Fix The Problem

For those of you have read my previous posts I am new to blogging (as if you couldn't tell). For those of you who have not read my previous posts, well, go read them. This post in particular is going to discuss the actual events, techniques and procedures that allowed for an unprecedented alleviation in my son's disorder. What my son, family and I experienced was just short of a miracle. To say that I am blown away is an understatement.

Dr. T is a Bioneurophysiologist. His partner Dr. J. is an Otolaryngologist. Their office is located in a house in an industrial section of the Kennedy Norte area of Guayaquil, Ecuador. The house has been converted to accommodate their tools and patients. The house from the outside is very unassuming, especially considering that these guys are the only ones in the world who do what they do.

Prior to this trip I was expecting my son's symptoms to alleviate by 20- 25%. I was eventually blown away by the fact that his symptoms have alleviated by 65 - 70% which is way beyond what I thought could have been possible. Additionally, my son gained about seven pounds on this trip. To us that is remarkable because prior to this trip the medicine had curbed his appetite to the point where getting him to eat was like pulling teeth. So this trip was unbelievably amazing for my wife and I and equally amazing for my in-laws and hopefully a tad greater than interesting for you, the reader.

Dr. T. along with Dr. J. are the only doctors in the world that are doing what they do. Now, there are other individuals who utilize these tools independent of the other treatments. However, as far as I have researched, no medical or healthcare practitioner is combining the several treatments together in this particular manner.

So just what are they doing?

First of all Dr. T. performs a brain mapping on all patients. The brain mapping device is similar to an EEG in fact it is an EEG. Thirty six electrodes are attached to the head neck and shoulders, eighteen on each side of the head. The wires are hooked up to his computer which is equipped with a program of diagnostic software that he helped to develop. He is one of the pioneers of neurofeedback. His EEG and computerized diagnostic tools of analysis can be considered a LENS system (Low Energy Neurofeedback System).

To get a sense of what Dr. T. analyzes with his brain map a brief discussion of the waveforms of the human nervous system is essential. The nervous system oscillates with electrical energy in the lower reaches of the microwave spectrum of the Electromagnetic Radiation Spectrum (EMR) from between 1 - 20 hertz or 30 - 70 micrometers per second or 0 - 2000 microvolts. The range of electrical energy oscillating in our nervous system is broken down for analysis into several regions or waveforms.

To keep things simple the wave forms are: Alpha, Beta, Delta, Theta, SMR & SMG wave forms.

Simply speaking, the Alpha waveform is the wavelengths and frequencies of energy that allow us to make voluntary muscular movements and our ability of cognitive thought(s).

The Delta waveform is the wavelengths and frequencies of energy that allow the brain to control all of the organ systems requiring involuntary muscle control. In other words the brain's ability to keep the organ systems running efficiently and keep the body alive.

All neurologists read, conduct and analyze EEG's. Neurologists primarily focus upon the Delta waveform because it is within this waveform that neurologists can understand the abnormal electrical activity of patients suffering from seizure disorders and the struggle of the patient's brain to keep the body functioning. That's not to say that EEG's do not provide information to the neurologists on the other waveforms, because they do. However, it seems neurologists tend to focus primarily upon the Delta waveform.

The theta waveform as I understand it is the synthesis of the brain to coordinate the flows of electrical energy from the brain to all of the systems of the body. The Beta waveform is the so-called energy that the brain gives off, think of it as the neurological landfill of the mind, the junk of the mind.

Well Dr. T. analyzes in detail all of the waveforms of electrical energy oscillating within our nervous system. The analogy that I have been fond of telling people is the following: if the center of the brain was akin to the center of the universe and you were looking for a black hole, then the neurologists assigned to my son's case have been looking through a ground-based Galilean telescope.While Dr. T. is looking through the Hubble or the Spitzer Space Telescope. His analysis is multi-dimensional and broad in perspective. It is marked by succinct precision to elucidate the inner-workings of the patient's nervous system. He reads the brain's map like a geologist reads the historical layers of rock under a mountain to uncover the story of a region of earth. Instead of the story of a region of earth he is uncovering the story of the patient and his/her life.

