PERSONAL STORY / 2019-era source
My CRPS and Sunlighten video testimonial
A personal account of living with CRPS and using infrared sauna. Not a clinical demonstration of treatment effectiveness.
Watch directly on YouTube ↗← Sunlighten Research Library
THE REAL STORY / THEN AND NOW
Some days, I just needed a little warmth.
It wasn't always a full spa appointment. Sometimes the most valuable perk of working at Sunlighten was being able to step away from my desk for a few minutes, warm up, and return to the day.
01 / ON THE CLOCK
Clothes on. Heat turned down.
When I worked at Sunlighten in Overland Park, I could walk into one of the demonstration saunas while I was still fully dressed. I'd turn it on fairly low—just enough warmth to feel comfortable—and sit for a while before going back to my desk.
I wasn't always looking for a big, sweaty sauna session. I was trying to manage how I felt, find some relief, and get on with the rest of the workday. I remember those small breaks because they mattered.
That's part of why I want this section of the site to be about more than specifications or marketing claims. Sometimes a product fits into a person's life in a very ordinary, meaningful way.
02 / THE DAY SPA
My favorite work perk.
Other days I would head down to the Sunlighten Day Spa and book a session in an mPulse. I'd settle in, enjoy the warmth, then head back to work. Looking back, access to those saunas was easily one of my favorite perks of that job.
In my earlier published account, I described using the mPulse Conquer at the spa roughly three times a week during that period. I also described breathing exercises, meditation music and gentle stretching. Those were part of the experience, alongside the heat.
It gave me a pocket of quiet in the middle of a busy workday. I felt that the sessions helped me manage my CRPS pain. That's a personal experience I don't want the science discussion to erase.
03 / STILL PART OF MY LIFE
The Solo is still here.
That chapter didn't end when I left Sunlighten. I still have my portable Solo System, and I still use it—especially on difficult pain days.
During colder weather and bad flares, I've returned to it for the comfort of warmth. It isn't a cure or a magic reset button, and my response can vary. But having that familiar option available remains meaningful to me.
I want to document the bad days as carefully as the better ones. The Solo has been one of the things I've tried across different chapters of this journey, alongside many other treatments and adjustments.
04 / MY PERSONAL FAVORITE
Of all the saunas I tried? mPulse.
I got to try different Sunlighten saunas while working there. If you ask me which one I liked most, my answer is still the mPulse.
That's a statement about the experience, not a claim that the mPulse is medically superior or appropriate for every person with CRPS. I enjoyed being able to settle into a session and the flexibility that system offered. It became part of a routine that I valued.
The equipment and software have continued to evolve. I distinguish the mPulse Conquer I used years ago from the current product line and its newer controls.
THE ARCHIVE / WATCH THE STORY
A story you can hear, too.
This older video is part of the public record of my experience. It documents what I reported at the time; it does not prove a medical mechanism or treatment outcome.
KEEP THE PICTURE COMPLETE
What helped me is worth sharing. So are the unanswered questions.
CRPS isn't simple, and neither is recovery. Infrared sessions were one part of a much bigger picture that included rehabilitation, other interventions, daily routines and time. I can describe how much the warmth meant to me without claiming it works the same way for everyone.
Editorial date: November 2026. Newer recollections are labeled as recollections; historical details are linked to dated sources. This is lived experience, not a medical prescription or an endorsement by Sunlighten.