How The Healing Powers of Magnetic Attraction Changed My Life

 

I’d always considered my self to be an active and healthy kind of person. I used to work out at the gym twice a week and go for long country walks at weekends. Apart from that my black Labrador, Jake would always ensure I got plenty of exercise. His love of the great outdoors was even keener than mine. On a typical morning before going to work I would take him for a stroll across the open fields close to my home, and down to the river, where I had spent many a happy hour with my wife, who tragically died from breast cancer some 4 years previous.

On a typical and sunny spring morning, back in May 1995, I awoke to my usual routine. After a quick cup of coffee, I took Jake down to the river bank and we walked the usual same path we had done almost every day for the past 3 years. I was aware of heavy dew all around, which made the grass and rock lined river bank a little slippery to walk on. No sooner had I thought to take care, when I slipped on a large rock, falling heavily onto my side.

Jake immediately ran over towards me and started to bark, thinking I was playing some kind of game. When I eventually got back to my feet, it was obvious that I had hurt the upper part of my right thigh. It was throbbing and I had to press my hand firmly on the pain and grit my teeth for a few minutes. After a couple of deep breaths, and a few choice words, we made our way back to the house. Jake running, and me hobbling.

By the time we reached home, the pain had subsided to an acceptable level, but a closer inspection revealed a nasty blue and red bruise. I showered and gently rubbed in some antiseptic lotion, got dressed and prepared to go off to work.

I worked in my own business in town, which was just over 7 miles from my home. I had a small timber and building supplies company, supplying materials for carpenters and small local builders. My company consisted of me and Dave, a young man from a nearby village, who had previously worked as a farm hand. Dave would do most of the heavy lifting and loading and I would take care of the stock ordering and invoicing. If we ever had more than 2 customers in the yard I would generally lend a hand with serving my customers and loading. Also, as there were only two of us, I would look after things when Dave went to the café at lunch time.

I remember telling Dave about my unfortunate accident, and how I could have ended up sliding down the embankment and into the river. We joked about it, but I was still aware of the swelling and throbbing sensation.

As usual around 12.30, Dave went off to the café for his lunch. The morning had been quite busy, with all the familiar faces showing up at the same time and everyone in a hurry to get on to their various jobs in hand. Time really is money for most of these self-employed contractors.

Dave had gone about 15 minutes, when a truck pulled into the yard driven by young man named James, a labourer employed by John Hemmings, a well-known local carpenter. They were working on a house refurbishment job in town and had already been into the yard earlier to buy some timber roofing battens. James told me they had miscalculated and were 3 battens short.

Half of my builder’s yard consisted of various sizes and lengths of timber, held in racks constructed of steel angle iron. Roofing battens being relatively light-weight were stored on the very top racking, which was around 20 feet off the ground. To load them into position I would use a fork truck, as they would be delivered in large packs. If a job entailed re-roofing a whole house, most builders and carpenters would normally have them delivered directly to site. But this particular job didn’t warrant that as it was just a case of replacing a small part of the roof.

In order to reach the battens from the top of the racking, I had to use a long ladder. So I positioned the ladder and climbed to the top. These timber battens are 4 meters long and have to be eased out of the racking by pulling them with my left hand while holding on to the ladder with my right hand. As I pulled towards the end of the battens, which were resting over my left shoulder, I began to lose my balance. I instinctively let go of the battens as the ladder began to move and twist. As my body’s weight shifted round to the right, I felt a surging pain as I slammed into the steel rack.

My right thigh, which I had injured earlier in the morning thumped against the side of the rack. The painful shock caused me to let go of the ladder completely and I slumped 20 feet to the ground. The whole process seemed to happen as if in slow motion but in reality probably took only a matter of seconds.

As I lay on the ground, gasping to recover my breath, the whole left side of my body felt numb. I couldn’t move my leg and I couldn’t move my toes. James quickly ran to my small office and phoned for an ambulance, which thankfully arrived with minutes. The medics that attended to me strapped me firmly into a stretcher, and then rushed me to the town hospital. I was conscious throughout my ordeal, and mentally alert, but worried that I had no feeling in my left leg, although my right thigh hurt like hell. The doctor at the hospital arranged for me to be immediately sent to the x-ray department.

