Blog | Charron Medical

The Power of Compression

June 29, 2020 by Julia Bartlett Leave a Comment

When your doctor or health care provider mentions compression stockings, you may imagine an unattractive sheath of plastic fabric squeezing your legs. It is true that compression stockings are a medical product, especially the higher strength 20-30 mmHg and 30-40 mmHg. But that doesn’t mean they must be unsightly to wear.

Fortunately, the medical supply industry has recognized the many different benefits of wearing compression, and has responded with an equal variety of products for you to try. Compression can be a powerful aid in your recovery or your daily health. So who should wear compression? And what type should you consider?

Compression is Not Just for Seniors

Many seniors wear compression to control fluid build up in the legs. As we age, our bodies become less efficient at moving the fluid from our legs. In the course of the day, fluid can settle in the tissue of your legs. Your muscles may not be able to move it out of your limbs. So it sits there and becomes very painful.

Then there is the vein issue. The circulatory system is a roadmap of veins and arteries covering our bodies. We can’t see this, but there are tiny valves that move the blood through the veins. If the valves stop closing or become leaky, then we get varicose veins. Like fluid build up in the tissues, the blood will backflow in our veins. This can cause aches and pain in your limbs. Many find this very uncomfortable and seek the power of compression to ease the pain.

Frequent travelers might be worried about Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT). This is a very dangerous situation where a blood clot in your legs- or sometimes arms – becomes mobile and finds its way to your lungs. If not treated quickly, it can be very dangerous. This video from Health.com provides a brief explanation of DVT. Compression gear – socks or stockings – can help prevent the clotting. An added benefit of compression for travelers is the energizing effect compression socks have on tired legs. Even Jessica Alba wears compression on the airplane.

Athletes wear compression post-workout for recovery. When you have exercised, your muscles build up lactic acid and other fluids – even blood – and recovery is much quicker when compression is used. Why? Because the gradient (more at the ankle and less at the calf) compression will help to move the fluids from the tissue and improve circulation.

Choosing Compression

Your doctor may prescribe compression for you. The surgical or medical grade compression strength is 20 to 30 mmHg and higher (30 to 40 mmHg). The amount of compression is measured in mmHg (millimeters Mercury); this represents the amount of pressure being applied to your limb.

The prescription will be used by Charron Medical to help select the right compression product for you. We have many variations of compression socks depending on the strength, length, and color. If you would like to try compression, feel free to come into the store and see the styles we have. People really seem to like being able to look at the compression products before buying. You might find a different brand or style you like online, but shopping local means you can see the product before you buy. Our employees are more than happy to help find the product that’s right for you. Charron Medical has been fitting patients and customers with compression socks and compression stockings for 45-years.

The brands we carry:

Therafirm Ease
Therasport
Core-spun by KnitRite
Activa Anti-Embolism
Jobst
Juzo
Sigvaris (custom order)

The Cost of Compression

Good quality compression will set you back at least $30 per pair. Compression socks and stockings are more expensive than other hosiery you are used to buying. A 6-pack of NIke socks will run you $16.99 at Footlocker. Whereas, a single-pair of compression socks at Charron Medical starts at $30.95. The thigh-high, chap style, and pantyhose styles start at $70. There is a reason for this.

Compression socks and compression stockings are carefully designed with modern engineering to create the right amount of compression to the place location on your body. Meaning, these are not your typical tube sock. Compression gear is often gradient by design; it will be tighter at the ankle and gradually less pressure as you move up the leg. This is how it moves the blood and fluid back up. Compression is a medical product so you want to be sure you are getting good quality.

The materials are very specific too. A regular sock is often produced using a cotton-polyester blend. The compression sock does not contain any cotton or linen. These types of yarn are not strong enough to provide the necessary compression, and natural fibers can lose their shape quickly. The compression sock and stocking is woven from polyester, nylon, and spandex. These synthetic fibers might cost more than common cotton socks, but they are very durable.

