The initial installation of my DBS unit came with a non-rechargeable battery pack that was supposed to last 3-5 years. Unfortunately, the severity of my symptoms requires a higher complexity of programming and higher voltages both of which use more power resulting in the shorter life. My battery signaled the need for replacement almost exactly at the two-year mark. It was now decision time. Go with the same battery pack knowing that my symptoms will continue to get worse thereby draining the battery even faster. Or, go with a rechargeable battery but requiring me to make time to recharge the unit every day. My worry was whether I'd be disciplined enough to charge it every day. I think the answer to which one to get was clear. With how quickly the initial battery drained and with the possibility of going through it even faster the next time, I decided on the rechargeable. Additionally, there would be fewer battery replacement operations in my future since the rechargeable should last at least 10 years. Now I just had to persuade the surgeon.
Fortunately, for me, it didn't take too much convincing. When my neurosurgeon looked at the short life span of the original battery as well as my current and future electrical demands, he agreed that the rechargeable would be the correct choice. He did jokingly say that if I go with the rechargeable unit, I wouldn't get to see him as much and that he would miss me. I blurted out "Don't worry, I would come visit you." He smiled but a loud chuckle came from the nurse in the room. She knew sarcasm when she heard it.
It's been over six months since I had the rechargeable installed and all-in-all its been a great choice. The daily recharge hasn't been an issue. I am up between 4-5 am everyday (thank you Mr. Parkinson's) and my mornings have become pretty standard: Let the cat out, make coffee, let the cat in, then sit and read for about 30-45 minutes. It's during this time that I do the recharging. With my current demand, 30 minutes is all I really need to maintain between 75% and 100% charged. I've even missed a day and only dropped to 50% charge status.
The system I have is very nicely designed. Thank you to Medtronic for your engineering skills. It's easy to use and does it's job quickly. I simply place the recharging pad onto my skin directly over my battery and press go. The system checks the alignment and tells me how close I placed the pad to the optimum spot. The closer you get to that sweet spot the better connection it has to the battery allowing more power to be transferred in the same amount of time. If anyone from Medtronic is reading this, it would be nice if the system told you which way to move the pad to get better alignment. The system comes with a strap so you can walk around while charging if you want. I thought it made me look more like a crossing guard so if I do have to get up (probably to let the cat out again) I just hold the charger in place with one hand. Oh, the recharging unit itself is portable since it is also a rechargeable battery that only needs to be recharged about once a month. One other note that I didn't realize would be such a big benefit but actually is the best reason to get the rechargeable version. The unit that is inserted into your body is thinner than the non-rechargeable one. So the complaint I mentioned in a previous blog about always feeling it there when I moved around is almost completely gone. I can lie on my side now with no tugging or it getting in the way. Definite Bonus!
Hooray for rechargeable batteries!
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