I am getting what appear to be major panic attacks. This was my first symptom (along with irregular heartbeat) of Lyme.
It seems every time I add a tetracycline drug (Doxy or Minocin) I get intense attacks that put me in the ER. It could be porphyria or maybe some kind of minor seizure that is setting them off???
Should I stop the Minocin and try something else? I am on Zithromax, Minocin and artemisia and about to add in Alinia.
I was sitting at the computer this afternoon and felt very flush, then my BP shot up to 166/103 and stayed there, sweaty hands, heart thumping away. I took an Ativan and it peaked and then went away, BP went right down. Felt like I was going to expode. Fortunately it didn't feel like my heart this time and I didn't freak out and run to the ER. I sometimes get chest pain and irregular runs also.
I am really done with this. Have only been on Minocin for a few weeks now, feel spacey and can't even make sense of anything. Not sure what to do and need some advice.
Thanks!
Posted by Vermont_Lymie (Member # 9780) on :
Mino did that to me too in the beginning. It was awful!
It should get better, but there are also other lyme treatments that you and your llmd can consider.
I never went above 100mg/day mino, but took it for many months. Hang in there, and if it does not get better, consider your alternatives or use treatments that Amanda recommends above. It did pass.
Posted by btmb03 (Member # 18394) on :
Sounds like the med is revving up the autonomic nervous system big time...maybe it's working *too* well? Don't know, do check with your doc, sorry you're experiencing this, truly IS scary.
Posted by c3mom (Member # 16412) on :
Anybody else have an opinion-I'm interested also
Posted by CD57 (Member # 11749) on :
Hmmm...sounds like what happened to me on artemesinin. Are you sure it's a tetra?
Myco we have the same LLMD. He once told me that panic attacks and anxiety are electrical misfires in the limbic system and amygdala, not sure if this is of interest.
Posted by Kreynolds (Member # 15117) on :
I have MAJOR panic attacks/anxiety as well. Caused me to have Agoraphobia.......
I take Valium and Klonopin to help.
I know Lyme will cause this, but I do think that Bart and Babs also cause this.
Have you been tested for co's? I would talk to your doc about it.
In my case the ABX were making them worse, a good sign that the treatment was helping.
Maybe the ABX you are on are doing the job, I feel bad for you because I know what it is like.....
Posted by brooke (Member # 16606) on :
I'm on minocycline and always have major anxiety when I raise the dose. It lasts about 2-3 weeks.
brooke
Posted by Jill E. (Member # 9121) on :
I got terrible anxiety on Rifampin, so I've been associating it with Bartonella.
But I got a less-intense flare-up of it on Alinia, so Myco, be careful about the Alinia because it's supposed to work on Babs, and Babs can cause anxiety. But the Alinia-induced anxiety did go away for me.
I couldn't tolerate anywhere near a full dose of Mino. I got way too off balance.
Have you ever been on a beta blocker for your heart? I have not been, but one of my doctors mentioned that a low dose can be used for anxiety because it keeps the heart from getting into that fast-beat anxiety mode. I'm not sure, just putting it out there.
I vote more for the Ativan or Klonopin approach.
Jill
Posted by Lisa1230 (Member # 17525) on :
My daughter has panic attacks with hallucinations that she was being "pulled to the other side" while she was on anti-malarial medications. Our neuro told us that those meds will produce bad panic attacks.
Since she has come off of them, there have been no panic attacks. She still gets stressed from her school work, but it is night and day from those attacks.
At the beginning we had to call 911 because we didn't know what was going on.