DMSO for Pain: Why Todd Uses It in His Daily Routine
If you've been looking into DMSO for pain, chances are you are not doing it because everything feels great. Maybe it is an aching knee, a stiff shoulder, a cranky back—or simply the frustration of realizing that discomfort is starting to have too much say in what you do.
After enough years of surgeries, rehab, and mornings when his body wakes up before the rest of him does, Todd Bailey got pretty good at asking one question:
Is there another tool that could help me keep doing the things I want to do?
That question eventually led Todd to DMSO.
Not because DMSO promised to magically erase everything he'd put his body through. Twenty orthopedic surgeries have a way of making you suspicious of magic.
Todd became interested because DMSO was different from the other topicals he'd tried.
It moves through the skin unusually well. It can influence how certain other compounds move through the skin. And researchers have spent decades investigating its potential effects related to pain and inflammation.
Those properties eventually made DMSO part of Todd's own comfort routine—and helped shape the way we think about topical formulas at Herbal Mana today.
In the video below, Todd explains why.
Quick note: Our formulas have evolved since we recorded this episode. The article below reflects our current formulations and our current understanding of the research.
Prefer to read? Pull up a chair. We're going to focus less on giving you another giant DMSO encyclopedia and more on why Todd uses it, what makes it different, and what that looks like in real life.
What We'll Cover
- What Is DMSO—In Plain English?
- Why DMSO Caught Todd's Attention
- What Makes DMSO Different From an Ordinary Topical?
- Why DMSO Isn't Just About DMSO
- What the Research Says About DMSO for Pain
- What Using DMSO Actually Looks Like for Todd
- One Simple Rule Todd Follows: Start With Clean Skin
- What to Look for in a DMSO Product
- Why We Built DMSO Into Alpha Warrior
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Research References
What Is DMSO—In Plain English?
DMSO stands for dimethyl sulfoxide. It is a sulfur-containing compound best known for its unusual ability to pass through the skin and act as a penetration enhancer for certain other compounds.
In plain English?
DMSO is unusually good at getting through the front door.
And under the right circumstances, it may help certain other ingredients get through that door, too.
That's one of the things Todd found so interesting about it.
Looking for the complete DMSO deep dive? If you want the chemistry, origins, history, broader uses, research, and safety information, start with our complete What Is DMSO? guide. This article has a different job: understanding why Todd became interested in DMSO and what using it actually looks like in real life.
Why DMSO Caught Todd's Attention
Todd didn't come to DMSO from a chemistry lab.
He came to it after putting his body through the wringer.
Knees. Shoulders. Back. Joint replacements. Multiple surgeries. Years of trying to stay active when certain body parts occasionally seemed to have filed an official complaint.
Todd wasn't looking for another interesting ingredient to read about.
He wanted practical tools that might help him continue doing the things he enjoyed:
- Golf
- Working out
- Traveling
- Fishing
- Walking
- Playing with the grandkids
Because eventually discomfort stops being only about how something feels.
It becomes the hike you skip.
The garden you put off.
The golf clubs gathering dust.
The moment you look at the floor and think, If I get down there with these grandkids, I should probably have an exit strategy.
That's why DMSO caught Todd's attention.
What Makes DMSO Different From an Ordinary Topical?
One of DMSO's best-established properties is its ability to move through the skin and enhance the penetration of certain other substances.
That's an important distinction.
Many topical products are designed primarily to work at or near the skin's surface. DMSO has been studied extensively as a penetration enhancer because of the way it interacts with the skin barrier.
Todd explains the same idea in the video in simpler terms: DMSO interacts unusually well with both water- and oil-based substances.
That led him to an even more important question:
If DMSO can influence how certain ingredients move through the skin, what should you put alongside it?
And that's where DMSO stopped being interesting only as a single ingredient.
It became interesting as part of a formula.
Neighbor-to-neighbor version: Seeing “DMSO” on the front of a jar only tells you part of the story. If DMSO can help certain substances move through the skin, what is traveling alongside it matters, too.
DMSO Isn't Just About DMSO
Todd spends a good portion of the video talking about ingredients he liked pairing with DMSO.
Our formulas have changed since this episode was recorded, but the underlying principle hasn't:
The complete formula matters.
Instead of asking only:
“Does this contain DMSO?”
We think it's worth asking:
“What else is in here—and why?”