My son's first brain map showed that his Alpha waveform was extremely low. For a patient age 5 years old, 10 - 15% Alpha is the normal range. When he arrived in Ecuador, my son's Alpha was at 3.1%. The doctor pointed out that a child with an Alpha that low was in an extremely dangerous situation and he was surprised that our son could function with any cognitive abilities at all. In other words in the grand scheme of things our son was in much worse shape than what the neurologists had originally told us. In fact he was on his way down and fast towards a vegetative state or worse. When I first heard this (I was still in CA) my heart and jaw dropped through the floor and I went cold.

The medicine my son is currently taking: Depakote and Zonegran carries some side effects. Chief among them is loss of appetite, nausea, stomach ache, headaches and many other minor side effects. Additionally, the depakote adds ammonia to the blood which, can elevate in some patients the enzymes in the liver. So my son needs to get a blood test once every two weeks to monitor the function of the liver for the ammonia, AST and ALT values. Prior to going down to Ecuador my son's liver enzymes were much higher than the normal range (I don't have the exact numbers in front of me, but if anyone wants we can produce those details).

So, the medicine is like a double edged sword in my son's condition. It is doing its job, which is to primarily control the generalized tonic clonic seizures and to somewhat subdue the myoclonic and absence seizures. But not too well. At the same time the medicines, which are heavy duty in nature provide a toxicity to the body which puts the body under metabolic stress. my son's neurologist once explained to me that less than 1% of every pill that he takes makes it into the nervous system. Additionally less than 1% of that 1% makes it to the damaged neuron. So what happens to the rest of the medicine? It gets broken down in the liver and provides a toxic effect on the individual. My son's veins were visibly swollen and red prior to the trip.

My son's epileptic seizures are multifocal in nature. Meaning that the best MRI, CT & PET Scans did not illuminate any abnormal physical material of his brain. However, the EEG's all expressed the abnormal electrical activity of his nervous system.

Dr. J. explained to me that if you were to focus upon and magnify one of the focal points of abnormal electrical activity in his brain you would observe a neuron surrounded by a mass of brain tissue. Now, this neuron would either be a cerebral edema or dead tissue (scar tissue).

Determining the ratio of cerebral edema to scar tissue in my son at the time of treatment was next to impossible. However, the cerebral edemas of my son's brain are significant because they are akin to sores within his brain. The neuron within a cerebral edema is composed of many cells. The cell membranes of the cells that make up the neuron within an edema do not allow for much oxygen or water to permeate through the sodium-potassium ion channel and diffuse through the cell membrane. Hence, the logical reason of the abnormal electrical activity. In other words my son's poor brain was starved and choked for oxygen. His brain cells were not receiving the proper amount of oxygen to keep his brain from functioning properly.

So the procedures and treatments, what are they and how do they work?

To allow the cell membranes of the neurons within the edemas to allow for the diffusion of oxygen to their proper abilities, electrical stimulation is utilized. The tool used for this electrical stimulation is called the Alpha Particle Stimulator Box. This is a box about the size of a phone booth that is lined with carpet on all sides, except for a small two square foot window on one side of the box. The patient(s) sits on a chair in this box for fifteen minutes and nothing more. Above the patients' head is a small compact fluorescent light bulb. Just below this light bulb are two white discs. Each white disc is hooked up to two wires a piece that are in turn attached to a machine housed on the outside of the box above the head of the patient. The machine is Russian made, for the letters are all of a cyrillic alphabet. However, the numbers tell of the units of measure of the machine.

Essentially, this machine sends low level intensity electrical impulses of wavelengths and frequencies in the low microwave range @ 0.25 - 0.28 micro volts, equivalent to about 2 - 3 Hz. A very low amplitude current runs through the wires and to the discs inside the box. The electrical and radioactive signal running through the box is modulated at 0.25 - 0.28 micro Amps of energy. Additionally, there are two bare wires on the interior of the box that are located opposite to where the light and two discs reside. These two wires return the electrical energy that is going from the inside of the box back up to the machine thus completing the circuit.

