This question is for those who herxed hard on mepron. Was it worth it? Did the psych herx pay off with improvement? Or was it more of the same stupid un ending suffering?
Posted by beths (Member # 18864) on :
Personally, I liked coartem better
Posted by dan67 (Member # 20344) on :
beths... I've taken artemisinin, which is what coartem is made out of I think. Artemisinin didn't do much for me. Is coartem better?
Posted by Tincup (Member # 5829) on :
What I've noted...
The first herx is a killer. You want to die if it hits hard. The only relief was to stop the mepron until the herx cleared, then start back slowly. The herxes can be so bad you don't ever want to do mepron again.
BUT, once the herx clears you feel better. Then the second herx hits. It is almost as bad as the first.
Then, the third herx, noticeably not as bad. As time goes by the herxes seem to be less and/or you are more prepared when they do hit.
Bottom line, nothing improved me any more than mepron did, but it is a rat trap of a drug to have to take.
Good luck!
Posted by Tincup (Member # 5829) on :
BTW- Some of us did Lyme treatment and then Mepron before we (anyone) knew what herxes were, including the doctors, and we just thought we were dying, and actually wanted to.
Posted by BoxerMom (Member # 25251) on :
I herxed on Mepron for a whole year. Wanted to die the entire time.
Totally worth it. Got my pathogen load waaayyyy down. Put Babesia into remission. Lots of symptom resolution.
I relapsed 18 months later and resumed Babs' treatment, but nothing has been as bad as that first year. Not even close.
Posted by dan67 (Member # 20344) on :
boxer - very interesting and helpful info! Good to know that your 2nd battle with Babesia wasn't as bad as the first - that's encouraging. Can you tell us more? It's just so helpful to hear from someone who has been there done that.
Posted by jmb (Member # 18338) on :
Mepron is a *****. The first couple weeks are hard. And over time (over the course of three months) it made me more than a little mean. (which is the opposite of me) But the Mepron/Zith combo was important for me the first time around.
I am on the second time now, and inside the hard weeks. But it is not as hard this time, and the headsplitter headaches seem to be gone.
The first time around, when it sucked a lot, I would eat ben and jerry's phish food or colbert's american dream when I'd take the Mepron. After all you are 'sposed to take it with fat.
After the Mepron I tried other med/herb/combos. For me the Mepron made the most difference, enough so to deal with the emotional herx / side effect.
Good luck.
Posted by FamilyFive (Member # 37206) on :
I second what Tincup and jmb say. First couple of herx's are hard. I also had bad head symptoms -depression, depersonalization, dizzy, forgetful, etc. I had to stop for a few days and ease back on slowly. After I did that it was pretty smooth.
Mepron did take away my babs symptoms for about 8 months though. I lapsed back likely due to not treating bart at the same time... then I went on coartem.
Posted by GretaM (Member # 40917) on :
Um, when you say emotional/mental herx...what exactly are the symptoms I have to look forward to?
Also, feeling like death...is it every babs symptom exaggerated during the herx, or do new babs symptoms pop up?
I am starting next week and scared ****less about the herx.
And the cost.
Posted by Haley (Member # 22008) on :
I do 3 weeks on and 1 week off. At first, I had severe fatigue and weakness, also some depression. As time goes on it gets easier, each week off feels better and better. I believe I am finally getting my worst symptom under control - cognitive impairment. I was afraid it would never go away. good luck
Posted by Phoiph (Member # 41238) on :
Mepron did nothing for my Babesia (still had positive blood smear and severe symptoms)...
What it did do for me was turn my vision bright yellow...I reported this effect to the manufacturer who told me to discontinue it immediately (and they supposedly included it on their side effect warning list)...
This took months to resolve, and I was left more ill than ever with Babesia...
Posted by woodstock (Member # 43072) on :
If you do not herx on mepron, does that mean maybe you don't have serious babs or lyme or whatever it is that it is hitting?
Posted by tickbitt (Member # 33753) on :
Poiph, I know the threads a couple of months old, hopefully you see this....
That happened to me too. Weirdest thing was there was a small circle in the center of my vision that was true color and the rest was kind of washed out. All was tinged yellow - the sky was green.