For a muscle-and-joint-focused product like Alpha Warrior, the current formula combines pharmaceutical-grade DMSO with ingredients including magnesium, MSM, hyaluronic acid, aloe, copaiba, frankincense, peppermint, wintergreen, lavender, rosemary, and other supporting ingredients.
Each has a reason for being there.
The goal isn't to create the longest ingredient list possible.
It's to build a topical that makes sense as a whole.
That's one of the biggest ideas Todd took away from working with DMSO:
Its carrier-like properties don't make the other ingredients less important. They make choosing those ingredients more important.
What Does the Research Say About DMSO for Pain?
DMSO has been studied for potential pain-relieving and anti-inflammatory effects, but the strength of the evidence varies depending on the condition and use.
Some human research has reported potential pain-relieving effects, while other reviews have concluded that stronger clinical trials are needed before making broader therapeutic claims.
That's more nuanced than saying:
“DMSO cures pain.”
And that's okay.
You don't need a miracle claim to have something worth understanding.
Our straight answer: DMSO has legitimate properties that make it interesting for topical comfort, and research has explored its relationship with pain and inflammation. But we view it as a comfort tool—not a cure-all.
That happens to fit Todd's approach pretty well.
After twenty surgeries, he doesn't have only one tool in the toolbox.
What Does Using DMSO Actually Look Like for Todd?
This is where a textbook can explain what DMSO is.
Todd can explain where it fits into an actual Tuesday.
He has used DMSO as part of his own routine around exercise and at other points during the day when a troublesome area starts demanding more attention.
The important point isn't Todd's exact schedule.
It's that DMSO became part of a routine rather than an emergency button.
Before Activity
You probably already know which knee, shoulder, or muscle tends to complain first.
Todd likes having a topical tool nearby before heading into activities that ask more of those areas.
After Activity
Sometimes the workout, yard project, golf game, or hike feels terrific.
Then your body sends the invoice.
Having a simple post-activity routine can make comfort support part of recovery rather than something you think about only after you're miserable.
When an Old Problem Area Gets Loud
Some days, a particular knee or shoulder simply has more to say.
Todd's approach has been to keep his comfort tools easy to reach and easy to use.
His personal routine isn't a prescription for everyone else.
It illustrates a much bigger idea:
Todd's practical approach: The best comfort routine isn't the one that sounds impressive. It's the one you can realistically use while living your life.
One Simple Rule Todd Follows: Start With Clean Skin
This might be the least glamorous advice in the video.
It's also some of the most useful.
Clean the application area first.
Because DMSO can enhance the penetration of certain substances, Todd doesn't treat applying it like rubbing ordinary lotion over whatever happens to be sitting on his skin.
If he's just finished a workout, for example, he'll wash away sweat and residue before applying a DMSO topical.
A good basic routine is simple:
- Wash the application area.
- Allow the skin to dry.
- Apply the DMSO product according to its directions.
- Avoid unnecessarily layering it over lotions, fragrances, or other topical products.
No elaborate ritual required.
Your bathroom does not need to become Hogwarts Potions class.
Clean skin. Follow the directions. Keep it simple.
Read our complete guide to applying DMSO topically.
The Experience That Changed How Todd Thought About Topicals
Todd's interest in formulation became especially personal during his long history of knee problems.
After one of his knee replacements, he remembers struggling through a difficult recovery period when discomfort made sleep especially challenging.
Anne began experimenting with topical essential-oil combinations as part of Todd's personal comfort routine.
That experience raised a question that eventually became much bigger than any one ingredient:
What happens when you thoughtfully combine topical ingredients instead of thinking about each one in isolation?
That question followed Todd into his work with DMSO.
And eventually into Herbal Mana.
The formulas have changed over the years.
The question hasn't.
How do you build better topical tools for people who still have things they want to do?
What Should You Look for in a DMSO Product?
Once you start shopping for DMSO, you'll discover plenty of choices.
Straight DMSO. Gels. Creams. Different concentrations. Different grades. Different formulas.
Todd would encourage you to look beyond the biggest letters on the front label.
Pay Attention to DMSO Quality
Herbal Mana uses 99.995% pharmaceutical-grade DMSO as an ingredient in our topical formulas.
“Pharmaceutical-grade” refers to the quality and purity specification of the ingredient. It does not mean that an over-the-counter topical DMSO product is FDA-approved to treat pain.
Pay Attention to the Complete Formula
DMSO on the label doesn't tell you everything.
Ask what's accompanying it and what the finished product was designed to support.
Pay Attention to How You're Supposed to Use It
A trustworthy topical should give you clear application instructions rather than encouraging the idea that more is always better.
