Inclined Bed Therapy

[AndrewKFletcher]

Just about 5 minutes ago we inclined our bed with a foam wedge. It is inclined about 7 inches or about 17.78 cm. It looks so high !! I'm very nervous about sleeping at such a slope tonight. My husband is quite skeptical. Is 7 inches (17.78 cm) too much of a slope ?

ozark

Providing the slope is affecting the whole bed it should be fine. Raing half of the bed won't have anywhere near the same affect as mentioned previously.

A foam wedge will inevitably compress so you may find it is probably not enough. you will have to judge whether the foam compresses and the angle reduces.

Personally I would have opted for other solid methods of tilting a bed, but it may be fine so don't worry, certainly going to be better than sleeping flat.

Andrew

[AndrewKFletcher]

Shannon

Obtain a rug antislip fabric, it's silicone / rubber impregnated and placed under rugs / mats to prevent them sliding along the floor with us on it

Put this between the mattress and the plywood board. This will prevent the mattres moving.

Then wrap a duvet / quilt / blanket around the mattress and tuck it under. This should be done under the bottom sheet to provide more friction and stop you from sliding.

The best method however is a memory foam mattress or memmory foam topper, but some people find these too warm. Again if you are using a topper use the same antislip fabric bewteen the topper and the mattress to prevent the topper from moving. These memory foam toppers and mattresses are inexpensive now btw so shop around.

Your husband should notice a difference but there are many causes of high blood pressure so please continue to monitor his BP closely and share results with us if ok with you both.

The first two weeks feel a little strange for most people, this steeling in period can result in a stiff neck which usually vanishes as quick as it comes.

Patience is a must as this can be a very slow process, particularly when a person has progressive ms.

write down every little niggling pain ache, loss of sensation or function you can think of as this is going to be useful to refer back to.

Andrew

[AndrewKFletcher]

Shannon,

The good news is after 3 nights, still no snoring from my husband. I even stayed awake for a few minutes listening for the symphony to get started last night and he was breathing regularly with no sound whatsoever. So that is a very big positive for me, no matter what the other benefits may prove to be. I always found it difficult to go to sleep if he had started snoring already.

Good luck!

Sandra

Did you sleep ok Sandra? Any different in the morning getting out of bed?

[Shannon]

Andrew - Thank you for the useful information! I feel very happy to have found this site, and your information about IBT. We do have a bed frame, which at the foot of our bed is basically a very sturdy wood frame across the bootom which now acts as a barrier for the mattress sliding down. So, no need for anythimng more to keep the mattress itself from moving. The memory foam topper idea is great, so I will be looking at Costco next time I am there to price one of these. I think I am sleeping better and more soundly than before. Right now, my hands feel great. normally, they are tingly and sensitive by now, but I haven't taken my neurontin yet today and I can tell that they are getting better. The sensation is almost normal!

Can you please also advise me ab out the pillow? I know that it would be better without one, it's just that I do love a pillow unmder my neck for support. Thank you!

Sharon - I feel your pain about the snoring. I finally got him to go and have a sleep study done, and sure enough he has sleep apnea. Getting the CPAP was the best thing he ever did, and he said he hadn't had a good night's sleep in years before he got it. It almost stops the snoring, except when he lays on his back. I did have to get used to the sound of the machine, however, but still a huge improvement over the snoring, which often sent me to another room for sleep! Keep us updated.

[AndrewKFletcher]

Pillows are fine with I.T.

Use as many as you like.

Bring your head level with your spine when laying on the side by using pillows and you will gain better sleep and relieve neck problems.


Your husband should find breathing easier and may be able to try sleeping without the cpap in a few weeks.

Andrew

[happy_canuck]

Andrew --

After 4 nights, I have found no difference to me except a very slight congestion I was feeling when I first awake (which always disappeared when I got up) is now gone.

As for MS, I have the same assortment of issues (fatigue, sensory deficits, bladder/bowel, balance, leg spasms) as before. I do take blood pressure medication so I will monitor my BP more closely over the next while.

BTW, our dog sleeps at the foot of our bed. She's a big girl (95 lb golden retriever) and her head always points away from us. (We think she's guarding the door!) I wonder what sleeping with a reverse incline will do to her? I suppose we could show her the floor...haha

~ Sandra

[AndrewKFletcher]

Sandra

Nothing much is going to happen for around 4 weeks of avoiding a flat bed. It can take 4 months or more to begin working for people with ms.

Patience is the order of the day.

