Has anyone heard of any holistic medicine cures for Lou Gehrig's disease or any othe

[mikehudson]

My friend is 48 years old and has been suffering for over 13 years with what was diagnosed at Lou Gerhrig's disease. They told him he would die within five years and he has survived it. Two discs in his neck, c-3 and c-4 I believe, have deteriorated and compressed the nerves in that area causing severe paralysis and deterioration of the muscles in his right arm. I graduated from a natural health school with a degree in massage therapy, so I've been given him massages almost every other night. When I first began working on him about two years ago there was a significant recovery period, the muscles in his arm were growing and he was even able to weight lift a bit at the gym. Then, I worked on him less and less as his recovery got better. In April of this year, however, things got worse and have been getting worse atat a very alarming rate. There's hardly any muscle in his arm, it hangs limp at his side and he can't use it at all. If anyone has any advice please reply.

 

[Al]

Sorry to have to tell you this Mike but there are no cures for ALS. Not stem cells, not chinese herbs, not detoxifying, not supplements. Nothing. That said there are some supplements and meds that will help control some of the symptoms. Is your friend registered with the ALSA or MDA. I'm surprised his caseworkers haven't suggested things to try. Stick to the reliable sources, not internet companies claiming to cure everything for just $599.00 per month. Nice that you are trying to help a friend though.
AL.

 

[mikehudson]

My friend is 48 years old and has been suffering for over 13 years with what was diagnosed at Lou Gerhrig's disease. They told him he would die within five years and he has survived it. Two discs in his neck, c-3 and c-4 I believe, have deteriorated and compressed the nerves in that area causing severe paralysis and deterioration of the muscles in his right arm. I graduated from a natural health school with a degree in massage therapy, so I've been given him massages almost every other night. When I first began working on him about two years ago there was a significant recovery period, the muscles in his arm were growing and he was even able to weight lift a bit at the gym. Then, I worked on him less and less as his recovery got better. In April of this year, however, things got worse and have been getting worse atat a very alarming rate. There's hardly any muscle in his arm, it hangs limp at his side and he can't use it at all. If anyone has any advice please reply.

Thanks in advance.

 

[CindyM]

Hi Mike- keep up the massages if he likes it, though. Quite a few PALS (People living with ALS) say massages help them feel better. Doesn't build up muscle, since as Al rightly pointed out ALS means they cannot grow back after they have died. But massage might hep with spactic muscles and crampy muscles. You friend is lucky to have you in his life! Cindy

 

[mikehudson]

Hi Mike- keep up the massages if he likes it, though. Quite a few PALS (People living with ALS) say massages help them feel better. Doesn't build up muscle, since as Al rightly pointed out ALS means they cannot grow back after they have died. But massage might hep with spactic muscles and crampy muscles. You friend is lucky to have you in his life! Cindy

Please provide basic information on Lou Gehrig's disease - what it is, how it affects the body.
How can I help a friend who has ALS?

 

[brooksea]

Hi Mike,

If you go to the front of the forum you will find definition of ALS and terms associated with the disease.

Being a true friend is the best thing you could do. He will eventually need assistance with daily living activities. Each person advances at a different pace with ALS.

Helping him get the assistance he needs, Im sure would be welcomed by him. Please let us know how y'all are doing.

This forum will be able to answer most of your qquestions. the people here are great!

 

[crystalkk]

hi mike,

13 years is long time with ALS. Does he have any other symtoms or lost of use any where else.
There is a form of ALS , I can't recall what it is called but it only affects one arm from deteriation of discs in the neck. I came across it in my reasearch. It is not terminal.
That is why I am asking if he has symtoms anywhere else. Maybe he was misdianosed.
If I come across the name again i will send it to you.

 

[mikehudson]

Thanks for your all replays.

 

[mikehudson]

Please provide basic information on Lou Gehrig's disease - what it is, how it affects the body.
How can I help a friend who has ALS?

Would You all strive for a cure to it? I hate it it's a disgusting disease and there is no known cure yet.

 

[Al]

For basic information Mike go to www.alsa.org or use the search feature in the heading line above. There is lots of information there.
AL.