So, the patients are sitting in this box which is now electrified and radiating energy. The frequencies and wavelengths of energy in the box are picked up primarily through our auditory nerves which sends the electricity through the temporal and parietal lobes over to the frontal lobes of the cerebrum in (as Dr. T. explained) a call-and-response mechanism of the mind. The path of electrical energy goes from the machine to the wires through the discs into the box into our auditory nerves and back and forth in our brain and then out the bare wires and up and in to the machine thus completing the circuit (oops I already used that phrase).

Now, the purpose of this particular treatment is that by ever so slightly stimulating the neurons of our mind from the inside out we can allow for a greater potential of oxygen to diffuse through the cell membranes. Especially the ones that are contained within the cerebral edemas. By stimulating the neurons within edemas the facilitation of oxygen to permeate the cell membranes can allow the edemas to heal. Thus, allowing for the neurons to return to their potential normal function.

My son underwent two Alpha treatments of 15 minutes at a time twice per day for approximately one month. Additionally, my wife and I split the Alpha treatments each and every day. After sitting in the Alpha box for 15 minutes I can attest that from ear to ear the back of my brain felt as if I had gone through a 7 hour marathon writing session or like I studied for a major examine for 7 hours. Additionally, my brain was so stimulated that I did not feel like sleeping. Not that I couldn't fall asleep at all. Just that I was awake. When finally I did sleep I would wake in the morning feeling clear headed, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed as if I had already had a cup of coffee.

Now that the brain has been stimulated by the Alpha chamber, the oxygen needs to be pumped into the body. The other major treatment that allowed for my son's remarkable recovery is Hyperbaric Oxygen Treatment (HBOT). Now that the cell membranes of the neurons within the edemas of the brain are stimulated to allow a greater potential of diffusion of oxygen across their thresholds, the oxygen delivered to a patient within the HBOT Chamber will saturate the oxygen deprived regions of the mind. Primarily the edemas.

Once this was properly described to me, I for the first time understood why the HBOT that my son completed in California helped only a little bit. The reason that HBOT alone is not effective for people with neurological disorders is because the neurons within edemas will not allow for the proper diffusion of oxygen across the sodium potassium ion channels to permeate the cell membranes within the neuron as the body would normally require. Hence, one can go into an HBOT Chamber for 20 years or more and not receive much of an alleviation of symptoms because most of that oxygen is not making it past the cell membranes of the neurons.

That is the main reason why HBOT has not been proven to be effective for patients of neurological disorders like epilepsy. For conditions such as burns, the bends, and several conditions of a cardiovascular nature HBOT has been proven to be extremely effective. I have no doubt about the fact that HBOT can be just as effective for neurological disorders like epilepsy, cerebral palsy, multiple sclerosis, stroke, brain aneurysms, autism and a host of others. My wife and I witnessed this phenomenon in just about every patient in Dr. T.'s care. HBOT alone, not much help. HBOT combined with Alpha waveform stimulation lots of help.

So, my son accompanied by either my wife or I would sit in one of two HBOT chambers for about an hour at a time. We alternated each day. One day she would go and the other day it would be me.

Now if Alpha Waveform stimulation can allow for a greater diffusion of oxygen into the cells than it would be logical to think that there would be an equivalent amount of diffusion of metabolic waste diffusing out of the cell. I think the HBOT chamber because of the increase of pressure allows for the flow of oxygen into the cells and the metabolic waste out of the cells to be an efficient procedure.

As my son went through the treatments the swelling of the veins as visibly discerned through the skin reduced dramatically. To the point where his skin and the flesh beneath the skin now appears to be normal.

What else do they do you ask (or maybe you don't, but I'm going to tell you anyway)?

The treatment I liked the best the Ozone Jacuzzi. Picture a converted bathroom, no toilet, just a bathtub and a narrow rectangular table with a machine on top. The bathtub is a jacuzzi tub. Attached to the tub and the machine is a long black plastic hose. The machine is called an RTO3 machine. The machine has several dials on it including one for a timer. The machine apparently converts Oxygen (O2) into Ozone (O3) and pumps the ozone through the hose, into and through the bathtub's jacuzzi jets.

