Wow, 2012!

All throughout October, and into the first week of November, I was resting and healing from my latest treatment. Then it was back to work, followed by Christmas and New Years. No changes to report. I am requiring a lot of sleep; I noticed this with the last treatment as well. It could be the time of year…or, because of some symptoms I was experiencing, it could be a strain of mono as my doctor had suggested. Otherwise, it could be the stem cells requiring more rest for repair. Thought I’m not certain what is the cause my fatigue, I have a tendency to think it could be a combination of all three.

I have been starting to integrate exercise into my routine. I was unable to use the tZone machine for quite a while after my treatment. I also use an exercise elastic; perfect while watching TV!

To keep my body function at its optimal performance, I’m taking Co-enzyme Q10, Vitamin B's, Vitamin D, a multi-vitamin, fish oils, and LOTS of Vitamin C! I am trying to take more Vitamin C as per my doctor’s request. It's the best healer and there no risk in taking too much - your body can excrete any amount it doesn't need. As a result, it won’t build up in your system like Vitamins B6, B3 and many others could. I also take the Stem Cell Support given by my doctor -- an herb base vitamin that helps provide nutritional support to encourage the structure and function of adult stem cells. Lastly, I drink protein shakes (whey free as I'm allergic to whey protein) during the week, to help promote muscle growth.

Home time! Woohoo! In about 6 months, the stem cells will really start to shine.

I’m improving each day. I think the flight home will be a breeze compared to last time. The weather is Miami is beautiful - wishing I could enjoy it!

I am not nearly as sore as I was last treatment. Unlike previous treatments, I had the stem cells injected in my stomach muscles, which is definitely aiding in the healing of the incisions from the lipo and the liposuction itself.

Since my spine is so curved to the front like a question mark, it means my rib cage and organs are pushed forward. During the last treatment, it was uncomforting to have the liposuction healing around my belly button or up near my rib cage. This time, I asked my doctor to avoid extracting any fat from my stomach that was close to those two areas. In doing so, I feel the pain that I felt in those areas has decreased. It's always best to listen to your body and talk with your doctor if you feel something can be improved. Your body always "talks" to you; all you need to do is listen!

And for me, the importance to stay in touch with my body is twofold, since I’m not the "norm". There's no manual to the inner workings of my body shape, as well as the effects it has on every part of me…from my energy level and nerve endings to my digestive system. It's actually pretty extraordinary how the body can adapt.

Just underwent my third treatment today, and it went smoothly. Via liposuction, the doctor was able extract 850,000 stem cells, activate them, and re-insert them in my body intravenously, as well as using forty-eight needles directly into different muscles.

Since my face muscles were the first to be attacked by Muscular Dystrophy (when I was born my right eye didn't close fully or tear properly), there is no way of knowing if there is still muscle in my face, such as, for example, the muscle surrounding the eye that closes the eyelid. This is the case in other parts of my body, like my shoulder blades, which were the second location that was visibly starting to atrophy.

Muscular Dystrophy will continue to destroy its selected muscle until it becomes scar tissue. The 'hope' is to rebuild the muscles that have become scar tissue; the 'know' is that it will improve and strengthen the muscles that still are there, however big or small.

Arrived in Miami and checked in to the hotel.

Since my second treatment, I have noticed a few changes. Skeptics’ would say, "That could be from anything!", but when you've lived in a fickle, high maintenance body like mine, you get very familiar with what is "normal" and consistent, and what is new to the working routine.

I have noticed slight changes from my sleeping and neck positions; there is an increased thickness and strength in my upper legs and lower back, as well as an indent and outline of new muscle I have never seen before. It seems the stem cells have started working on a very minute level, as if the connection between my brain and muscle movement has strengthened, and increased the quickness of doing multi-tasking. This all seems to be a positive increase at the nerve level.

My reasoning is that the stem cells are setting up a working foundation for my muscles to grow and build. I also believe they are repairing some tissues (the ones that are the least damaged and/or that had to be "turned off") so that my body could survive and function in its current physical state without allowing any major pain and discomfort. I think the stem cells are still working on that level - starting from the ground up in a sense, needing to reverse 28 years of damage - so there is a solid base to depend on.

