Lymphedema relieved by whole body vibration

Hello,

I appreciate your quick and thoughtful answer to my questions.

Now to tell you what I have experienced myself… I have Lymphedema of the lower extremities. I have had this condition since surgery for cancer in 1988. I have had to be on a Lympha-press machine for 6-8 hours everyday of my life for 20 years! It pumps the fluid/toxins out of my legs into my kidneys but not very effectively.

Now…. 12 short days of my WBV I have not had to use my pump at all. You HEARD correctly… NOT ONCE!

I have used it for an hour 2 times while watching football but did not have to…. I wanted to. It gives a massage of sorts and I figured it wouldn’t hurt me.

I started out the first day with 15 minutes two times that day. The swelling in my feet & legs went down quite a bit.

My digestion improved considerably and I felt like a million bucks! The 3rd or 4th day I did 20 minutes twice a day.

Now the machine I’m using has a programable feature which takes a break after 25 seconds then 35 and works like that up to 120 seconds then it stops. The time from start to finish on the total body workout feature is 7 minutes but that is counting the breaks. I do that 3 times or that program & 2 or 3 others that work the same way.  The actual time of the workout counting all breaks is about 30-40 minutes.

I do not just stand there on the machine. I vary the positions and do a work out of sorts. One foot on, then the other in a lunge position, hands on with feet off the machine while bending over or on my knees with arms on the machine… and many more.

I over did it one day and needed a nap. lol but other than that one time I have not had any problems or issues.

I sleep better at night. Have more energy all day long. I am happier. Have more time to live since I am not spending as much time on the Lympa-press machine. All in all I think it is the best thing I have ever done for me.

I noticed after about 1 week that my body is changing shape, or I should say getting a shape. lol

I noticed today that my jeans are getting baggy in the butt and legs. I got on the scale after 12 days of this amazing machine and I have lost 7 lbs.

I am going to take your advice and not do this more than twice per day but starting my day with the first 30 minutes (20 of vibration) and then another 10 minutes after dinner instead of a walk is what the plan is.

Feel free to pass my story on to others. If this thing continues to help me I will be screaming it from the highest mountain to every Lympedema patient in the world.

In addition to Lymphedema I am currently about 55 lbs overweight and ironically I am a 55 year old female.

I was 62 lbs overweight 12 days ago! I have a long way to go but I am having fun and it is working.

If you want I will keep you in the loop of my progress. Let me know.

Thanks for your answers,
Deb

Drug free Osteoporosis therapy.

Osteoporosis is a growing problem, especially for post-menopausal women. The good news is that whole body vibration offers an effective drug-free therapy.

Some estimates are that 28 million people in the U.S. are affected.  Approximately a million osteoporosis related bone fractures occur per year with around 50,000 deaths related from post-bone fracture complications.

The traditional ways of treating bone density loss involve medication using pharmaceuticals and calcium supplements.  This approach generally treats the symptoms, rather than the causes.

Holistic therapies tend to treat causes, rather than symptoms, in the belief that by treating the cause, you will effectively remove the symptoms.

Whole body vibration has been used as an effective therapy for osteoporosis because it provides the replacement for load bearing physical activity necessary to maintain bone density and muscle mass.  In layman’s terms, osteoporosis is combated by muscle stimulation exerting stress on the bone.  When normal physical activity proves inadequate due to factors such as inability to exercise, leaching of calcium from bones through diet or hormonal changes, intervention is necessary.

Whole body vibration has been proved to provide safe and effective intervention when properly used.

Some studies indicate that the triangular oscillation type whole body vibration has a more beneficial effect than the linear, or vertical only vibration.

For further details on this you may download a scientific study published by the Journal for Rehabilitation Research and Development  here.  On the home page are videos that also provide anecdotal case history information.

Whole body vibration therapy, a revolutionary technique that efficiently treats Parkinson’s disease

The following article was recently published regarding using whole body vibration therapy as a treatment for Parkinson’s disease:

A novel non-traditional physical therapy method is available for advanced Parkinson’s disease (PD) patients that do not respond well to medications such as L-dopamine. Scientists from the Sun Life Financial Movement Disorders Research and Rehabilitation Centre from Ontario, Canada have shown that short term whole body vibration therapy significantly improves the clinical symptoms (loss of gait, tremors and akinesia) of PD patients. In this clinical study, a sample population of 40 PD patients were subject to intensive therapy for a few weeks using a Physioacoustic Chair, an sophisticated device containing speakers that are strategically placed throughout the chair in order to deliver programmed low frequency sound waves throughout the body of the patient.
This study is remarkable in the sense that acoustic therapy had a significant impact on the well being and quality of life of PD patients. In brief, the Unified Parkinson’s Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS), gait assessments and upper limb control tests showed significant improvements on gait stability and posture, increased stepping time and speed on the peg-board task, a significant decrease in tremors and less rigidity in PD patients receiving whole body vibration therapy compared to a control group that received no therapy. More importantly, this study showed that whole body vibration therapy may also be applied to PD patients that do not respond well to L-dopamine medication or deep brain stimulation, a complicated risky surgery that involves delivering mild electrical shocks to the brain via implanted electrodes. The latter technique is used as a last resort to stabilize tremors and rigidity in PD patients.