Compression garments last a long time if you care for them properly. Most people have 2 to 4 pairs of compression socks. They alternate them to:

Wash gently and air dry
Washing your socks helps them return to their natural shape

A Word About Insurance

We have just finished explaining how compression is a medical product. And guess what? Your insurance company may or may not cover it. Some commercial plans like Anthem or Harvard Pilgrim usually cover compression. They might have restrictions, so call your carrier to get the details.

Sadly, Medicare does not cover compression stockings. This is particularly disappointing because of the many ways seniors benefit from compression.

Even if your insurance doesn’t cover compression, don’t be deterred – make the purchase anyway. You will be glad you did. Your legs will thank you.

Leave me to my Hearing

October 27, 2019 by Julia Bartlett Leave a Comment

Puppies are born blind. They know the world through their nose – they smell their way around. They root out the teat for precious milk, they follow the scent of their littermates, they sniff the ground to follow their mother’s footsteps and find her warm, fuzzy skin for safe refuge. From there, they expand their interactions with the world by tasting, hearing and seeing. They listen and watch.

Sensory and perception is an entire field of science dedicated to how we sense and perceive the world around us. It is no surprise that we are like other animals, in that we develop our senses over time. We, too, are born virtually helpless. We use our senses to learn and grown. We code memories based on what we smell, see, hear, taste, and touch.

I recently read an article about the FDA now approving some over-the-counter hearing aids. And I thought “finally”! The idea of valuing, preserving and aiding our aging senses is gaining more attention. There are hundreds of solutions for mobility issues. Charron Medical specializes in helping aging people stay in their homes, specifically by addressing mobility issues with stair lifts, seat lift chairs, wheelchairs, and rollators. The industry is regularly providing new features and products to help us move from room to room, floor to floor, and in and out of our cars. Aging and wellness depend on maintaining your social connections and your community, which depends on your mobility.

But what about our aging senses? Isn’t that an important part of how we interact with our community and our world? Hearing aids are one example of how we need to place more emphasis on developing affordable products to help us access our precious senses as we age. You can expect some disagreement about procuring traditional hearing aids from your doctor versus purchasing a one-size-fits-all, OTC set. We can wade through that argument. What matters is that access to hearing amplifiers and hearing aids is now broadened.

I applaud the inventors and manufacturers who are offering Personal Hearing Devices (PHD). For example, the BOSE Hearphones are a PHD which some doctors think can help people with mild to moderate hearing loss. How can we listen and understand what our loved ones are saying to us, if we can’t even hear the words? Have you ever been out to dinner with your family, and missed the conversation because you couldn’t block out the background noise? Or have you been with someone like my own father, who is constantly asking you to speak up in a restaurant? These OTC hearing devices might be just the thing to help in those very public environments.

I would like to put in a plug for other senses too. Eyesight has been well addressed, and most of us have worn corrective lenses for decades. We have readers (aka “cheaters”) that we can purchase OTC, to help magnify the smaller things we encounter daily. Hearing devices are obviously more complicated than a pair of reading glasses, but that doesn’t mean we can’t make them equally accessible. We have other senses too: touch, taste, feeling, and smell.

The sense of smell is often undervalued. I think it should be elevated – even celebrated – as we age. And here is why. Have you ever had a memory, particularly visceral emotional memories, come flooding back at the scent of a flower? Does the smell of a home-baked lasagna instantly elicit your grandmother’s kitchen? The sense of smell is unique as it relates to memory. According to a 2015 article in Psychology Today:

“A number of behavioral studies have demonstrated that smells trigger more vivid emotional memories and are better at inducing that feeling of “being brought back in time” than images.”

The olfactory bulb, where smells are received inside your nasal membranes, has a direct line to your memory centers. That means that when you smell something memorable, it gets encoded directly into your memory without the filters of your frontal lobe. This makes it so much simpler and easier to recall that special memory. All you need is to recreate the scent.

