Ok, I am sure this has been touched several times. So if it has, if someone could send the link so I dont have my fellow lyme friends repeat themselves using the little engegy we have.
As you all know I am positive for Lyme and I go see my doc Wednesday. I want to treat this as aggresivly as possible. Is the iv a more aggressive treatment? I am convinced I have neuro lyme with the spots on my brain and all the other neuro probs I have. I mean do I have a say in the matter or does the doc?
Posted by bettyg (Member # 6147) on :
anyone? bottom of page 2 and i'm going to bed.
use treepattrol's newbie archive at top of medical ok
Posted by Getting Better (Member # 8919) on :
I mean do I have a say in the matter or does the doc?
Depends upon the doc.
Is the iv a more aggressive treatment?
Not necessarily.
My experience is most doctors will start you on orals. If you plateau on them, or stomach cant tolerate them, they may move to IV. IV is probably better absorbed.
While far from healed, IV rocephin saved my life.
However, after 5 years of treatment, I think tx should be aggressive but not cause terrible herxes. The stress to the body and the needness pain aren't worth it. Some of these herxes (paralysis, seizure-like jerks, sudden suicidal depressions) are very scary.
Posted by abigail (Member # 14936) on :
You forgot an option...IM. Currently, I am on IM Claforan. I like it.
Posted by JaimieB (Member # 19076) on :
Thank you all for responding. I called insurance yesterday to see what they would cover. So far so good. I am eager to start my long road to recovery.
Another question, can docs guesstimate how long I have had it based on my WB results?
I hope everyone is having a great day!
Posted by nenet (Member # 13174) on :
Hi JamieB!
I was away from the board, too sick to post for a long while, so I haven't talked with you since you first came here and were looking into all this, and now you almost have more posts than me - good job getting informed!
I'm so glad to hear you are on the path to treatment and recovery now.
As for if your doctors can tell from your blood tests how long you have had Lyme, I don't think it's possible. If you read Dr. C's Western Blot explanation again, it might help you understand why that is.
Past its acute phase (right after infection), the Lyme anitbodies don't really reflect the usual understanding of IgG and IgM. The infection goes chonic, and it is cyclical, therefore your immune system will respond to it as if it is a new infection (IgM) off and on throughout the chronic infection, as the pathogen lifecycle progresses and your body's response changes.
At least that's how I understand it - sorry if it's not very clear. Probably best to read Dr. C's explanation.
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