Hyperbaric 101

Learn hyperbaric therapy, the simple way

No confusing words, no boring lectures. By the time you finish this page, you'll understand exactly how these chambers work, and why they help your body heal. There are even a couple of games along the way.

Chapter 1

Your body runs on oxygen

Every single part of you, your skin, your muscles, your brain, is made of tiny living building blocks called cells. Cells need oxygen the same way a car needs gas. No oxygen, no energy to grow or heal.

Where your oxygen comes from

You breathe in air

Air has oxygen in it

Your blood picks it up

Like a delivery truck

Your cells use it to heal

Fuel for repair

Fun fact: normal air is only about 21% oxygen. The rest is mostly nitrogen, a gas your body doesn't really use.

Chapter 2

What is pressure?

Pressure is just a fancy word for "push." Right now, air is gently pushing on you from every direction, you just can't feel it because you're used to it.

Here's the cool part: when you push on something harder, you can squeeze more stuff into the same space. Try it yourself below.

Game: Squeeze the Balloon

Drag the slider to add more pressure and watch what happens

No extra pressure Lots of pressure

Slide to see what pressure does to the space inside the balloon.

Chapter 3

Put it together: the chamber

A hyperbaric chamber is a sealed pod. When you get inside and it seals up, it slowly adds pressure around you, just like squeezing that balloon.

That extra pressure does something amazing: it lets your blood soak up way more oxygen than it normally could. More oxygen delivered to your cells means your body can repair itself faster.

Comparing air to air, but under pressure

Normal air, normal pressure

Your blood carries a normal amount of oxygen

Cells get their usual supply

Healing happens at a normal pace

Inside a hyperbaric chamber

Extra pressure lets blood carry much more oxygen

Cells get flooded with extra fuel

Your body's natural healing gets a boost

Chapter 4

Now you deliver the oxygen

Below are 24 blood cells waiting for a ride. Click each one to fill it up with oxygen, just like what happens inside a pressurized chamber. See how fast you can fill your whole bloodstream.

Game: Fill the Bloodstream

Click every circle to load it with oxygen

0 out of 24 cells oxygenated

Chapter 5

Words you now know

Oxygen

A gas in the air that your cells need to make energy and heal.

Pressure

How hard something is pushing. More pressure means more stuff can be squeezed into the same space.

Hyperbaric

A big word that just means "higher pressure than normal."

ATA

Short for Atmosphere Absolute, the unit used to measure pressure inside a chamber.

Cells

The tiny living building blocks that make up every part of your body.

CO2 Scrubber

A part that removes the air you breathe out, so the chamber always has fresh air.

Final challenge

Prove you're a hyperbaric expert

Five quick questions. No pressure, well, maybe a little.

Question 1 of 5

Nice work!