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Reviewed by Josie:
 When I had my baby a few years ago, I was lent a similar one by a friend. Since I am not in labour any more, I did wonder what use I was going to get with the Elle TENS. I didn’t realise how versatile this little unit could be, until I was given my own TENS to use for pain relief.
I competed in athletics before and after I had my baby, so I have a number of back, neck and calf muscle complaints – all of which require a fair amount of massage or Ibuprofen!
The Elle TENS is a handy unit that comes packaged with all the necessary leads, pads and even batteries! It even came with a handy neck strap and belt clip, plus a soft drawstring pouch to carry everything.
The assembly instructions were clear. I had no trouble setting it all up and getting started. The Elle TENS is lightweight and designed to fit into the hands comfortably without worrying about dropping it. It gives you the option to move around with it by carrying it around your neck or by clipping it to your belt.
I found that when I used the TENS on moisturised skin, the adhesive pads were peeling off at the edges and not staying on firmly. This can be uncomfortable when the TENS is in use – I was getting a prickly sensation. At first, I couldn’t tell if it was that or my sore muscles! When I used the adhesive pads on completely dry skin, the pads held on well to the skin and caused no discomfort.
After a number of uses, the pads were losing their stickiness. According to the instruction booklet, adding a drop of water to the pads can revive this. However, I found that although I did that, it was still not holding as firm as before. In the end I would use extra clothing to hold the pads in place (particularly on my back). The loss of stickiness could possibly have been caused by the fact that I did not use it on completely dry skin in the first place, therefore leaving a residue on the pad's surface. I am not sure how long these pads will keep going, but I reckon I will need to order replacements soon.
The other difficulty was knowing where to place the pads. Since I have quite a lot of pain in the back of my neck, I was reluctant to use the TENS there, as the pads are quite large and some of the neck area can be unsuitable for TENS use. The instruction booklet does not give adequate guidelines as to where to place the pads for specific painful areas. The stylised illustrations on the box were only indicative but not really instructive.
There are 2 modes or pulse patterns to the TENS and this can be increased steadily within your comfort zone. You can even hit the BOOST button to temporarily increase intensity. This is especially useful for labour contractions. I found that 2 modes were not really enough for my sporting pains, as muscles need a lot of dynamic movement to loosen them up; otherwise they get used to the same patterns and stay there. In order to avoid this, I would frequently switch modes.
As pain relief goes it was very good. I found that if I used the Elle TENS one evening, I would be fine the next day, or even for the next 5 days or so (until I ping something else during sport). 
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Pros
- Very good pain relief
- Easy to use
- A well-designed unit
- Lightweight
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Cons
- Pads lose stickiness on semi-moist skin
- Not clear where to put pads on the body
- 2 modes are probably not enough
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TENS stands for Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation. By placing adhesive electrode pads on your body, pulses are transmitted across the skin to reduce pain sensation. These units are a tried and tested way of treating pain. They deliver Drug Free Pain Relief. Pain relief is often dramatic and drug intake can be reduced or avoided altogether. TENS units have been used for many years to treat various painful conditions, and they are recommended by doctors, physiotherapists, midwives and pain clinics worldwide.
