Topic: Anyone Herx from Cutting out Sugars & Carbs ? Feels like Babs Herx off Meds and Tx ??
lymetwister
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 19590
posted
Started the Paleo diet about a week ago. I have been getting flu like symptoms the last few days.
CNS symptoms flaring as well. I can't even describe what I feel in my head. It's that off balance, swaying, head pressure, eye pain, head pain, massive fatigue while the rest of the body wants to be restless, short of breath at times, anxiety and of course emotions running wild.
Was told this diet will rebalance the body and has helped many people overcome illness in itself.
I've been w terrible cold to the bone aching chills for the last 2 days.
I cut out Sugar 100%, No Carbs, No Dairy. Just lots of greens and other veggies cooked (nothing raw), and Grass fed animal meat (cooked).
I swear this Herx feels like what I feel like with Full Dose Mepron. I'm sure it's Candida die off, etc., but hard to believe eating this way can flare everything like it is.
I know it's the diet b/c my 18 y.o. Nephew is staying w me and doing this w me to shed pounds. Although he doesn't feel sick, he has been very fatigued, going to bed early as a result and having boughs of Nausea.
Curious if Anyone else has tried the Paleo diet and stayed strict. Is it really possible to cure disease like Lyme & Co. by staying on a diet like this ?
Thanks in advance everyone...
Posts: 1227 | From District of Columbia | Registered: Mar 2009
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WPinVA
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 33581
posted
I'm far from an expert but I cut out all sugar and most carbs and felt terrible. I concluded that it wasn't the right diet for my body. FWIW, I don't think even the hard core Lyme diets tell you to take out ALL carbs, just the simple carbs. Perhaps your body is telling you that it needs some healthy carbs?
Posts: 1737 | From Virginia | Registered: Aug 2011
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posted
Yes, going cold turkey like you are doing will make you feel horrible from die-off! Are you allowed ANY carbs through fruit/nuts/coconut milk? I don't know what I would do without my bananas!
My daughter and I are on the Specific Carbohydrate Diet (SCD) for her "colitis" and Lyme and me for Lyme. There was die-off for me but not so bad as I already had gradually cut out a lot of the "illegals" like wheat and sugar. SCD does allow honey.
I am feeling MUCH better since doing SCD very strict. AND I lost a couple lbs which was nice!
"I still have Mt.Everest to climb, but I have traveled across the world and arrived at the mountain". Posts: 633 | From baltimore | Registered: Mar 2010
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posted
You can go on this site for the specific carbo diet. It is www.pecanbread.com.
-------------------- gatorade girl
"I still have Mt.Everest to climb, but I have traveled across the world and arrived at the mountain". Posts: 633 | From baltimore | Registered: Mar 2010
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posted
I dont think diet changes cause an actual 'herx'.
Posts: 458 | From Miss | Registered: Mar 2009
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Brussels
Frequent Contributor (5K+ posts)
Member # 13480
posted
Lymetwister, I think I know what you are talking about.
Have you ever done fasting before?
I had, during a time I could not put my lyme disease dormant, some years ago.
I experienced not only bits of herxing, but my lyme disease went dormant only through fasting. I got more energy instead of losing energy and I suspect, my body decided to take care of fighting infections instead of digesting the complex food I was always pouring in!
It is like the body turns on other functions that it couldn't and you can get infections under control!!!
Buhner believes on that too. I never read anything about fasting, just did it by intuition, and in 10 days, my remaning lyme symptoms disappeared (they were not strong, but were persistent). I had treated it before, but I couldn't finish with lyme totally...
And you are right, it could be candida die off. Chlorella and MSM and cardamon, usually helped me. Sometimes green tea too.
I hope you feel better soon. CONGRATULATIONS on the paleo diet!!!!!
We try to do ONE meal LIKE paleo diet (no grains, no processed foods, mostly veggies, meat, seeds...). I do feel good with it, even though it takes SO LONG to finish lunch (maybe because with so many greens / uncooked foods, it takes longer chewing ... Even my daughter easily accepted it and she is not hungry after, funnily.
I hope you feel better soon! Take binders to help on the clean up process.
Has your urine started stinking? (sorry for the question, but that is another sign of a clean up process, that your body is steering to clean!!!).
Good luck, anyway! Hopefully this comes for good!
Posts: 6199 | From Brussels | Registered: Oct 2007
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I started the SCD (Specific Carb Diet) a few years back, its for people with chronic digestive problems and is very similar-- but more strict than Paleo.
You can try nuts and nut butters if you're feeling weak, or butternut squash for a more "starchy" feel. I think those can cut the here type feeling.
Posts: 844 | From CA | Registered: Apr 2010
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posted
I did a diet similar to this a while back and the first week or so I felt like crap, but it was a sugar/carb withdrawal. It even said in the book that you would feel bad while going through this stage of the diet.
After that initial week or two I felt better then I had in a long time. This was before I got really slammed by LD, ME/CFIDS, fibro and the other DX's I've been given, but I am thinking of trying it again.
-------------------- Down on her knees, she wept on the floor. This hopeless life, she wanted no more. Dead in the mind and cold to the bone, She opened her eyes and saw she was alone. ~Seether Posts: 427 | From Rhode Island | Registered: May 2011
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posted
I've been eating low carb for over 6 years. Very close to Paleo, but I include some dairy. For those who aren't familiar with the Paleo diet, it's basically what humans evolved eating. The meat they could hunt and kill and the veggies, fruits, seeds, and nuts that they could gather. What cavemen ate.
Feeling like crap when starting any low carb diet is common. It's often called low carb flu. It lasts (in most people) between 2 days to 3 weeks. Your body is breaking the addiction to sugar and it could also be die-off.
Make sure to drink plenty of water and don't forget to eat plenty of good fat. Olive oil, coconut oil, mac nut oil, and YES! animal fat. Good fat info: Book: "Know Your Fats" Article: "The Oiling of America" both by Dr. Mary Enig
Paleo is low carb, not no carb. Low starch veggies and low sugar fruits have carbs, just not nearly as much as the carb heavy standard American diet (SAD).
A good Paleo cookbook is: "Paleo Comfort Foods: Homestyle Cooking for a Gluten-free Kitchen" by Julie and Charles Mayfield
-------------------- "To eat is a necessity, but to eat intelligently is an art" - LaRochefoucauld
Lyme neuro symptoms for 20+ years. Infected in Maryland. Diagnosed with Lyme Jan 2011. (previously diagnosed with CFS, Fibro, peripheral neuropathy) Posts: 261 | From Colorado | Registered: Oct 2010
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posted
It sounds a lot like the Atkins. Your body is converting from burning the carbs you consume for energy to using body fat for energy.
This is the reason for the malaise feeling. Once you get past this stage your energy soars and the weight drops off.
I have been on this diet off and on for at least 10 years. I think this is the reason my Lyme symptoms were kept dormant.
Now that I am treating Lyme, it is the hardest thing to do. I think the Bart is wanting me to eat sugar and bread. My waist line is proof. LOL
Posts: 182 | From North Carolina | Registered: Apr 2011
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jackie51
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 14233
posted
Cutting out sugar is rough. If your body is craving carbs, you could eat white rice. Look into the perfecthealthdiet.
Posts: 1374 | From Crazy Town | Registered: Dec 2007
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