My LLMD wants me to ultimately increase to 750mg/day. (I hope it's okay to write the dosage)
The script reads to increase every two days until I get that high. I am nowhere near that!
1/4 of that dose and my body feels like it's shutting down my and head is ready to explode. I can't get out of bed as it is, and the pain with flagyl is so terrible.
I'm afraid I'm ramping up too slowly, but I feel so incredibly awful when I up my dose that I've had to go to the ER for IV pain meds already.
My LLMD said that I'm never going to rid myself of the neuro symptoms without flagyl.
He said to take benadryl to help with herxes, but it doesn't seem to make a difference.
Should I just deal with the headaches and herxes and increase my dose?
I should add, I am supposed to be taking mino first and then switching to flagyl, and I've decided to take them together. Monotherapy is getting me nowhere.
Thank you for any replies! Sasha
Posted by AnnaOD20 (Member # 29942) on :
I am interested in hearing the reply to this too. I am supposed to start taking Flagyl soon (right now on Rifampin for Bart and Doxy). Scary to hear what you have been going through. I am not sure of the dosage that I will be taking. Hopefully others w/ experience will reply.
Posted by Lymetoo (Member # 743) on :
GO SLOW. You can only take what your body can handle.
Posted by jarjar (Member # 8847) on :
I had to pulse flagyl with low doses 3 times a week or otherwise I would have had to stop. Follow what your body tells you. Don't keep ramping up when you can't handle the current dose. Flagyl can pack a serious herx for some of us.
Posted by Cockapoo1996 (Member # 14238) on :
I am in the same boat Sasha. I am at around half the dose and started over a month ago. I do feel like it is working though. I just wish it was easier to take!
Posted by sillia (Member # 23994) on :
I have been taking half of the prescribed dose (1/2 tablet times a day instead of a whole one) for about six weeks. This is about as much as I can tolerate; even so I get a mild herx every seven days or so.
My LLMD told me that I can stay at that dose for as long as needed; eventually I should be able to increase it gradually. His opinion seemed to be that the Flagyl is working even at a lower dose, just more slowly.
Oh, I should add--it's definitely making me feel better and my brain fog is better on many days, so I feel it is working.
Posted by SashaC (Member # 18968) on :
I can't thank you all enough for replying! So helpful!
As opposed to Cockapoo (LOVE your name!) and sillia, I have difficulty deciding whether it is working or not. As negative as this sounds, I feel pretty lousy regardless of what I take. *sigh*
I am supposed to be taking flagyl to decrease the pain I have in my head and cranial nerves. Yet the flagyl makes it worse.
I worry that if I stay on low doses of flagyl, the nasty cysts will build up a resistance and render it useless.
I have done hundreds of hours of research on Lyme and Co. and it is so complex that I don't know if I'm helping or hurting myself.
I'm not sure if that is because I am killing bugs or because I'm just continuing to get worse.
It is so difficult to decide what is a herx and what is another LD symptom, migraine, or cranial neuralgia.
My current LLMD says that if I don't see improvement in a month, I should switch to another med. I have to disagree with him, as I don't think a month is nearly long enough to decide whether it is helping or not!
So sorry to sound like such a drag!!
Thanks again!! Posted by Lymetoo (Member # 743) on :
You can have permanent damage from herxing .. so keep that in mind. You can also have permanent nerve damage from flagyl and/or tindamax.
So use common sense.
Herxing and not feeling better is how I went thru treatment. It took a long time to feel any better.
Posted by SashaC (Member # 18968) on :
How would I know if I had nerve damage?
My hands have had a severe version of "falling asleep" lately. The start to burn, tingle, and it feels like I have 1000 hot pins pricking into my fingers and palms.
I have put my hands in extremely hot water to change the sensation because it is so uncomfortable.
I thought this was another Lyme symptom. Could this be possible nerve irritaion from flagyl?
It is very painful. I've even felt on the verge of panic trying to get it to go away. It lasts for around 30 minutes each time it happens, several times a day.
Posted by littlebit27 (Member # 24477) on :
I was taking flagyl 7 days a week and couldn't function because of the herx, it was horrible. So we had to drop it to where I only pulse it 2 days a week, although now my LLMD wants to add an extra day Posted by lauriemay1 (Member # 24153) on :
Anyone get a fever while on Flagyl? Is that a herx reaction?
![[dizzy]](graemlins/dizzy.gif)
![[Frown]](frown.gif)