My plans have been finalized and my Dad and I are returning to China in June 2008 for more stem cell injections. My parents and I are pleased enough with the results thus far that we believe more improvements with body movements and feeling are just on the horizon. When I left Hangzhou in October, Doctor Ma performed an Asia test using a feather and a blunt object like a small stick. The test is performed at many places on the body by rubbing a feather or small stick to determine if I had normal feeling. The doctors made a detailed chart of the body and wrote down where on the body I had feeling and if the feeling was normal. I can’t wait to see the results of their first test in June to show them what changes have been made.
May 30th, 2008
It’s been 7 months now since my stem cells injections in the spinal area of my tailbone at Hangzhou Hospital. As a result, I regained quality feeling in the skin in my arms, hands, and fingers. Am moving my fingers and thumbs to the extent that I can write my own checks and use a computer mouse. My right triceps is very strong now and definitely pronounced due to my daily transfers. My left triceps is not progressing as well, mainly due to lack of transfers from that side. I regained the feeling in my hips, groin, and bottom area. At one time, I though my hips were dislocated due to the new feeling. My balance has improved remarkably as I am able to sit up on my own without falling over. Recently, I am noticing changes in my pectoral muscles as the nerves are now firing and the muscles are coming back on line. My body spasms are significantly reduced. My handwriting has improved to the extent that on Easter Sunday, I was able to unbutton my dress shirt. The healing over the last year has been extraordinary such that I have been able to go back to junior college and take 5 classes this Spring.
What a miracle that stem cells can produce with time and a healthy diet. It’s just amazing technology, and such a blessing to be so lucky to have a chance to heal.
May 28th, 2008
We made it home OK, but being a quadriplegic, you have to be on the lookout for almost anything. At the airport in Hangzhou, we had to check my wheelchair and use the airport’s wheelchair to go to the gate. At the gate, the assistant would not let me take the chair out of the terminal. My Dad ignored him and pushed me to the loading bus. The assistant again demanded the chair and we tried to tell him that I could not walk. My Dad did a wheelchair wheelie and in the bus we went to the surprise of the assistant. He rode with us to the plane. The plane was not parked at the terminal and was at least a half mile away. We were the last ones to board and kept looking for a Skychef truck to load me in the plane like what was done in Beijing. No Skychef truck in sight anywhere. The Captain and 1st Officer came down the loading ramp along with the flight attendants. They looked around for a Skychef truck, waited a few moments, and then motioned for my Dad and I to get on the plane. I said I could not walk and I don’t think they could understand English. No matter, they kept motioning and pointing to the plane. My Dad must have figured it out. He got down on his knees in front of me and drug me up on his back, then up the stairs to the airplane. It happened so quickly and he didn’t miss a step. Yea! We were luck enough to see two sun rises and two sunsets on the same day, one sunrise in Hangzhou, a sun set north of Japan at 40,000 feet, another sunrise over Alaska a few hours later, and a sun set in Chicago, all on October 9. Amazing.
April 26th, 2008
The flight from the US to Beijing is a long one and it is easy to get dehydrated. Being dehydrated on arrival may cause one to get sick for several days, not good. In my case, the solution was to use a Foley catheter and leg bag under my jeans which could be emptied on the plane using an empty water bottle. A doctor can prescribe the correct size and a nurse can show your caregiver the safest procedure on how to install and use. My Dad has learned and we brought several with us from home for use when we run out of regular catheters or for use on the return flight.
A portable commode/shower chair has been very beneficial. My Dad found one on the Internet by Active Aid, Model 421, I think. It has a soft cushioned seat that removes along with the back. The frame will fold into thirds. It has foot supports, safety strap, good brakes, and wheels. It will fit in a tub or will roll in a shower with not too tall of a lip. It will also roll over a standard height toilet. Ours came with a travel bag and we have checked it on the place along with the other luggage. Xiaoshan Hospital also has a commode chair, but the seat looks plastic from the photos.
