Me again,
I forgot to mention that as I was coming out of the induced coma, and still paralyzed from head to toe, my brain conjured up a fake pair of arms and legs, which I could use, since I was unable to move my real extremities. Maybe it was so in case the hospital caught fire, I could crawl out on all fours if I just concentrated hard enough, who knows?

Keep telling him he will come out of it. I still have flashbacks of my medical induced coma four years ago. The nightmares vary from being frozen, then being thawed out, then the next day being in the semi fetal position around a wood stove, while a fire is built in it, and being unable to move any parts of your body, you’re cooked alive, then brought back down into the hospital bed. I feel that the only thing that kept me from going off the deep end was my wife always telling me that I would some day be able to leave the hospital, as no one lives in a hospital. They told me later that there were times that I would sweat profusely, even with a fan blowing directly on me.

Everyone’s case is different. For me, the IVIG did nothing for me, although I was in a medically induced coma and on a respirator at the time. They would bring me out of the coma long enough to see if it was working, which it wasn’t, so after the prescribed number of doses of IVIG, they had to wait 21 days, then started the plasmapheresis treatment, which worked in my case.

I take D3 5000 IU from Wal – Mart in the winter time and drop it back to 2000 IU in the summertime, as I am out doors every day in the summertime. I take it as a precaution against a second chance of GBS, since it is taboo to get flu shots. I notice no reaction either way.

Hello Steve,
Which do you mean by feel better, are they in pain, or lack the sense of touch? I’m 3 and a half years out now and still have no sensory on either foot. They have slow reaction to both hot and cold, so I have to watch it in the wintertime when I go outside, however, when I step on something as small as a small pea, I can feel it on the bottoms of my feet. I have no sensetivety on parts of my hands, but most of my hands came back 100%.
Off topic, but what does junior versus senior member refer to, as some junior members are older than the senior ones? I am 68 and a half and am listed as a junior member.

I’ve been reading on the web that by taking vitamin D3 it helps keep your immune system up, especially in the wintertime because it is the sunshine vitamin. They recommended D3 and not just D, and to get it in the 2000 strength. Wal Mart is the cheapest place for it. I started using it a month ago, even though I average 3 hours of sun every day, to see if I had any side effects from it and to get adjusted for this winter.
As for the swine flu shot, several of my semi radical web sites are saying that the government is going to force everyone to take it wether you have had GBS or are afraid of getting it, with the only option is to get bussed to a detention camp to be quarentined. They just put up a new fence around the camp nearest me, but they also just opened up a new casino nearby, so I’m hoping they will sectionalize off part of the casino and let the detainees visit once in a while.
Had GBS in spring 2006, went all the way down, have come back 95%, and still have the nightmares about once a month.

I wasn’t aware bells palsey was a residule of gbs. I got bells palsey 20 some years ago and it was cured with steroids. Whereas, with gbs, I got it in 2006.
Hope your residules all un-reside for you.
Joe

I don’t see any reason why he won’t be walking again. Before I got my strength back to even sit up in bed, one of the PT’s Pulled me up in a sitting position, then after I got my equalibrium, he does a maneuver that had me standing while leaning on him, just to see if my legs could support my weight. It was about a month and a half after that point that I was able to stand by myself. I remember the butt scoots from the wheel chair to the stool, pt matt or what ever. which even then was 3 to 4 weeks befor I started learning how to stand again. As for the bowel movement and control, it took me a while to gain it back, however, when I did have some control, I still had to use the diaper, as I didn’t have the strenght in either my arms or legs to raise or even roll onto the bed pan. Even when the PT is helping you walk again, you have this fear your knees are going to both go at once and you end up on the floor, unable to get back up.I’d say he is ‘right on course’ to recovery when comparing it to my ongoing recovery.