I have posted how electronic stimuli has helped me ( and caused insurance, manufacturer problems with ANS) but the experimental nature of the the pulse technology is certainly showing benefits for all kinds of neurological problems.

In these cases, on ABC, they are using pace maker type devices with the leads put into parts of the brain to help control the uncontrollable actions of Turrets. Watch the video, it’s amazing.

It’s hit and miss right now but the results of the ones that have worked are as amazing as my story. Life changing when you have only a few options left. When you feel like you have no hope, an experimental procedure changes your life. In my case, the manufacture has become the problem (not the procedure).

More regulation and “upgrade” of the equipment needs to be studied by the FDA…but that’s another post after my lawyer reviews my case.

Insurance companies should embrace the IPG/pace maker, electrical stimulation on multiple situations dealing with how the brain reacts to the stimuli. It might be expensive (it is) but the result can be very dramatic and change the life of the person. I went from being scared to turn and back my car up, worried about getting out of bed, to running 30 miles a month. Sure that’ not record setting but for me it’s huge. Worried to get out of bed, now able to run 7 miles. Big difference in quality of life and family. What is that worth? For me, quality of life and mind.

This is more proof that experiments become more than that, that a test becomes something to focus on and explore the ramifications for the patient before the cost to the hospital, insurance company and the device manufacture. If it helps me be more productive, I can contribute more to the economy, hire more people, help the advancement of thing I’m involved in. The other option would have been staying in bed…helping none. That’s a miserable existance.

I’m writing this because of emails I have received from some of the original DHADM posts. Not much information is out there about this procedure. So here is my story and troubles I have encountered:

In my early 20’s I had open  heart surgery to correct a birth defect in my heart, a PDA (Patent Ductus Arteriosus). I went in for a clean bill of health and ended up having surgery 4 weeks later.

Due to the original surgery, major nerve damage was done to my intercostal nerves (the larger nerves that run on the inside of the ribs – so I’m told). I lived with the pain for 10 -11 years until I couldn’t function any more. The only way to describe the pain is that on a daily basis it felt like someone was pulling a knife from my chest to my back. I was almost bed ridden.

After trying for years to get help and comfort I found a pain clinic that wanted to start from scratch. Stop everything and start over. I agreed.

I was on every pain killer known to man and every other drug you can imagine (neurontin – 4000mg/day, amitriptyline – 200mg/ day and many others) I was given the max of everything possible and it didn’t make a dent in my pain.

It was time to move to the next step, injections directly into the intercostal nerves. After 20-30 of those (one of which one punctured my lug), a spinal tap, leaking spinal fluid…and the list goes on, it was clear the treatment was not a long term solution.

The next phase was to have an ANS implant (IPG) trial (everything external) before the actual implant. The trial sucked but helped the chest pain so we moved on to having the internal installation in my back, with wire leads that ran inside my spinal column to the effected nerve damage. The result was to feel the shock stimulant instead of the pain. It was a hell-of-an-ordeal. But it worked. I went from having trouble getting out of bed in the morning to being almost back to normal.

The problem with this solution was the battery life (of the implant). 3 years and I would have to be cut open and have a new one put in.

The 3 year mark was up in November of 2006. The battery was done. I had a new battery installed. The problem was the placement. The new doctor (now here in Seattle) wanted to move the battery to my abdomen. The back was a problem for 3 years. So I had the new battery installed and moved from the back to the front. Which took having an extension lead run from my back through my abdomen, resting above my waist on the left side.

This took some additional surgery and some wiring. It was very painful. I now have another incision in my front and a “re-open” on my back but they didn’t have to replace the wires in my spine. By this point I’m looking like Frankenstein.

Everything went well, another 30 stitches, a 7 year battery, a month or two recovery and I was feeling good (respectively).

A month goes by, January 2007, while driving I had a huge electrical shock inside. My fingers curled and my toes pressed into my shoes. Something was wrong. I would have crashed my car if I didn’t have the massive magnet that turns off the device.

I went into the doctor and told my story. The x-ray showed that the wires that went from my back and into the device had broken off. The wires looked like they had just snapped off or been cut with wire snips.

The same week, I had the entire surgery all over again. New device, new wires, 2 new incisions and another 2-3 months of recovery.

In a matter of 4 months I have had the same surgery twice because of faulty equipment.

The long and short of it is that I’m no longer in pain from the first surgical mistake, the years of trial and error have caused daily pain of another kind.

I’m in less pain but still uncomfortable because of the repeat procedures but on the mend.

The moral of this story is that recovery is hard and the road to it is sometimes worse than you can imagine. Living with technology inside you is not an easy life, the decision to have an implant is not something to take lightly even if it’s the only solution. It can be as frustrating and painful as the problem they are trying to fix.

In the end, the result allows me to have a somewhat normal life when before I was afraid to get out of bed. Now I have a device that has a life span of 6-7 years which is more than double the life span of the previous one.

It was a good thing to do but it’s been a hard and long process. I write this for those of you that have asked about one of my first DHADM posts. Those of you that think pain is something you have to live with. Pain may never go away but the degrees of pain that you live with can be controlled.

I’m not a great writer so forgive me for anything that doesn’t sound right or misused…this is more for anyone that is dealing with similar issues and getting an understanding of what it takes to deal with it.

A site was erected in honor of Britney Spears.  The site [Britney’s Comeback] focuses solely on Britney.  It has pictures, background information and current tabloid headlines.

Although the tabloids only show her child and animal abuse [or lack there of], child custody battles and her irresponsible behavior.

This site wants a Spears comeback, do you think she could?

