LymeNet Home LymeNet Home Page LymeNet Flash Discussion LymeNet Support Group Database LymeNet Literature Library LymeNet Legal Resources LymeNet Medical & Scientific Abstract Database LymeNet Newsletter Home Page LymeNet Recommended Books LymeNet Tick Pictures Search The LymeNet Site LymeNet Links LymeNet Frequently Asked Questions About The Lyme Disease Network LymeNet Menu

LymeNet on Facebook

LymeNet on Twitter




The Lyme Disease Network receives a commission from Amazon.com for each purchase originating from this site.

When purchasing from Amazon.com, please
click here first.

Thank you.

LymeNet Flash Discussion
Dedicated to the Bachmann Family

LymeNet needs your help:
LymeNet 2020 fund drive


The Lyme Disease Network is a non-profit organization funded by individual donations.

LymeNet Flash Post New Topic  New Poll  Post A Reply
my profile | directory login | register | search | faq | forum home

  next oldest topic   next newest topic
» LymeNet Flash » Questions and Discussion » Medical Questions » Confused about med switch

 - UBBFriend: Email this page to someone!    
Author Topic: Confused about med switch
average joe
LymeNet Contributor
Member # 26091

Icon 1 posted      Profile for average joe     Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post   Reply With Quote 
Sounds like I'm not on enough amox 2000mg/day + 150 billion micro probiotic. I was on only 200mg Doxy for the last 6 weeks with 50 billion micro probiotic. this semmed to be helping. I don't understand since the doc said bart was an issue also in addition to lyme and I have bart symptoms why he would take me off the doxy and put me on amox. <----previous sentence edited from first thought to make appropriate to post lol.

Doxy indications are lyme and bart amoung a hundred other things so again why would the doc take me off when i was just starting to feel decent. grrrrr. I hope one of you kind folks can give me some insight on the logic here. Should I stay on doxy as well or just stop the amox and go back on doxy.

Some of the above was taken from my previous post from yesterday. I thought the title to this new post is more indicative of my concerns.

--------------------
If you play at the beach, expect to get some sand in your shorts [Smile]

Posts: 223 | From central pa | Registered: May 2010  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
sixgoofykids
Moderator
Member # 11141

Icon 1 posted      Profile for sixgoofykids   Author's Homepage     Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post   Reply With Quote 
Stay on the meds your LLMD prescribed.

As far as I know doxy is not for bart anyway. I know it never touched mine. I took Levaquin for bartonella, and I took it with the amoxy.

I think TF had a good point about why the doxy for only a couple months .... erlichia .... in your other post.

--------------------
sixgoofykids.blogspot.com

Posts: 13449 | From Ohio | Registered: Feb 2007  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
average joe
LymeNet Contributor
Member # 26091

Icon 1 posted      Profile for average joe     Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post   Reply With Quote 
Thanks sixgoofykids. I am frustrated right now because the bart symptoms are often what keeps me from being able to function. Soles of feet feel like someone was hitting them with a baseball bat. Leg muscles week, all joints in legs and feet painfull. Of course there are many other symptoms I have but I attributed the above to bart. Is this not correct. I realize that folks on here are not docs but there definately is a wealth of knowledge.

--------------------
If you play at the beach, expect to get some sand in your shorts [Smile]

Posts: 223 | From central pa | Registered: May 2010  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
sixgoofykids
Moderator
Member # 11141

Icon 1 posted      Profile for sixgoofykids   Author's Homepage     Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post   Reply With Quote 
Soles of feet hurting is usually attributed to bart, BUT it can be a sluggish lymphatic system. Buhner recommends red root tincture for lymph. It's a good remedy, but start slowly!! It kicked my butt the first time I used it. I had bart but never had sore feet.

The rest of your symptoms can be Lyme.

You would like his book, Healing Lyme. He's a master herbalist and is not against abx, so his herbs work well along with your pharmaceutical protocols.

--------------------
sixgoofykids.blogspot.com

Posts: 13449 | From Ohio | Registered: Feb 2007  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
average joe
LymeNet Contributor
Member # 26091

Icon 1 posted      Profile for average joe     Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post   Reply With Quote 
OK I guess I'll give the amox a try. It's only been a few days so once I get over the herx thats certain to come maybe I'll sneak in a higher dose. Shhh. lol. I am not a small guy (not a huge one either)and just want to make sure I have an effective dose going. Is the probenecid a probiotic?. As for the bart, I just checked and it looks like the z-max will work on that.