An alarm clock is a must. The Chinese people are fairly prompt. Staff at the Xiaoshan Hospital are very busy and work so hard for the patients. The acupuncture and exercise therapists are assigned 4-5 patients at a time and arriving late can mess up the 4-hour therapy schedule for everyone. The same goes for the days of stem cells injections. Several patients are waiting in line at a time in their hospital bed, so not being ready causes extra work and stress on the nurses and doctors. We have been told that stem cells only last about 12 hours and are flown from the lab in the day of the injections.
A laptop computer is very beneficial. Xiaoshan is a very modern hospital and has an Internet connection in stem cells injection patient’s rooms. Connection with the outside world, friends, and family makes the trip exciting and will give one a chance to share their experience with others. The hospital has two computer workstations in the Common Room for anyone to use, but they are routinely in use. If you have a laptop, you can purchase a headset for $49 RMB ($7 US) and use the Internet in your hospital room to call home for about 2 cents per minute. Go to www.skype.com. Otherwise, it is using the computers in the Common Room. What marvelous technology. You can also purchase a long distance calling card, but it is many times more expensive.
We brought a digital camera and have been able to enter our pictures into the laptop and send to family and friends via email and My Space. It is a must to have a photoshop program that will convert the photo to a size that can be sent via email. Otherwise, the file size is too large and nothing will be sent.
My Dad brought a language converter. It is a little box about the size of today’s digital camera. They vary in price depending upon features. Ours is easy to use and lets you enter a word or phrase in English, then push a button to convert it to Chinese or 7 other languages. Another button will say the word or phrase in Chinese. We have used the language converter every day at “shopping,” the gift shop, things needed from the nurses, menu items, tourist attractions, etc. Even with the language converter, we occasionally need an interpreter from the hospital to assist, especially when planning a side trip to the City on a free day.
The hospital beds here are very firm. My Dad purchased and brought a twin sized Aero Bed to avoid low back problems. When deflated, it will fit into a suitcase and has its own motor to blow it up plus an electric charger. My Dad removed the hospital’s mattress pad and replaced it with his Aero Bed. No problems whatsoever. We had to laugh as one night on TV on a Chinese station, they were advertising the Aero Bed, but it was a station over 800 miles away in Beijing. Xiaoshan provided me with an air mattress as well, but it is not as comfortable as my Dads.
Extra towels are a must. The hospital only supplies one towel per patient per week and it is very thin in comparison to American standards. We brought 8 old bath towels and 4 hand towels with us that have worked out very well. One can purchase towels or sheets locally if necessary. The hospital changes the sheets once per week.
My Mom sent with us a greeting card to be opened each day for the length of our trip. It is so special to read something each day from someone you love. It keeps the spirits up and gives us something from home to look forward to each day. The love and support from my family cannot be expressed in words.
October 9th, 2007
It’s Monday evening, October 8, and I just had my last stem cell injection this afternoon. The last injection was in IV form and there was no restriction on food, water, or having to lie down for 6 hours. They will do it in my hospital room, in an IV room with chairs, or on a bed. During my IV, I sat and talked with the nurses that dropped by. They are so friendly and interested in American anything, but mainly like to practice the English language. The IV was not painful except for the initial stick.
The last 24 hours at the hospital can get quite hectic with morning therapy till 1 PM, my last injection, final assessments by the doctors and therapists, packing, meals, checking on flight times, double checking the location of travel papers, and saying good bye to some extraordinary people. The staff from Xioashan hospital are the best. What a life changing experience I have gone through. The doctors have been pleased that I have made some progress this last month and have given their pre-approval to return in 6 months, if necessary. I gained increased sensation in areas that previously had no feeling; increased the strength in my arms, shoulders, and abdomen; and gained a better balance while sitting up. And, the best is yet to come over the next 6 to 9 months. That is the time that most patients report their significant changes.
In a month here at Xiaoshan, my Dad and I have been through two typhoons, a tidal wave that came up the Quitang River, the first of Autumn festival, and a week of the Chinese National Holiday. It was such a rewarding experience to visit a foreign country, meet new people, try to speak their language, pay for things with a foreign currency, and see things that most people may have only heard about. I will never forget the experience here and the cute nurses that always have a smile and a kind word.