Since the last time I blogged in late August, I have noticed more muscle growth in my lower back, as well as the inside of my leg. I’ve also become aware that I sometimes go into dips of tiredness, where I need over 9 hours of sleep at night. I’m assuming that, hopefully, this is an encouraging sign from the stem cells in my system. It could also be the after-effects from the flu episode I had a few months ago, which was thought to be related to Mononucleosis.

Soon I will be travelling to Miami, Florida to receive my third stem cell treatment. I am excited to go back; this will be my second treatment with the same doctor, with whom I felt brought new ideas to the table and was truly interested in figuring out the best routes for me.

I am going to be starting a Twitter account when I get back, so please make sure to follow me! :D Thanks everyone!

The fatigue and dizziness virus has gotten better, although not completely gone. It has been five months since my second treatment, and I can see more improvements than I could after the first one. Because I've had this disease since I was 12 years old, my tissues and muscles need to be repaired before they can rebuild and strengthen.

My first stem cell treatment, which started at deep anatomic levels (like nerves), did not show any changes that were visible physically. However, since my second treatment, I can see definition in some of my muscles -- definition not necessarily noticeable to others -- that I know didn't exist prior. This definition is either new muscle tissue or proof that my muscles are being used in new ways now that they are becoming stronger.

Even though I've been fighting this flu virus for the past two months, I have still noticed that I am maintaining energy. I'm able to complete more tasks then before, and my body is not as sore afterwards as it would have been a few months ago. I am starting to take a repair vitamin and a joint vitamin as a preventative; the increase in movement can cause pressure on my joints. When sitting for long periods of time, my back still gets sore and my sciatic nerve acts up as well.

I have been taking creatine and protein powder regularly while continuing to exercise -- although not as consistent as I should -- every third day. I have gained around 15 pounds since my first treatment, however its hard to say if its muscle or fat. I have also noticed that, when sitting in the car,  I am bent slightly more forward then before, causing my stomach to stick out. This is because the muscle tissue has been so stretched for so many years.

My energy has been lower then usual; I have feelings of dizziness and fatigue. I'm unsure whether or not this is a flu, since these symptoms have lasted almost a month. It also might be related to the stem cells and their need for electrolytes, nutrients and water, because my current intake might not be high enough to support their new levels. However, after checking with the stem cell institute, my thought that maybe the symptoms was stem cell-related was proven to be false! So it must be a flu.

My thighs are getting bigger due to weight gain, I think. My lower back and legs have new areas of fat, but I'm not sure if it's pure muscle growth. Similar to my first treatment, my stomach is sticking out when sitting, before going back to normal again.

Since last time I blogged, I've had strep throat for two weeks and have undergone ten oxygen chamber treatments. The strep throat definitely made it hard for me to focus and feel the positive effects of the stem cells.

At the request of my doctor, I've being attending regular hyperbaric oxygen chamber appointments.  The benefit of these is to have oxygen stimulate the stem cells to encourage growth.  An oxygen chamber is tube (somewhat like an MRI), and there is a clear part at my your head. Each session involves staying in this capsule-like chamber for an hour or more. Movies are played outside the chamber for patients to watch, but since my sessions expire after an our or so, I never got to finish one! Haha!

I am just starting to be able to focus on the positive changes from my second stem cell treatment. I am noticing another increase in energy. My body is still not able to keep up to the increase in energy, and still aches after activity. I am noticing, however, that I am just doing things that normally I would dread as it would exhaust so much energy, and instead of my energy stopping me from continuing its the lack of muscle strength I have to support body against the amount of work. I have been told and I slightly notice, more symmetry and plumpness in my face. I've also received compliments about how healthy I look.

Soon I will begin to workout three times a week, to start. I haven't worked out in over a decade as it took too much energy and did the benefits were little....this should be fun .... Ah! :)

I'm in pain today...the discomfort of liposuction is weird and not enjoyable. Because the arch in my back is so large, causing my stomach to jet out and be stretched, I can't stand or basically do any movement that involves using stomach muscles (and trust me, stomach muscles are used more then you think!)

Not being able to stand hinders everything I do, even simple tasks. I am on antibiotics because of how invasive the liposuction was, so it is needed to ward off infection.

I'm back in Miami today, for my second treatment, six months after my first one.This time, the adipose fat tissue was taken out of my stomach via liposuction. The doctor was able to remove over 10 billion stem cells from my fat tissue (adipose). These cells were then activated and re-deposited intravenously; 38 needles directly into various muscle groups.