--------------------
If you play at the beach, expect to get some sand in your shorts [Smile]

Posts: 223 | From central pa | Registered: May 2010  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
BackinStOlaf
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 23725

Icon 1 posted      Profile for BackinStOlaf     Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post   Reply With Quote 
Zith works for bart but not on its own usually..it can hit it but won't get rid of it- it is usually given with something else

--------------------
First Symptom 9/09
Multiple docs, negative Labcorp test
LLMD: 1/10
Positive Igenex/CDC test
Treatment 2/10
2/10-8/10 Amox, ceftin, zith, flagyl
Currently: Bicillin, Minocycline, still dealing with severe breathing issues

 -

Posts: 1121 | From New York, New York | Registered: Dec 2009  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
TF
Frequent Contributor (5K+ posts)
Member # 14183

Icon 1 posted      Profile for TF     Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post   Reply With Quote 
First your doc went after ehrlichia (and lyme), and now he is going after lyme. This is absolutely normal.

My doc treated each of my diseases separately. First lyme, then bart, then babesiosis.

It has been over 5 years now since I completed my lyme treatment and I am still symptom-free, enjoying my life.

So, there is nothing for you to be worrying about. Follow your doc's instructions. Otherwise, you are endangering yourself.

People whose doctors treat all 3 diseases at once have a rough row to hoe. That approach is not necessary. Your doc is doing well. Don't second guess him.

You will need patience with this disease. Treatment is not done in a month or 2. Think 1 year or more.

Lyme treatment is like this: stay on one med until you are feeling good, then switch to the next med which will make you feel bad.

That's just the way it is. If you are feeling good on a med, the doc knows it is not killing anything anymore. So then it is time to go after another disease or change meds to see if there is still more of the same disease to treat.

When you report that you started to feel worse after the med change, the doctor knows that the new med is killing germs. The result of killing is toxins in the body from the dead germs. Toxins make us feel lousy.

Lyme is crafty. It can adapt to various meds. So, the doc will have to change the lyme meds from time to time or add another med to maintain the killing.

Just because you are feeling good does not mean you are making progress with the disease. That's what you have to keep in mind.

You will have to get used to this. Just when you are feeling good, they switch meds on you. I remember my girlfriend figuring out this pattern and dreading seeing the lyme doc for her next appt because she was feeling good, so she figured the doc would change her meds. (She got rid of her diseases, too, by the way.)

When my doc started going after babesiosis, the new meds made me really feel bad. But, over time, I started to feel better. But, we are talking a few months.

That is the pattern you will be following. That's why they say 2 steps forward and 1 back.

Let the doc treat lyme first. Then, you can request that he treat bartonella next. But, your doc will make the decision.

Both lyme and babesiosis compromise the immune system, so the docs often go after these 2 first. It is so that the immune system does not get totally destroyed by these diseases. Bart does not do this, so your doc may save bart treatment until last.

Perhaps at future appointments, when the doc says he is switching your meds, you could ask him, "What disease will these new meds be going after?"

This could really help you understand what is behind each treatment decision. Then, you would feel better about what is happening.

Posts: 9931 | From Maryland | Registered: Dec 2007  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
TF
Frequent Contributor (5K+ posts)
Member # 14183

Icon 1 posted      Profile for TF     Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post   Reply With Quote 
Probenecid is not a probiotic. It is a drug that keeps the amoxi from being filtered out of your blood. This way, the amoxi stays in your system longer.

Drugs have a half-life. The half-life tells you how long it takes the body to filter out half of the med. Probenecid prolongs the half-life of amoxi so that you always have a killing dose in your blood.

If the dosage goes too low, it will just stop the lyme from multiplying, but it will not kill it. (Called a bacteriostatic dose rather than a bactericidal dose.)

Probiotics put good bacteria back in your stomach and intestines.

Posts: 9931 | From Maryland | Registered: Dec 2007  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
average joe
LymeNet Contributor
Member # 26091

Icon 1 posted      Profile for average joe     Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post   Reply With Quote 
As always many thanks to everyone for their input. TF and sixgoofykids especially. TF, I think you should go to med school, become a doc and give us another resource [Embarrassed] ). You apparently have a complete handle on this lyme crap. I still don't understand why such a low dose amox with no mention of increasing it. Any thoughts?? Also how do you know when you are cured??

