Powerdot 2.0 Duo honest review

 You may have seen ads or infomercials for some kind of muscle stimulation devices (EMS). Or perhaps a sponsored post in your social media feed about a TENS device for pain relief..

Powerdot is a combination of both, and is controlled from a free app for your iOs or android phone.

At a price tag of about €350 for the Duo, its saucy enough compared to basic models that do more or less the same thing for a fraction of the price. So the question is, is it worth paying the extra money? I've had an extend loan of one from a friend, so after 12 months of fairly regular use, here's my verdict.

Short answer: In my opinion yes, especially if convenience and ease of use is important  for you.

It comes in a tidy travel case, and hasn't caused me any problems so far while going through airport security in the EU with it in carry-on hand luggage. There are 2 sets of pairs of leads to connect the control units to the pads, long and short. This means lanky, long limbed feckers like myself  (6'3 /190cm) will have no problems due to short leads.

The app which controls everything is easy to use, and you can increase or decrease the level of stimulation at any time, as well as stopping a program early if you need to. There are several types of programs to choose from, and over the last 12 months I've put most of them to the test at some stage. 

You can also adjust the balance between comfort and effectiveness, which I think is a nice touch, and not something you can do with typical TENS/EMS units. 

The manual has nice big images for clear pad placement, and the re-usable pads themselves are recommended for about 25 uses, but it's possible to get much more use than that so long as you follow instructions diligently.

Powerdot 2.0 Duo Pad review

The good:

the magnetic contacts on the powerdot leads make it easier to click them into place than standard TENS/EMS pads. The relatively large size of these pads means you don't have to be quite as precise with placement to get the job done.

The bad:

I suggest using an alcohol wipe to clean any natural oils or sweat from the placement sites, otherwise the sticky pads will probably last less than the suggested 25 uses. And if you have body hair (chest hair for example) on the area(s) you intend to use these, think again. After 2 uses they will no longer stick on that area (but will still be ok for other areas like arms & legs).

The Ugly:

Heat is not their friend. I used these for lower back pain during a long car journey, and when i removed them the adhesive was coming away from the pads. It was sticking to everything except the back of the pads.

Overall:

I stilll recommend powerdot due to its sheer usefulness.. almost instant relief from back pain (and in my girlfriends case, period cramps). Keep in mind the usage instructions for the pads and you'll probably get more than the expected 25 uses. I have a previously gotten more than 50 uses from a set, so it's worth doing 'what it says on the tin'

Swearing reduces pain

Swearing in response to pain can have a painkilling effect (what did you say the last time you caught your hand in a door? I'll bet it wasn't "Thank you Mr. Door, for reminding me to move my hand faster next time").

Psychologists believe that swearing, considered an act of aggression if it's not part of your normal language, could trigger a fight-or-flight reaction which boosts pain tolerance.

However, if you use the f-word as an adjective, noun and verb, don't expect too much, as frequent swearing tends to dull the analgesic effect. It's believed that it's the emotional content that is attached to the word is crucial. Lets face it, saying "sugar!" doesn't have much in the way of emotional content for most of us.

I'm not going to suggest everyone start swearing like a sailor, or turning the air blue with profanities on stubbing a toe, but it may be a useful strategy for dealing with a bad case of DOMS! Perhaps though, instead of dropping the f-bomb every time, try emotionally charging a different word. I can think of several people for whom the word "jedward" triggers an instant fight or flight reaction!