I am taking so many supplements strongly recommended by my LLMD. He says he has to get me stronger so my body can handle the antibiotics. Right now I'm taking 25 different supps. (I just counted them!)
Do you take that many?
Have you ever heard of being too sick to treat with antibiotics?
Kayda
Posts: 582 | From midwest | Registered: Nov 2006
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i have no idea about your situation, just be careful. if this is a doctor you trust completley, then that is one thing, but i have been taken so many times and so many $$$$ later with buying so many supplements, vitamins, etc.
now...is there something to be said for buiding your system and trying to give your body a fighting chance,,,ABSOLUTLEY....and you will find so many opinions on this and i feel it is different for everyone.
it goes without saying that the healthist diet you can possibly stick to the better. bacteria feeds off sugar so keep that in mind if you are able to eat a lot of healthy foods like vegetables and fruits you don't need as many supplements. i think you said 25 different pills of some sort?? it just seems like so much to me. maybe i am way off, and if so i hope someone will inform me too because i am looking for any way possible to regain my strength.
i take the b vitamins, flax seed, omega 3, protien drinks which i make with fresh fruit and yogart, extra acidopholis, lots of green tea and water.
what all do you take and do you know the reasons?
i am just asking because i have been sick for over 17 years now and on and off about everything you can think of. many years of IV and orals as well as lots of alternative things and some good some bad. i have also found some people to be very helpful and others to be lookng to prey on those of us who are desperate to feel better.
take care, kathy
Posts: 97 | From Simpsonville KY USA | Registered: Jul 2002
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bettyg
Unregistered
posted
last year 2nd llmd put me on 22 supplements after my total body lab tests came back with all my additional problems.
It really depends on the condition of your body, and if it can even absorb all those nutrients now???
Just what I've learned from the naturopaths, books, and others that I've seen.
I was taking about that same amount of supplements or even more and still feeling mal-nurished.
My Dr. explained it to me that my liver was so toxic that it couldn't handle ALL those vitamins/herbs and I needed to focus on detoxing my liver.
This allowed my liver to relax a bit (still working on it) but it peeled off a layer of the onion so vitamins/herbs could get through easier.
Your liver processes everything. I was shocked to hear this because I thought they'd all only help but it makes sense if you think about it.
Too much of a good thing, isn't good, if it can't reach the layers underneath.
You can feel it, when your mal-nurished. I have been there for the past year and finally got it more together.
For the Liver: 1/2 a lemon, 1 tlb spoon of olive oil, & 1 chopped clove of garlic (put in blender- some garlic chuncks don't get chopped)
This taken on an empty stomach first thing in the morning before anything. Follow with a cup of tea, apple jucie is recommend, but I can't cause of the sugar. Then move onto your daily routine.
Google it. Theres lots of info about it on the internet.
It helped my liver. The Lemon squeezes the liver, the garlic dis-infects and the oil moves things along.
(make sure you brush your teeth after- lemon jucie will eat your teeth if not brushed off!!)
On a side note- by stop eating all sugars of any kind (fruit/juices/honey/maplesurup/rice surup) really has helped me. It's hard at first but after awhile, you don't even crave it!
I really began to work on detoxing and my colon.
I have just discovered Lyme but for the past year and half have been trying to feel better and supplement with various things Dr.'s advise.
Every doctor you meet has a whole new set of supplements they want to to take, which is very overwhleming and EXPENSIVE.
I have over 100 different vitamins I have bottem over these past years to help.
Now after research on Lyme, and puzzeling it with my Herx Sysmptoms after taking some vitamins/herbs it makes sense now.
In a stool sample I did it showed that the bacteria I had was most reactive to Garlic, Uva-Ursi, Oregano, and Oregon Garpe Root (Berberis) more than antibiotics or some just as much.
(all which I now have learned are strongly recommend for Lymes- with exception of uva-ursi)
I would spread them out.
Say Garlic for one month, then Oil of Oregano, then Uva Ursi- so I'm constanly hitting from a different angle.
I felt the best I have in awhile, while doing this, once I stopped (after 3 months) I got SO much worse.
At the time I wasn't sure what this meant, so I just stopped and went to another Dr.
I also heard and have read that fresh garlic is the best antibiotic there is for the body.
I began juicing a whole head of garlic a day and taking it in shots through out the day.
(it will make you gag and almost throw up if you take too much at once on an empty stomach)
The garlic is great though, my body craves it. I put garlic in everything.... I know it helps me.
Other supplements I take are:
B complex-helps maintain the health of the nerves, skin, eyes, hair, liver, muscle tone in gastrointestinal tract, and as well. Take all V-B's together they work as a team.
B-2 -necessary for Red blood cell formation & cell respiration & growth . It facilitates the use of oxygen by the tissues of the skins, nails, & hair(my Krebs cycle test showed I was low)
B-12 - prevent & treat anemia(I'm a vegatarian so don't get it from meat)
V-c - Antioxidant-required for at least 300 metabolic functions in the body (I take up to 15,000 mg every body is different.)