So there in the jacuzzi tub my son and wife or I (we alternated each day) would sit luxuriating in this ozone jacuzzi for 15 minutes at a time. Talk about therapeutic, even if this scientifically does nothing for a neurological condition at least it is pleasant and relaxing. I sat in there and I can say that it is very calming and relaxing.

The purpose of this treatment is as follows. Apparently the rectum takes up most of the O3 and this is supposed to allow for a greater or more efficient flow of oxygen through the blood vessels of the body on up through to the brain. Facilitating a greater flow of oxygen through to the brain would be very beneficial for the optimum function of the brain.

I've heard of ozone treatments and/or therapies available in the United States, however, these treatments are relegated to the category of alternative therapies or fringe treatments. Additionally, there is plenty of information regarding Ozone treatment available on the internet.

The fourth and final treatment that my son received each day was called the Ultrasonic Cellular Massage. This consists of a machine that produces an electrical signal similar to that of the machine on the Alpha particle stimulator box. The machine generates an electric current of 0.25 - 0.28 microAmps. Emanating from the side of the box are two wires. These two wires are about 3-5 feet long and are attached at the other end to two leads. The two leads are attached on the outer side of a double-lined plastic bucket. The bucket is approximately three feet in diameter and is filled with warm water. The patient places his two feet into the bucket of water for fifteen minutes while the machine is generating this low intensity field of electrical energy.

The first time I witnessed this crude solenoid (battery) I nearly freaked out. My understanding was that people should not touch water that has an electric current running through it. However, I had to trust that 30 years of training these doctors have some sort of idea what they are doing. The electric current running through the water was less than that of one AAA battery. Still this was unusual and freaky.

So, they turn the machine on and then the doctor takes a small (6 inch) fluorescent light bulb and puts it near the water. The light bulb lights up with no wire running through it at all. He then rubs the light bulb up my son's leg --> torso --> shoulder --> head --> other shoulder --> my hand which is on his other shoulder --> my head --> my other shoulder --> and down my other arm. All the while the light bulb held its current, which proved that the electrons running through the low level electrical current was flowing up and down the body and anyone who was touching my son's body.

The purpose of this treatment is to pull a good deal of the energy, which the brain received from the Alpha particle stimulator box, down through the nerves all the way to the feet and back up again. I like to think of this process as strengthening the electrical potential of signal strength inside of the wiring of our nervous system otherwise known as our nerves. Also, as the doctor's described it you tend to spread out the Alpha from the brain on down to the rest of the body.

This was the only treatment my son completed solo, throughout the entire trip. It seemed to have a positive effect and it makes sense. As I described earlier the Alpha treatment made the back of my head feel used and apparently that region of the brain remains stimulated for a good deal of time. So if there is a greater stimulation of electrical energy in the back of the mind it would make sense to pull that energy down and spread it out through the whole body.

A Google search of Ultrasonic Cellular Massage brings up a slew of websites, some of them may be related to what Dr. T. utilizes but for the most part they are related to cosmetic beautification and related treatments.

Today marks exactly two months since my son has had any seizures. His EEG's still show some abnormal electrical activity. The Delta waveform has significantly reduced towards a more normal level, but continues to remain relatively high. I mean after all he has a very complicated and difficult to manage version of epilepsy. So, by the analysis and methodology of the modern neurologists the EEG will still show waveforms of a patient who has Epileptic Encephalopathy.

Interestingly enough the night before the first treatment my wife gave my son his favorite meal for dinner, Mac 'N' Cheese. His appetite was almost non existent and he was refusing to eat almost to the point of force feeding him. His weight prior to the trip was about 31 pounds, kind of light for a five year old. The treatments were split between the morning treatments and the afternoon treatments (usually one Alpha treatment followed by the Ozone Jacuzzi in the morning and the HBOT followed by the Ultrasonic foot massage and the 2nd Alpha treatment in the afternoon). After the first set of treatments in the morning of the first day, my wife and my son went to have lunch. Apparently my son pigged out and my wife was not only surprised but she was amazingly relieved. Since that first day of treatments my son has been eating well and as I stated before he gained seven pounds on this trip. In this day and age of childhood obesity is extremely rare to find parents who want their five year old child to pig out, and in this case it is warranted.