Later I was taken to a consulting room and given a thorough examination. The x-ray results indicated a fractured hip and displaced pelvis. They would have to operate to realign it and pin the fracture. I was in hospital for a total of 3 weeks. Sometime during my first 2 or 3 days in hospital, my dog Jake went missing. I was heart-broken. I thought that maybe he thought I’d abandoned him. The frightening thought I had was that he had gone out looking for me and had got killed by a car or truck. I really thought the worst. My neighbors searched everywhere for him, and eventually found him wandering along the river bank.

My brother and his wife came to collect me from the hospital and take me home. I was given a wheel chair and a pair of crutches by the hospital to help me get around. I would have to go back for more check ups over the next 6 months.

The prospect of being unable to walk or drive for up to 6 months really played on my mind. How was I to support myself financially? Especially as my insurance company was fighting my claim, on the grounds that I should have used my fork truck to unload the timber from the racking. I had no choice but to put my business up for sale.

For the next 18 months, I lived off the proceeds of my business sale and social security. Mentally I was depressed and physically I was a wreck. I now walked with a permanent limp and was in constant pain. I was also drinking too much. Jake was putting on a lot of weight as our walks had to be restricted to a leisurely stroll around the garden. My life had certainly changed, but more importantly my attitude had changed. I had an anger eating away inside me. I had developed a ‘feeling sorry for myself’ attitude. And I knew I had to pull myself together and find a purpose in my life. At this time I wasn’t doing anything but watching TV, drinking and sleeping.

My Physiotherapist suggested I get a part-time job to fill my time or find a hobby that I could do from home. I thought about it for a while, but didn’t really want to work for someone else. I had always been my own man. I had always been independent. But my physio was right. I did need to do something with my time. Next day, in town, I bought a copy of a hobbyist magazine and decided that I would make chess sets and ornaments. It would be quite therapeutic and I could sell them at craft fairs and local shows.

I bought a whole load of rubber moulds, resin and paints and got to work. It was quite enjoyable and I did sell some of my chess sets at craft fairs, and got a good price for them too, although the money I made never really covered the time and effort I put into making them. The main thing though, was I had a hobby that filled my time and brought in a small income. It also got me out of the house and to meet new people.

My brother, his wife and their children would come over and visit me at weekends and it was during one of these visits that my brother brought me a magnetic wrist-band. He’d heard from a friend, who wore a similar wrist-band, that it had some pain relieving properties, and thought it a good idea for me to try it. My brother is a salesman, and the way he describes anything makes you want to have one. He’s a natural.

I wore the wrist-band for a few days and the first thing I noticed was a kind of mild trembling sensation in my hands and legs. I also felt very thirsty and began to drink copious amounts of water. I didn’t know at the time, but these reactions are quite normal when you first wear a magnetic band. I mentioned it to my physio, who told me she too had heard about these magnetic bands from other patients. Surprisingly, she also pointed out that I was walking better and asked me about the pain. I had to think for a minute! What pain?

It had now been 2 weeks since I first put on this wrist-band, and I hadn’t even noticed or realized that the pain in my hip, which I had become used to, had all but gone. For the first time in almost 2 years I felt elated. I still needed to use my walking stick as my hip had a metal pin, which caused some restriction in its movement. But, I could live with that.

Later that day I called my brother and told him what had happened. I felt like driving into town and telling everyone. But something seemed odd. How could something as simple as a couple of small magnets ease my pain? Was it real? Was it in my mind? Whatever it was I wasn’t complaining but I wanted to find out more. That evening I persuaded Jake to walk down to the river with me. He had become quite fat and lazy, which was probably just as well, as I couldn’t walk too fast.

