Anodyne Therapy Helps Lupus Patients Lupus is a strange disease. It is considered a form of arthritis but even arthritis specialists will tell you it is a weird form of arthritis. What is lupus? Lupus is a chronic (long lasting) disease where the immune system (your body’s defense against disease) begins to attack normal healthy tissue. The attack results in inflammation and brings on the symptoms found in lupus. What are the symptoms of lupus? Symptoms vary a good bit depending on each individual’s case and the form of lupus. Most people don’t experience all of these symptoms: Achy or swollen joints Persistent fever over 100 degrees Prolonged severe fatigue Skin rashes, including a butterfly shaped red rash which is wider on the cheeks and narrower across the nose (see picture) Pain in the chest on deep breathing Anemia Excessive protein in the urine Sensitivity to sun or ultraviolet light Hair loss Abnormal blood clotting problems Fingers or toes turning white or blue in the cold Numbness and tingling or pain in the hands and feet Seizures Mouth ulcers lasting longer than two weeks Diagnosed with vasculitis (inflammation of the circulation system) As I say, according to the Lupus Foundation of America, not everyone gets all these symptoms and symptoms may come and go. They publish this list to alert people to clues that may indicate the presence of lupus in an undiagnosed person. What we see a lot of is swollen legs, ankles and peeling skin. There may be skin ulcers present on the hands, legs, ankles or feet. This can make it difficult for people to walk or use their hands. This is frustrating for the patients and until now, frustrating for us. When the first patient came with this disease, I did not promise much. I knew that the Anodyne infrared representative said it would help but I figured he was exaggerating to make a sale. Guess I should not be so skeptical, because it did work, big time. Ankles shrunk to normal size. Pain went away in six weeks that the patient had had for six years! I saw what was happening with my own eyes and heard what the patient was saying, yet I was still skeptical. However, when we redid the nerve sensory test, her sensation had improved by 80%! Ok, I had to admit, it was working, but how? In lupus excessive collagen (protein) is produced that narrows the arteries. This reduces circulation which can produce the swelling, pain and skin lesions. With Anodyne Light Therapy, the red blood cells shed their nitric oxide in to the bloodstream. This increases the diameter of the blood vessels by 3200%! That is a 32 times increase. No wonder they feel so much better, so quickly. If you have lupus, you should consider a referral to see us. You will be surprised how well you can actually feel after treatment. If you have loss of circulation to the feet or hands for other reasons, please ask you doctor for a referral. You too can experience relief from pain and numbness and tingling of the hands or feet. Call us @301-759-4263 and stop living with pain and start living again. Try therapy @ Tri-State Hand & Occupational Therapy. Call today. Father’s Day History Sonora Dodd, of Washington, first had the idea of a “father’s day”. She thought of the idea for Father’s Day while listening to a Mother’s Day sermon in 1909. Sonora wanted a special day to honor her father, William Smart. Smart, who was a Civil War veteran, was widowed when his wife died while giving birth to her sixth child. Mr. Smart was left to raise the newborn and his other five children by himself on a rural farm in eastern Washington state. After Sonora became an adult she realized the selflessness her father had shown in raising his children as a single parent. It was her father that made all the parental sacrifices and was, in the eyes of his daughter, a courageous, selfless, and loving man. Sonora’s father was born in June, so she chose to hold the first Father’s Day celebration in Spokane, Washington on the 19th of June, 1910. President Calvin Coolidge, in 1924, supported the idea of a national Father’s Day. Then in 1966 President Lyndon Johnson signed a presidential proclamation declaring the 3rd Sunday of June as Father’s Day. President Richard Nixon signed the law which finally made it permanent in 1972. |
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