posted
Oh my, I am driving myself crazy over these shots.
I am having anxiety anyway as either a herx or side effect from meds so this is just icing on the cake.
I am so freaked out by them. I keep having nightmares about having severe allergic reactions. I think about it almost all day. I wake up in a panic because of it.
What the heck is my problem? I keep telling myself that even if I had a reaction I would be okay but my mind is just swirling.
I would feel so stupid telling my doc that I can't do them because I am an anxious mess. I also know that I am lucky because so many people wish they could get them.
I just don't know if it's worth putting myself through this mentally.
Anyone have any suggestions for dealing with this?
posted
My daughter is the lymie at our house and has done the best on Bicillin injections than on any other antibiotic.
If there can be a bad experience, she usually has it, BUT SHE HAS NOT HAD ANYTHING BAD HAPPEN WITH BICILLIN. She has had many bad reactions with many meds but Bicillin has been fine.
Part of the lyme experience is having OCD moments about anything and I know once it starts it is hard to control. You will be monitored at the doctor's office after your shot and if you have an allergic reaction they will know what to do.
My husband gives my daughter her shot and we have an epipen handy if we need one, but we have never needed one. This is the second time she has been on Bicillin, so she has been on it a long time.
I don't know if this helps, but I want to encourage you. Maybe you could take an MP3 player or something to listen to while you go through your treatment to get your mind off of it.
Good luck with your treatment.
Posts: 177 | From God's Grace | Registered: Apr 2007
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I am sorry your daughter is dealing with this also.
I also have an Epipen. Today is supposed to be the final time I go to the office to get it. Hubby is supposed to do it then. I don't know how happy I am about that.
LLMD office is to far away to get it done there. Family doc wants nothing to do with it. This is just a doctor who is doing me a favor.
I think you are right about the OCD. It is ALL I am thinking about.
bejoy
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 11129
posted
Let me try to talk yo down a little bit. Bicillin is mainly just Penicillin with some Benzathine in it to make it stick around in your body a little longer.
If you have ever taken penicillin or amoxicillin orally, and had no reaction to it, then you should be just fine.
Most people I have seen post don't herx badly from Bicillin. It's the cyst busters you have to take with it, like Flagyl, that people tend to feel a little yucky from.
We did a bunch of penicillin injections at home. Never any problems. You'll be fine. Hang in there. Of all the medications, people tend to say they like how they feel on this stuff. It might help to bring down the OCD anxiety a bit too.
-------------------- bejoy!
"Do not go where the path may lead; go instead where there is no path and leave a trail." -Ralph Waldo Emerson Posts: 1918 | From Alive and Well! | Registered: Feb 2007
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I went today and hubby ended up giving it to me under the doctors advise.
He did a good job. It hurt a bit more than when the doctor did it. When the doc did it I didn't feel the needle at all. Just a little pinch this time.
It's the med that hurts. I guess next time around we will do it at home.
I have taken penicillin and amoxicillan alot over the years. I will just keep my epipen and hope for the best.
I hope something takes away this anxiety feeling. I haven't been this scared of everything since this all started years ago. It was actually my first symptom.
I ought to be in great shape for my first day of nursing school at the end of this month...
Vermont_Lymie
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 9780
posted
Hi kit, Hang in there! I did bicillin shots for almost a year and they only helped.
Since you have taken alot of penicillins before with no problem, you are probably not going to have a bad allergic reaction; just keep benadryl around and your epi-pen and do not worry about it.
Icing for 15-20 minutes beforehand really helps! The anxiety about the shots gets easier, I was pretty worried for the first couple of months. Then it becomes routine....and so very helpful.
Best wishes.
Posts: 2557 | From home | Registered: Aug 2006
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My butt is a little sore. Not as bad as I thought it would be. Maybe because I have recently acquired some extra padding back there.
I hope that it does the trick for me. I have been so close to feeling 100 percent a few times before..only to backslide. I hope this along with my other new abx kick some butt.
Thanks again to all and I will try to be so an anxious mess...at least until the next shot.
bejoy
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 11129
posted
About the anxiety. In my experience, much of the lyme anxiety and "OCD" terrier brain comes from high cortisol levels, due to the adrenals having to work so hard to deal with infection and toxins.
I became a bit "overfocused" on disaster there for a while when my cortisol levels hit the roof.
At the time I used the adrenal fatigue supplements, and it helped a bunch. (You can read about them from Dr. Wilson, or you can order his brand or the Chrisotophers brand.)
I understand that phospatidylserine is supposed to bring down cortisol levels pronto. (I keep confusing this with phospatidylcholine, but it's not the same thing.)
-------------------- bejoy!
"Do not go where the path may lead; go instead where there is no path and leave a trail." -Ralph Waldo Emerson Posts: 1918 | From Alive and Well! | Registered: Feb 2007
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posted
I've been getting the shots for a couple months now I guess - they have helped me quite a bit!