 

[MtPockets]

This is another good site for information about ALS.
http://www.llu.edu/llumc/neurosciences/als/#when

God Bless
Capt AL

 

[Atlasdoc]

Upper Cervical Health Care

Hi Mike,
I am writing in response to your question about holistic cures for ALS. I am also seeking information about ALS and how the symptoms change, etc.

I am an Upper Cervical Chiropractor...OK...I know doors to minds just slammed shut all over the internet! I am not advertising, only seeking guidance. I have just recently started caring for an ALS patient; D came to me upon the advice of a friend whom I had helped with sciatica and low back pain. I was very hesitant to take his case, but in the end decided to because, at the worst, the work I do will do nothing. Upper Cervical Health care is NOT a cure for anything, it is only a means to remove interference in the area of the brainstem (see ] for more info) "D" was diagnosed after 4 years of worsening symptoms, he was barely able to breath, his diaphragm hardly works, the muscles in his left leg are wasted to nearly nothing, he has to have a cane to walk. Most noticeably D was unable to stand from sitting, or sit up from lying down without assistance. He told me that his troubles all started after he fell 12 feet from a ladder and smashed his right ankle. According to him the fact that he placed all his weight on the left leg and foot for more than a year, he began to suffer a lot of pain and muscle jumping in his left leg.

D's symptoms continued to progress until he got to where he was when I first met him. After a lengthy discussion of his condition and my take on it, we decided to go ahead with treatment. Upon exam I discovered that D's left leg was 2.5 inches shorter than his right, and this is a functional difference, not anatomical. This is one of the cardinal signs of an upper cervical misalignment so I decided to take some specialized x-rays of the upper cervical spine to determine the extent of the misalignment. From those x-rays I determined the exact vector necessary to realign the upper cervical spine and we proceeded to adjust D. The correction that I perform involves a ] the stylus moves 1/8 of an inch with 2 lbs of force.

After the first correction D sat up on the table and I palpated his neck, the tight tender muscles that had been there moments before had settled down, a good sign. I had him go to the leg check table and lie on his back, upon checking the leg lengths for equality, I saw that the left leg had come down to only 1/2 inch short. Then D sat up on the table! By himself! We were all surprised...I then took post adjustment x-rays and sent D home for the day. 2 days later I had D come back to the office to get checked. Upon entering the office, I noticed that he was using his diaphragm more to breath, his shoulders were only coming up a slight amount with each breath. I had D lie on the leg-check table and he was still at left leg 1/2" short...once again he sat up by himself!

Ok, so I am not suggesting that D is cured, or even better, but it does seem as though the symptoms are better. I will be checking him again tomorrow, so will know more then, but my question is; does this happen with ALS symptoms? Do they come and go? Everything I have read about it says that the symptoms just get worse. Am I mistaken on this? I think that, at the very least, this patient is going to enjoy an improved quality of life because of the care I am providing...and at the same time, I want to know all I can about the disease so I can be of the most help.

I know this was long, thank you all for your patience with my post.

Atlasdoc

 

[Al]

Praise the Lord, it's a miracle! Seriously though I have a hard time believing that you can pop a guy's leg down 2 inches with one treatment. I'm not a doctor but have been to the chiro. so do not debunk your profession but this sounds pretty wild. Real ALS Symptoms do not come and go. Once they are there they are there. They may plateau for a while but they will get worse. There is a lot of info on ALS at www.alsa.org. That would be a good place to start.
AL.

 

[Al]

Sorry Doc but I edited out your two links. They sure looked like advertizing to me and didn't really seem relevent to your questions.
AL.

 

[Atlasdoc]

Edited out links

Hi Al,
I can certainly understand not wanting to have advertisements here, but the links I provided only give more info about the type of work I do. Actually both links were to the same site which was created and maintained by a patient, not a chiropractor. He had a condition that he was told was just something he would have to live with and found help through Upper Cervical Chiropractic so he is now an advocate. If you still have the link, please check it out, if you don't, here it is again (you can always edit it out again...)

Thanks for your dedication and work here...

By the way, D was out of alignment again the other day and his leg was drawn back up to 2 1/2 inches short...came right back down to within 1/2 inch after the correction! I'll try to remember to take pictures of it next time.