October 9th, 2007
It is now Friday afternoon, October 5, and this week I have received my 4th and 5th life-changing injections which give me more hope for the future. There is definitely a Chinese connection in my life. Dr. Tek Kim from the Chicago area brought me into this world in 1983, Dr. Cho from Ft. Worth repaired my neck after it was broken, and now Dr. Mayude and Dr. Mike have given me stem cells from Chinese children. I can now officially say that I am part Chinese. The nurses have given me a Chinese name, “Ad-da.”
The stem cell injection procedure is comfortable and there isn’t much pain that I can feel. I sleep for several hours after returning from the injection, so there must be a sedative in the IV solution. I also get a second IV bag after the injection which takes about an hour to get into my veins. They leave the IV needle in back of my hand overnight in case there is some need. But in my case, I never got a fever, infection, or any other side effect. The IV solutions will pass through the body fairly quickly, so be prepared to go to the bathroom every hour or so.
Now, after my 5th injection, I am noticing more stability in my back and abdominal muscles. Dr. James and Linda, the therapists for the last 2 days, have altered my therapy to work on trunk stability and upper body balance. They devised some simple, yet effective exercises to develop more abdominal strength. My balance is improving as they get me to work on muscles that have become weak due to a lack of use over the last 18 months, since my accident. Some of the exercises I can do while in my wheelchair, but it is best to have a spotter so as not to crash. They showed me the way to get stronger; now it is up to me to continue what I have been taught.
The nurses and doctors here at Xiaoshan Hospital are so warm and friendly. They all have a common American first name for ease of communication. Many have email addresses and can be contacted after one returns home to reality. Hotmail is common here and some even have computers in their apartments. They like the webcam adn will show a picture of themselves when talking via the computer using www.skype.com. Such wonderful communications with friends and family have made my trip so much more enjoyable.
October 5th, 2007
Friday was my second stem cell injection day, another chance at changing my life. The procedure was delayed a few hours due to the plane arriving in Hangzhou a few hours late. The Beike Company has two research labs that produce stem cells. Each day of patient injections (Monday, Wednesday and Friday), the stem cells are flown in that morning and are injected in a patient within 12 hours. Returning to my room after the injection, I felt warmth in my neck and still a bit nervous from the procedure. Again, no food, water, sitting up, or even a pillow to avoid a major headache. I got a migraine headache for two days following my first injection and asked other patients if they experienced the same. Several suggested caffeine after 2 hours which seemed to work. I drank a Coke that evening and the next day when waking up. My headache was very minor this time and only lasted a few hours. A day after my second inje
September 26th, 2007
Sundays at the Xiaoshan hospital are a free day for patients. Most of the doctors, nurses, and staff are off. So, my Dad and I decided we wanted to go see the Lingyin Buddhist temple in the afternoon. Told Johnnie, the meal interpreter, and he ordered a taxi and driver for the afternoon. Johnnie took 10 minutes to give the driver instructions in Chinese. It was a 50 minute ride from the hospital to the temple. The driver got us very close and gave us 2 hours to do our touring. What a remarkable place, one of the top 10 Buddhist temples left in China. There were multiple temples at the same location with the largest Buddha over 75 feet tall. The temple has been restored and was originally built during the Ming dynasty over 1200 years ago, a very impressive tourist and local Chinese attraction. Lots of burning of incense, people on kneelers praying, the Buddhist monks arrived to begin their afternoon prayers.
Hangzhou is under a construction explosion. We saw no fewer than 150 cranes building high-rise apartments and office buildings. All the streets we were brand new, not a pothole or a bump. Most of the streets were 4 lanes wide for cars, median on either side, then another lane on the outside of the streets for cars that is used for pedestrians, bicycles, and motor bikes, then sidewalks on the far outside. Not a piece of trash anywhere, immaculately trimmed vegetation lining the streets everywhere. Interesting to see Chinese ladies on a moped in a skirt and high heal shoes, with a child in front and another person riding side-saddle on the back. Many of the mopeds were electric. At night, only half have their lights on. Horns honk a lot here, and it seems that it is an indication of be alert or behind you, not get out of my way. Another interesting thing is that here in Hangzhou, the cars have the right of way, not the pedestrians.