I was pretty freaked out the first few times - more because I new how badly they would make me herx at first and just fear of the unknown
My husband does an excellent job giving them to me - I hardly feel them now. I watch something distracting on TV while he does it - we do it over about 5 minutes - I have a stop watch in front of me so I let him now the time periodically
BTW, to this day I have still not "seen" the shot - I know it's a big ole' needle!
-------------------- "We must be willing to get rid of the life we've planned, so as to have the life that is waiting for us" - e.m. forster Posts: 921 | From PA | Registered: Jan 2004
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I just got my first Bicillin shot on monday so I totally feel your pain!! How are you doing today? I am doing better but still feel the knot in my glut muscle and the ache when I sit for a while.
As far as allergic reactions go, Bicillin is in the same class as Penicillin/Amoxicillin so if you tolerated those well in the past, you should do fine. And besides, IF you were to have a rxn, you probally will have a mild one your first time and then you will know not to get that med again, in fear that it will be a full-blown allergic rxn, just like they teach you in pharm class
Congrats on starting nursing school in a few weeks!! I am also a nsg student!! We beging our Med-Surg rotation in 2 weeks. I just got done with OB this summer, which was neat. Being a Lymie and getting through nsg school will not be a cake walk, but stay focused and you'll do fine!!
Take care!! Amy
Posts: 73 | From just outside of Lansing, MI | Registered: Jun 2006
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posted
That is a good way to explain it bejoy...overfocused. I am overfocused on everything. I can't even stand being around me..if that makes any sense. I will look into having cortisol levels checked.
Larkspur...glad to see your hubby can give you the shots. Maybe as soon as I get over my fear of them I will be able to relax a bit at home while he is giving it to me.
I have only seen the needle in the packaging. Hubby said it looks much bigger out...how nice of him to point that out.
I really don't feel the needle going in though. Do you?
Thanks Amy, I sent you a PM regarding school. I hope the shots go well for you. Do you get them at docs office or have someone do it at home for you. I put ice on my bum right after the needle comes out. Then I walk a bit and it relieves the pain.
What would I do without this board.
Thanks to all, kit Posts: 655 | From Pennsylvania | Registered: Jul 2006
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posted
Hi Kit, Thanks for the suggestions! I did get your PM but your inbox is full so I could not respond. Have a good one! -Amy
Posts: 73 | From just outside of Lansing, MI | Registered: Jun 2006
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I am taking my 4th shot today. I started the plaquinel a week ago too so I feel pretty crappy this last week. My eyes are flaring badly too.
I did a month of levaquin and malarone before adding the bicillin and plaq. My chronic fatigue and deep fog have all but gone and I had 5 great days in a row. And thats on half the protocol.
I flared very badly on the Levaquin and didnt really have any reaction to the malarone which gives me some comfort that Babesia may not be in there. I will keep taking it all the same.
My bro has taken the job of injecting me in the *** . It brings us closer together haha.....no but seriously he does a good job.
we recently switched cheek for the last one and it hurt alot. Didnt help that I forgot to purge the needle and he had to stick it in twice. ouch!
Dr B's guildlines says that people can get quite sustained prolonged herx's on Bicillin. I herxed like death on Flagyl and had to stop after a week so I suppose Plaquinel is going to be the same deal. I ache all over.
There must be an end to all of this surly.
Take care
N
-------------------- Pos BB and Bart(Q & H IGG pos) Began treat 1 year after start of illness. Diagnosed Feb 2007. Posts: 648 | From Ireland | Registered: Jan 2007
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I hope you don't herx to hard on this. I am trying to tell myself I WILL NOT HERX. Trying a mind over matter approach..lol.
I did quite well on Flagyl. Believe it or not Tetracycline was much worse for me. Good luck with your shots and might I say you have one supportive brother.
Hi Lymetoo,
Thanks for your support. I don't feel to brave lately..I feel more whiney and annoying..lol.
I also hope this will help get me through school. I am determined to not let this disease take this away from me again. I can just hope for the best.
posted
My husband gives me my shots and does a pretty good job at it too. I have had them for months and it is really no big deal.. I know in the beginning the thought of the needle can bring on anxiety but just don't look at it. If you ice the area before hand and put the numbing cream on -it has lidocaine in it and you can get it by prescription- you will really feel nothing. They are really easy to get used to.
Posts: 238 | From Bethlehem, PA | Registered: Oct 2004
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I ice it right afterwards and it seems to do the trick. I was given a script for the cream and I applied it an hour before and covered it like the instructions said...it didn't seem to numb me though.
However, I don't think the needle is painful at all. Hubby just did my first at home shot about 30 mins. ago. As long as the needle goes in fast I don't feel much. I had him inject really slow too and helped alot.
Thanks for your help...kit
Posts: 655 | From Pennsylvania | Registered: Jul 2006
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lymebytes
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 11830
posted
No, don't let them scare you...piece of cake really. The release of the medicine is so slow you won't have a herx for awhile, it takes some time...weeks, if at all. I just did them for 5 months - I stopped because I didn't think they were helping...a few weeks later when the Bicillin was out of my body, I felt better than I ever had. I am going back on them soon.