Can't help you with the dog except to state that sleeping on the bed inclined correctly his heart will be 10-12 beats per minute less than sleeping flat and his respiration 4-5 breaths per minute from day one.

So will yours.

Andrew

[jewelia]

Andrew, can you please comment on the following?

My husband is just trying to work out the logistics of inclining our bed. He plans to buy blocks of wood (2 -4x4x6" and 2 - 4x4x3" cut at the appropriate angle to fit under the boxspring). Then he plans to remove the bed legs and placing the box spring directly on the floor. The 6" blocks will be placed under the head of the bed and the 3" blocks at the midpoint on both sides of the bed.

How does this sound to you? Do you have any suggestions. I thank you so much for your help!

Julia

[topper]

Hey guys,

I've moved from the guestroom to our bedroom. This will be night 2. My wife had a great sleep last night. She mentioned the fact that I didn't snore (first night in same bed for about a week). I only inclined our bed about 3 inches, kind of an intro to Tracy, but it seemed as effective as the full tilt.

Happy fellow Canuck; our dog didn't seem to mind. Although she did sleep the wrong way. She's a little weiner dog and I woke up this morning seeing her head the wrong way and laughed thinking about the buildup of blood in her tiny head. Lol. Andrew, thanks for all the advice. I'm a beleiver in this therapy!!!!!!!

Dan

[AndrewKFletcher]

Andrew, can you please comment on the following?

My husband is just trying to work out the logistics of inclining our bed. He plans to buy blocks of wood (2 -4x4x6" and 2 - 4x4x3" cut at the appropriate angle to fit under the boxspring). Then he plans to remove the bed legs and placing the box spring directly on the floor. The 6" blocks will be placed under the head of the bed and the 3" blocks at the midpoint on both sides of the bed.

How does this sound to you? Do you have any suggestions. I thank you so much for your help!

Julia

Hi Julia

You are very welcome and thank you for deciding to put this therapy to the test.

The blocks sound a good idea providing they are securely fitted, this will provide you with a lower bed for ease of transfering.

Alternatively if height is not an issue for your bed, cut the blocks 1-2 inches oversize and drill down 1-2 inches to take the original legs of the bed.

Here is what Terri came up with.

She had some marley / strong plastic pipe cut to length, the type used for soil pipe or drain pipe Drain pipe comes in square also.

Make sure the pipe is longer than the original legs and simply pop the legs into the drain pipes. This is a very neat way to raise a bed and best of all Terri is able to put them in her case when she sleeps away from home.

Please write down everything that troubles you with ms and non-ms related problems too. This will give you a bench mark to report back changes as and when you notice them.

Andrew

[ozarkcanoer]

Well, we've slept 3 nights with our bed inclined, and the only problem was my husband stealing all the blankets. I can't report anything positive or negative yet. I am sleeping OK except when I wake up cold, LOL !!

[Shannon]

Until we get a memory foam mattress on ours, we will continue to slide down, as we have! The other thing that I have noticed is a nauseous feeling during the day that I didn't have before. I wonder if this therapy is causing it? I would not likely change doing it for anything, but curious if this might be part of my bodys' getting used to it. I sleep very soundly and therefore has lessened fatigue during the day. Also, I had a Mom ot my son's preschool say to me that I seemed very calm the other day and that she wanted some of what I was having. I think I probably am feeling much more calm, and probably alert.

[AndrewKFletcher]

Thanks for the updates.

The nausia could be the settling in period, during which your urine density should increase which means more salts are being removed from the blood and fluids.

You may find in the next week or so some changes in nightime urination and in the colour of the urine produced.

Sliding down the bed can be prevented by wrapping a quilt around the mattress and under the bottom sheet

[happy_canuck]

Six nights after inclining our bed...

- we have a memory foam topper and noticed it slid a little, but nothing else is sliding around
- I am having no problems falling asleep, which is unusual for me, especially six days in a row
- my husband is still not snoring -- highly unusual for him
- I woke up very early last night (5 am) and was fully awake and could not fall back to sleep
- the height is an issue for me, especially for getting back in after a midnight run to the bathroom, so we are going to remove the boxspring and get plywood, which will put the height back to approximately our un-inclined bed height

[AndrewKFletcher]

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/2x-NON-ANTI-SLIP- ... 5d2645a7ee

Link to the fabric we place under carpets and rugs. Perfect for preventing either a mattress or a memory foam topper from moving.

Check Ebay in your own country first

Andrew