phyl6648
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 28522
posted
I know I must be med phobic.. Maybe due to many reactions. Now I am afraid to take medicine.
I always start out with a small dose and keep increasing it. My doc knows this.
It took me awhile to ever get started on the abx. I know I must but at the same time I still have the fear.
Same with supplements, vitamins etc. I take them one at a time so I am taking meds all day. Mainly because I forgot to ask my doctor if it was safe to take them all together.
Honestly, I hate being this way but this disease has messed with my mind.. or something has. maybe PTSD ...
Posts: 1058 | From VA | Registered: Oct 2010
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Razzle
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 30398
posted
If you've had reactions, it is smart to do it like this - carefully, slowly, and one at a time. Not PTSD, just common sense.
-------------------- -Razzle Lyme IgM IGeneX Pos. 18+++, 23-25+, 30++, 31+, 34++, 39 IND, 83-93 IND; IgG IGeneX Neg. 30+, 39 IND; Mayo/CDC Pos. IgM 23+, 39+; IgG Mayo/CDC Neg. band 41+; Bart. (clinical dx; Fry Labs neg. for all coinfections), sx >30 yrs. Posts: 4166 | From WA | Registered: Feb 2011
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scorpiogirl
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 31907
posted
I think that's being smart. You have to respect the meds and the supplements b/c you just never know how YOU are going to react!
I normally start at either 1/4 or 1/2 of whatever my LLMD recommends. And I take a whole week letting my body adjusts to it before adding on anything new. So if I'm having a problems I know exactly which med/herb is giving me problems.
At first both my LLMD and Pharmacist thought I was being too paranoid... but now they respect my method since I am always able to pinpoint what med/herb is hurting me vs. helping me.
-------------------- --Lymetutu-- Opinions, not medical advice! Posts: 96220 | From Texas | Registered: Feb 2001
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phyl6648
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 28522
posted
Tks. for you replies. I think one reason of the fear is with lyme meds you don't gradually improve you get sicker, then I doubt is it the meds or herx.
Hard at times to tell the difference.
If you have a strep throat after a few day of abx you see improvement .. Oh, if it could only be that way with lyme and not take forever.
Oh, well we have to do what we have to do .
Posts: 1058 | From VA | Registered: Oct 2010
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Tincup
Honored Contributor (10K+ posts)
Member # 5829
posted
Your body is telling you something. I don't know what, but listen to it.
Have you been tested for MTHFR?
And don't feel bad about being a big sissy. I am exactly the same way... and after many years I finally learned why!
Doing it slow and easy is a MUST for some people, so join the sissy baby club- I am a member- and be proud of it!
Haley
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 22008
posted
I'm afraid to take meds and I'm afraid to be off of them. I can feel my body adapting to these drugs which can be a scary feeling but when I'm off them I feel worse. Quite a dilemma.
Posts: 2232 | From USA | Registered: Aug 2009
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quote:Originally posted by fatigued15: I would be afraid not to take them.
- Amen
-------------------- --Lymetutu-- Opinions, not medical advice! Posts: 96220 | From Texas | Registered: Feb 2001
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lyme in Putnam
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 11561
posted
I used to beo afraid, but felt so bad, I ran to pharmacy for relief. I try to do one thing at a time then add to see what's doing what. I'm a mess for a long time. Feel good.
posted
I hate pills and always have. I would suffer through a headache or allergies just to avoid the liver damage and toxicity of the pill.
LD fixed that for me quick. All I knew was that the LD would destroy me worse and faster than any abx could.
I look at it as collateral damage, I'll never be as healthy and care free as I once was but I have the satisfaction of killing possibly billions of bacteria that tried to kill me.
Pick your poison, I'll go with the willful liver damage.
Posts: 80 | From US | Registered: Aug 2011
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posted
Some of us don't detox well, so we have to go slow. We might even react. I did a liver test that showed particular genetic deficiencies, but I already knew I was a slow one.
And others of us can do anything and get away with it!
Posts: 13116 | From San Francisco | Registered: May 2006
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AZURE WISH
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 804
posted
I react bad to what seems to be evrything for lyme for not lyme evrything... so yes.
i have finally gotten old or smart enough (probaly just old) that i figured out I should get everything i am going to take muscle tested before trying...
but i am having a heck of a time finding a local muscle tester.
posted
I have the same problem with fear of medicine
I have taken very few meds over the last 20 years and have used herbs and supplements
When you read the side effects on half these meds that is enough to scare anyone
My doc put me on two new antibiotics and It took me a few days until i finnaly took the medicine
If you had a few bad experiences on meds that would explain with you have fear concerning medicine
Once I get past the first few doses with no problems I am ok
I want to get better and If It means I have to take antibiotics to do it I will
I know what you are going through
Posts: 26 | From Northeast PA Allentown Lehigh Area | Registered: Jul 2010
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Brussels
Frequent Contributor (5K+ posts)
Member # 13480
posted
I always suffered with abx, much before I had lyme. And got an aversion to chemicals, so not even Aspirin (that caused me anyway, tummy aches).
when I take abx, it is only for short term and for a very good reason. I suffer with it, and usually stop at day 3 with more pain than before start. So I always looked for alternatives.
There are too many alternatives to abx to be ignored. Not all herbs go well with everybody, so one has to know. I'm much less afraid of herbs, even though I crashed on quite some too. But I fell less poisoned by herbs.
One does not HAVE to pass through abx to get healed. Only if you have no other alternative. Looking for other alternatives are harder than looking for antibiotics, because you need a full combination of herbs instead of a single chemical.
I always followed my gut.
Today I'm a full user of nosodes and homeopathy. They go much smoother and heal better than most things, even herbs, in my experience.
I take the penicilins in homeopathic dilution, they work wonderful without the awful side effects. Your gut flora is kept well!! But only experience will give you that confidence.
Posts: 6199 | From Brussels | Registered: Oct 2007
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Yes, I think it is reasonble to think about it before taking anything,
and yes, I think with Lyme, especially Bartonella, fear is hightened in the brain and we need to be kind to ourselves and acknowledge that and work with it: support ourselves even more than other people and find comfort and re-assurance for ourselves
no need to add more stress
I told my LLMD that I wish to take one thing at a time to see the effect and she was fine with that - she presecribed 7 new substances for me to take - I only asked her if it was imporatant to take some of them together or if it was ok to wait on all but one and introduce one at a time
never mind if the stuff is presecription or herb - my body is messed up enough already and very sensitive / at the edge anyway, so I am careful when I throw in a new thing, especially if it is said to affect the balance my body has created with these bacteria and toxins
I think you are right to be afraid - and then act accordingly: get yourself all the information you need to feel confident again before you move forward
sometimes feeling worse can give you fear to take something but if you understand that it is a Herx and a positive thing, then you may be confident again to go ahead
I think it is important for your to make your own decisions, with information, and with the help of an LLMD
-------------------- Persistence, persistence, persistence!!! "Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence... Persistence and determination are omnipotent." attributed to Calvin Coolidge Posts: 599 | From USA | Registered: Jun 2011
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