--------------------
If you play at the beach, expect to get some sand in your shorts [Smile]

Posts: 223 | From central pa | Registered: May 2010  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
average joe
LymeNet Contributor
Member # 26091

Icon 1 posted      Profile for average joe     Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post   Reply With Quote 
Oops sorry TF that was supposed to be a smiley up there. I don't know what that thing is

--------------------
If you play at the beach, expect to get some sand in your shorts [Smile]

Posts: 223 | From central pa | Registered: May 2010  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
sixgoofykids
Moderator
Member # 11141

Icon 1 posted      Profile for sixgoofykids   Author's Homepage     Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post   Reply With Quote 
Your doctor probably just isn't telling you all the future plans, but just telling you what you need to know now.

You are cured when you feel better, when you have no symptoms, usually for two months.

--------------------
sixgoofykids.blogspot.com

Posts: 13449 | From Ohio | Registered: Feb 2007  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
LightAtTheEnd
LymeNet Contributor
Member # 24065

Icon 1 posted      Profile for LightAtTheEnd     Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post   Reply With Quote 
I had 3 days recently when I felt 99% like my old self again, with all kinds of energy. Then I realized that I had never felt that way in the 14 months before that since I've been sick.

You will recognize feeling well when you start to feel that way, and then it starts happening every day.

The first 2 months of being sick, I didn't realize what was wrong or that all my symptoms were symptoms, and related. It was only another month until I had gotten so used to the assorted pains and fatigue to the point where it felt "normal," not comfortable but the way I felt every day, and for a while I questioned how sick I was because I couldn't remember what I felt like before.

But you'll recognize it when it happens.

--------------------
Don't forget to laugh! And when you're going through hell, keep going!

Bitten 5/25/2009 in Perry County, Indiana. Diagnosed by LLMD 12/2/2009.

Posts: 756 | From Inside the tunnel | Registered: Jan 2010  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
jo1
Member
Member # 27570

Icon 1 posted      Profile for jo1     Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post   Reply With Quote 
quote:
Originally posted by TF:
Probenecid is not a probiotic. It is a drug that keeps the amoxi from being filtered out of your blood. This way, the amoxi stays in your system longer.

Drugs have a half-life. The half-life tells you how long it takes the body to filter out half of the med. Probenecid prolongs the half-life of amoxi so that you always have a killing dose in your blood.

If the dosage goes too low, it will just stop the lyme from multiplying, but it will not kill it. (Called a bacteriostatic dose rather than a bactericidal dose.)

Probiotics put good bacteria back in your stomach and intestines.


Posts: 12 | From Maryland | Registered: Aug 2010  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
jo1
Member
Member # 27570

Icon 1 posted      Profile for jo1     Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post   Reply With Quote 
I would like to know if you can recommend a good Lymes doctor in Maryland. thank you
Posts: 12 | From Maryland | Registered: Aug 2010  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
average joe
LymeNet Contributor
Member # 26091

Icon 1 posted      Profile for average joe     Send New Private Message       Edit/Delete Post   Reply With Quote 
jo1 You can consider yourself lucky that you live in MD. There are a number of good Lyme docs there. Go to the seeking a doc section and post your last. One of the kind folks on here will PM you a list.

--------------------
If you play at the beach, expect to get some sand in your shorts [Smile]

Posts: 223 | From central pa | Registered: May 2010  |  IP: Logged | Report this post to a Moderator
   

Quick Reply
Message:

HTML is not enabled.
UBB Code� is enabled.

Instant Graemlins
   


Post New Topic  New Poll  Post A Reply Close Topic   Feature Topic   Move Topic   Delete Topic next oldest topic   next newest topic
 - Printer-friendly view of this topic
Hop To:


Contact Us | LymeNet home page | Privacy Statement

Powered by UBB.classic™ 6.7.3


The Lyme Disease Network is a non-profit organization funded by individual donations. If you would like to support the Network and the LymeNet system of Web services, please send your donations to:

The Lyme Disease Network of New Jersey
907 Pebble Creek Court, Pennington, NJ 08534 USA


| Flash Discussion | Support Groups | On-Line Library
Legal Resources | Medical Abstracts | Newsletter | Books
Pictures | Site Search | Links | Help/Questions
About LymeNet | Contact Us

© 1993-2020 The Lyme Disease Network of New Jersey, Inc.
All Rights Reserved.
Use of the LymeNet Site is subject to Terms and Conditions.