Not so fast. I probably fractured a bone in my lumbar region. The pain was excruciating, and I walked with a permanent stoop, barely able to keep my back erect.
I believe the injury sent the back muscles into spasms so acute they put pressure on the cerebro-spinal fluid which in turn impacted the spinal cord. I suffered weak quadricep muscles, MS symtoms in the left foot, a muscle wrap around the lower left leg (and when very stressed the right lower leg as well.) I believe these symptoms express damage to the spine, not to the brain.
See my blog post of June 25, 2018
Apparently the bony structure has lost fluidity, is very rigid, which causes the back muscles to seize up in terrible pain. Recently my Osteopath explained that the injury causes the muscles in the lumbar region to cramp up which triggers cramps the entire length of the spine so that the area of the cervicals (for example) are affected as well. This gives me the impression my entire back including the cervicals is displaced.
At first getting out of bed was an agony of lower back pain. I couldn’t get up immediately until the fluids in the head and spine had resumed their flow. (I felt like one side of my head was heavier than the other and waited for things to balance out.)
My recovery has been very gradual. My back is stiff which hampers my walking. It is painful upon rising in the morning, but for the most part during the day it is not painful. At first at night however, if I lay on my back more than three hours, the lower back screamed in pain.
I just recently began to sleep with a pillow under my knees to raise them enough to relieve pressure on my back. (For various reasons I can’t sleep on my side.) Otherwise I can’t sleep more than 3 hours without triggering muscle cramps which pressure the spine and, I believe damage the nervous system.
What this implies is that cerebro-spinal fluid and blood circulation can be impeded by cramped muscles following a spinal injury. I had assumed an obstruction of cerebrospinal fluid in the spine would be a bony obstruction, but now I think muscle spasms alone can impede free circulation of fluids. »
During July 2018 I continued to feel dizzy with a stuffed up head. Swimming cleared up the dizziness but after a walk the problem returned which suggests that the cervical vertebrae were pinching off CSF circulation to the head.
I canceled the 2 MRIs scheduled in October – one for the spine, the second for the head - after a well informed correspondant reminded me that the contrast agent could damage the kidneys. Curiosity was my only real reason for considering the MRIs, especially the study of the spine. My first, severe, MS attack struck the spine in the area of the azygous vein and the one and only MRI I had undergone was of the head.
Anyway, the one MRI which I would consider useful is the FONAR cinematic upright MRI which requires no contrast agent and studies the entire spine/head, the patient sitting upright. I would like to see how fast the CSF flows and if there are any obstructions. However, the FONAR doesn’t exist in France and while its cost is roughly the same for a standard MRI (around $1,200 ?), I don’t know if it is covered by medical insurance in the USA, which in any case I don’t have. So I’ll drop this idea for the moment.
I decided I needed treatment by either a NUCCA Chiropractor or a Chirpractor who works on the Atlas Orthogonal.
From Wikipedia.
NUCCA is an acronym for the National Upper Cervical Chiropractic Association. It was founded in 1966 by chiropractor Ralph Gregory…
NUCCA focuses on the upper vertebrae in the neck and claims to correct misalignment of the upper spine.[2] The method uses double-pivot-point X-ray analysis, the "development of the triceps pull manual adjustment" and "design and development of the Anatometer posture distortion measuring instrument". Unlike other chiropractic techniques, NUCCA does not use manual adjustments and does not involve twisting or popping. »[3][4]
Does the upper cervical chiropractic work? - Quora
https://www.quora.com/Does-the-upper-cervical-chiropractic-work
The focus of the NUCCA work is the relationship between the upper cervical spine (neck) and its influence on the central nervous system and brain stem function. ... Both NUCCA, Atlas Orthogonal and the Grostic technique are a gentle, hands on approach to better health. »
And now more on the Atlas Orthogonal ;
« www.jenkinschiropractic.com/atlas_orthogonal.html
Atlas Orthogonal Chiropractic Technique
Jenkins Chiropracticand the Atlas Orthogonal Chiropractic technique
The Atlas Orthogonal chiropractic technique is a gentle, effective approach to renewed health and relief of discomfort without manipulation.
You are probably asking yourself, “Atlas Orthogo… What?” It’s simple, let me explain.
Atlasis the top bone of the spine. It is the vertebrae that the head sits on. Orthogonalmeans at right angles, or square. The atlas should be sitting level, or square, on the cervical spine (neck), and the head should be square on the atlas. It basically asks the question
Is your head on straight?