In the morning I drove into town and went into the main book shop. I had only ever called in there once before, to buy a book on cross-stitch for my wife’s birthday. I asked at the counter if they had any books on magnets. What I meant was magnetic therapy. The assistant pointed to a row, which contained numerous scientific books on magnetic and gravitational fields. Not exactly what I was looking for. I browsed up and down the rows of books until I found something of interest. It was a book about alternative health remedies and had a very large section devoted to magnetic therapy. I bought it and went straight home to read it. I was fascinated. I called my brother and asked him for the name and phone number of the guy who sold him the wrist-band that he had given to me a few weeks earlier.

This guy’s name was Mike. My brother said people called him Mike the Magnet. A name which he didn’t seem to mind too much. I called Mike and told him of my interest in magnet therapy and that I was wearing a wrist-band that he had sold to my brother. He didn’t seem very surprised when I told him about how I was involved in an accident and as a result had been in a lot of pain for the last 2 years. And now, thanks to this little magnetic band, my pain had gone. He told me he had heard so many similar stories from his customers and that I should meet some of them. We arranged to meet at my house the following week, and he would bring along two of his old customers, who incidentally were themselves now selling these magnetic products.

Mike turned up right on time with his two friends. One was a mature gentleman in his mid sixties, whose name was Edward and the other a lady named Miriam who was in her late thirties. For more than two hours we talked magnets. I listened intently while they explained how they worked, why they worked and how satisfying it was to be able to help people relieve pain from all types of ailments. How come I’d never heard about them before I wondered? Apparently, according to Mike, no one was selling them in my nearest town and that’s probably why I hadn’t heard of them.

They went on to tell me how they make a good living selling a whole range of magnetic products at craft fairs, farmers shows and what they call party plans. A party plan involves inviting people to either of their homes or a friend’s house, for coffee or other beverages and bringing along a whole load of samples of their products to show people. They told me that most of the products are fashionable jewelry like bracelets, bangles and earrings, with magnetic healing properties. They also told me they sell very well and perhaps I should give it a try.

I didn’t need much convincing, after all I was wearing one myself and I knew that they really did work. Mike said I could buy from him at wholesale price and sell them on at around 100% profit. I thought about it, for a whole 2 seconds, and then said “count me in”. I agreed to drive over to Mike’s place in the morning, and take a look at the full range of products. I could then decide which ones I would buy to sell on. On that note, we all said our goodbyes and Mike and his two friends left.

I was quite excited about the prospect of selling magnetic jewelry. Because not only does it look good, its magnetic properties can help people in pain. So I’d be doing people a big favour, and get paid for it. That night, while I was lying in bed I began thinking about my new business venture and how I would go about selling these items. I already knew about the craft fairs from selling my chess sets and ornaments. But what other ways could I sell them? I fell asleep with that thought and my mind must have worked on it during the night, because by the morning I had come up with a number of good ideas.

After taking Jake for his walk, which due to my excitement was at an unusually brisk pace than of late? I got into my car and drove to Mike’s house. Mike lived on the edge of the next town, which was over 20 miles from where I lived and allowing for traffic, took me around 45 minutes to reach. As I pulled up into his driveway, he opened his front door and beckoned me in. He led me into a small back room he said was his store room. There before me was an array of glittering bracelets, necklaces, earrings, finger and toe rings, supports and insoles. I never realised there was such a large range of products. It was like an Aladdin’s cave. There was something for everyone.

I picked up piece after piece, examined them thoroughly and was amazed at the sheer quality. The prices were even more astonishing. We talked for some time about his business and how he quit his dead end job to concentrate on selling these products full time. His other friends were quite happy to sell a few items to their friends and families in their spare time. Mike said I could very easily make a good living doing exactly the same as he does and the best part is I would be helping people at the same time. Now I was completely sold on the idea.

I bought just over $100 worth of products from Mike and after helping me load them in my car, I set off on my journey home. All the way I was thinking about the ideas that had come to me earlier about how I was going to sell these lovely gems. If I could sell $100 worth, in say a day, I would make $100 profit. If I could do that over five days, I’d be making $500 a week. That’s all I would need to get by quite comfortably.