Those aren't very flashy criteria.
They're just useful ones.
Why We Built DMSO Into Alpha Warrior
By now, you can probably see why saying:
“Alpha Warrior contains DMSO.”
only tells you part of the story.
Alpha Warrior is our muscle-and-joint-focused DMSO cream.
It brings together 99.995% pharmaceutical-grade DMSO, magnesium, MSM, hyaluronic acid, aloe, and a targeted essential-oil blend in one topical formula.
The idea is simple:
Give hardworking muscles and joints a practical comfort tool that's easy to fit into real life.
Clean the area.
Apply Alpha Warrior according to the directions.
Then get back to whatever was on the agenda.
The walk.
The workout.
The yard.
The golf course.
The grandkids.
Or simply getting through Tuesday without every movement turning into a committee meeting.
The Bottom Line
Todd has spent a lot of years trying different ways to support a body that's been through more than its fair share.
DMSO earned a place in his routine because it behaves differently from an ordinary topical ingredient.
It moves readily through the skin.
It can enhance the penetration of certain other compounds.
It has been studied for potential effects related to pain and inflammation.
And perhaps most importantly for Herbal Mana, it made Todd think differently about what belongs in a topical formula in the first place.
That's really the lesson behind this episode.
DMSO isn't interesting because someone made a giant list of things it supposedly does.
It's interesting because a few of its properties are genuinely unusual—and useful enough to deserve a closer look.
For Todd, that closer look became part of his own routine.
For Herbal Mana, it eventually helped inspire something bigger:
Better topical tools for people who aren't ready to stop doing the things they love.
Hurt Less – Live More.
Frequently Asked Questions About DMSO
Why does Todd use DMSO?
Todd uses DMSO as one part of his personal topical comfort routine after years of orthopedic surgeries, joint problems, exercise, and staying active.
He became especially interested in how readily DMSO moves through the skin and how its penetration-enhancing properties may complement a thoughtfully designed topical formula.
What makes DMSO different from an ordinary topical?
DMSO moves through the skin readily and is widely studied as a penetration enhancer.
That means the complete formula matters: DMSO may influence how certain compatible ingredients move through the skin rather than simply sitting at the surface.
Does DMSO help with pain?
DMSO has been studied for potential pain-relieving and anti-inflammatory effects, and some research has reported encouraging results.
However, evidence varies by condition and use, so DMSO is better understood as a potential comfort-support tool than as a proven treatment for chronic pain generally.
Why should skin be clean before applying DMSO?
DMSO can enhance the movement of certain substances through the skin.
Washing away sweat, lotion, fragrance, sunscreen, dirt, and other residue creates a cleaner and more predictable application environment.
What should I look for in a DMSO product?
Look beyond the word “DMSO” on the front label. Consider the quality of the DMSO ingredient, the complete formula, clear application directions, and whether the product was intentionally formulated for topical human use.
“Pharmaceutical-grade” describes the purity or quality specification of the DMSO ingredient; it does not mean the finished topical product is FDA-approved to treat pain.
Looking for Information That Is a Little Closer to What You're Dealing With?
These Herbal Mana guides may help:
Want to Learn More About DMSO?
- What Is DMSO? The Complete Guide
- Is DMSO Natural? Where DMSO Really Comes From
- How DMSO Works: Exploring the Science Behind It
- How to Apply DMSO Topically
- DMSO Learning Resources
Research References
- Marren K. “Dimethyl Sulfoxide: An Effective Penetration Enhancer for Topical Administration of NSAIDs.” The Physician and Sportsmedicine. 2011;39(3):75–82. PubMed.
- Swanson BN. “Medical Use of Dimethyl Sulfoxide (DMSO).” Reviews in Clinical & Basic Pharmacology. 1985. PubMed.
- Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. “Dimethylsulfoxide.” Memorial Sloan Kettering.
- Madsen BK, Hilscher M, Zetner D, Rosenberg J. “Adverse Reactions of Dimethyl Sulfoxide in Humans: A Systematic Review.” F1000Research. 2019;7:1746. National Institutes of Health.
- DailyMed. “RIMSO-50 (Dimethyl Sulfoxide) 50% Aqueous Solution for Intravesical Instillation.” DailyMed.
These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This content is provided for educational purposes and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease or health condition. Results vary. Consult your healthcare professional before use if pregnant, nursing, taking medications, under medical care, or experiencing new, severe, unexplained, or worsening symptoms.