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Physiology & Medicine / Re: Could Inclined Bed Therapy (IBT) replace surgery for varicose veins and oedema?

« on: 08/09/2009 12:42:50 »

hey andrew thanks for the quick reply,

my comparison from before i started ibt is simply that my vein has swollen more than before, whether it be caused by ibt or simply the fact that is was just a matter of time before it got worse thats what im trying to establish

the only real difference i have noticed in myself is that before the veins would actually hurt(unless i wore a compression stocking) and now they don't! but i do wonder whether this may simply be the fact that it was winter prior to my ibt!

also i must say that neither myself nor my girlfriend has suffered any kind of illness ie colds, hayfever, or the dreaded swine since we started tilting the bed (thats a definate plus point)

as for the trainers, i hear what you are saying there:)they are actually boots im wearing there and the socks pull up a lot higher than my ankles, i must admit i rarely wear those and on saturday the vein was the worst its ever looked, and it did stay up pretty much all day!
so i totally understand your point about the tourniquet scenario, really i suppose it just shows my vein bloating at its very worst!

im not going to stop using ibt, and i will take those three photos as you ask, i just hope the bloody thing doesn't spread any further up or down my leg!!

ps is the whole point of ibt to actually make the veins disappear completely for life, or just look better at certain times during the day?

kind regards again d

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Physiology & Medicine / Re: Could Inclined Bed Therapy (IBT) replace surgery for varicose veins and oedema?

« on: 08/09/2009 08:32:15 »

hey guys,

this is my latest photo update, taken on saturday around 3pm on a fairly cold day

i think you will all agree it is actually starting to look worse rather than better!
now i don't want to be classed as negative but i have obvious concerns about my legs,
as you can see i had shaved my legs about a month ago, this was to get a better idea on whether the veins had improved
i have been on ibt for nearly five months and in that time i have, lost weight,
cycled only for exercize, not strained at all, and consumed plenty of fluid,

andrew can you please advise, i don't want to stop the ibt but after seeing my leg on saturday i am slightly concerned that although this treatment may work for some, it may actually harm others,the bloating on the side of my knee is a real worry?

alun, judging by your photos you seem to have made improvements in the last year, and as you said previously they do sometimes look worse before they look better, do you still have days or times during the day, when the veins look as bad as they did before you started ibt?

many thanks

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Physiology & Medicine / Re: Could Inclined Bed Therapy (IBT) replace surgery for varicose veins and oedema?

« on: 01/07/2009 16:24:00 »

as promised (week 5)
firstly my ankle, i have noticed that the little red veins surrounding the bulges seem to have spread apart from that no real change as yet

now my leg, i know it seems hard to see but its actually worse than the photo shows, you can just about make out where the bulging has moved slightly further down the leg and almost looks to be returning upwards in a "V" shape  i can take pics from other angles if it helps? and if someone can teach me how to highlight certain areas that would be great

lastly i will get my girlfriend to take a pic first thing in the morning, i do notice that first thing if i look at my leg before i get up that the veins are totally flat and invisible!!
hope this is a good sign??

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Physiology & Medicine / Re: Could Inclined Bed Therapy (IBT) replace surgery for varicose veins and oedema?

« on: 01/07/2009 15:51:04 »

hey alun and andrew thanks for the replies,

andrew as for the compression stocking,
 i don't feel it really did a hell of a lot except hold the veins in as opposed to having them out in the open and maybe enlargening whilst im lifting or doing some decent excercize, this is probably just a myth i have had installed in me by my doctor who told me to wear one in the first place at all times!!
tbh as soon as i took the stocking off the vein would simply stick out or inflate just as before and as i don't seem to get much pain from it except in winter, i haven't noticed much if any difference
 my obvious fear is that when i do have to lift heavy objects is that all the good ibt is doing i may simply be putting so much pressure on my leg that is never going to get better,

as for the vein itself, it looks different every day especially depending on the weather, sometimes not too bad and when its hot and humid it can look awful!
it also seems to have moved slightly further down my leg by approx an inch,
i think my problem is that the varicose vein starts on my ankle then seems to disappear to nothing up my leg then reappear until it stops just below the knee, almost as if its just a matter of time before the section with no protrusion says enoughs enough and pops all the way to my ankle,

i shall put photos up asap my camera is on charge as i write this

thanks again

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Physiology & Medicine / Re: Could Inclined Bed Therapy (IBT) replace surgery for varicose veins and oedema?

« on: 26/06/2009 13:38:47 »

just a quick update,

i have been trying ibt for over 5 weeks now, i must say i do seem to sleep rather well and wake up feeling quite refreshed!! these are the plus sides,

as for my varicose veins they have not improved in the slightest, i would say that if anything it has slightly worsened, i haven't been wearing a support stocking since the day i started ibt nor have i been straining, my only exorcise has been cycling and the odd game of tennis

i would love to hear from people who have noticed any significant changes after a 4 or 5 week period, im not expecting miracles and will continue with ibt, but i am slightly concerned that it may cause more harm than good and would like some reassurance please

i hope this post doesn't seem too negative thats not the intention

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Physiology & Medicine / Re: Could Inclined Bed Therapy (IBT) replace surgery for varicose veins and oedema?

« on: 19/05/2009 17:08:12 »

hi andrew thanks for the reply,
the first night on the incline seemed slightly strange, after about twenty minutes i got some tingling in my legs and then must of nodded of! and on waking this morning i found my legs slightly heavier than normal which eased after ten minutes of walking about, the only thing to note was that both i and my girlfriend found we had slid down the bed in the night  []

as for the stocking, i will cease wearing it as of today and see how it goes!!

this is my ankle

and this is of the side of my leg,not the biggest of vv's but its bashing my confidence no end

also i don't suffer from any kind of oedema, hope this helps and i shall keep updating as and when
thanks again

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Physiology & Medicine / Re: Could Inclined Bed Therapy (IBT) replace surgery for varicose veins and oedema?

« on: 19/05/2009 09:19:41 »

hi andrew and everyone else on the forum,

im 34 and last year discovered a varicose vein on my right leg, it protrudes around the underside of my ankle, slightly above my ankle and then there is a gap of about 4" before it starts protruding on the inside of my lower leg (this is around 5" long and finishes just inline with the bottom of my knee) i will obviously try and put pictures up tonight to clarify!!

i am so pleased to have found this forum as i am genuinely petrified of surgery and anything i can do to try and cure this problem will be of great help

just a couple of questions for you if you don't mind?

1,the doctor advised that during the day i wear a compression stocking as i do some lifting with my job on occasion, does this still stand??

2,as of last night i inclined the bed by 6" at the head end and found that on waking up this morning my legs felt heavy and the vein was visible right from the off! could this be because the vein pools at the bottom of my foot  around my ankle and if so can inclining make it worse?

many thanks on your fantastic work and i shall update my progress as best i can