you don't need to wait forr positive bloodwork, a good llmd will go by symtoms...

hope you feel better soon.

From reading others' posts, I get the impression that many LLMDs use biaxin as a "starter" drug, and use it to build on. After four months, you should be seeing definite improvement.

What Lisa said about the co-infections sounds smart. You can start on artemisinin (although some people prefer artemisia) now, in case you have babesia.

Babesia symptoms include vertigo, sweats, dizzy spells, and crushing fatigue. Bartonella symptoms are splitting, continuous headaches, swollen neck glands (you can't miss this, they inflate like balloons), insomnia, and a sore throat.

Meanwhile, take a "Lymenet day" and just read through every post that you can, even if the topic doesn't seem to apply to you. After the millionth post, you will know which drugs are out there, which combinations are used, and which symptoms they hit. Once you know that, THEN go to your LLMD and ask for what you want.

After many years lived as a guinea pig, I am seeing rapid improvement over a one-month time frame on a heavy abx regimen that hits the Lyme in combination and two co-infections. Although I did work my way up to being able to tolerate these drugs, I couldn't help noticing that getting better quickly is more fun than getting better slowly, and does not seem to be forbidden by the laws of nature. So my vote is always, start with one strong drug, see if you can handle it, and work your way up.