When the atlas is misaligned(subluxated) it causes the head to tilt. The body instinctively tries to straighten the head up while keeping the head over the feet (center of gravity). This causes stress throughout the spine, the shoulders, the pelvis, the hips, the knees, and the ankles.
Subluxations(misalignments) are often deceiving. Even though symptomatic pain may appear in the lower back, legs, shoulders, arms or other parts of the body, their cause is very often located in the cervical spine (neck).
How does this unique method differ from General Chiropractic treatment? One of the most obvious differences is the gentle way in which the doctor works. No strenuous manipulation is needed. The Atlas Orthogonal (A.O.) Technique utilizes an adjusting instrument developed by Dr. Roy W. Sweat with the aid of engineers at Georgia Tech University. The precision of the A.O. instrument allows for an adjustment that requires such a light force that patients, who may expect more forceful manipulations as part of their treatment, find it hard to believe anything effective has been accomplished. Their doubts and fears quickly vanish when their pain and discomfort disappear. »
Allow me this observation. There is a definite bias in American healthcare (and society in general) which favors an engineering approach. For me healing should be akin to hands-on nurturing, not this mechanistic repair of the body as machine. Well, if that re-assures the American patient.
My own experience with Chiropractic in the USA since 1981.
After a fall in Ballet class I began a 3 times a week treatment with a nearby San Francisco Chiropractor. Eventually treatment frequency was reduced to once a week and finally once a month. This was the time when the Chiropractor « snappêd » the neck and « popped » the back with leg over leg manipulation. It was stressful, I was always wondering if I could relax enough for Dr L to « snap » the neck without injuring me. I tried to visualize dolphins and a tropical island. The treatments helped, I never was injured by the treatment, but I can see the risk which has led to criticism. Years later I began to be treated by a Chiropractor who used a collapsable table which was effective without the stress. The Chiropractor I visited in Paris this past winter used an « activator » to release muscle tension, but she lacked an « upright » table which, once lowered, would have allowed her to work on my back. This was not a successful treatment. (3 years ago while visiting Seattle the Chiropractor also used the Activator. I find the segmented collapsable table more effective. Dr. Michael Flanagan recommended the Cox tables.)
O.K., these treatments are probably generally available in the USA, but Chiropractic is practiced less in France. So what should I do ? I found a listing for a British trained NUCCA Chiropractor in a nearby town. Otherwise I would have to wait until December upon our return to Paris to find a Chiropractor. Also, I wasn’t too kin on getting an X-ray of my spine. So back to Osteopathy.
Wikipedia on Osteopathy
Osteopathyis a type of alternative medicinethat emphasizes manual readjustments, myofascial release and other physical manipulation of muscle tissue and bones.[1][2]Practitioners of osteopathy are referred to as osteopaths.[3][4][5]Its name derives from Ancient Greek"bone" (ὀστέον) and "sensitive to" or "responding to" (-πάθεια).[6][7][8]
While the UK's National Health Servicesays there is "limited evidence to suggest" that osteopathy "may be effective for some types of neck, shoulder or lower limb pain and recovery after hip or knee operations", it acknowledges that there is no evidence that osteopathy is effective as a treatment for health conditions "unrelated" to the bones and muscles, "such as headaches, migraines, painful periods, digestive disorders, depression and excessive crying in babies (colic)"; an explicit reference to the claims of osteopathic manipulative medicine.[9…
The government policy and legal framework in which practitioners operate vary greatly from country to country, with some having both non-physician osteopaths and medically trained osteopathic physicians. »
My Parisian Osteopath had told me I needed a cross between Chiropractic and Osteopathy.
I had previously visited Mr. B, a French Osteopath in my region who specializes in treating athletes which means he performs musculo-skeletal work more than the Osteopaths I had been visiting in Paris. So I made an appointment with Mr B who was pleased to see me. He himself is an accomplishedf athlete of Squash and appreciates my background as a dancer. When he examined me he was distressed to find a change in my condition caused by the back injury, the vertebrae in the lumbar region seemed fused together. His work inspired confidence in me, so I suggested I get treated at 2 week intervals until hopefully my back could recover its previous mobility.
Two weeks ago he was pleased to announce that the vertebrae in my back had recovered their mobility and that the pelvis had retained its equilibrium. He was happy to see positive results in his work.