When I arrived home, I unloaded the car and started to work on a plan. One of the ideas that had come to me was to sell them in or near the town hospital. Patients going in and out plus their visitors would surely be interested. Another idea was to sell them at the gym I used to visit. I remember quite often people complaining about aches and pains after a workout session. Then there was the sports club and my physio could probably put me in touch with a few likely prospects. Plus I already knew many people at the craft fairs I frequented, so the prospect of making a few sales looked very promising.

As there was a craft fair due in town at the weekend, I thought I’d start by selling some items there. I called the organiser, who I knew quite well from my previous exploits, and asked if I could have my old pitch back for the coming weekend. I hadn’t been selling any chess sets or ornaments for about 3 months so was unsure about being able to get a stall. As it happens, I was in luck. I told him I had moved on to selling magnetic jewelry, and although he was familiar with these items, he was intrigued about their qualities. He said I could have a small table top stall close to the entrance. That would be perfect, I thought.

I was up early on that Saturday morning, loaded the car and started to drive into town. After about five minutes I realised that in my eagerness to get going I had forgotten to bring my walking stick. It was strange that I should do that, as I’d been using it every day for the past two years, but as I’d forgotten to bring it I would just have to manage without it. I arrived at the hall where the craft fair was to be held, and parked the car. There was a lot of other traders carrying their goods in and setting up. I knew most of them and they were interested to see that I was bringing in boxes of jewelry. I explained what had happened to me when I started to wear a magnetic bracelet and how I intended to show them and tell other people about them.

My complete stock amounted to just a few small boxes, so it didn’t take very long to set up my stall. Not surprisingly, my first customers were other traders, who knew about my previous accident and could now see for themselves how I had changed. Although unintentional, not having my walking stick with me also helped to add some credibility to my story.

By the end of the day, I had sold almost 80% of my stock. Apart from making some easy money for a few hours work, I found the whole experience a real buzz. The jewelry items looked great and the prices were very affordable, but the lift I got from meeting people and explaining the benefits of magnetic therapy, and knowing I was helping people, was worth much more than the financial reward.

Over the next few months, I bought much more stock. As the items are small I didn’t need much space to store them. I found I could quite easily keep 30 or 40 boxes in a small back room. I had a full range of everything that was available and I soon found I was running a full-time business. I was selling at craft shows and farmers markets, the town’s indoor market, the gym, the sports hall, coffee mornings, and best of all, the town hospital allowed me to set up a small table top stall in the cafeteria. All I had to do was make a small donation to the hospital voluntary services.

As time went by it got easier and easier to sell magnetic jewelry items, as people that bought them and experienced the benefits, soon told their families and friends. This had become a real turning point in my life. I was making more than enough money to live independently and I was helping people at the same time. My self-esteem had been totally restored and I found a new purpose in my life. Jake too was enjoying the outings and the attention he got from customers and passers-by.

After all the past traumas I had experienced, I felt I had emerged a new person, a better person. Although there will always be that something special missing in my life, and I will always walk with a limp, I am now a happy and fulfilled person. I now realise that for me, magnetic therapy has not only worked to ease my own physical pain, and it has helped relieve my inner stress by giving me the chance to help others. Seeing the smile on people’s faces, where once there was only pain and sadness is reward in itself.

I’ve been selling magnetic jewelry full-time now for around six years. I’m thinking about opening a shop in the town as I buy a lot of wholesale. Some of my old customers are selling it too. They come to me for their stock, which is another way I make money, but hadn’t thought of before. There’s no doubt that the magnetic jewelry business changed my life. I would say to anyone, just try it and see how it could change yours.>

 

You may publish this article on your website or print it for free distribution provided you include a link to Dragonstone Magnetics

 

MAGNETS ATTRACT BIG BUCKS

By Andrei Tavanlar

The rising popularity of magnetic therapy pulls in serious looks from entrepreneurs, pain sufferers, and critics alike.

Looking for a great business idea? Take a peak at the lucrative market of the magnetic therapy trade. Estimates say the sales of magnets in the US approached a whopping $150 million way back in 1999 and have continued to increase exponentially year after year, according to Ashley Jude Collie’s report. Sources say that worldwide sales of magnetic products have now reached a little over the billion dollar mark and are still climbing rapidly.