The Alpha waveform has risen from 3% to about 9% the norm is between 10 - 15%. According to Dr. T. the Delta cannot be affected by any other waveform of energy other than the Alpha. So by increasing the Alpha the Delta can be reduced. Additionally, as mentioned earlier the medication my son takes is heavy duty and is like a double edged sword to his disorder, it helps at the same time as it hinders. Well in this respect it is somewhat reducing the effect of the Alpha waveform to pull the Delta down into the norm. So, my son's Delta appears, to the neurologists to continue to be abnormal.

The fact that my son is so close to being rid of this disorder once and for all is just short of a miracle and we are all counting our lucky stars that there is someone out there who is able to fix a problem. The outlook for my son is promising. We will be returning to Guayaquil, Ecuador for another round of treatments in November. This next round of treatments will last a month. The doctor is hopeful that the Alpha waveform will be brought up in to the norm (between 10 - 15%) and he thinks that the Delta can be brought down from its current level of 50% down to the normal level for his age (between 30 - 40%).

The success of these treatments are virtually permanent. As Dr. T. described to me there are but two conditions that would allow for my son's condition to descend back to his prior level of seizures.

1. If for some stupid/foolish reason we were to change his medicine.

2. If he received some kind of blunt force trauma/

These two scenarios are very unlikely. The doctors in Ecuador furthermore stated that they have never seen a patient of my son's age and condition to revert back to his/her prior condition at all. The doctors also stated that out of all of the patients that have had epilepsy that are my son's age (and they have had many over the last 30 years) he responded the quickest to these treatments.

The fact that my son is back from the brink of existence is amazing and just short of a miracle. The fact that no western medical healthcare practitioner in the United States utilizes these treatments, practices and procedures is just short of a crime in and of itself. I mean someone from the modern western medical healthcare profession should at least turn their attention to study these treatments and procedures to determine if they have merit. We have a medical system that currently concerns itself with the financial and administrative considerations (profit or loss, good or bad) while not taking the pains to concern itself with the care of the health of the human being. Which is what health care is intended to be used for. Instead what we are left with is a health care system that continues to treat, manage and further the continuance of problems and disorders while poisoning the body with dangerous chemicals, molecules and medicines. Now there is a lot of merit and benefit to many of the medications that the pharmaceutical industry spits out on a daily basis, no one can deny this. However, the modern western medical healthcare practitioners are forced and believe that they are justified to rely solely upon medicine to alleviate symptoms and provide the care to the patients suffering from complicated disorders. I truly believe and now I know that there is another way and probably many other ways.

Modern western medical healthcare practitioners pretty much have the cardiovascular system down. That is to say we can keep somebody alive if they have a problem with their heart, blood, or blood vessels to much higher degree than with any other organ system of the body. I believe we need to turn our attention to the multitude of disorders in the body that can be affected by the simple fundamental scientific truth of our bodies: The brain needs oxygen to function and keep the body alive and the nervous system oscillates with electrical energy. I don't mean to get on a soap box and politicize too much. However, it infuriates and baffles me how we had to travel half-way around the world to a second or third world nation (depending upon who you talk to) to receive treatment that is far beyond the capacity of the doctors in the United States to even begin to understand. The reason that these treatments are not available in the United States is manifold and that is a topic for the next post. I welcome any and all comments and I commend you for the intellectual fortitude and patience to read through my family's amazing experience. Until next post, be well.

Help on the Way

My intention with this blog is to make sure the readers are interested and potentially captivated by the amazing success of our son's condition. So as not to repeat the information from the previous post I will continue with the story as follows.

My wife and I were witnessing my son's condition going downhill and rapidly. He was seemingly turning into a wraith right before our eyes. Our parents and family were getting concerned as well. My parents live on the east coast and are always supportive of our situation and decisions in life but they being geographically far from us felt challenged to offer concrete help for my son. Not to say that they are not supportive, they are extremely supportive and we know they love us very much.

My wife's parents are very driven to support their family in every endeavor that they focus upon. They are originally from Bogota, Colombia, speak fluent spanish and are very well respected and connected with many influential and important people living in Bogota.

