I have a friend who has been through breast cancer (chemo, radiation, surgery) for the last two years. She beat it, but came out with lots of issues and still on some meds.
She was at my house a few weeks ago and told me that one of the most bothersome things was the neuropathy in her hands and feet. Most days, she just can't feel them and struggles with gripping things and balance. Other times, they hurt.
I have tried to get her to try my light therapy devices many times, but her doctors have had her scared to death to use anything that they do not recommend, so she declines…and I totally understand that.
That day, I had just received my new Versa Pad and it was charging on the counter. I turned it on and handed it to her and told her to hold it. I was surprised that she did just that.
With all the toxic meds and chemo she has had to take for cancer treatment, I did not leave it on but 10 minutes, being fearful of a herx reaction. She told me a few minutes later that it sure made her hands itch. That was when I knew that we had accomplished better circulation and I told her that it was a very good sign.
I didn't press her for any updates and did not hear from her until almost 2 weeks later, which was on the eve of her birthday. She told me that she had some feeling in 2 fingers on each hand (Not bad for one 10 minute session two weeks ago!) and she had been looking at RLT pads on Amazon. I told her to let me order a Versa Pad for her birthday. A couple of our friends wanted to pitch in and give it as a group gift. It would have been disastrous for her to buy a cheap pad and get no results.
I didn't want her to have to wait though, so I sent her home with my pad and she has used it for the last week. She reported today that 3 fingers on each hand have feeling most of the time now. Her pinky and thumb on each hand have more limited success, having feeling less frequently for the last week.
She normally gets two lymph massages every week because she lost 17 lymph nodes to the cancer. She also uses a machine in the morning and at night for an hour to drain lymph from that arm. Her therapist took measurements a couple of days ago and for the first time, reported that she had reduced size all along her arm and they were measurable improvements. Therefore, she is going to reduce her appointments to once a week. Was this caused by the pad??? Well, I am going to claim that win for RLT also because lymph drains into the blood and if you have better blood circulation, you will rid that from your system quicker, reducing the inflammation there.
Of importance was that she did report some nausea the first couple of times she used the pad, so I kept her at 10 minutes for her hands and feet per day for that first week. Unfortunately, her feet have had no improvement thus far. I told her that they probably just need a bigger dose/longer sessions.
Her pad came in and my friends and I met for lunch and celebration with Cathy today. She says that she has hope that this is the answer to her neuropathy problems! I told her to start upping her time gently and to pay attention to nausea/headache/flu symptoms and to let that be her guide. She was a very happy lady as she departed with her beautiful new Versa Pad today. I will give updates as time goes by, but I have great hope for her continued improvements.
