Hi Kin,

Carryover is not related to a numbing sensation per se, or at least to my knowledge it is not. You can create what is called “paresthesia” with high frequency estim. Much of how our body responds to electrical stimulus is not known. When you put positive and negative charges in the body you create a cascade effect of numerous electrical changes which are defined as literally changing the chemical structure of cells, nerves, inter and intra cellular spaces. With interferential one can cause more changes, very rapidly in the body. With pain the changes tend to be beneficial and one has immediate pain relief results. That relief is very much predicated upon the chemical changes one did during the period of stimulation. That relief remains as long as there is similar chemistry in the area or the change has affected how the brain reacted to the changes. The brain can change chemistry within our body and does constantly. Interferential on an “as needed” basis appears to be teaching the brain to either send in different chemical responses or not allow certain previous chemical reactions to occur. It’s not always what is done, but often what is not done.

Tens basically does not “heal” anything although it can be used to heal bones that are not growing together or soft tissue injuries such as bed sores, sports medicine injuries etc. IF ( interferential) has the ability, if used as a preventive, to actually cause permanent changes and falls in the category of a “healing current”.

1. It is untrue that muscle stim can not be applied to the neck. “muscle stim” is not what either tens or interferential is really designed to do. We can pump a muscle, cause a contraction, but most muscle stim units are used for rehab. following injury and have a whole set of parameters not found in most estim units. The term is very much abused and misleading, but that is the norm. Don’t accept the term unless someone can expressly tell you the difference. We have a video about muscle stim on our web site you should watch. Type in the search the term and follow the results you get.

2. Pads applied in different areas, depending on condition at time of using the unit.

3. Your aunt probably needs to change her diet and if unwilling to do so then forget about it. E stim is used to increase blood flow, pump muscles to increase blood flow and is generally very good at doing it as long as there are no occlusions to the blood going into an area such as plaque, constricted vessels etc.

We need a prescription to dispense in the U.S. the Infrex or actually a tens unit. Infrex has a tens mode in it though.

bobj

From: kin
Sent: Tuesday, January 17, 2012 1:01 AM
To: Bob Johnson
Subject: Re: TENS or INFREX

Hi Bob,

I really appreciate your responses.

I had read about carryover. Guess I didn’t understand if carryover results due to a “numbed” nerve (or whatever is affecting the nerve so the pain is reduced?), or because of increased blood flow to the muscle(s) – which is more of a healing condition. That was why I asked which device works best to “heal” the condition — as opposed to “numbing” it. It sounds like you are saying that both would work but that the in Infrex would have more healing effect because of the greater pulse rate per second.

Most important questions yet:
1. I was told that muscle stim can’t be applied to the upper neck muscles, is that true?
2. Where would pads be applied if I get a Tens or an Infrex for my condition?

3. I have a friend who was told she may have to get her lower leg amputated (due to poor circulation). Would an Infrex device save her left leg- even if she doesn’t change her diet?

If your answer is yes, then do I need to ask her to find a doctor in  CA. that can prescribe her one (so insurance will pay)? If so, do you know of any Physicians in Ca. I could send her to?

Thanks again,
Kin

— On Mon, 1/16/12, Bob Johnsonwrote:

From: Bob Johnson
Subject: 2nd comment on RE: TENS or INFREX
To: “kin
Date: Monday, January 16, 2012, 7:54 AM
Hi Kin,

At office now so can give you better answer than from my Blackberry.

To clarify previous answer. Tens may help you but a tens unit goes off and on ( frequency/rate/Pulses Per second) at most 150 times per second versus interferential doing same thing 8,001 – 8,150 times per second. The higher frequency allows more electricity to penetrate to muscles, nerves etc. and actually simulate “deeper”. Difference for patient is longer lasting relief when not using the unit. Type in “carryover” on our web site to get more information on this.

Also the comment “my brain doesn’t work as well” regarding the muscle tension, is not surprising. Reason is with “tightness” in muscles in neck/shoulders there is generally a degree of blood vessel constriction which slows the blood flow to the brain, as well as restricting blood from brain which means the blood, after delivering nutrients, O2 etc. is remaining for longer time period in unusable condition. This physiological process often leads to less mental alertness.

