Cranial Osteopathy

http://www.express.co.uk/life-style/health/223738/How-a-head-massage-stopped-my-ringing-ears
How I wish it could be this simple for us.

 

Such is the power of the Internet, that I have now emailed Dr Hector Wells and my chiropractor, who does cranial adjustments. Will let you know if anything comes of it.

 

Thanks for this post, @Blair14 . Just talked with Dr. Wells yesterday. Seems that releasing tension in occipital areas etc allows a shift around the auditory nerve, or something along those lines. Here are some videos pertaining to his technique, as well as a video re tinnitus patient:
http://www.wellsbeingtechnique.co.uk/videos/

 

@Lisa88 I think my massage therapist can do that procedure and there are waitlists locally to see the only 3 practitioners in the area. So there is something to it, not just for T.

 

I wonder if this would work for noise induced T ? This ladies T came from infection: "Angela developed tinnitus after suffering a series of infections in her left ear when she was in her late 40s."

 

Are you planning on a visit and do you think it could work?

 

Me too. His response:

I have seen over 400 cases and the response rate is in the order of 60%, the max number of visits is three and if you don't respond in that time, then there is little point is pursuing more visits.

Will it work for you? I can't tell
What do I like is the case history: History of Stress, emotional stress, impact trauma to the head or physical over load to the body, the younger the better.

What do I not like: nerve damage, explosions, acoustic neuroma, or any evidence of brain damage.

I cannot promise anything, but I do know, you will respond or not!

BW
Hector

Most t from noise exposure would fall into the category of nerve damage or similar to explosions. So I doubt it will work for me.

 

You would think that Angela's case with the illnesses and ototoxic meds would have been nerve damage too, though.

That's a really great response from Dr Wells! Up front, realistic, and offering a very reasonable timeframe. If he were a quack, he'd have said, "I've seen hundreds of cases and they've all responded brilliantly. I only wish more people would come to me so I could cure them all! Of course, your case may be difficult. You should plan to visit once a week for 6-9 months. Will that be cash or charge?"

Three visits? I went to my acupuncturist five days in the first week!

 

Might see him next week when I am in Oxford. He did say that in some cases, t got worse.
p.s. @rtwombly meds that cause t are not necessarily ototoxic and do not necessarily effect the nerve. I for example got t from lidocaine anesthetic. Hearing normal on audiograms and OAEs. Docs think the drug together with anxiety etc may have caused a brain chemistry change to trigger central t somewhere in the central auditory cortex.

 

@Blair14 @rtwombly @bedouin
I went to see Hector Wells in Banbury, UK.
May work for some. But made my t worse.
My constant low frequency t is louder and more reactive, even a week later. My intermittent high frequency t is now constant and more defined as a kettle whistle.
I had asked him to explain the exact procedure many times before I went to see him. But he was vague each time.
The premise of his treatment was to release pressure in the areas such as the occipital bone etc to help t and areas around the auditory nerve etc.
What he did was put several heavy bags on my head (constricting my neck), and then on my chest. He would squeeze them or twist my body somehow while asking me to tense my throat and face muscles and think of the most stressful event in my life while he did this. Then he would yell at me to keep trying harder, like a sergeant major. All very stressful and constricted really. My t responded negatively.
He says he has had 60% success rate with decreasing t. I guess I fell in the other bit.
If he had explained it fully to me beforehand, I would have cancelled the appointment. I know my t responds to calming and opening of the CNS.

 

I was doing much better a year in from onset, and now feel that this procedure has taken me 10 steps back. I am hoping my t will calm down again.

 

Hi Lisa,

I was just reading over this, I'm so sorry that you had a negative reaction I have been researching this treatment and wondering if it was worth a try. I'm guessing no

I'm wondering if your spike is from the stress of the treatment and the way the practioner went about it? When you say he yelled toward you that doesn't sound very calming
Usually they say its done in a very relaxing way/ environment. That doesn't sound very nice the way he was toward you, I'm so sorry you had to go through that.

I hope it settles down Lisa, always here if you want to chat x

 

Thanks so much, @Stacey427
Yes, it was not calming. He did not actually touch me directly either, but over these big sacks.
Thanks for the kind words. I am hoping things will calm down. Usually spikes last just a few hours for me, not a few days. But maybe it will take time to get back to baseline.

 

Hi Lisa,i followed this post from a couple of weeks ago,and went up there myself on Thursday.
Ive seen three osteopaths now and did find this treatment quite extreme!It didnt work for me and like yourself i did experience a spike,does seem to have calmed down a bit now,considering i got T from skipping a rope these treatments seems a bit risky to me,hope it improves for you soon

 

Ah, thanks @Hotspur for posting. So it has calmed down for you in just a couple of days? i.e. Was it this last Thu you had the treatment? Was it a similar procedure to what I described above?

 

Hi Lisa,yes i went up Thursday just gone,i wonder if hes get inundated by T sufferers now!?It looked so promising didnt it?When did you go up?I found he put a lot of effort in ,felt like it been in a wrestling match by the end!
Yes it was exactly as you described,i almost cancelled when i read about you saying it could get worse,but was told this was just the one case,and was rectified!

 

@Lisa88 Sorry to hear that, his treatment sounds a little extreme, yelling at you! It was described by my massage therapist, I don't remember the specifics, but it was a gentle procedure and about 6 sessions you should experience improvement if it is going to work.

 

It was certainly different from a "head massage" as described in the press. Far from it.

 

@Lisa88 I would have grabbed a bag and beat him over the head!