A whiff of Bowling green cologne and I can instantly recall my grandfather and his warm smile
The smell of rain puddles on a dirt road, and I can feel the stroller in my hands as I push my newborn daughter
Bus exhaust fumes and sweet curry, brings me back to London in 1990, where I was a student

A few years ago I started on nasal spray for persistent seasonal allergies. After two weeks I noticed that my sense of smell was dulling. I immediately stopped the spray. I found something else, because I would rather have a runny nose than not be able to smell warm brownies or fresh laundry. I am not the only one who has gone through this type of experience – temporary loss of smell.

What can the DME industry do to help us preserve and enhance our aging senses? The over-the-counter hearing amplifiers are a good beginning for our sense of hearing. For our sense of smell, the innovative Scent Guru Group has developed a scent kit to jog memories. It is called Essential Awakening. I would like to see this concept enter the mainstream for wellness and therapy.

There is the nagging numbing of fingers and feet as we lose our sense of touch. It causes us to grow clumsy and unsure when we step on the ground; MIT has an entire Age Lab, dedicated to studying the way we age. They have developed an empathy tool – AGNES – to simulate some of the effects of aging on our bodies and our ability to complete daily tasks. Maybe MIT can develop a technology for our skin and our nerves to enhance our touch. In the meantime, we need to be sure we have solid footing from good-fitting shoes. Fortunately, there are many styles to choose from. A fit for every foot.

We come into this world hard-wired with extraordinary senses to perceive our environment and the people we live with. Our senses are the tools we use to learn and grow and thrive. They are the key to attention and memory and human interaction. They are the antidote to isolation and frustration and misunderstanding. How wonderful it would be, if we could rely on these sensory gifts to embrace our aging selves.

Massage and the Healing Powers of Human Touch

July 30, 2019 by Julia Bartlett Leave a Comment

It is easy to overlook the impact something like human touch can have on someone suffering with pain, chronic illness, or stress. In America, we look for a purely medical solution first. Maybe it’s a prescription or a surgery. We seek out health care professionals to ease our pain. But when applying a more holistic approach, we become open to other therapies that can be extremely helpful with symptom management and wellbeing. Remedies like body massage can bring about healing when done with skill and patience. There is magic in the human touch.

At Charron Medical we carry muscle relief products, such as hot and cold therapy and anti-inflammatory recovery creams like bio-freeze gel and even CBD lotion. When dealing with a sore muscle at home, I like to apply lotion before massaging. And after massaging for 15-20 minutes, a little cold helps reduce inflammation and soreness.

I read a touching story once about depression and foot massage. I wish I could remember where it was, because I would love to read it again. The man in the story suffered from major depression. He was living a purely unjoyful and apathetic existence. His family kept asking him, “what can we do?”. Always the same reply, “nothing”. The man was in treatment, and he was waiting for the therapy and medication to help. When you have been depressed for years, there is no instant relief.

However, the man’s son took a different approach. He didn’t try to fix it, he just sat with him. They might watch television together. Or simply exist in the same space. The son started giving the man foot massage. It was weird at first – for both of them. Let’s face it – some men are not good at being touched. And it felt intimate, a little too intimate, when the man’s son started kneading his knuckles into his foot arches.

Over several months they continued this routine when they were sitting together. The touch started to work magic, and the man began paying attention to the feeling in his feet. They were sharing a moment, a singular focus. The touch was grounding and provided the sick man with the smallest sensation of being alive. His awareness perked up when his feet were affectionately rubbed and stroked.

Eventually, the man began to heal. It was a combination of therapeutic intervention that treated his depression and returned his sense of wellbeing. When asked about what helped him get better, the man cited only the foot massages. It was a simple gift – the gift of human touch. The gift was delivered with patience and without judgement.

Nobody can know what impact this had on his recovery. It is hard to tease out, because of the multiple treatments. We can’t put it on a pie chart and say, “His recovery was 30% medication, 30% therapy, 30% excercise and 10% foot massage”. But we can listen to the patient, and believe him when he tells us that the simple gift of kindness, in the form of human touch, was healing.

There are many different types of massage. It can be overwhelming, so consider the basic styles and see which might be right for you or for the person you take care of. And of course, consult a doctor if you have any medical conditions. A good massage therapist will also do a thorough intake before laying a hand on you.

