TENS leads and wearing it at work

[KBee42]

I got the TENS machine last night. I used it for a half an hour and I can't tell if it helped or not. It felt strange, that's for sure.

I want to keep trying it for awhile. My first session is supposed to be a half an hour this morning. I'm at work.

I'm not worried about the actual box. That clips to my side and should be relatively unnoticable. I'm not worried about the pads... it's the leads. They are really long and I don't know how much pulling they can take. I can't tuck them into my pants.... I"m just not sure how this works.

How have you dealt with the leads hanging down? Have you twist-tied them up or something?

Thanks,

Krissy

[KBee42]

Well, I stuffed 'em in my underpants. I hope that's okay.

[rjyoon]

I used paper tape to keep the wires under control. I just taped them to my body at key points & I think it helped reduce stress on the wires.

[Terri Q.]

Krissy:

How are you feeling about the tens unit now? Have you continued using it? What's it doing for you?

Would love an update if you feel up to it.

Hugs,
Terri
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[KBee42]

Sure.

I had limited success with the TENS machine. While it was actually on the stabbing parts of the pain were blunted, but the effect wasn't too relieving and didn't last long after I had turned the machine off. If I was a five level it would take me down to a four and a half. Nowhere near the 30 to 50% pain relief I was hoping for.

I get a far longer-lasting and more effective form of relief using heat. Also the TENS seemed to stimulate urination somehow.

Not to mention the "pleasant vibration sensation" that they talked about in the brochure actually translated to me as the "very irritating and unnatural vibration sensation" that made me crabby.

All in all I think that it's a machine that was meant for muscle pain relief and essentially works that way. I don't know if it was all the fat, but I don't think that the pulses got down to the bladder too effectively.

I'm not sorry I got it, and $85 is certainly a recoverable sum, but I don't know that I would have bought it if I had tried it first.

I give it two stars out of five. [img]smile.gif[/img]

[Terri Q.]

Krissy:

Awesome rundown and critique! It really helps to get the details like that. It makes it so much easier to apply your experience to my potential situation and file it in the 'data bank' of info my head is collecting! Thank you so much! <img src="graemlins/kissing.gif" border="0" alt="[kissing]" />

I have yet to hear of anyone getting a lot of relief from IC pain using a TENS unit. But it makes sense that if their primary pain component was the neurological kind &lt;as opposed to the inflammation/histamine or other kind&gt; that it might help some.

Hugs,
Terri
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[SusanK]

I was lucky enough to purchase a used TENS unit for very little. Anyway, I have used the TENS unit and found it to be very effective for the pain BUT for the time that I had it on. Once it was taken off I found that the pain and discomfort returned. If you have found the TENS unit to be uncomfortable then you can turn the voltage down to a more suitable level. Also, I have found that putting the TENS unit on pulse instead of continuous is more comfortable for me. You will have to adjust it and see what is best for you. I use tape to tape the pads on and also to keep the leads in place. My doctor said that there was really no limit as to how long you could wear it. As long as it was helping to wear it if it was helping. My employer is a DO and we use TENS units in our office for back, neck pain, etc. [img]smile.gif[/img]