When one thinks about it, the most helpful inventions, businesses and social movements have come from someone’s self-interest. Not selfishness, but the internal tension inside someone that stems from an incident, accident or force of nature.
In the case of John and Denise Mercado, the passion and drive for their business began with their son, Danny. In 1982 he contracted meningitis at six months of age and he spent 30 days in the hospital fighting for his life. While he was in ICU and the Pediatric ward, Denise would sneak into the Medical Library at Fort Lewis every chance she had, looking for ways to help their son once he got out of the hospital. She was laser focused on recovery for Danny. Regrettably, the physicians didn’t consider recovery as an option for him.
Undeterred, Denise continued digging through reams of printed information including books, reports, peer reviews, anything that would lead her to something that could help her son. That is the way research was done, back before the luxury of Internet search and because of that, the modality that could have helped him was not found in time. Danny passed away in 2007 at 24 years of age.
Denise reflects on the impact this had on her and her husband, “We didn’t find out about Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy until after Danny passed away. We felt passionately that families needed to learn about this treatment now, not after it’s too late for their child. That is what drives us to do what we do.”
Denise discovered that using oxygen under pressure is an “out of the box” recovery option not only for children, but for many others including Veterans with TBI, PTSD and other combat related injuries. The procedure helps with over 50 different health issues including fractures, autism, post-op surgery, skin grafts, shingles, muscle Injury, fibromyalgia, and much more.
The Mercados opened Fayetteville Hyperbarics LLC using Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy(HBOT) as the main treatment provided. This procedure infuses the body with 100% oxygen which is what is needed for healing. Most people think they are breathing 100% oxygen – but the air we regularly breathe only contains about 21% oxygen. Many health issues people struggle with today are a result of a lack of oxygen in the body, so inundating the body with pure oxygen helps it return to health or preventatively, keep it healthy.
The center currently has two HBOT chambers. Denise Mercado is the CEO, responsible for administration to sales. Her husband John is the Certified Hyperbaric Technician, Safety Officer, Maintenance Officer, and business partner. As a former helicopter pilot in the military, he is well suited to the meticulous checklist of procedure required to operate the Hyperbaric system and produce each “dive” which refers to an individual session.
The Mercados association with the military places it close to their heart. Opening the center in Fayetteville NC places it close to one of the largest, most important Army Bases in the world, Fort Bragg.
To date, they have helped over 40 Veterans with TBI and PTSD reduce their medications and get their lives back – no more headaches, no more memory loss, no more brain fog. The Hyperbaric business website displays many videos of those successes in the patients’ own words.
The Mercados have also helped five children with autism and two with cerebral palsy. One of the children was non-verbal before beginning treatment. He started repeating words during his sessions and is now very successful with speech therapy. They have also treated many adults with Neuropathy, TBI from car accidents, stroke, Parkinson’s disease and many other conditions. A recent Israeli study even proved that HBOT can help in the rehabilitation of stroke patients years after the stroke. As with concussions, oxygen infusion to the brain cells helps them to heal. This means that the procedure treats the injury, not just the symptoms.
As with every worthwhile endeavor, there are challenges.
A major one is increasing awareness about HBOT. This is paramount to moving HBOT to ‘ first choice’ status in recovery and rehab – the way already exists in Europe, Canada, South America, and Russia and not a treatment of last resort – like it is in America.
Another challenge is to get people to understand that it is more cost effective to deal with chronic issues now rather than wait to see if it might go away or get better on its own. Also there are many people who hear about HBOT and then go to their doctor for input and it gets shot down because the physician is simply not aware of the benefits of HBOT. Resistance from physicians then leads to resistance from the general public.
However, current trends are encouraging. Currently the NFL is earmarking one hundred million dollars toward concussion protocols and are looking hard at Hyperbaric Oxgyen treatment in their stadium treatment rooms. Some major universities already have them in their training facilities. Many states have ‘Return To Play’ forms for student athletes in all sports, not just football, as parents are raising concern about untreated concussions.
Now in their quest to help as many people as quickly as possible, the Mercados have expanded their center from a Hyperbarics Chamber, into a Holistic Wellness Center which now includes other ‘natural providers’ who can collaborate with each other resulting in speedier recoveries for their patients. The team includes a doctor specializing in wound care, an OB-GYN , a Naturopathic Physician, Medical Massage Therapists, and a Personal Breakthrough Coach.
Denise Mercado sums it up this way, “There is much pain around us. It’s a part of life. We don’t disdain traditional medicine. We have found additional effective modalities that lean toward natural. We recruited providers who think that way and just as importantly, who will work together for the betterment of the patient, relieving pain and helping the body and brain with their own natural healing process. We are excited about the prospect.”
To learn more about the Hyperbarics Holistic Wellness Center call, click or visit here:
Hyperbarics Holistic Wellness Center
3035-A Boone Trail Ext
Fayetteville NC 28304
(910) 920-1165
http://www.fayettevillehbot.com