 

@Lisa88

Lisa if I'm not wrong you did that interview with j Cowan, why didn't you go to him for cranio work?
Just curious what made you go to this other person?

 

...Sounds "high-tech" to me.

I did consider seeing an osteopath last year at the very beginning of my ordeal, but instead settled with my chiropractor and my physiotherapist, back then. The words osteopathy and homeopathy are too closely linked for my taste. And that's why I never went.

The following is from Wikipedia:

Osteopathy (from Greek ὀστέον, "bone" and -πάθεια, "disease of")[1] is a type of complementary and alternative medicine. Treatments in osteopathy primarily consist of moving, stretching and massaging a person’s muscles and joints. Osteopaths believe that performing those actions help the body to heal itself.[2]

As with all other forms of complementary and alternative medicine, the practice of osteopathy does not always adhere to evidence-based medicine (EBM). There is little evidence that osteopathy is effective in treating any medical condition[3] other than lower back pain.[4] In the UK, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence recommends osteopathy for the treatment of persistent lower back pain.[5] Analysis of peer-reviewed research yields little evidence that osteopathy is effective for non-musculoskeletal conditions, and limited evidence that osteopathy is an effective treatment for some types of neck pain, shoulder pain, or limb pain.[4]

Agreed. I think Mr. Hill is even on TT now - if I am not mistaken.

If not, see this (I am sure you already have):

How to Let Go of Tinnitus by Julian Cowan Hill

 

Julian is wonderful! This other guy's technique was not craniosacral work. If you all read my post a few above, it is very different. He does not even touch my body directly. Of course he had not explained all the ins and outs to me before the appointment, even after me repeatedly asking him to. He piled huge flat sandbags on me and squeezed those while asking me to tense up and think of the most stressful thing in my life, and while yelling at me to try harder etc. He had advised and been quoted in the press as helping many with tinnitus by easing the pressure of the occipital area etc. Anyway, it is all in my above post. It does not sound like osteopathy, or craniosacral work to me. Again, far from it.

 

What he describes in the video, is similar what the Heller Bergman experiment says:
That we hear "only" body sounds and we are on Red Alert and "Fight or Flight" mode. So what is now true?
That we all hear only body sounds and it is a natural phenomenon or that we have overactive neurons in the brain?
I cannot remember I ever heard high-pitched, dentist drills in my head before.

 

Hi Lisa,read all your posts , can't believe the added on stress this treatment placed you under ,yes I'd never want to have a return visit after that experience .Not like the cranial chap I went to ,couldn't have shown more care and concern .
I went for sinuses but he knew I had T going at the same time,so what do you plan to do next if anything ?
If I saw any bag weights coming at me ,I'd have been long gone .Or like Blair said thrown those bags at him .
Terrible sort of so called treatment.
Ask at your local hospital ,if they can give you a cranial osteopath ,the one I used locally works on prem babies ,so I knew he was a safe one to use . Good Luck Lisa

 

Martin, I am of the belief that it is overactive neurons. Not so much that we are listening to our own nervous system. But I definitely agree that it is overactivity in the central auditory cortex where the central auditory cortex joins with the entire central nervous system.

 

Thanks, Marlene. You are always so kind in your posts. Thank you
I think the next thing for me is nothing. I have been so busy to fix t this last year, I think each time I inadvertently made it worse in doing so.
But I am working on calming my central nervous system with craniosacral therapy and other lovely things such as walks, bubble baths, animals, busying myself with things and people I love, plus CBT.
A great example of this - if my t goes crazy in the morning, I say to myself: OK, when I get up, it will be better (instead of catastrophizing). I then get up and have a "yoga jazz breakfast": I do yoga while cooking my breakfast and listening to great jazz vocals. Things like this have helped both my t and hyperacusis tremendously. Julian is also a psychotherapist, and has helped me stay positive. There are so many tricks to put your mind in your body. He also has shown me mind games such as playing a song in your imagination - using your auditory cortex to move away from t awareness. For me, it works. Very cool.

 

Hi lisa,i hope your has calmed down now?I think mines back to normal now,like yourself i dont think i,ll be going back,the eight hour train journey was,nt too appealing!Hope you find something better soon!

 

Hi Lisa you and me both need these T nerves calming down then ,I think T and anxiety is the pits running together,it drains you ,I've never had depression in all the years I've had T thankfully ,but I can sympathise with ones who do ,again it must drain you as anxiety .
I've this afternoon E Mailed Julian ,I watched his video on site some months ago ,will watch video re run again later ,that was placed up again today .
I loved walking to Lisa until the balance cropped up ,out of the blue . The anxiety is up then down ,I wake up with it ,so know how that days going to pan out .So I say anxiety is my No 1 chart list topper to T .come around late afternoon it's gone down to being manageable .Breathe easy again ,I sure don't understand it ,wish we all did who suffer from it .
You mention mind games ,yes I do that to getting it down quicker ,sometimes it works ,then other times my brain won't have a bit of it .T and balance dictating my day .It is rethinking our thoughts ,think you've given that fair bit of thought to Yoga ,today a lady mentioned that ,and placed a pic of yoga exercise up ,so will give that a go .
Always write down people's tips ,plus I give them to others with T troubles. Who haven't got comp access locally.
It's an isolating condition ,miserable one to endure ain't that the truth .
Glad we can come here for support and advice ,someone always brings up a good thread most weeks .
Plus it leads back to ones I'd not yet seen .thats good .
Keep on smiling Lisa God Bless