Whole body acoustic stimulation vs. conventional physical therapy for treating PD

Before this study, another previous study conducted about a year ago showed that whole vibration therapy is even more effective in reversing many of the clinical symptoms of PD patients compared to conventional physical therapy. Specifically, this particular study showed that whole body vibration therapy improved equilibrium and gait four weeks after undergoing an intensive three week regimen consisting of 15 minutes a day for five days a week.
Remarkably, this study quantitatively also suggests that whole body vibration therapy is more efficient (25% more efficient) than conventional physical therapy for partially reversing clinical symptoms in PD patients that do not respond well to L-dopamine. It will be interesting to know whether a combined therapy that uses both whole body and conventional intervention techniques has an additive/ synergistic positive effect in reversing clinical PD symptoms compared to single treatment intervention.

Brief background on whole body vibration therapy.

The technology used for conventional physical therapeutic interventions of PD patients have included the use of treadmills, different optical and acoustic devices, balance/ gait training devices and low impact exercise machines. On the other hand, the concept and practice of whole body vibration therapy is not novel since this technique has been used by athletes as part of a routine exercise to loose weight, improve muscle tone and increase muscle strength.
Whole body vibration therapy was initially postulated and developed by Jean Martin Charcot, who also developed a vibration chair many decades ago! There are currently a few devices currently in the market that have been tweaked and redesigned with from other existing prototypes. Some of the most well known whole body vibrational devices are sold by xxxx and is used for many applications including relaxation therapy, strength training and muscle toning, and for physical therapy.

The machine looks like a typical workout machine with arm rests, a bottom platform, and a console that allows a user to program a variety of amplitude and frequency settings (18-28 Hz). Once a patient stands on top of the platform and grabs the arm rests, he/she may receive a short session of either low frequency sound waves that allow for muscle relaxation while higher amplitude and frequency settings is used for increasing muscle tone and contraction.
Whole body vibration therapy has also been used in the past to treat patients affected by neuromuscular debilitating and neurodegenerative disorders such as multiple sclerosis, stroke, cerebral palsy, Huntington’s chorea, and other movement disorders. It is not known how whole body acoustic therapy works in Parkinson’s disease patients but it is believed that high vibrational frequencies help to partially restore some of the sensory perception (proprioception) that is lost during the progression of the disease and is also used to enhance muscle coordination, a physical trait that is lost during the progression of PD. Finally, high frequency sound waves delivered via physicoacoustic devices has been shown to improve blood flow, electrical conductivity and metabolism of muscle tissue.

US Olympic ski and snowboard teams use whole body vibration

According to Fox Business, the US Ski and Snowboard teams are using whole body vibration exercise as part of their training regime for the 2010 Olympics.

Troy Flanagan, Director of Sport Science for the teams says that they will be using whole body vibration platforms in the warm up area at the base of the race hill at the Vancouver 2010 Olympics.  They’ll be using this technology to warm up immediately prior to their races.

Flanagan believes that this will be an important factor in their success.

“We find the machine incredibly useful for waking up the neurological system and applying loads through the body that we just can’t get from traditional weight training.“

Feeling your age? Shake the years away.

If you’re tired of avoiding bending, squatting, reaching and other activities that used to be easy, whole body vibration may well be the answer.

Over the past few months we’ve seen an increasing number of people over 60 purchasing whole body vibration platforms. Often they’re referred to us by their physical therapist or chiropractor.

The reason is quite simple: whole body vibration exercise is absolutely perfect for most people – it will help increase flexibility, mobility, balance and general suppleness.

Now, when I say ‘whole body vibration’ I’m talking about triangular oscillation whole body vibration as opposed to linear vibration which moves vertically up and down. The reason is that triangular oscillating whole body vibration is gentle on the joints and it most closely mimics the body’s own natural movement.

When you step forward, one side of your body goes lower, while the other is slightly raised. Another step and the process is reversed: first one side is lower, then the other. So there is now harsh jarring of the body at all. It’s non-impact, non-invasive. And it’s a much better way of dealing with common signs of aging such as stiffness, joint soreness, and general aches and pains exacerbated by general lack of mobility.

Whole body vibration has been found to be helpful in overcoming many of the common symptoms of aging. A big plus is that it’s very easy to do.  There are no complicated regimes and it doesn’t take a long time.

As opposed to the full 10 minutes often recommended for this therapy, older people can benefit from just a few minutes three or more days a week.  People who, for whatever reason, cannot stand on the platform, can also benefit from sitting on it and / or sitting on a chair with their feet on it.

In fact, we’ve found that sitting on a chair with the feet on the platform while it runs at a moderate speed is an excellent ‘pick me up’ at the end of a long day.  If you stand on your feet all day, you’ll find this particular method is bliss for relieving tired, aching feet.

At a recent trade show, every few hours, we’d do this to relieve our tired, sore feet.  Neighbors in other booths observed with amusement – a few of the braver ones came over to request a demo.  After hearing their sighs of pleasure as their feet and legs were soothed, the others were queuing up to try this new wonder therapy.

The point is that there are many ways to experience the benefits of whole body vibration therapy or exercise.  Age should not be a barrier.  In fact, older people often experience some dramatic results when using wbv consistently.  Through bone and muscle strengthening, increased mobility and flexibility as well as increased production of human growth hormone, seratonin, endorphins, collagen and elastin, most people find that they feel younger, stronger and more optimistic using whole body vibration.