My wife's father is a cardiovascular-thoracic surgeon, he was extremely concerned about his grandson's condition. His professional experience in the medical industry really opened doors for us to be able to allow our son to be observed by the best neurologists in the Los Angeles metropolitan area.

Additionally, my mother-in-law has been through many experiences raising her three children, two of whom suffered many medical situations (other stories for other times). Her experiences with medical professionals in concert with difficult to manage disorders among family members drove her to apply some familial muscle (so to speak). Through some people that she knew from Bogota she heard of a doctor in Ecuador who was doing amazing things for patients suffering from an array of neurological disorders. Additionally, this doctor apparently specialized in patients that suffer from epilepsy and seizure disorders.

When my mother-in-law initially proposed the idea of taking my son to be treated by this doctor in Ecuador I was initially averse and skeptical of the information. I tried to listened with an open mind. Her proposal of taking my son, a four year old, half-way around the world to a third world nation seemed to be from left field. The proposal consisted mostly of testimonials and personal interest stories from the parents of children who have benefitted from this doctor's treatments. Now, parental testimonials make for nice stories but personal interest stories usually have a habit of interrupting the race while I'm in the middle of watching the olympics. Let's get back to the race already.

The problem with the initial proposal was not what the doctor was doing, nor the fact that it was half-way 'round the world in a third world nation. The problem was simply that for me there just was not enough empirical evidence. Without the empirical evidence I could not envision that this set of treatments would have any benefit. I mean just because it works on someone else does not necessarily mean that it would benefit my child and hey, you know what? Ecuador is not just around the next corner. If they wanted me to sign on to this thing from the "get go" they should have given me some kind of scientific empirical evidence, something, anything that I could work with. I want to see numbers, "show me the money" give me something. The one bit of information that allowed for me to continue to consider signing on to this trip was that the treatments are non-invasive to the patient and display virtually no side effects. So, my interest was piqued.

The proposal was initially made in late February - early March. For the next three months all I heard about was this miracle cure in Ecuador. Something akin to the fountain of youth or a magic wand. That I'm being foolish for not signing on. I even felt like I was forcing myself into the antagonist's role and I was becoming an adversary to the people that I loved the most in this world.

Well my son's condition was not getting any better and my wife was stressed out of her mind and I wasn't too much better either. Call it tenacity, call it being stubborn, call it an innate sense of impending doom, or spidey-sense, but my mother in-law eventually convinced (more like broke down) my wife that this trip would be vital to my son's existence.

It was just about the time that the fiasco with status epilepticus at the ER of UCLA Med. Ctr. was going on that my wife became determined to go with my son to receive treatment from this doctor in Ecuador. With or without me, she was going. It must have been her motherly instinct that kicked-in because she was driven like I've never seen her driven before.

The bottom line again was the treatments are non-invasive and there are virtually no side effects. So, when it's all said and done; even if my son shows no response to these treatments what-so-ever, bottom line is four easy words: at least we tried. The only thing we'd be out at that point would be the money it costs. And besides, my wife's parents were willing to fund the entire endeavor.

I am by nature a genuinely positive person and I can only take being a negative influence and a skeptic about a topic for so long. Besides, I love my wife very much and I love my son even more. So in late May I begrudgingly signed on to this trip. I still had no idea what this guy was about, nor what his treatments and procedures are about.

For all I knew he could have been a medicine man with some ancient spiritual cure. Was he going to boil up some toads tongues and iguana eyeballs, put it into a broth and make my son drink it down while reciting some ancient, cryptic incantations with several wise-ones dancing around a bonfire? I had no idea and neither did my wife and in-laws.

So, I signed up for a trip virtually blind to the nature of the treatments. All I knew at this point was I was going to be putting my son up for experimentation from a doctor half-way round the world with just about no empirical evidence that his treatments were going to do anything at all.

In all fairness they told me that this doctor is a neurophysiologist and he conducts brain mappings on his patients. They further explained that they do Hyperbaric Oxygen Treatment (HBOT) and they have several tools designed by the Russians that are very effective, but not understood by anybody but the doctor.

So down to Guayaquil, Ecuador we went...