An old correspondent, Thomas, wrote to suggest I should look into using a substance called DMSO on the trouble spots I have with arthritis. I never heard of it per se, but I am familiar with what it's used for. To mix it with medicines for them to be absorbed through the skin. I Googled it up:
http://www.dmso.org/articles/information/muir.htm
I can't find any material on my search that says don't use it or that there is something inherently dangerous in using. Vets use it on horses and other animals regularly. It has very limited use approved for humans. They use it anyway. Why would I not?
I wanted to try some of this stuff. I finished the series of steroids I'd been prescribed at the VA yesterday, and already my neck is tightening up. All the pain is gonna come back. I thought it might take a few days, but no.
It's for sale on the internet, but I didn't wanna wait. I decided to see if I could find some for sale locally. I went down to the agricultural supply place and asked them if they sold horse liniment. They allowed as how they did, and I asked specifically for DMSO. We walked over to the horse supplies shelf, and there it was. $8.01
When I got home I opened the plastic container up to see what it looks like. It's a clear gel. I dipped my finger in it not knowing how much it would take to cover both hands, and it didn't take much. That's good. It ain't gwine be costing me an arm and a leg to give this stuff a whirl.
The little dab I used to lathe both hands with it was actually more than needed, so I rubbed the excess off on the back of my neck, which is where I have the most pain. It's been a good thirty minutes now, and I'll have to say, something is definitely going on. The ring finger on my right hand has really been stiff and knotty for a couple of weeks now. Even the last series of steroids didn't alleviate all of the pain. I'm using it as the test bed for my hands. If it helps that finger at all the whole deal will have been worth it.
The back of my neck where I rubbed the excess DMSO off my hands is tingling mightily. It's not unpleasant. I can't decide whether it's the tingling that has me distracted from the onslaught of stiffness in my neck or whether the DMSO is working as advertised, but it's better with it on there than with it off. If I can just get some temporary relief occasionally I'll be a happier man.
It's been over an hour now, and the pain has be significantly interfered with. I walked over to talk with my brother next door, and sat for a while in the sun. I'm feeling considerably better now.
I do not attempt to tell the God's own truth here because I don't know what the truth is or hardly ever. I try to capture the drifting thoughts that randomly appear in my imagination for reasons I may not understand. I don't know if the content I capture with these words is true or false. The Comments settings are turned off to prevent me from having to defend what amounts to little more than fanciful, sometime crude speculation. Great moments in our lives never return.
