Into the Chamber We Go

Testing the Hyperbaric Experience

Most people first heard about hyperbaric chambers when it was reported that pop icon Michael Jackson was sleeping in one. Or at least using it – this strange chamber that pumped up the pressure and the oxygen. In a hyperbaric chamber, the air pressure is increased to two or three-times normal, while the patient is breathing pure oxygen. The pressure helps dissolve the oxygen into the patient’s blood, which then helps repair damaged tissue and organs. This is called hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) and is widely used in medicine to heal such things as sports injuries, chronic wounds, diabetic ulcers, and radiation burns. 

Because hyperbaric oxygen is also anti-inflammatory and can be used as a general restorative, it has followers who swear by its anti-aging health benefits, including celebrities like Justin Bieber, LeBron James, and Mayim Bialik. Feeling worn out? Into the hyperbaric chamber you go.

Anxious to give hyperbaric oxygen a try – who wouldn’t? – I went to Hydrology in the THesis Hotel. Hydrology is a futuristic rejuvenation center opened last year by Gables plastic surgeon Dr. Alexander Zuriarrain. It’s a bright, fresh clinic with room after room for special treatments – a red-light therapy room, a cryogenic chamber, three massage rooms, a sauna with red light, a vitamin drip room, areas to relax and hydrate with water or tea – and two rooms with hyperbaric oxygen chambers. I was led to one of these. 

The “chamber” looked like a large, chubby Nike running shoe. It was made of framed cloth and transparent plastic windows. Before you climb in, you remove your shoes, but you can leave your clothes on. You can also take your cell phone.

Inside, you sit on an inclined seat and tuck in with a soft blanket (there is a strong AC system  inside). There is one large knob that will let you reduce the air pressure if it’s too much for you. You’re also given a walkie-talkie and a push-button remote that will sound a loud bell; both are in case you get claustrophobic, because next, you are fitted with an oxygen face mask and get zipped inside.

“You’re going to be wearing a face mask and then breathing pure oxygen, which we normally don’t do from day to day,” says Hugo Cambó, the manager at Hydrology. “You know, there is pollution in the air we breathe. It’s less than 20 percent [oxygen]. So here it’s 96 percent under pressure, and that pressure is going to help your cells receive that oxygen better. And that helps them to create [new cells] faster, so you heal faster.”

It’s also used for general well-being, and clients come in just to revive themselves. “It’s multi-purpose,” says Cambó. “It allows your body to regenerate cells faster, and then your body decides where you need those extra cells. What for? The oxygen can be good for your brain function as well.”

I thought I would find the space confining, but instead it felt cozy, like being inside the cockpit of a plane. As the pressure increased, I had to pop my ears a half dozen times, like I was gaining altitude. Then the pressure leveled off, and I was just breathing pure oxygen in a tiny room with a super cool AC. I was in a bubble where I could read, text, or just snooze off. It became very pleasant.

After an hour of gentle relaxation, my pod was unzipped by Cambó. I didn’t want to leave. But when I did, I felt a little lighter, a little more energetic. My hands, sore from doing a lot of heavy yard work over the weekend, felt better. And, of course, I felt smarter and more alert.