June: Fighting MS and Finding Relief with BackHug

Can you tell us about yourself and your MS journey?

I'm June Roger. I'm 57 years old. I've had MS for 26 years. I've never laid down to it. I believe in fighting such things and having determination. I've deteriorated over the years, I had relapsing remitting to start with, and I'm now secondary progressive, so it is deteriorating. But I'm determined to stay on my feet and to fight and do what I can.

What changes have you noticed since using BackHug?

BackHug's been great for less pain and less spasms. Incredible. My medication's reduced as well. So when I come off it, I actually feel energized. I feel much looser. Much, much looser. I hardly have any spasms.

I was speaking with my MS nurse yesterday, and she said, how many falls have you had? And I suddenly went, "I haven't fallen." So, this is a really strange one, but one that I celebrated and I told lots of people about—I can actually bend over and put a pair of shoes on now. I used to have to lift the leg up and put my shoe on. Now I can actually bend over easily, put shoes on and tie my laces, and that's such a huge thing. It's simple for other people, but such a huge thing to me.

How do you use BackHug in your routine?

I try to go on it five times a week for 40 minutes. Occasionally I've gone six times a week. Sometimes it's been three times a week. Most of the time I put a cover over myself. I've got my earpods in, listening to music, and I'm totally zoned out.

And I like the fact on the app you can change the strength it's working at. So you could be actually lying there and saying I want it stronger today in certain areas and you just change it on your phone.

What's it like using BackHug?

Getting on and off the thing, I sit on the bottom of it, I swing my feet down, which isn't always the easiest thing to do. Lie on it. I am now used to it so I know where the right position is. I know when it starts moving I need to go down a bit. And first off, the feet come up themselves. I don't have to try and do that. And it's a very comfortable position to be in, and then the feet go down automatically. There are handles on the side which is good. There's a pocket for your phone if you want it. But I tend to have my walker next to me. It's just really good. It's easy to use. Very easy to use.

A couple of people have tried it and said that this area is really hard. And I said, it's just tough for a few minutes and then you're fine. I don't even find it that tough for a couple minutes now.

What about tension relief?

Sometimes I'll go on it and I can tell I'm obviously tight in my shoulder blades because I can feel it. I just think it's wonderful. To begin with I always felt tension in my shoulder blades and my neck. I didn't realize quite how much, because that's where it was really sore when I started. But now I don't feel it there at all. And I think it's because of the regular use of it being manipulated.

When I'm on it, it isn't painful. It can be...it's not even uncomfortable...you're aware of it. But when I come off, I'm actually more energized because I have relaxed.

What would you say to others considering BackHug?

People with MS are supposed to relax. I'm not very good at it. You know, I do everything and then relax rather than stopping to relax in the middle. So BackHug makes me relax.

Whether you've got MS, or whatever reason. What have you got to lose by trying it? It's a no brainer for me. Why not try it? Why not try it?