Just messing around with the Vista video wallpaper option.

Here is another Kat Von D video wallpaper. This time I used an image background and dropped the video into it so the quality should be better full screen.

Click here to download the wallpaper shown to the right: LA Ink Video Wallpaper

Here is a link to the previous ones: LA Ink Video Wallpapers

Based on demand (which has been outrageous) we have cranked out 3 more wallpapers directly from the stills of the episode from the other day. Also don’t forget to catch the full episode of LA Ink over at TLC.

I can almost guarantee you, you will not see these any place else. A hell of a lot of screen grabs went into these.

Please leave comments so we known if the time and effort is worth it. Enjoy.

Just like before, click to get the full sized image for download.

Here is Part One and Part Two

We have had so many searches for LA Ink Wallpapers we figured we should create a few custom ones. You can find the originals over at LA Ink. These are just a few we put together for the fans.  

 Just click on the image to get the full resolution wallpaper.

If you republish, give us a little credit, thanks.

Here are the latest of the LA Ink Wallpapers : Part 3 and Part 2 (Vista Video Wallpapers)

Very on a kid that was kicked out of school for dressing like a pirate… in accordance with his religious beliefs.

This is unfortunately an American incident being reported on a UK site, further making us look like a bunch of morons over here.

A bit from the article:

Pastafarians follow the Flying Spaghetti Monster (pictured), and believe that the world was created by the touch of his noodly appendage. Furthermore, they acknowledge pirates as being ‘absolute divine beings’, and stress that the worldwide decline in the number of pirates has directly led to global warming.

Just awesome.  I used to be completely “spagnostic”, but am starting to come around to the belief in the Spaghetti Monster as the one true god.  Be sure to read the humorous history of this most excellent parody religion.

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Okay I know this is kind of off-topic, but the first NY Times article I read this morning just had me laughing.  I guess there’s a new face of terror (free reg. req’d) - Shakir al-Abssi (don’t call him Shakira!  He hates that!)

Now, I know I’m supposed to take these guys seriously, but I just can’t.  I mean, have a look at the pic.  The head terrorist looks to be a menacing 5’3”.  They’re wearing the extremely devout Muslim garb of blue jeans and sneakers.  “Death to Americans!  Our terror shall rain down upon your country, except for your Levi’s and Nike factories!  Allah Akb- hey is that the new iPod?!”.  Then there’s the one dude on the right that couldn’t even be bothered to show up to the picture on time.  “Musafa you are always late!.. No, you’re not getting in the picture!  I’ve told you that one day there would be grievous consequences for always sleeping in!  So, no NYTimes photo op for you!…. Huh?…goddammit, okay jump into the pic but be quick about it cause she’s about to (*click*).. Fuck!”

I really love the staggering in the photo - a couple in the foreground together, a couple spaced out in the background… one guy (”the loner”) off to the left.  It looks like pretty much every boy band picture I’ve ever seen. I won’t even get started on the “training facilities” in the background.  In Lebanon they are called training facilities.  In the western world we call them “Jungle Jim’s Kid Zone” and take our 4-year-olds there on play-dates.
		Absissi: ”Never Gone is by far their best album.  I wore that cd out I played it so much!  And the album cover?  Wow.  Just, wow.

And lastly, we have “the cutter”.  I shit you not, the caption is from the article.

Hussein Hamdan, 19, repeatedly slashed his forearms “just to make a statement.” He says he wants to wage jihad against “Jews or Americans.”

Yeah, kid.  We have people slashing their arms here in America too.  Except ours our suburban highschool girls with Daddy issues.  More on Hamdan:

[He] keeps a poster of Osama bin Laden in the bedroom he shares with two sisters.  “I want to become a mujahedeen and go to jihad in any country where there are Jews or Americans to fight against them,” he said.

Guidance Counselor:  “Yeah, I had a poster of Osama in my bedroom too.  He’s sooo dreamy!  Anyway, let’s see what you filled in for ‘Goals’…{reading}… Jews or Americans?  Any country?  Tell you what, we’ll just mark you down as ‘Undecided’.  Many kids your age haven’t picked a Major yet!”

Abssi finished out the interview with a dire warning to Western readers:  “Be sure to check out my MySpace page when it goes online in a couple months!  It is going to be very kickass, menacing, and be mostly comprised of black with red text, the red symbolizing the blood of Jews and Americans.  And if you are a Jew or American you can forget about me adding you as a Friend.  Do not even ask!.. unless you are the Backstreet Boys.”

My fellow Americans, be very afraid.  And have a great St. Patty’s Day.

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Sorry to be on the nerd tip today, but I wouldn’t post this stuff if I didn’t think it was important.  For those of you that haven’t heard, Daylight Savings dates are changing this year.  Problem is, your computer’s operating system probably doesn’t know that.  So, you might want to find out what you need to do to make sure your computer stays sane.  Go here if you use Windows, and here’s the Mac one.

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For the time being, we’ve changed settings on DHADM such that you must now be a member to post comments.  We wish we didn’t have to do this, as we’ve never liked the idea of forcing registration just so you can speak your mind.  Unfortunately, however, our blog is being spammed to death with “Cialis”, “black cock”, “hardcore asian titty fuck”, etc at a rate of about 70/day.  So, please register if you want to comment; it doesn’t take long, I promise.

Please do us a favor.  If you know anyone who makes their means through filling the internet with garbage, please bludgeon them mercilessly until they are a pool of blood and brains on the sidewalk.  Then shoot me an email and I’ll gladly lie through my teeth on a stack of bibles to provide your alibi.  These people are the scum of the Earth and don’t deserve to exist on it.

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