Hyperbaric oxygen therapy offers significant benefits for people needing extra healing and recovery support. But if you have claustrophobia, you might be nervous about using the chamber. The good news: It likely won’t be a problem.
If you have claustrophobia, your anxiety about close, confined spaces can make it difficult to do lots of things, like riding in elevators, for instance. But it can also interfere with some medical treatments, like hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT).
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy is an innovative treatment that supports natural healing responses, giving your body the added oxygen it needs to promote recovery following illnesses, injuries, and some medical treatments.
At Vayu Advanced Wound Clinic and Hyperbarics, Dr. Badam uses HBOT to treat an array of health concerns in patients at her San Antonio, Texas, practice. If you’re wondering whether claustrophobia could prevent you from undergoing HBOT, here’s what Dr. Badam wants you to know.
Understanding HBOT
Oxygen plays a central role in helping your body heal. With plenty of oxygen, your body can fight off damaging inflammation and repair or replace damaged tissue with new, healthy tissue much more quickly.
HBOT provides your body with extra oxygen support by delivering pure oxygen in a pressurized environment. Combined, these benefits help your lungs absorb more oxygen and deliver it to your bloodstream with every breath you take.
HBOT is widely used to help speed healing in people with poor healing responses, including people with diabetes or circulatory disorders that hamper oxygen delivery. HBOT also helps treat:
- Refractory osteomyelitis
- Decompression sickness
- Compromised tissue grafts and flaps
- Burn injuries
- Delayed radiation injuries
- Pain management
- Cardiac health
- Polymyalgia, muscle, and joint aches
- Inflammatory bowel disease
As with other therapies, we can customize HBOT for your specific needs.
HBOT and claustrophobia
HBOT requires a special chamber in which we are able to provide you with the optimal amount of pressurized oxygen. During an HBOT session, you recline and relax inside the chamber while breathing normally.
The chamber itself is spacious, but if you have claustrophobia, you might wonder if you’ll be comfortable. The good news is that the chamber itself is designed to avoid the feeling of being closed in.
Specifically, the chamber we use features a large, clear viewing window that allows you to see the surrounding room. Although you’ll be inside the chamber, the large window helps you feel like a part of the larger environment. And, of course, you become more comfortable and relaxed with every session.
We monitor you throughout the treatment. If you feel uncomfortable at any time, simply let us know, and we’ll adjust your therapy or complete your session if needed. You’re always in control of your therapy.
Experience the benefits of HBOT
Claustrophobia doesn’t have to stand in the way of HBOT. If you’re uncomfortable in enclosed spaces and you’re concerned about how you’ll feel during your therapy, let us know so we can help you prepare and relax.