Monthly Archives: July 2019
Things Are Looking Up . . .
As soon as we got home from dinner/WalMart yesterday I unpacked and set up the IcyHot TENS unit. I stuck it on my left waist/hip and then turned it on.
But as I said yesterday, the nighttime would be the real test. So before I came to bed, I turned it on and set it for 30 (Out of 63) and went to bed.
That was when I discovered two problems with this unit. First is that it will only run for 30 minutes before it shuts off, and the way the unit pulses through a 15 second cycle of varying pulse durations, and then it repeats. Kind of disconcerting when you’re trying to sleep.
And the fact that it shuts off after only 30 minutes means that you could fall asleep pain free and then a hour or so later wake up in pain since the TENS had already shut off.
But the new TENS unit that’s due in tomorrow should fix both of those problems.
For dinner this afternoon we ended up at the Chili’s over by I-45 and 646. We both wanted to get their great Grilled Chicken Caribbean Salad, our favorite dish there for a long time.
Just as Delicious as usual.
Then on the way home we made a Walgreen’s stop so I could pick up some spare 2032 batteries for the IcyHot unit.
I forgot to post in Friday’s blog that we found a new place to eat in this area. We drive past it almost every day, but since the sign says Doreck Meat Market, we can be forgiven for not knowing it’s also a Eat In/Take Out BBQ-Burger place.
They’ve been voted the Best Burger in Galveston County several times, and Jan says it’s a good choice.
And of course, I can never resist an Angus Ribeye Steak Sandwich.
And the Fries were great too. Notice that the steak is twice as big as the bun.
We’ll definitely go back.
Thought for the Day:
Everyone has a right to be stupid, but some people abuse the privilege.
asdfad
So Far, So Good . . .
About 4pm Jan and I drove over to the Victory Lakes/League City Denny’s for dinner/breakfast. Normally I just have the 2 eggs, bacon, English Muffin, and fruit, but for some reason I’ve had kind of a sweet tooth the last week or two, so, uncharacteristically, I went with the Cinnamon Roll Pancakes.
Really good, but I think I’m in Sugar Overload Mode.
Then it was across the street to WalMart for a couple of things, but mostly for a temporary TENS unit like this one.
As I mentioned yesterday, I’ve got one on order from Amazon that should be here on Monday, but after reading all the raves online from people with Sciatica using a TENS unit with great success, and having such a rotten time trying to sleep last night, I didn’t want to wait two more days.
Getting home, and unusual for me, I opened the box and read the directions. But then I am connecting my body up to a battery.
But it turned out to be pretty simple. Just connect the control unit to the electrode patch, stick it in place, turn it on, and press the + button to set the output between 1 and 63.
I increased the level to about 15, to the point where I could start to feel it. But it was not a shock but more of a vibration, or buzzing. The unit runs for 30 minutes and then shuts off. They recommend letting the battery rest for 5-10 minutes before restarting.
The unit seems to cycle in 15 second intervals, starting slow and light, and getting stronger and quicker.
I did start it up, and laid down for a couple of hours, and felt fine. But tonight will be the real test. I’m going to bump it up to 30 and see if I can get through the night without the burning pain?
We’ll see.
By the way, I also picked up a package of the refills.
Turns out the refills are just new electrode patches to use when the sticky wears off the first one. Seems like that’s what duck tape should be for.
Also, when I was checking this unit out online, I found a wide variation in pricing. While WalMart had it for $28.88, Walgreen’s had it for $39.99. And WalMart has the refill pack for $9.88, at Walgreen’s it’s $15.99.
So shop around.
If these things work, I’ll probably use both of them at various times, especially since the IcyHot version has no wires to get in the way when I’m out and about.
Thought for the Day:
Nobody realizes the tremendous energy I expend every day merely to appear normal.
fgh