I also stopped. It got better in a couple of months. Eventually I went back on it at a really low dose, and later at the regular dose. I finally conquered babs with mepron, malarone, ketek, a macrolide, and artemisia.
Posted by springshowers (Member # 19863) on :
Please watch out fir Mepron blues ! Phych emotional reaction of feeling hopeless and even suicudal.
Your doctor should be aware and warn you and tell you you can stop the drug and the feelings will lift in a few days !!
It happened to me. About every three months I had to take a week off as it hit me hard and though the break cleared it right up and I restarted.
The drug was extremely helpful for babesia and protozoan loads. My favorite scession of abx was my year on Mepron.
Just don't stay on it and think you have to endure the psych emotional symptoms.
I was warned ahead of time and told exactly what to do if it happened and it worked exactly as my doctor said !
Do not be afraid to take a break to see even if your doctor is ignorant to this issue.
Its serious. I have read many a post by suiducal patients and most where trying to endure Mepron treatments.
Besides that side affect Mepron herxes are pretty easily tolerated by most people.
Posted by springshowers (Member # 19863) on :
Please watch out fir Mepron blues ! Phych emotional reaction of feeling hopeless and even suicudal.
Your doctor should be aware and warn you and tell you you can stop the drug and the feelings will lift in a few days !!
It happened to me. About every three months I had to take a week off as it hit me hard and though the break cleared it right up and I restarted.
The drug was extremely helpful for babesia and protozoan loads. My favorite scession of abx was my year on Mepron.
Just don't stay on it and think you have to endure the psych emotional symptoms.
I was warned ahead of time and told exactly what to do if it happened and it worked exactly as my doctor said !
Do not be afraid to take a break to see even if your doctor is ignorant to this issue.
Its serious. I have read many a post by suiducal patients and most where trying to endure Mepron treatments.
Besides that side affect Mepron herxes are pretty easily tolerated by most people.
Posted by Phoiph (Member # 41238) on :
tickbitt...
You're the only person I know besides myself that has reported the symptom of yellow vision.
I attributed it to a lack of my ability to metabolize/detoxify the drug...and I just continued to become more and more ill and toxic.
Glad you were able to beat the Babesia.
I still had a positive blood smear after stopping treatment, but am 100% well now (drug free) thanks to mild hyperbaric...
Posted by GretaM (Member # 40917) on :
Old thread. Bringing up because it is important. All the above posts are good.
Going through the Mepron Blues myself currently.
Sweating buckets.
Dizzy.
Feelings of doom. Moments of worthlessness. Full on anorexia.
My doc has me on a pulse regimen with the Mepron & Zith. Good thing too because the Blues do clear within about 3 days of stopping the Mepron, or if I increase the activated charcoal and chlorella binders.
I just wanted to bring this up in case others are going through the same thing.
1) Pulsing the mepron is an option. Talk to your doc.
2) If the Blues get overwhelming, stop the Mepron, phone your doc, and ramp up detox methods. Phone a friend to sit with you.
3) There are other options to treat Babesia.
Hugs to others going through the same thing.
Posted by TF (Member # 14183) on :
I definitely got the feelings of doom when treating babs. And I wasn't even on Mepron. I was on Bactrim DS. That was the psych herx for me. I got it for 2 days straight every week like clockwork.
Posted by lymenotlite (Member # 33166) on :
I actually ran into a lyme doctor at an herb fair in Spokane, our first lyme doc. Thank God.
I told her that I hated mepron and she asked me whether I took something to absorb the toxins and I asked her - like what? If I recall correctly, she said, like bentonite clay, cholestyramine, or bentonite clay. Better check into that yourself.
Anyhow, the presumption was that the absorbers would lessen the herx.
Posted by WPinVA (Member # 33581) on :
What do you mean by "psych herx"? If you mean a depression-like feeling, that's more likely a side effect - and a serious one - and a reason to stop taking it.
I took Mepron for months and felt pretty terrible due to herxes but don't recall any psych symptoms. Until out of the blue the Mepron blues hit, and I stopped taking it. Felt better very quickly.