Here is some info and a link:
Bicillin L-A
"Penicillin G benzathine has an extremely low solubility and, thus, the drug is slowly released from intramuscular injection sites. The drug is hydrolyzed to penicillin G. This combination of hydrolysis and slow absorption results in blood serum levels much lower but much more prolonged than other parenteral penicillin's. Intramuscular administration of 300,000 units of penicillin G benzathine in adults results in blood levels of 0.03 - 0.05 units per mL, which are maintained for 4 to 5 days. Similar blood levels may persist for 10 days following administration of 600,000 units and for 14 days following administration of 1,200,000 units." Entire link can be read at:
Amanda
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 14107
posted
I was on three oral abx for a year and had made very little progress. My WBC count was so low a few non LLMDs were worried I might have leukemia.
7 weeks of bicllin, one shot a week, and my WBC are normal. I have had a couple of bad herx's, but that was really needing to happen.
well worth the sore bum.
Also, see if you can get a lidocaine cream. Put it on about 10 minutes before the shot, then ice, then alcohol. That really helps me a lot.
-------------------- "few things are harder to put up with than the annoyance of a good example" - Mark Twain Posts: 1008 | From US | Registered: Dec 2007
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Amanda
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 14107
posted
that's rubbing alcohol , not tequila
-------------------- "few things are harder to put up with than the annoyance of a good example" - Mark Twain Posts: 1008 | From US | Registered: Dec 2007
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Tracy9
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 7521
posted
Kitkat, you can think of me when you are getting your shot. I am now getting two at a time. So just when the first one is over; I have to get a second one.
My butt hurts WAAAAAAY more now! But I do think they are, albeit slowly, helping!!
13 years Lyme & Co.; Small Fiber Neuropathy; Myasthenia Gravis, Adrenal Insufficiency. On chemo for 2 1/2 years as experimental treatment for MG. Posts: 4480 | From Northeastern Connecticut | Registered: Jun 2005
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posted
Glad your feeling better from them lymebytes. That makes me hopeful.
I will take the Tequila Amanda....LOL. I have using the wrong kind of alcohol.
Oh Tracey...2 at one time...ouch. My hubby must be doing something right. I have no pain in my bottom at all today and the shot was yesterday.
His hand was shaking like a leaf when he picked up the needle. The doc that taught him how to do it drew out a diagram on both my cheeks with a black sharpie so he can find a good place. I thought for sure he would miss his mark.
Yesterday when I drove my daughter to a bday party I kept thinking if I get into an accident and my clothes are cut off they are going to see my diagrammed butt...lol.
Thanks so much again. I am feeling better about getting them thanks to everyones support.
posted
Kit, I hope things get easier as you go along. My son got bicillin a couple of years ago and it helped him a lot, he's started them again. He has dramatic herxing and one of the sx has been anxiety.
It sounds like that might have been a symptom you were already having. He took a low dose of Xanax for a couple of weeks to get him through the worst of it.
You mentioned that you ice afterwards? I think icing should be done before, but after you want the drug to disperse and be absorbed quickly, so heat is better. We put heat on immediately and then on and off for the next day and he hasn't had any lumps and it seems to help the pain resolve.
These shots are tough...giving them to my child was a huge hurdle to get over. But, I'm convinced it's one of the most effective treatments for chronic Lyme.
best of luck to you, Nancy
Posts: 688 | From Florida | Registered: Aug 2001
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I didn't know that icing could slow down the dispersement of the abx. All I know is it prevented any pains and I have no lumps.
This depression/anxiety yo yo is really getting to me. I am feeling better though. Just not quite myself yet.
I hope it works well again for your son.
Best wishes, kit
Posts: 655 | From Pennsylvania | Registered: Jul 2006
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canbravelyme
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 9785
posted
Hi All,
I found (finally) that leaving the bicillin at room temperature for an hour before the injection makes it less viscous, and cooler to inject.
Also, please remember it's vital to pull back on the syringe, and check for blood. Injecting bicillin into a vein, according to the insert, can be fatal.
Bicillin did a world of good for me.
Best wishes,
-------------------- For medical advice related to Lyme disease, please see an ILADS physician. Posts: 1494 | From Getting there... | Registered: Aug 2006
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I am about to get my second Bicillin injection on Wednesday. My mother has offered to give it to me, which makes me a bit less anxious because she is a nurse and knows how much they hurt so I know she will be extra gentle with me!!
Kit, as long as you stay positive, you will do just fine in school. Like I said before, if you're having a rough time, PM me and Ill offer some inspiration and suggestions
And canbravelyme: Thx for pointing out that you have to pull back on the syringe and check for blood!! This needs to be done with any injection into the muscle.
Also, are many of you also taking another antibiotic along with the Bicillin? I was on Azithromycin and Plaquenil and they were tearing up my gut so my LLMD put me on the Bicillin but I am hoping it is strong enough to do some damage to the dang bugs!!
And Kit, here's a shot of tequilla to you for your next injection!! Cheers!!
Posts: 73 | From just outside of Lansing, MI | Registered: Jun 2006
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