After years of sinus infections, two bouts of pneumonia and living at a high altitude, I realized one of the best ways to shake the breathlessness at the top of the stairs was to heal and oxygenize my lungs and bronchi.
I tried “recovery” oxygen – basically H2o in a small compressed can. It helped, but not to the level that I could feel more like my true self. Then I heard about HBOT – Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy. I watched a YouTube video by a woman who contracted Covid19 and was having a hard time recovering from it. Then she tried HBOT and was far better in three treatments. Ah Ha! Willing to try anything once, I searched for where the service was offered in my town. As it turns out I found that there were multiple places, Medical Spas and treatment centers, that offer it.
HBOT began in the 20th century to treat respiratory illness. In the 1940’s it was used by the U.S. Navy to treat deep sea divers with the bends (decompression sickness). It was then used to heal carbon monoxide poisoning. It is now also used for burns, chronic infections, diabetic wounds, bone infections, inadequate blood flow and cyanide poisoning. Basically, for any part of the body that is oxygen starved and needs better blood flow. It is also thought to block harmful bacteria and strengthen the immune system. I’m all for that!
Right now, if you can get a health care provider to prescribe it, Medicare, Medicaid and some insurance companies will cover the cost. I broke out on my own and paid for the sessions upfront. Not cheap, but my physical and mental welfare was worth it.
After filling out a very lengthy health report and medical referral form, I tried it once before signing up for a series. Based on the recommendation, I signed up for 10 sessions, one week apart.
HBOT is not for the claustrophobic. You lie on a narrow bed, barely wide enough to accommodate your body, and are slid into an acrylic tube, and locked in. The tub is slowly pressurized. There is no quick escape.
You wear a special scrub suit and a blood pressure monitor on your wrist. Nothing else, including no metal. There is a nice blanket made to fit the chamber so you are as comfortable as possible. Three quarters of the tube is clear acrylic and the rest is stainless steel. The place I went offered music or videos via tablet placed outside the tube.
You are in the chamber for about an hour, or longer as prescribed. Oxygen one and a half to three times higher than normal is pumped into the chamber. As they pressurize the chamber your ears pop like they do in an airplane. (HBOT is not for anyone with ear infections or ear trauma.) There is a hissing sound as they pressurize the chamber and also depressurize it when your session is over. Sometimes I felt a little light headed when first stepping off the table.
The oxygen level facilitates your blood carrying extra oxygen throughout the body, helping to heal the tissues in need. I slowly improved to the point of a far more efficient breathing system. Less puffing on the stairs, more energy and deeper breathing.
Would I recommend it? Yes. Will I do it again, yes if something warrants my needs. It is worth the hour and a half of my time that I took each week for 10 weeks to feel renewed and ready for my day.
Click here to go to the John Hopkins website for more information.
~Ginger