I've been using pharmaceutical drugs with an LLND for the first time in the 2 decades I've had lyme and co. I got healthy using laser therapy and colloidal silver for a glorious 4 years of remission but relapsed in 2014. Started antibiotics January 2017.
Anyhow, I'm on bicillin LA, alinia, mepron and minocycline. I have had a lot of nausea and it is difficult to eat (trying to eat 23 grams of fat at breakfast every day for Mepron is almost making me gag).
I've been waking nightly usually between 1 and 4 feeling afraid (I have had this for years now but it has been occurring more frequently). Still having some drenching night sweats, often low grade fevers, dizziness, derealization, myoclonus, crushing fatigue and other stuff I cannot remember at the moment. I have been losing weight again as well to where I am now underweight, which makes me feel more weak.
I just started minocycline for the first time about a week ago and my doc has increased weekly number of bicillin LA injections in November, I've pulsed both alinia (just 3 day pulse every two weeks) and mepron before, but never taken them every day like I am now.
I felt like I was going to die this morning waiting for my kids at the dentist, so head foggy, dizzy, anxious. I have not felt this bad since I attempted rifampin last May which lasted a week before I gave up.
Has anyone taken this combo before? If it's herx is it likely lyme or babs? I want to continue treatment but if these are just nasty side effects I also don't want to harm my body with these drugs.
Thanks
Posted by Sammi (Member # 110) on :
Ocean, I am sorry you are feeling so crummy.
I believe that both Babesia and Minocycline can cause nausea. I think when you take Mino, like Doxy, you need to avoid dairy products for two hours or it will not be absorbed properly. Make sure you drink a full glass of water when you take it. Things that helped me with nausea were ginger capsules or papaya tablets. Most health-food stores have these.
To me the symptoms you list sound like Babesia, so I think you could be herxing. How long have you been on Mepron? It can cause an intense herx. It is my understanding that Mepron needs to be taken with Zithromax or Clarithomycin to work effectively. You may want to talk with your doctor about this.
When having a severe herx, it is okay to back off the meds for a few days to let things settle down.
I hope things ease up for you soon.
Posted by mrsfarmer (Member # 50042) on :
Ocean,
That sounds like my Babesia herxes I would get. Also had lost a lot of weight as well. Driving used to provide some of the worst anxiety for me, so I had to be cautious with that.
Like Sammi, I was told the Mepron had to be taken with one of those drugs as well to get the full effect of it.
And if you take mino, make sure you spread out the mino and mepron an hour apart as it lessens the effectiveness of one of the drugs (I forget which one). My pharmacist was very insistent upon this after looking up drug interactions.
Six months of treatment, and some babesia symptoms still linger for me. I am taking artemisinin to try and clean up any remaining babesia (along with my other meds).
Posted by Brussels (Member # 13480) on :
I also agree with both above: this is screaming like babesia!!
Don't worry: it's not you, changing, getting crazy. It's babesia symptoms making you feel SOMEONE ELSE.
You'll get better with treatment. But it does sound babesiosis.
And it sounds like herxes to me, but who knows...?
I would take BINDERS to avoid such reactions. Only binders can show you if what you go through are HERXES or something else.
If binders help (and that can be rather fast, I swear!), it means herxes.
Posted by Badtick (Member # 9794) on :
I third the above. Sounds like what I went through with babs/mepron treatment. I got much better after that!
Posted by Ocean (Member # 3496) on :
Thank you all for taking the time to respond. Sammi,yes I don't take dairy products around minocycline and no laying down within 30 mins of taking it. I did stop all meds for a day and it seemed to help the nausea. I will try ginger though!I told my doc I didn't want to try zithromax since it can cause the long QT. I have SVT and am afraid it might mess with my heart. I really hope just the mepron will be affective, or taking the alinia with it will help?
Mrsfarmer, yes you are right about spreading the mino out. I read it can cause a 40% reduction in plasma levels of the mepron. I read tetracyclines can decrease penicillins too and asked my doc about it for the bicillin and he said not to worry too much about that. How much artemsinin do you take? I was taking artemsinin with malarone (which malarone made me feel worse than mepron...maybe it means it was working better?), and would take 800-900 mg per day, (with grapefruit juice and fat per Dr. Klinghardt instructions I have read). Yes I do try my best to avoid driving when I feel really anxious, but I am a single mom to my three kids so I can't avoid it entirely unfortunately.
Brussels, thanks for the encouragement...it helps me to feel better that maybe this is just doing some major killing and it will all be worth it in the end! I do need to increase my binders...cholestryramine often makes me feel worse, but I do have activated charcoal, l orthinine and bentonite clay I could use instead. It is so hard for me to time the binders around eating/meds.
Badtick, ha I like your name...perfect for this stie! Thank you...I am glad you are doing better, I hope to join you soon. Did you take zith with your mepron?