.
I got both problems badly the one time I did HBOT. Any suggestions?
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sammy
Frequent Contributor (5K+ posts)
Member # 13952
posted
Thank you all for sharing your thoughts with me.
WildCondor, your website is impressive, gave me a lot to read and consider. Thanks for gathering all that information and sharing it with us.
HBOT sounds like an excellent treatment option if you can find a way to finance it. I would love to try it but unfortunately the cost is prohibitive.
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Cass A
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 11134
posted
Dear Friends,
The Lyme support group in Ventura County, California, recently had a meeting about HBOT and Lyme.
Here's some of the more important (to me) pieces of information from that meeting:
1) Some people don't "herx" on only one session per day. Two are often required.
2) The person who arranged the meeting, and who has had the most impressive recovery using HBOT recently had a very bad relapse, and needed to have many more treatments to pull out of it. She had been misdiagnosed for many years, but her experience is cautionary for those seeking a more permanent solution.
3) A MINIMUM of 40 treatments, preferably 2 times a day (if you can stand the herxes) with with 2-3 days off between was recommended.
4) Most people doing HBOT for Lyme are taking antibiotics concurrently--often IV antibiotics, and at high doses. There is some dispute as to whether doing HBOT without taking high-dose antibiotics is worth it. The owner of the HBOT facility said that the high percentage of people would feel better even without the antibiotics. He made no claims for how long the benefit would last, either way.
5) The presenter, who owns and runs an HBOT facility, believes from his experience that the oxygen intake through the skin is minimal, and that equally successful treatment can take place either in a multi-place chamber or in a single-person chamber. That the choice of one over the other is based on personal preference.
Hope this helps!
Best,
Cass A
Posts: 1245 | From Thousand Oaks, CA | Registered: Feb 2007
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posted
timaca, which antivirals did you take?
Posts: 226 | From earth | Registered: Sep 2007
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CD57
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 11749
posted
Bumping as I am considering this.
I have researched this and found the following: bartonella and babesia are aerobes, which means they like oxygen. Lyme hates it, and dies.
So....it looks like a double edged sword really. The nurse at the clinic I talked to has Lyme, bart, babs, and is doing really well...but treated them all throughout the therapy. She did 40 dives, took a break, and then 40 more.
I agree the cost is prohibitive and thus we probably don't hear much.
Cass A, did they talk about the co's at the NBOT session?
Posts: 3528 | From US | Registered: Apr 2007
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seekhelp
Frequent Contributor (5K+ posts)
Member # 15067
posted
Ummm..how much did 200 HBOT sessions cost you WC? Can anyone afford it?
Posts: 7545 | From The 5th Dimension - The Twilight Zone | Registered: Mar 2008
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timaca
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 6911
posted
Steven~ I've taken valcyte. I'm on acyclovir, and oxymatrine (chinese herb to battle enterovirus).
Best, Timaca
Posts: 2872 | From above 7,000 ft in a pine forest | Registered: Feb 2005
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WildCondor
Unregistered
posted
Call around and ask, it is usually $125-$175 per dive. It took a chunk of my savings but it was well worth it. Make sure you guys are not getting ripped off with places charging over $200 per dive. Make sure you go in a monoplace (single person) chamber too. Also, be sure to maximize your antibiotic doses during HBOT and take 400 IU of Vitamin E daily.
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seekhelp
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Member # 15067
posted
WOW, that's $30,000+ out-of-pocket WC. It's tough to imagine that was your supplemental therapy along with high-dose aggressive Tx. That approach doesn't sound like something most people here could do. I had a great job before all this and still.
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WildCondor
Unregistered
posted
The place I went to charged $75 per dive at the time so it was nowhere near that figure, but still added up. Call around for the best rates....
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