( you know you have had too much when you get the runs, then does it back one.
If taking high doses you want to take a ascorbate form, gentler on the digestive track (has a neutral ph)
'Source Minerals' makes a great one that includeds 5 minerals- when taking high doese of V-c you can throw your mineral balance off-
so its important to get one with minerals- 'Source Minerals' has the V-c to mineral ratio all worked into the mix. very easy and nice.
Ultra Milk Thistle- Helps the liver detox
Bromelain & Papain (aids in dig. of protiens)
V-A (powerful antioxidant & necessary for cell growth. Aids the immune system, eyes, important for bone & teeth
formation, aids in infections of the kidneys, bladder , lungs & mucous membranes. And the list goes on.)
Flax Oil & Flax caps (Omeg 3 & 6- has really helped my joints)
V-E (powerful antioxidant- helps my joints too)
Alpha Lipotic Acid- powerful antioxidant that aids the liver
CoQ10- antioxidant- plays role in the production of energy- helps immune system- recommend by many for Lyme
NAC- a sulfer amino acid, and a powerful antioxidant.
My hair analysis showed I'm low in both, super low in Mag- read that's common with Lyme)
Glycine- (at bedtime- makes you sleepy-- its needed for your Kreb cycle (energy)-I had mine tested (by urine) and showed that I was low. )
Taurine- (amino acid that isn't found in veggies- imp for vegetarians)
Acidophilus- beneficial bacteria
Dandelion Tea is great for the liver. I really enjoy it... really earthy taste...can add soymilk/milk to cut that taste- but I enjoy it as is.
Herb Teas are a great way for your body to absorb the herbs.
I have found, if your having digestive problems, it's only adding the load by taking an excessive amount of vitamins and herbs.
I'd take the essentials, and work on the digestive track, things to support and help that.
Fiber is great. I found a great fiber mix by Dr. Natura- the Colonix Intestinal Cleanser (all natural & NON-GMO- smile)
posted
Thanks everyone for the wealth of information you supplied. It really helps!
I'm going to gather all my supplements together and post them on this thread. But, I'm exhausted all of a sudden and need to take a little rest. I'll do it later this morning.
Thanks for being patient :-)
Kayda
Posts: 582 | From midwest | Registered: Nov 2006
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I'm not sure if your taking garlic, but really recommned it at some point. Maybe when you run
out of Neem, or oil of oregano, alternate in garlic so the bacteria don't get used to them.
That's just what a Doctor told me, makes sense..
Anyways, keep it up- keep on killing those guys.
Many Mahalos~
Fawne
-------------------- Energy flows where attention goes~ Posts: 302 | From Kauai | Registered: May 2007
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clairenotes
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 10392
posted
It is dizzying how long our supplement list gets in trying to cope with this illness. But what looks like a lot of supplements just might be normal for us.
I used to take the tincture form of licorice and loved it for adrenal support. But my TCM practitioner warned that it can, in certain circumstances, strengthen pathogens (microbes). I definitely experienced this. As I became more ill, I found that licorice did worsen my symptoms. Somehow, a threshold had been crossed and I had to stop. So it might be a good idea to pay close attention to your symptoms when you take licorice to make sure that it is not exacerbating other things. I used Gaia's Devil's Club tincture in its' place, which gave me some solid adrenal support. Gaia's Lomatium tincture is another one I used for adrenal support, but it has to be rotated according to my PA/ND. Otherwise it loses effectiveness. So I took it two weeks on, and a few weeks off, etc.
Also, I know that increasing my liver function helped me a lot! I use whey protein and NAC for this. I like paleomeal for my whey protein source because there is no added sugar in the vanilla flavored product. There are other good ones to chose from also. Heard good things about a whey product by `Doctors For Nutrition' and one called Immunopro (I think that is the name). You can do a search on this. Mine is a bit costly but this gets made up for to some degree as it substitutes for a light breakfast due to the protein content, and has many other added nutrients that cut back on other supplements.
Also... one practitioner I went to see took the oil/lemon drink every morning and really seemed to thrive on it. But I had GI issues and could not take it. I don't think my body was making enough bile to help break down the fats.
Claire
Posts: 1111 | From Colorado | Registered: Oct 2006
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posted
I agree about the licorice you have to be careful. I built up to my dose on this over 3 weeks and still only take about half the dosage. I also take the adrenal desiccated.
With metal issues the adrenals are hit hard. I have about 1/3 of my metals gone now and adrenal function has improved, my cold limbs are warming up.
The Supper Curcumin is an anti inflamitory and also helps the gall/liver and has anti parasitic qualities.
The orangon oil I pulse on and off it can be hard on the GI but it also gets at a lot of molds/fungus and sometimes helps with yeast.
One of the uses of L-Carnitine, aids in fat absorption in the GI trac.
