Sleeping ‘clean’ – ME, electrosensitivity – and the rest!

I was reading a thread just now on the Foods Matter forums about ME and how ME sufferers can benefit not only from an actual holiday (in an appropriately restful environment) but from taking a ‘virtual’ holiday or going on ‘retreat’.
Because ME for so many sufferers is synonymous with being anti-social, going away on retreat (or even ‘going on retreat’ at home if you are not able to travel) seems like a great idea as you can get the peace and quiet that you need but in a positive context (you have chosen to go and do this) rather than the usual negative one (you are being anti-social because you feel too ill/tired to be anything else.)

I actually do not know what connections have yet been made between ME and electrosensitivity but it occurred to me that trying to lower your electromagnetic load when you go on holiday (whether this is a proper holiday or an at-home retreat) could also be very helpful.

Dr Deitrich Klinghardt, who works with  ME and MCS patients as well as those with electrical sensitivities, will not treat anyone until they have spent at least three months sleeping in a completely ‘clean’ electromagnetic environment eg not only no form of EM equipment (phones, wifi, computers etc) but not even any electricity. (This involves nothing more dramatic than having fuses with switches on them and turning them all off when you go to bed.) He believes that our atmosphere is so polluted with man-made pulsed electromagnetic radiation (which interferes with cellular communication within our bodies) that only if we get a full eight hours sleep in an environment completely free of EM pollution can our bodies have any chance of coping.

It is certainly possible that EM pollution plays a role in ME and CFS so trying to achieve an electric and electromagnetic free space in which to sleep – and possibly to holiday – could be very beneficial. As an ES sufferer, I certainly found that ten days in the Highlands of Scotland a very long way away from any electromagnetic radiation and with no electricity, was enormously beneficial. Both my sensitivity and my ‘recovery time’ after I had come too close to sources of EM radiation improved significantly – and remained better for nearly two months afterwards only dropping back to their previous levels after a morning spent at the Museum of London!

And if you are wondering what is wrong with the Museum of London – absolutely nothing (indeed their new London galleries are fantastic and I would strongly recommend anyone who is not electrosensitive to visit) but, if you are electrosensitive:
1. The museum is in the heart of the city of London which I have only just discovered has been fully wifi enabled via lamp posts and street furniture so that you can get a wifi connection anywhere in the city.
2. There are 66 mobile phone masts within a 500 metre radius of the museum.
3. A very large number of their really excellent displays are now interactive, many using wireless technology.
4. On the day we were there the museum was jammed with mid-teen schoolchildren, every one of whom appeared to be either talking on their phone or texting continually….

But, to go back to the ‘clean sleeping’. Given that our exposure to man-made pulsed electromagnetic radiation has increased many thousand fold over the last 30 years, aiming for a relatively ‘clean’ sleeping environment has to be good for everyone’s health. You do not necessarily need to go as far as turning off the electricity (although reading by candlelight is actually very romantic…) but ensuring that your bedroom is free of computers, mobile phones, mobile phone or any other chargers,  hands free telephones, TVs (or if you have them ensure that they are turned right off) and, especially important, radio alarm clocks, can dramatically reduce your electromagnetic load while you are sleeping – and may help you sleep better and feel more refreshed in the morning. Doesn’t cost anything to try!!

And… if you happen to have a child who has any kind of behavioural problems, it is certainly worth a try. The Association for Comprehensive NeuroTherapy, a US group which works with all kind of behavioural problems, had a number of reports of significant improvement when children are detached from sources of high EM radiation – see ‘Pulling the plug on the cordless phone‘.