how to use TENS?

[jlove98905]

I've got a TENS unit and I'm not sure where the best place is to put the electrodes. I have primarily urethral pain. Please let me know what settings you use and how long you use it for, and where do you place your electrodes? In particular, I'm interested in hearing how others with trigonal or urethral pain use their unit.
Thanks in advance,
jen

[Portia17]

I put the electrodes on my bladder as that is what the doctor told me for bladder pain

Didn't the doctor show you how to use it and where to put the electrodes? I guess not

I am not sure about the urethra pain so maybe someone else will know or u can always call your doctor

[Sarojini]

Your best bet is to take the unit to the doctor, and ask him to explain how to use it for your specific type of pain. I have a unit, but they are all different in how you set them -- and we are all different in how much we can tolerate from them. Electrode placement is also highly personal. Definitely ask your doc --or, if you have a physical therapist, she will know how to set it for you.

Good luck!

[jlove98905]

Hi Portia,

When you say you put the electrodes on your bladder, do you mean above the pubic hair line?

Thanks for the reply,
Jen (who is, by the way, a red sox fan!!)

[jlove98905]

Hi Jen,
Where do you place your electrodes? I'm just looking for ideas, here. I'll try stuff I read about here. The doctor isn't going to know any better than anybody else...
Thanks,
Jen

[Sarojini]

It depends. My unit has four electrodes, and for bladder pain I place two over my bladder, just above the pubic hair, and the other two on my back, on either side of my spine, down low near the top of the butt.

For urinary frequency, especially on long drives, I've found the TENS unit can help. In this case, I place two over the bladder as stated above, and two down in my crotch, just where each butt cheek meets the inner thigh. That may be a good placement for you if you have urethral pain as it gets the pudendal nerve.

It can't hurt to try....

[jlove98905]

Hi Jen,
I do exactly the same thing - using it in the crotch where the butt cheek meets the thigh (I get pain here a lot, do you?)....It seems to help me, but I have found that it makes the muscles tighten. When i turn it off, the whole pelvic region seems to relax. It makes me afraid that I'm not doing somethign right. Does that happen to you?
Thanks again,
Jen

[Sarojini]

I do get pain there, yes. It's annoying! As for your tens, you may need to turn it down some -- if the current/amplitude is too high it can cause your muscles to contract against the perceived "pain". Don't turn it up so high that you jump or so that you "make sure you can feel it." You want to just barely feel it as a gentle hum in the pelvic area rather than a zap. It will still work. Also, if you have several different modes, I find the "continuous" mode works the best, rather than "modulated" or "burst" -- those two change the current so it goes up and then down, and I feel they make me jump and tense up. Anyway, this is what has worked for me. Good luck :) Just do some experimenting :grouphug:

Oh and as for how long I use it, I generally use it for an hour when I'm at home. I lie down while it's on and try to relax (watch a movie, read, meditate). My physical therapist told me that you can wear the thing for 24 hours if necessary, but the longest I've worn it has been about 6 hours on a long car trip.