Monday was a therapy day. Again, acupuncture followed by electrical stimulation on my legs, and then workout with weights. Each day, Dr. Martin adds more repetitions. Saturday was twenty, Monday was “sir-tee.” Am working my shoulders and biceps with 10 lbs of weight on each wrist, and abdominals with 20 lb weights stacked on my stomach. Lots of leg, hip, ankle, and Achilles tendon stretching. After that, it was 50 pushups with most of my body on the therapy mat with the upper half hanging over the end. Dr. Martin assists with lifting up from above while I push up as my triceps are “no strong.” Am up to 5-6 sets of “sir-teen.” Therapy ends with 25-30 minutes on the standing frame.
Tuesday was another therapy day. The process is the same for each morning session which takes about 3 to 3 1/2 hours in total. It is usually acupuncture first, followed by electrical stimulation, then exercise with weights. I wanted to get more circulation to my spine and asked Dr. Martin what he suggested. He headed off for a minute and showed up with a try with 9-10 clear glass fish bowls of different sizes. There were fish-bowls that were 5 inches in diameter, 4 inches in diameter, and 3 inches in diameter. He rolled me on my stomach and my Dad watched as Dr. Martin lit a cotton swab soaked in alcohol and inserted the burning swab into a fish bowl to warm it up, then stick it on my back. This Chinese treatment is called “cupping” and is 2,500 years old. The suction process from the heat in the bowl draws the skin into the glass bowl which also draws blood to the surface of the skin. Dr Martin placed 7 of the fish-bowls on my back on either side of my spine, one on my neck, and another on my spine at waist level. The bowls were removed after 30 minutes and left some serious hickeys. The dark color is an indication of poor circulation. The lighter the better. Not sure how much good it did, but it was interesting to try an ancient medical technique.
Wednesday turned out to be a free day due to the typhoon. Lots of wind and rain, but not much flooding from our window vantage point. I went to therapy anyway and my Dad helped as Dr. Martin did not make it in that day. My 2nd scheduled injection was cancelled and rescheduled to Friday. Vials of stem cells are flown in the day of injection, but the airport was closed due to the typhoon.
Thursday, September 20 was another therapy day in the morning. This morning’s session started again with acupuncture, this time with 24 needles in my hands, feet, and legs, but Dr. Martin added a needle next to my belly button, stuck some Moxi on the end of the needle, and lit it on fire. When my Dad arrived, he thought that the whole floor smelled like burning marijuana. It looked like a fat cigar about 1 inch long.
My head was congested and I asked Dr. Martin what he could do to help as I had almost no sense of taste or smell for the last 2 months. His answer was “acupuncture.” I got a needle stuck in my forehead and two next to my nose. It was really uncomfortable as he wiggled those needles for about a minute each. But to my amazement, some congestion cleared up within minutes. Food now smells better. What an experience.
September 20th, 2007
Therapy is every day except Sunday, when it is a free day to do whatever, and the day of stem cell injections. My therapy starts at 8:30 AM. Accupuncture is first and is conducted on a therapy mat in the Common Room on the 20th floor. Their Common Room has a wide screen TV and two computer workstations that are connected to the Internet. The computers are busy all the time with patient’s family members connecting and emailing with other family members and friends. The computer on the left which my Dad tried to use starts off in Chinese symbols. He swithched to the one on the right which is programmed to display English. Bill Gates has truly conquered the world as they use Windows and Internet Exployer here as well, but the computer on the left has 99% Chinese symbols with only a few words in English. Colors are the same with the green start button on the lower left corner.
