HyperMED UPDATE - Simone Simkin - Debilitating Chronic Fatigue

‘A story of hope which remains untold, can be likened to receiving a gift, yet never opening it'

 My experience with Hypermed has been a most humbling and profound one. I have had both the honour and the privilege to bear witness to personal struggles which have been met with the spirit of compassion, and with sheer guts and determination. I have had the honour and the privilege to bear witness and to share others journeys of healing all the while healing myself.

I have been challenged on so many levels during this process, and although I came to find answers to heal my physical self, the healing that has taken place on a spiritual level has left such a footprint in this journey and in turn, upon that of my life.  

On my first day at the clinic, Dr Hooper encouraged me to talk to people around me. He expressed that everyone ‘had a story’ and indeed they have, and do.  

This is mine. 

My health began to deteriorate over a period of time and on one morning, I just couldn’t get out of bed. It was August 26^{th 2002 .}  

I had been suffering debilitating fatigue for a couple of months and was struggling to keep my head up at work. All I wanted to do was to sleep. On this particular morning, my body just gave out, and no amount of positive thinking enabled my body to get up and get moving. No amount of tests revealed anything conclusive. Pernicious anaemia was diagnosed early on, but as soon as the B12 shots administered were ceased, the fatigue took hold once again. From someone who prided themselves on their sharp memory, I found it difficult to remember anything. The fog that clouded my head was frustrating and upsetting to say the least. I went from a quick witted, happy go lucky person, to a person who found it difficult to keep up in a conversation, As the years progressed, more symptoms were added to the list, brain fog, fatigue, back pain, neck pain, pins and needles in my hands, arms and feet, insomnia, menstrual difficulties, joint pain, inability to feel my hips, pains in my legs and knees however the most debilitating of all was the constant headache I had from morning till night. I consulted Naturopaths, Chinese doctors, herbalists, nutritionists & specialists.

Opposing diagnoses became expected. i took pills and potions, had IV vitamin therapy and went as far as having all my  amalgam fillings removed on the recommendation of one doctor because I was told it may just be mercury poisoning.

The list goes on. I believed I had done it all. 

My journey had taken me to many doctors across Melbourne, but most recently off shore to America, where I consulted a specialist about my condition. I arrived back home, out of pocket, with a battery of tests that were inconclusive at best, and a list of supplements to swallow that was a mile long.  On any given day, I was swallowing up to 70 tablets imported from the USA and had the most expensive urine in Melbourne!

At the time of my arrival on the doorsteps of HyperMED, I had not been able to work for nearly seven years. My mind wanted to, however my body struggled and would just not co-operate. I would begin employment only to see me have to resign because of debilitating fatigue and the inability to concentrate that was stronger than my will to be part of the workforce. By this stage, I have to admit, I felt defeated more often than I felt positive that I would find an answer. 

My first meeting with Dr Hooper was very informative, but I have to admit I walked away non plussed. When he ordered the MRI of my brain and my full spine, I was absolutely convinced nothing would show up. There was another battery of tests for different bloods to be taken through ARL laboratories where I had undertaken many tests before, Once again, I was convinced that this was a futile exercise at best. What got me, was Dr Hooper’s confidence that he could help. There was a flicker of hope, that just perhaps I was in the right place. He was sure that mycoplasma was/were involved in my health picture. He encouraged me to go home and read up on all the information on the website. I went home and did so.

I read about the benefits that patients were reporting. I read about chronic fatigue sufferers who had gained much benefit. I read the paraphernalia and articles on the mycoplasma and opportunistic organisms that can disrupt the cells and how they can migrate and mutate in different organs of the body and I read with interest about what the oxygen therapy does in fact do, and how it goes about healing the body on many different levels. My interest became truly awakened at this time. It made sense. It was simple, but it made so much sense.  

By the time my follow up appointment arrived, I had read about all the tests which had been ordered. I wanted to know what they were, what symptoms they would exhibit. I walked into his office and was astounded at the results of the MRI. Something had indeed shown up. My neck pain wasn’t all in my head at all, it was due to C5 and C7 having a broad based central posterior disc protrusion. My lower back pain wasn’t me just complaining, it was due to there being a reduced signal within L5 - S1 associated with a disc protrusion. A small tarlov cyst was found involving my nerve root sheath.

Dr Hooper was right, Chlamydia pneumoniae was the mycoplasma involved in my health picture. I didn’t know whether to be happy or pissed off at the medical profession that I had consulted for years about my condition. Why had no one ever thought of running these particular tests? Finally a few conclusive answers. So the journey began. 

I was scheduled for 120 hours of HBOT therapy over a 4 week period with accupuncture, vitamin injections, supplements and vibration plate therapy.

Long days turned into even longer weeks, but I knew I had an answer to a piece of my health puzzle. Sometimes you just know. Intuitively and instinctively your body knows that something is just right. So I held on tight to this thought when I experienced nausea and dizziness and was throwing up for a couple of days. I was assured this was just a herxheimer reaction and continued on with the therapy. When the weekends in that initial four week period rolled around, I moved from my bed to my couch and back to my bed. By the end of that fourth week I was bounding up the escalators at Parliament station, whereas on my first day I was out of breath walking to the clinic.

Some results have been subtle, and a few have been blindingly obvious to those around me. One of the most obvious to myself was after four days of therapy I could once again taste my food. For over a year I was unable to smell nor taste. This was a very welcome response indeed. My sheer delight was overwhelming! 

The results continue to be subtle but they arrive nonetheless. Sometimes I just notice that I no longer have a symptom because it has disappeared gradually. My sleeping has improved ten fold. My joint pain no longer exists and my headaches are a thing of the past. My neck pain seldom bothers me now and when it does I just take a quick visit to the clinic and get acupuncture which alleviates the problem. I have regained feeling in my hips and I am currently working full time and although I get tired, it’s a welcome tired and not sheer exhaustion that renders me couch bound for days. My back continues to feel stronger by the day as does my body. I am most happy to report that I no longer suffer from brain fog which is another most welcome response and my mind is a lot sharper, more like the old me. I am prone to doing daft things, but that’s more so a personality trait rather than a physical ailment! 

I know only too well when trying to find an answer to a health puzzle how any story can offer hope. I also know how much money I have flushed down the toilet, because I just wanted to feel better instantaneously.. This is the reason it has taken me this long to put pen to paper. I have waited to know that these results are not short lived ones, but results that I know with conviction, have taken place in my body, so whoever reads this knows it comes from a place of truth. This is not a therapy that needs to be ‘sold’ but rather ‘shared’ so others can make informed choices, and be made aware that an alternative does in fact exist. I am by no means back to 100 per cent, but I know that whatever degeneration had started to take place in my body, has been indeed halted, and my goal now is to rebuild, refuel and re-oxygenate my body through HBOT, supplements and through the life choices I continue to make everyday. 

We all arrive on the elevator  at Level 13 at HyperMED for different medical reasons, but all, with one goal in mind, with the hope that the choice we make, on this particular day, will see us find an answer for a better quality of life. I found this such answer.  My heartfelt thanks to Dr Hooper for his pioneering work in this field. I know with conviction, that I would not be where I am today without his therapy and direction. '

Regards,
Simone Simkin