Collie, a foreign correspondent of the Washington Post, stated that the growing industry has been producing all sorts of magnetic products; from bracelets, necklaces, rings, insoles, back braces, etc. They are available in doctors’ clinics, in health stores, vitamin stores, drug stores, and in golf and sporting-goods stores.

Magnetic therapy is a type of alternative medicine. When magnets are placed over the body, the magnetic field they emit may have healing powers. Some say that magnets can help broken bones heal faster, improve blood circulation, but most of the tribute comes from those who claim that magnets relieve pain.

One of its biggest advocates is 64-year-old Jim Colbert, an all-time top veteran golfer on the Senior PGA Tour, with earnings of more than $1 million in 1998. He didn’t enjoy success until he began wearing magnets to relieve his chronic back pain years ago. “I’ve had back problems since I was fifteen,” says Colbert. “I thought I was going to have a very short career. But wearing magnets around my waist while I play has kept my back from hurting, and I’ve been able to play quite well. They’ve really been a career saver.”

Testimonials also come from the physically-intense world of professional football, where Miami Dolphins director of rehabilitation Ryan Vermillion treats at least half of the players with magnets, including quarterback, Dan Marino. When the star player was recovering from a broken ankle six years ago, Vermillion recommended Marino to strap on some magnets. The area healed quicker than expected, and Marino missed only two games instead of much of the season. I think it was a combination of good surgery on a healthy athlete and the magnets,” Vermillion says of Marino’s quick recuperation.

Western medicine once treated acupuncture with skepticism. Nowadays, the ancient Chinese art is widely accepted as a treatment for many things. Many see magnetic therapy heading in the same direction. For now, it remains the latest and most promising remedy in the alternative healthcare industry as evident from the growing number of businesses specializing in magnetic therapy or adding magnetic bracelets to their existing line. There are no bad side effects from using magnetic bracelets.

A former factory worker, Howard Ray, who now owns several health outlets in Montana selling magnetic products, said his business began when he first tried magnetic bracelets as an alternative therapy for his arthritis. “I have always had a lot of pain in my legs, arms and hands and tried almost every kind of pain killer out there,” said 56-year old Ray, “There was only temporary relief whenever I take them pills. But then, a friend of mine gave me a magnetic bracelet as a gift one day and ever since that day, I have only experienced brief discomfort from time to time.”

Word of his wonderful discovery quickly spread to his family and friends and they also wanted one for themselves. Soon, many people had been asking him where he got the magnetic bangles from. So, Ray decided to try selling the bracelets himself with his retirement money.

He recalled when he first started out; he erected booths showcasing the bracelets at tradeshows and flea markets. “One thing I like about the bracelets is that they fit into a small space, they don’t require bulky displays,” Ray added. “Also, it’s important that you indicate how strong the magnet is since the stronger it is, the deeper the penetration of the magnetic field will be. That’s why on every package I sell you will see the strength of the magnet printed.”
He said it’s a good thing that he stumbled into this business because aside from making money you help people with their chronic pain.

So how do magnets help the body heal faster and better?

The use of magnets as a therapeutic device has always been around since the time of the some of the greatest ancient civilizations existed – Greek, Egyptian, Chinese, and Indian. The Greek philosopher and scientist, Aristotle, for example, was curiously fascinated with magnets and their mysterious effect in bodily functions, as was the Egyptian Queen, Cleopatra, who wore elaborate jewelry with magnets imbedded in them in the belief that the magnets would promote her health and maintain her beauty.

Throughout ancient history, alchemists and physicians have been studying the therapeutic properties of magnets. But it is only in recent years that scientists have gathered enough data to prove that magnets, indeed, help the body heal.

Magnets work by exerting magnetic fields measured in units of strength called gauss, the higher the gauss, the stronger the magnet. Therapeutic magnets usually range from 200 to 3000 gauss.
Magnets may reduce inflammation and relieve pain by increasing blood flow either to a diseased site or within the entire body. This, in turn, increases the availability of nutrients to accelerate the body's own healing process. When magnets are used for mending fractures, for instance, it is said that an unusually large amount of calcium ions adhere to the blood clot at the site of the break. This aids in the speedy formation of the callus that is necessary for healing in fractures.