So I asked him to explain the difference between Osteopathy and Chiropractic. His explanation was brief and succint. For him Chiropractic treatment is limited to the musculo-skeletal structure of the back up to the head, especially the spine. Osteopathy should treat the « whole » (« be global »), treating the Myofascia (These tissues surround and support the muscles throughout your body. The pain usually originates from specific points within your myofascial tissues called “trigger points.”) and Vicera (internal organs) besides musculo-skeletal structure.
The Head, the Eyes :
I asked why Osteopaths always hold the base of the skull. He said that the skull is composed of bony plates which should be flexible. When they are frozen together in tension, this impedes fluid circulation flow in the head. There it is, the problem for MSers where it is known that it takes twice as long for blood to circulate from the head, to the heart and back than for normals. *Cerebral Circulation Time is Prolonged and Not Correlated with EDSS in Multiple Sclerosis Patients: A Study Using Digital Subtracted Angiography
http://www.plosone.org/article/fetchObject.action?uri=info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0116681&representation=PDF
Eureka : See my recent blog posts (10/22/2018) on Simon Ewart-Grists « Desatascador » device. Simon explains that as magnetite nanoparticles accumulate in the body, they can injure the myelin. He proposes using a magnetic device to direct the magnetite down the aorta, into the kidneys to be chelated before excretion through the bladder. ElliotB of ThisisMS.com reported that a MS caused vision problem had markedly improved for him through this self treatment.
I speculated that nanoparticles of magnetite composed of iron could be poking holes in eye blood vessels to damage the optic nerve. . Also, one diagnostic tool for MS includes a « visual evoked potential » eye exam which implies the same thing. If blood circulation (and partnered cerebro-spinal fluid) through the brain is sluggish these metal particles could be impacting tiny tiny blood vessels. We have found here another key to unlock the MS mystery.
I pointed out to Mr B my experience that often Osteopaths work on the soft tissue, muscles, skull, and fluid circulation, but don’t adjust the skeleton. He regrets a recent trend of Osteopaths to focus on one issue whereas the treatment should be « global ». He himself treats high status sportsmen so of course he works on the musculo-skeletal structure as well as the myofascia, vicera and skull plates.
Anyway, there exists a specialty in the USA called Myofascial Release which may parallel French Osteopathy. I don’t know if this specialty relieves tension in the head by enhancing mobility among the bony plates of the skull. A good massage therapist may be able to perform this work.
This may seem complicated but if one can complement work on the issues revealed by the FONAR MRI with work on the myofscial release and maybe a masseur who works on the skull, I assume one can cover all the bases.
So I solved my problem by thinking things through and finding an appropriate therapist. One negative. Mr B reported I had lost muscle tone and strength in my legs and back. From difficulty rising, walking, keeping my balance, I know this to be true. So my recovery will take work. If it was just a question of recovering muscle strength, that would be no problem. But if the nerves which control those muscles are damaged, that may be a permanent injury. I will start working now, on my muscles and biochemical equilibrium – diet/supplements.
But, let’s be clear. The origin of this MS « Progression » lies in a back injury which impacted the free flow of Cerebro-Spinal fluid, perhaps blood. I believe therapies which facilitate free flow of these fluids can prevent/slow Progression. Let’s Forget the « auto-immune » rubbish.
For those in the USA I would consider the work of Dr Scott Rosa, FONAR MRI, Dr Damadian, NUCCA Chiropractic and or specialists in Atlas Orthogonal. The local Chiropractor may be perfectly equipped to help, especially if one complements his/her work with Myofascial Release as well as work releasing tension in the skull plates. A good massage may do wonders.
Oh, and by the way. Even if an American Osteopath my be less effective in manual manipulation than a French Osteopath, he/she may be the better choice in finding a primary care physician since his specialty favors « holistic » healing.
In Europe, Osteopaths should be equipped to treat the musculo-skeletal system as well as the myofascias, viceras, fluid circulation and skull. If she doesn’t, find one who can.
Never get stuck on the idea that there is only one therapist in the world who can help you heal !
Tags : Osteopathy, Chiropractic, NUCCA, Atlas Orthogonal, FONAR MRI, Dr Scott Rosa - www.ccsvi.org/, Dr. Damadian, Desatascador, Magnetite, Optic Nerve,