There is no central heart pump for the lymph system – which is twice the size of the blood system. The body just relies on gravity and the muscle pump (every time any muscle in the body relaxes & contracts it causes movement in adjacent lymph vessels) to move waste from metabolic & other normal activity into the lymph drainage system and out of the body.
Long term muscle spasms, caused by old spinal injuries, mean the muscle pump along the spine does not work (what happens is nerve signals from stressed facet joints go to the spinal muscles to request a protective spasm – and with serious injuries – these nerve signals can last for years & decades). This protective spasm does not do much protection and essentially switches off the much needed muscle pump in this region) and this causes a build-up of toxins around the spine that prevents repair work (that would be performed by the white blood cells) from happening.
Spinal injuries – even very serious ones – could take just a handful of weeks for the body to fix – if the drainage still worked and white blood cells could get at the problem and get their repair work done. But, due to the congestion caused by the lack of the muscle pump, these injuries are left untreated – essentially in a state of suspended animation, for years or even for decades.
Application of Electro-Muscular Stimulation EMS (sometimes known as Surged Faradism) , using a square wave mode with a 3 to 5 second squeeze, for 3 minutes daily or bi-daily using two long pads either side of the spine, placed on top of the paraspinal muscles, causes the paraspinal muscles to contract and relax and so provides a temporary override to the permanent muscle spasm that pumps away old toxins. This allows fresh white blood cells to get access to the damaged area so they can finally perform the much needed repair work.
EMS is usually used most effectively as an adjunct to the treatment with the ASMI machine. ASMI treatments on their own are usually very adequate but for cases where the back is painful to the touch and the injury is very old, both EMS treatment and the ultrasound treatment, used along side the ASMI can reduce the number of treatments required.
The EMS & Ultrasound alone are particularly useful where the back is so sore that the ASMI can not be used yet. They are best used when the patient is lying down so the paraspinal muscles are not engaged. Lying supine – on their back with a cushion underneath to slightly arch the back for EMS and prone – face down for the ultrasound
With the EMS, start off light and build up till firm… but not painful – the difference between firm & painful can by just 1 milliamp – so increase it one step at a time.
There is another way to use the EMS – directly over the vertebrae – this pumps out the gunk right where the damage is and can also cause slight mobilisation of the spine and so can also be very useful – once again start light and build up the current one by one (milliamp)
There are others on the market, but the one I use is the Globus Elite 150: https://storeforwellness.com/globus-elite-150-electrostimulator-body-502.html (this distributor is bases in Ireland, so if ordering from the UK, 20% VAT will be added to the price and usually arrives as a separate invoice)
Menu items to use on the Globus Elite 150 : “Programme List>>Fitness Shape>>Men>>Sculpting>>Abdominals>Start”
The electo-pads that come with the Globus unit only last a week or so.
The ones I use, I buy separately are the Healthcare world brand: https://www.hcwhealth.com/tens-electrode-pads/set-of-4-large-reusable-tens-electrode-pads-10cm-x-5cm
On some more expensive units like the “Globus sport” there is a “programming” section on the main menu where you can reduce the squeeze time down to 3 seconds from 5 seconds – which is the original “old fashioned” EMS – the one Dr Paul Sherwood used – it may be no better , but it feels less “gym-like” and a bit more therapeutic- the jury is still out on this for me.
To programme this, use these settings:
EMS stimulation type
number of phases: 1
phase duration 5 min
stimulation type intermittent
modulation type constant
work frequency 50 Hz
work width 300 us
ramp up duration 2 sec
work duration: 3 sec
ramp down duration: 2 sec
stimulation type at rest: constant
rest frequency 5 Hz – you can change this to get a “tapping mode” – like on the sculpting , which I quite like
rest phase duration 3 sec
YouTube channel on how to do the GoodBack Protocol: https://www.youtube.com/@TheGoodBackProtocol