Numerous clinical trials from Europe and the U.S. also showed magnets’ healing ability. Patients suffering from diabetic foot pain, multiple sclerosis, fibromyalgia, Parkinson’s disease, and Alzheimer’s have also reaped the benefits of magnetic therapy. Magnetic therapy has also been effective to help the body flush out waste at an efficient rate, thus eliminating the buildup of toxins. It positively alters metabolic functions, removes excess acid in the tissues, and increases joint mobility—all by improving blood circulation. Energy levels shoot up, sleep is better, and mental functions are enhanced according to these studies.
The most famous study done on magnets was performed at Houston’s Baylor College of Medicine in 1997. A double-blind study — neither the doctors nor the patients knew who was given the placebo — showed that seventy-six percent of post-polio patients who wore magnets had less pain.

The January 1999 issue of the American Journal of Pain Management reported on another double-blind study that said small magnets could reduce the severe pain of diabetic neuropathy, nerve damage produced as a side effect of diabetes.

"Lab research at New York's Mount Sinai Medical Center has demonstrated that when you tear tissue, magnets can promote the healing of the tissue by increasing the level of phosphorylization," Dr. Bakst points out. "It has also been shown that at a bone fracture site, placement of powerful magnets causes increased levels of alkaline phosphatase, which increases osteoblastic activity. This aids in the healing of bone and the Food and Drug Administration has actually approved an electromagnetic product to help in the healing of difficult fractures. It has also been used in the treatment of burns and bruises, especially post operative bruising."

Recently, a study in the British Medical Journal found magnetic bracelets reduce the pain in osteoarthritis of the hip and knee.

Researchers from the Peninsula Medical School recruited patients aged between 45 and 80 years with osteoarthritis of the hip or knee from five rural general practices in Devon. Patients wore either a standard strength magnetic bracelet, a weak magnetic bracelet, or a non-magnetic dummy bracelet for 12 weeks. Changes in pain were recorded using a recognized pain scoring scale.

They found a significant reduction in pain scores between the standard and dummy magnet groups. The results for the weak magnet group were similar to those of the dummy magnets, and this suggests that the magnetic strength of the bracelet is important. They note that high strength magnets (170mTesla or more) seem to be needed.

The researchers emphasize that the benefits are in addition to existing treatments, which should not be suddenly stopped without discussion with their doctor.

Further evidence suggesting magnetic energy’s importance in the body was also noted in space. When Russian cosmonauts experienced space sickness after spending long periods of time aboard the Mir space station, scientists theorized that they had spent too much time away from the earth's magnetic forces. In the U.S. it was called chronic fatigue syndrome. The Japanese called it a "magnetic deficiency syndrome." After a magnetic generator was installed in the space station, the cosmonauts' mood and health improved dramatically. In experiments by NASA, rats that were not given enough magnetic field intensity in space died and it was believed to be due to their energy flow being disrupted.
Today, countries like Russia and Australia are starting to unravel the advantages of magnetic therapy. In Japan, magnets have even become licensed medical devices. Although this has not happened yet globally, many health practitioners are now recommending magnetic therapy to their patients as an adjunct, or in minor cases as a substitute, to prescribed medications. It is safe to say that magnetic therapy has boomed in the last decade, as people all over the world attest to their efficacy. The World Health Organization (WHO) has stated that the type and strength of magnets used in magnetic therapy pose no health risks. However, people fitted with a pacemaker, insulin pump, and other implanted medical devices should not use magnetic therapy as it will interfere with the mechanisms and electronic signals.

And despite numerous and vehement criticisms, magnets are touted to be the alternative choice by many chiropractors and other pain specialists. With this in mind, now is the best time to consider investing in the magnetic therapy business before it becomes mainstream.

You may publish this article on your website or print it for free distribution provided you include a link to Dragonstone Magnetics

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