Dr. Martin (not his Chinese name) is a young guy in his 30s who has been practicing accupuncture. He learned from his grandfather and studied the practice for 7 years. I asked him if he uses accupuncture on himself and he said yes. If he wakes up with a sore neck, he does accupuncture on himself, his neck will straighten out, and he feels like “Superman.” He inserted needles in me that were 3 inches long and were fatter at one end. I was stuck with 24 needles in all. One on each hand in the web between my thumb and index finger and one each in the web between each of my nuckles. Also got one on each arm near each elbow and another in the muscle on the forearm. On my legs, two needles in the side of each calf muscle, one in the ball of of each foot, one in each ankle, and several between the toes. The needles did not hurt much as they were very sharp and thin. Dr. Martin would insert a needle, move it up and down, then rotate it until the desired muscle would twitch. Then, off to the next site till all 24 needles were incerted. Next, he used a machine to send electrical impulses that had 6 wires and 12 alegator clamps on the ends. He connected the clamps to half of the needles on each leg and arm, and then turned on the juice! My fingers, toes, and muscles began to twitch in rythum about once every second. He left the machine on for 30 minutes I think. The process did not hurt as one would think. The Doctor was pretty good. The only place that I could feel any discomfort was the needles in the webs of my thumbs. At the end of the session, Dr. Martin pulled out each needle one at a time and used alcohol swabs and pressure to stop any bleeding, which ther wasn’t any.
Next, it was electrical therapy on the same exercise mat. They use a machine with wires and patches on the ends which are taped to several parts of my legs. This therapy lasted 30 minutes well, 15 minutes on each leg. Not sure what this machine did, but it seemed like it worked like an American Tinns unit.
From the electrical therapy, it was off to an exercise mat. I got 10 lb weights of sand in flexible bags that were velcro’ed to each wrist and then used a wooden broom stick handle with another 5 lbs hanging in the middle. I bench pressed the broom stick for 30 repititions. After that, it was 15 lbs across my stomach that I had to press up in the air with my abdominals 20 times. Next, it was a 2″ pad under my butt while laying on my back with my legs off the exercise mat. He was stretching my legs and back muscles in that position for almost 5 minutes till my legs stopped twitching. After that, it was laying across the table with my upper body on a rubber ball and arms stretched out to were I could do push ups. Did 4 sets of 10 each after removing the ball. When resting, he rolled a stool under my upper half so my head and face would not hit the floor. The last exercise was a standing frame which was a low tech unit with knee pad, side rails, and a table 4 feet off the ground that was cut out in a curve for my chest. They used a velcro belt about 1 foot wide across my low back to keep me from falling in any direction. 20-25 minutes of standing and I was done for the day.
Whew. Back to my room for a 2-hour nap and the rest of Saturday off. Just can’t say enough about the staff here at the Xiaoshan Hospital in HangZhou. They go out of their way to be friendly, smile, provide encouragement, and speak my language. They give one hope and a method to get you strong and on the road to healing. What a gift they offer.
September 17th, 2007
Was still behind on my sleep and luckily got the morning off. Fridays and Tuesdays are injection days. My injection was scheduled for 3:30 PM. Got lunch a bit early as there is no food or drink for 3 hours before the procedure. About 3 PM, the nurse came in and incerted an IV of glucose in my wrist. After about 10 minutes, I went into a spasm and accidentally jerked the IV out of the bag. My Dad went down to get the nurse who looked frantic, but said OK. She ran off to get another line. Got it hooked and off we went. She had the elevator waiting which explains why she was a bit frantic. And, we were a few minutes late by this time. Got to the 20th floor and in we went while my Dad headed back to the room to wait. The procedure did not take too long. Was given some sedative of some sort, but I think I was conscious the whole time, maybe. With the injections completed, it was back to the room for recovery. My Dad said I was gone for about 45 minutes. I was grinning from ear to ear when I saw my Dad. There would be “no water” for 2 hours, “no food” for 4 hours, and “no sit up” for 6 hours. “Can turn over”, “no sit up.” Ah, a chance to get some more rest.
My injection was in the very low back right above my tail bone. They remove some spinal fluid and then replace the same amount of volume with stem cells. And, the process is an assembly line of sorts as there were a number of other patients I saw that were in line after me. Because of the language difference, they give you little explanation. Didn’t know whether it was going to be a needle or whether they would make an incision. When we removed the bandage the next morning, they must have used a needle as there was no incision mark. What a day to remember, the gift of healing and a chance for change.
September 16th, 2007
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