If you have been following my blog since my injury (yes, those dark and lonely days) then you may remember how I swore by the electrotherapy treatment that I was receiving in the end of my PT. The first five weeks of my physical therapy involved ultrasound therapy and it did absolutely nothing for me! It was frustrating! I wish I had started with the electrotherapy so that my healing process would have been a lot shorter. The good news is that I am now able to run pain free or else I would not be running. I know better now. Believe me! I do have some discomfort after my long runs but I think it may just be the normal soreness that is experienced after a long run. I say this because the pain goes away versus pain that lingers and gets worse like when I was injured. Big difference!! I decided to purchase a unit to try at home to help me with recovery and also for pain if I need it.
It is a combo unit and can be used as an EMS (electrical muscle stimulator) or a TENS (transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulator). The TENS unit is more for controlling pain while the muscle stimulator helps with muscle strength and recovery. I looked at some units that ranged from $400-$1000 and just could not afford something that expensive. I ended up purchasing a less expensive model that had really good reviews on the website.
I have been busy reading up on it and figuring out how to use it and will definitely be trying it out after my long run this weekend. Hopefully it is beneficial for me and the results are positive.
Have you ever tried a TENS/EMS unit? Did you have positive results?
Never tried one...but it reminds me a lot of the Train of Four machine that I use at work on my chemically paralyzed patients! Wonder if it's the same type of thing.
ReplyDeleteI do know someone who has used it and they had great success! It was a couple of years ago and I can't remember the injury though.
I hope this does the trick for you! I haven't tried this particular kind of therapy. I'm hoping I'm headed for a fix too--we'll see what's next for me after tomorrow. I so agree with you: pain-free is the only way to go.
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