By relaxing the muscles the blood flow is improved as well as the alertness.

Hope this helps explain.

bobj

From: kin
Sent: Saturday, January 14, 2012 6:23 PM
To: Bob Johnson
Subject: TENS or INFREX

Dear MedFaxx,

I have chronic pain in my upper neck muscles (around the C1 and C2 area). I notice when the upper neck muscles are really tight, my brain doesn’t work as well. Which device would be best suited for this condition (TENS or INFREX)? My hope is not so much to “dull” the pain, but to resolve the muscle issue and the restricted blood flow that accompanies it (good posture and chiro adjustments over the last 10 years haven’t been enough to help condition).

Thank you,
Kim

It is a great stretch and strengthener for the shoulders and upper back muscles.

Squeeze the shoulder blades together for a great isometric exercise.

Osteoporosis Exercise – Skeletal Fitness by Mirabai Holland

The resistance of isometric exercise is what makes this of possible benefit for osteoporosis.

This exercise can be performed in less than 1 minute.

I am more than happy to have it at my house. It is well worth the space it takes up in my house. Now he just comes over once a week to get a good spine stretch.

As soon as I started doing the inversions on  a regular basis, my back felt better quickly. Check out this inversion therapy video >>>

When the inversion table first showed up at my house, I was doing it maybe once or twice a week. That didn’t make much difference  When I increased the frequency to almost everyday, improvement happened rapidly.  I also was able to increase the amount of time I hung upside down, once I got used to it. At first it was a little awkward and scary, but I got over that after the first few attempts.

The negative pull of gravity on the spine is what makes the difference. This type of spinal decompression therapy has been in existence for a couple thousand years now. In the old days, they would strap someone to a ladder, and a couple of strong men would turn it upside down.

Even a tiny amount of increased separation between the vertebral discs can make a difference.

As always, you would want to check with your doctor, chiropractor or physical therapist before trying this. Inversion therapy is not right for everybody.

Caffeine and Pain

Stiff Neck and Sore Back

Caffeine certainly contributes to pain in my body. I can feel it, oftentimes while drinking a cup of coffee. My neck starts to tighten up, my jaw gets cranky, and the lower back starts to get sore.
Switching to white tea, made a noticeable difference within days. white tea contains less

caffeine than green tea, which has less than black tea, which has much less than coffee. – Especially if it came from Starbucks or some other high end coffee shop.

Inflammation and Muscle Tension

Coffee has been linked to inflammation, which is a factor in pain.
Too much caffeine can lead to muscle tension, which can add to aches and pains.

Not to mention the fact that caffeine clearly contributes to stress. We have all heard about the negative effects of stress. The adrenal glands take a beating, when the caffeine load gets too high.

So the bottom line: Is coffee or tea right for you? These drinks actually do have some health benefits, like antioxidants. And they do come from plants, so coffee could be considered a vegetable.  – It’s a stretch I know…

In another video, I’ll be sharing a simple technique, that will help you determine if caffeiene is right for you, how much and in what form. It’s a dead easy technique, anyone can do at home.

My own neck has been sore lately, so I checked out Youtube for some videos that might be helpful.

This video gives some great simple stretches for the neck. I’ve done this little routine for a couple days now and it’s making a difference.

As always, I would highly recommend checking with your doctor before trying any of these exercises. That’s my disclaimer.

Just a couple minutes of this stretching can definitely loosen up some tight neck muscles.

The very first movement is great for the shoulders. Shoulder stiffness is often tied into neck pain.

The next movement is just moving the head from left to right while focusing on the breathing.

Never move past the point of pain, the idea is to relax and loosen, not create more pain.

Infrex Plus - Pain Relief Machine

I was talking to my friend just the other day and he recommended I try some neck stretches.

Here is what he said:

“If it’s hard for you to do the stretches, try hooking up an Interferential unit, with the electrodes on your neck. The interferential treatment will help to loosen up the muscles and make it easier to stretch, with less discomfort.”

So I tried it out and guess what, it works great. If you want to try this for yourself, you’ll need a doctor’s prescription. The good folks at Medfaxx can help you with that. They will even give you a free trial of the unit. Definitely worth a try, if you are suffering with pain of any type. To get started on your free trial, just fill out the from on the right hand side of this site.

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