Posts: 582 | From milwaukee wi | Registered: May 2005
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How did you remove the metals? How do you know you are 1/3rd done with 2/3rds to go? Did chlorella do this for you?
Claire & John, WIth the high grade licorice, did you just start to feel sick? How long were you taking it before it stopped helping and started urting?
I couldn't take any supplements today. My stomach just couldn't handle it.
Kayda
Posts: 582 | From midwest | Registered: Nov 2006
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How did you remove the metals? How do you know you are 1/3rd done with 2/3rds to go? Did chlorella do this for you?
Claire & John, WIth the high grade licorice, did you just start to feel sick? How long were you taking it before it stopped helping and started urting?
I couldn't take any supplements today. My stomach just couldn't handle it.
Kayda
We are using Chorella cilantro and Heavy Metal Detox formula. I was on the chorella only for about 3 weeks and then we added the other two. Our homeopathic tester has been testing out my levels overall and against specific organs and the brain. There was one point in chelation where I could feel the draining from my thyroid galnd for about 3 weeks and the level of mercury became almost 1 on a 1 to 10 scale. Boy was that an experience but now my thyroid feels so good.
When my chelation started I was at 7.5 and now down to 3
Posts: 582 | From milwaukee wi | Registered: May 2005
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posted
Kayda [/qb][/QUOTE]We are using Chorella cilantro and Heavy Metal Detox formula. I was on the chorella only for about 3 weeks and then we added the other two. Our homeopathic tester has been testing out my levels overall and against specific organs and the brain. There was one point in chelation where I could feel the draining from my thyroid galnd for about 3 weeks and the level of mercury became almost 1 on a 1 to 10 scale. Boy was that an experience but now my thyroid feels so good.
When my chelation started I was at 7.5 and now down to 3 [/QB][/QUOTE]
John,
I'll bet that was quite an experience when the mercury drained from your thyroid. That's amazing to go from a 10 down to a 1. Did you use a homeopathic mercury chelator for that? you said there were 2 products you used. What were they?
Did your health dramatically improve after the mercury went from 10 to 1?
Kayda
Posts: 582 | From midwest | Registered: Nov 2006
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Health
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 6034
posted
I cannot take supps until I
take the antibiotics to make me stronger.
I became allergic to all supps and foods, and it was because of LYME.
Antibiotics are what I needed, and once the body is better, supps if I need them.
This was me.
Trish
Posts: 1250 | From Canada | Registered: Aug 2004
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posted
My Thryroid function has been improving since and feels so darn good along with adrenal. My thyroid started to clear after about 6 weeks of starting the protocal. The only things we used were the chorella, cilantro and HM Detox made by Premier reserch labs. We also used Mundipur which is a connective tissue drainage homeopathic. And of course I made sure I was doing all levels of detox support, liver support, charcoal colon cleanses and a lot of enamas. My overall mercury load is now a 3. I also had flairs of my infections as the metals left. There is no way I could have handled any of this if I was in the beggining of my lyme treatment. Metals moving out of the body is a very strange experience. There is still a lot of healing that is taking place.
Posts: 582 | From milwaukee wi | Registered: May 2005
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clairenotes
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 10392
posted
Kayda -- I went through a period of relative health where I could actually teach yoga. This was several years back. It was most definitely with the help of things like licorice, siberian ginseng, devil's club, lomatium, thuju, etc. These help with energy and illness prevention as I had slowly come out of CFS but still seemed to have frequent colds, etc. If I didn't take these remedies on a rotating basis, I would get sick (this was pre-lyme knowledge, otherwise the tx would have been different).
But after two years or so, I started to get sick again. I remembered what my TCM doctor had said about the licorice so I pulled back on that one and noticed that I would get well again. Note also that this can happen with siberian ginseng, per my TCM practitioner, and I had to stop that, too.
My understanding is that while licorice may help with some pathogens, they can strengthen others. Somehow, my situation changed.
Again, perhaps going off of licorice for awhile might help. And since there are others that could work well, you shouldn't lose any ground simply by substituting it for something else for awhile.
I think that often the digestive issues are lyme related and WILL improve with proper treatment. I use to have terrible GI issues and now they are gone. But abx can also cause GI sensitivity. It might be hard to tell what is what right now.
If absorption is a problem, I would again really recommend looking at some protein drinks, espeically the whey protein. They might be easier to assimulate in liquid form and could possibly help with liver function. How can we get well if we can't take in nutrients?!!!
Search 'Okay, so what about whey?' topic from back in November, I think. There is some useful information on that thread and explains a little more technically how it helps the liver. Doctors For Nutrition is not mentioned on that thread. I heard about it recently from another member. It might be in a class called 'medical foods' as is paleomeal. Also, I mix mine with rice milk due to dairy sensitivities.
These are non-professional opinions, by the way, and are given based only on my own personal experience.
Johnny -- it sounds like your metal detox was very fruitful. Thanks for posting your remedies.
Claire
Posts: 1111 | From Colorado | Registered: Oct 2006
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clairenotes
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