Stem cells are versatile; they can travel throughout the body to become tissues, muscles, nerve stimulants etc... By injecting them directly into a muscle, they are imprinted, and become that type of cell.

My doctor would like me to go into a hyperbaric oxygen chamber at home to stimulate the stem cells. It is basically a tube that you lie in with a certain amount of oxygen strength for a certain amount of time. I have developed shallow breathing as most people do but extra for me as muscles surround the lungs. Muscles, brain, nerve function etc all need oxygen to function and function at top performance.

Up until now, I've  had very little back pain since the stem cell treatment. Soreness in my lower back has returned and so has the burning in my legs whenever I'm in a resting/laying down position. The ball in my spine has shrunk but it's not completely gone. My energy is still very high; body energy is higher but it gets sore trying to keep up with all the energy and activity. After work, my energy level is still up and I am able to function at a quicker rate to complete daily tasks, as well as needing less resting in between movements. This is a result of a faster connection between brain signals and muscle movements.

I have noticed new facial movements and other slight movements that I would have never done before, and people have noticed I have more symmetry in my face. I have also noticed some movements feel more fluid, and have more easement in motions.

It's now been two and a half weeks since my stem cell treatment in Mexico. My energy is still high, however my physical energy is lower than my mental energy. I am noticing slight movement changes: the odd time I am able to stand up without using my hands to push off my knees, as well as getting out of the car quicker. When cleaning, organizing and putting away clothes, I am able to do more then I am used to. I still require a lot of rest and sleep.

The injection spot in my lower back has transformed into a ball, but this will go away with time. The incision site has formed into a few hard balls, and the skin circling the incisions are still sore to touch, but the external bruising has nearly diminished. 

It has been exactly a week since my stem cell treatment. I mentally have more energy (the feeling of wanting to "do it all"), but my physical body hasn't caught up yet. I definitely do have more physical energy then I did before the treatment, a significant amount actually, but it still does not match the level of mental energy that I have. There are bruises around the incision sites, and on both my temples. 

Today I am travelling home. We left at 9:00 in the morning and will be home tonight by 11:00. Last night, while trying to fall asleep, I felt "bubbles" going through my veins; almost a tickling sensation, but only in my legs.

During the flight home my legs didn't fall asleep, my back didn't hurt, and I didn't shift around in my seat, not once! I still have plenty of energy, feel alert and in a good mood.

The first day after the stem cell treatment. I'm not in too much pain...just sore and bruised. The incisions are very small but the left side is bleeding quite a bit, due to the pressure I put on it he shape of my body. At this point, I'm tired, sore, and feel no change in my body. The stem cells will reach their maximum potential in 6 months, and can continue to show signs of improvement up to 2 years, though every patient is different.

I am very sleepy. 

This is the day of the stem cell treatment. I took a van from the hotel, across the border into New Progresso Mexico. There were no issues crossing the border, and the clinic facilities were clean and the private room was nice.

Originally, the treatment was going to consist of placenta stem cells, which supply over 10,000 stem cells in a single treatment. However, after much discussion with my doctor (Dr. Vergara), we decided to go with "Adipose" stem cells. Humans have hundreds of thousands dormant stem cells in our fat tissues (adipose), and adipose stem cells supply over 100,000 stem cells (compared to the 10,000 that placenta would provide). In addition, those stem cells are taken taken directly from my own body.

After Dr. Vergara explained the whole process and I felt ready, they hooked me up to an IV and brought me into the operating room. While in a twilight state, Dr. Vergara made two very tiny incisions on either side of the fattiest part of my body, my legs and hips, and removed the adipose tissue. This procedure has to be done very carefully and gently, as there needs to be no blood that accompanies the extraction of the tissue. After he removes the tissue, he "awakens" the dormant stem cells and then re-deposits them intravenously; I  received one injection in my lower spine, and one in either temple. After the treatment, I was tired and got some rest at the clinic. I was still groggy when I returned to the hotel, but the treatment went very smoothly. The incision points and my temples were very sore, so it made for an uncomfortable sleep that night.

Arrived at my hotel in Brownsville, Texas. My body is sore, my back is hurting and my legs fell asleep on both flights. It was impossible to get comfortable and I was constantly shifting in my seat due to soreness and awkwardness. I've been traveling the whole day; my energy is depleted and I am very grumpy.