Swedish massage: uses a series of long, gliding strokes designed to soothe aching muscles, relax connective tissue, and improve circulation. Swedish massage is ideal for newcomers and those wanting a relaxing massage.
Deep-tissue massage: targets tissues and muscle deep below the skin’s surface to release tension, minimize knots, and mobilize fluids within the muscle tissue. Deep-tissue massage shouldn’t hurt, but it is often less comfortable than a regular Swedish massage. People with specific muscle pain benefit the most.
Structural massage:realigns and lengthens muscles that have become unbalanced or shortened from built-up stress and allows bones and joints to return to their natural alignment. This massage type is especially good for people with postural or back problems.
Trigger-point massage: designed to relieve pain caused by constricted areas of muscle called trigger points. For example, a trigger point in the neck may cause pain in the head. Trigger points often are a result of injuries, overuse, muscle strain, and emotional distress.
Sports massage: focuses on healing, recovery, and preventing and treating sports-related injuries.
Chair massage: for people who are uncomfortable with being partially unclothed or cannot lie down comfortably. Many people with mobility issues prefer a chair massage.

When booking a massage, be sure to ask all your questions. They should be able to tell you what type of massage they offer, how long it will last, and what the cost is. Though some insurances will cover “massage therapy”, most do not. You will likely be paying out of pocket for the session. Always remember, that you can stop anytime. If you are feeling pain or discomfort, talk to the practitioner. They are licensed professionals and want to listen to you.

The best massage you get might be in your own home by a caregiver or loved one. Remember the healing powers of a gentle foot or hand massage.

The Reluctant Caregiver

July 12, 2019 by Julia Bartlett Leave a Comment

If we are honest with ourselves, we might admit to being a reluctant caregiver. Of course, there are those among us who thrive on caregiving; they effortlessly do and say all the right things. You know the type, especially if you are not that type. Still, it is not fair to assume reluctant caregivers are lazy, ungrateful, or indifferent. The reluctance could stem from an emotional place of insecurity and worry. The reluctance could be related to deeper family issues running back decades. It could be an expression of fear; afraid of aging and death.

If you are a reluctant caregiver or find yourself leaning into it, the time will come when a parent, spouse, or other family member will need your help. Don’t pretend to be something you aren’t. Look in the mirror and own it – the Reluctant Caregiver. Take some time to try and identify the causes of your reluctance or resistance. But chances are, at some point, you will be recruited to take care of your family. There are support groups for caregivers. Fortunately, there is so much out there to help, and we will dedicate another blog to the resources available to caregivers.

If you are not reluctant, then you are probably the other type of caregiver. Maybe you are a gleeful, cheerful, exuberant caregiver. Maybe you have been ready for this role, preparing for years. Good for you, and good for your parents or grandparents. Not everyone is born with the patience, aptitude, or enthusiasm to learn the skills needed to manage their aging parents’ mental, physical, financial, and legal needs. It can become overwhelming, and fast. Fortunately, there is help for the helpers.

Share the load. Many families have multiple children with specialties or skills. For example, if there is a nurse or doctor in the family, that person can become the medical advocate for the aging parents. Likewise, if you have an accountant in the family, or someone who is good with money, they can take over cash management for the parents. There are usually enough jobs to go around. It is important to spread out the work, whenever possible. We don’t want to overburden any single caregiver. We want to support each other. Create a community of caregiving for your aging relatives.

The community of caregiving will be different for each family. Take the time to research and develop a community for your parents. It will help you with the caregiving role, and it will enrich the lives of your parents or grandparents.

If you are still feeling reluctant, resentful, or anxious about caring for your aging parents, then my advice is to get and stay selfish. Yes – I mean that. Focus on caring for yourself. When you nurture your own health and well-being, you will naturally become a better caregiver. When you are feeling centered and peaceful, you will be generous with your emotions. When you are feeling well rested and getting regular exercise, you will be clear headed in decision making. And when you are staying in the moment, you will realize what a fragile gift life is and how beautiful it is when we care for ourselves and care for each other.

