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By Sarah Crane
December is the gateway to the New Year: the time for reflecting on the activities of the past year, and calculating achievable New Years Resolutions. My most touching and treasured experiences this past year were a result of time spent in the nonprofit sector with the HOW Foundation.
The Help Our Wounded Foundation of South Florida (HOW Foundation) improves the quality of life for individuals, families, and communities by advocating for and providing access to hyperbaric oxygen therapy. Currently, the HOW Foundation is focusing on satisfying a need in our South Florida community: the need to help our veterans who have suffered from traumatic brain injury or post-traumatic stress (PTSD).
Despite this being its first year in operation, the HOW Foundation has already sponsored the hyperbaric treatment of several veterans within this past year. I have had the honor to have met these veterans (and their families), and I have witnessed their journeys first-hand. I have seen these brave men and women who served our country coming home and having difficulty coping with adjusting back to their civilian lifestyles. I have seen veterans who have fallen into a downward spiral of depression and anxiety, becoming prey to PTSD.
However, I have also seen the transformation individuals and families have been through after experiencing hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT). I have seen formerly forlorn families who have come into Hyperbaric Services of the Palm Beaches with a more energy and a glimmer of re-instilled hope in their eyes. They are happier. They are experiencing a new type life again, having emerged out from under the shadow of depression. It is a beautiful, inspiring process to hear about, and witnessing it is (in every sense of the word) awesome. We are e not quite sure which mechanisms of hyperbaric oxygen therapy help alleviate the symptoms of post-traumatic stress, but its calming effects are apparent.
Concerning how hyperbaric oxygen therapy helps traumatic brain injury (TBI), we know a little bit more. When the head (or body) is hit, the force of the injury can cause the brain to move around in the skull, causing bruising to the outermost parts of the brain. Additionally, the brain suffers a disruption in its normal blood flow (which is why a brain injury can be caused by either a blow to the head or a blow to the body). As the blood flow is restored in these brain areas, something called a “reperfusion injury” can occur – inflammation damages the brain tissue. We call this jostling of the brain a “mild traumatic brain injury.” There are three degrees of traumatic brain injury: mild, moderate, and severe. Mild traumatic brain injury mostly affects the outer areas of the brain (i.e., the cortex and neocortex). However if a brain injury is more severe, intimate parts of the brain are often also affected.
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) helps heal traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) by reducing the extent of reperfusion injuries by decreasing the amount of inflammation in the brain and providing the brain with a readily available supply of oxygen. And, since HBOT is a therapy where pure oxygen is administered in a pain-free, pressurized environment, brain healing can even be accelerated. The science confirms these generalizations: a recent study in the Journal of Neurotrauma found that veterans who underwent hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) experienced:
• Improved cognition, by an average of 15 IQ points
• Improved, sustained energy levels
• Reduced depression
• Reduced Post-Concussion symptoms
• Reduced anxiety
• Reduced headaches
• Reduced sleep disruptions
• Reduced PTSD symptoms
This past year has been a whirlwind that has taken my breath away time and time again. I am honored to have spent time with veterans and their families and consider myself privileged to watch them brighten and shine. I would like to invite anyone to stop by the HOW Foundation of South Florida offices or Hyperbaric Services of the Pam Beaches. Both institutions are full of altruistic, caring individuals who would be more than happy to share information about and their experiences with hyperbaric oxygen therapy. Perhaps it would be a tangible New Years Resolution?
Hyperbaric Services of the Palm Beaches
561-819-6125