The ABC’s of CBD

June 7, 2019 by Julia Bartlett 3 Comments

Wading through the clutter of advertisements, government rules, and medical claims on cannabidiol (CBD) based products and medical marijuana can be downright befuddling. Everywhere you look today, somebody is selling CBD or talking about CBD. Is it really a miracle product? Or is it another supplement with unproven claims? Inflammatory bodies want to know.

Inflammation is one of the biggest issues we face, as our bodies age. Conditions like arthritis, chronic pain, even mental fog, can be traced to inflammation in the body. Some claim that CBD, hemp, or medical marijuana have been used by societies as long as people have existed, to treat inflammation and chronic conditions. If that is true, then why are we just now hearing so much about it?

Regulation. This is where science and government collide. Cannabis, the plant where CBD and THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) are derived, has been classified as a controlled substance since the passing of The Marijuana Tax Act 1937. There are two main types of cannabis – Hemp and Marijuana- which were both classified as controlled substances in the U.S. So the scientific community could study CBD – and there is definitely some good research, on a global level, indicating CBD can have healing properties – but the federal government, which funds so much of the medical research in this country through universities and non-profits, could not fund it. And any research was likely illegal. But that has now changed.

Enter the 2018 Farm Bill. The new farm bill defines Hemp – having less than 0.03% THC – as legal to grow. Marijuana, the other type of Cannabis, typically has more THC and remains a controlled substance. This paved the way for the legalization of hemp, which means it can be grown here and used in the production of related products such as oils, creams, and salves ( CNN article). The CBD industry in the U.S. is now pushing $22 billion.

The question still remains, will CBD help me feel better? Many doctors and health practitioners think – Yes. According to an AARP article:

Mikhail Kogan, M.D., medical director of the George Washington University Center for Integrative Medicine, has prescribed CBD for his patients since the compound was legalized for medical use in the District of Columbia in 2011. Kogan says cannabinoids are “safer than Tylenol or caffeine by tenfold. If you compare them to opiates, they’re about 10,000 times safer.” He recommends placing a few drops of the oil under the tongue.

I would really like CBD to work. Not only does the appeal of a botanical treatment sound holistic to me, but there is the other issue. In my home state, people – especially young people – are overdosing on opioids. Prescription pill addictions are destroying families in our own communities. But we need to be realistic too. Is CBD going to solve your problems? Will it move people away from narcotics? Will it truly help patients with chronic pain, difficulty sleeping, inflammation, arthritis, and crippling mood disorders? Is it even worth all the attention it has been getting?

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is not sure. They are scurrying to find answers. This New York Times article has an excellent report on the most recent CBD forum. What is the FDA concerned about?

Quality control and consistency
Contamination of infused products (i.e. pesticides, heavy metals)
Dosage and concentration concerns

The World Health Organization believes CBD:

CBD is generally well tolerated with a good safety profile. Reported adverse effects may be as a result of drug-drug interactions between CBD and patients’ existing medications. Several countries have modified their national controls to accommodate CBD as a medicinal product. To date, there is no evidence of recreational use of CBD or any public health related problems associated with the use of pure CBD.

Admittedly, I didn’t do all this research before trying CBD for my own inflammatory problems. I am only now reading though the sources and opinions on CBD. But I did buy my supply from a well-known local medical supply company. They have always provided good quality medical supplies and equipment. They have sourced from reputable suppliers with experience and knowledge. So I purchased a bottle of CBD oil from Charron Medical, who is sourcing from CBD MD. The supplier has a great buyer’s guide to help you make your decision about CBD. Because in the end, it is going to be up to you and your doctor. Will you try it? How will you know if it is making a difference? What does your doctor or pharmacist say about potential drug interactions?

If CBD is proven to provide relief to those suffering with chronic pain and inflammation, as well as anxiety and sleep disorders, then we will all be hearing more about it from our doctors and caregivers.