Topic: how long can you take Flagyl for? What are you taking with it?
MariaA
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 9128
posted
I'm on Flagyl (with Biaxin) for 3 weeks- 750 mg a day if I remember right, 3 pills a day. Among other herx effects, it makes me sleepy.
After reading some things at the lymemd.blogspot.com blog. in which he mentions prescribing it as part of a multidrug combo but with once-a-day dosing of the Flagyl, I recently decided, without consulting my LLMD, to reduce the dosage to once a day, at night, so that most of the immediate herx happens while I'm asleep. It was really hard to deal with dizziness/sleepiness/confusion for several hours every single time I took a pill. Dosing once a day is definitely easier on me. It does reduce the dosage significantly from what is prescribed.
My personal belief is that it does more than just cause cysts to convert back to active forms. I once went into remission, early on in my disease, when I was given Flagyl alone for another illness and we didn't know I had Lyme. So I am hoping that it's also helping kill Lyme as opposed to just bringing dormant Lyme forms out of hiding.
I'm finally getting over the more brutal part of the herx and some of my symptoms are improving, so I'd like to stay on this stuff longer if it's causing improvement.
How long do LLMD's typically put patients on Flagyl, and for how long? How often do you do courses of it when it's only a 3-week treatment?
Has anyone been on once-daily dosing, and at which dose (LymeMD mentions a couple of options depending on his patients)? What else were you on with it, and at what dose?
-------------------- Symptom Free!!! Thank you all!!!!
posted
I am about to go on Flagyl in 2 weeks. My LLMD only has me on that - nothing else, no combo.
I was thinking about calling and asking about combining it with another ABX.
It seems like everyone on here is taking it w/ another abx. Plus the literature he gave me, states that he prescribes it in a combo.
Posts: 379 | From Sydney, Australia | Registered: Nov 2008
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quote:Originally posted by MariaA: is anyone on Flagyl, a macrolide (biaxin or zith) and something else?
I am on flagyl (3x a day, 5 days on, 2 days off) and ceftin. The doc is planning on adding biaxin into the mix in a month or two, so I will be on flagyl for about 3 months total. We would do the triple abx now, but I seem to have a brutal die-off rxn to each new abx, so we decided to stay where we are now -- I finally feel about 80-90% better -- and let the body do some healing before going triple. His hope is that if I'm not as sick when I do the three, then the die-off won't be as hard to deal with.
He told me that he finds in discussions with llmd's (I think he goes to the ILADS conferences etc) that he sees higher relapse rates among patients doing only 2 abx at a time.
-------------------- Wildlife biologist working in tropics since 1997; tick bites in Nicaragua in March 2007, started getting sick May 2007; diagnosed with Lyme based on serological testing in Jan 2009; treatment starting Feb 2009. Wish me luck! Posts: 116 | From Seattle | Registered: Feb 2009
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posted
I'm supposed to be taking it with IV Claforan (Rocephin alternative) and biaxin, mepron. I've only added back biaxin with the IV as I want to make sure I have no complications with IV first. My dosage says take every 8 hours, no pulsing...but theres no way I'm doing that.
I know I should be taking a cyst buster and will but it's too early on for me.
Posts: 348 | From maryland | Registered: Jul 2008
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MariaA
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 9128
posted
Is Flagyl-biaxin-rifampin possible? I haven't looked at the side effects/drug interactions info yet. I know that some people posted recently about being on Biaxin-Rifampin. My LLMD wants me to try Rifampin/Septra after I try Bicillin for a while. I'm wondering if I can work in Flagyl into this somewhere if it continues to look like it's helping me.
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beths
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 18864
posted
Anyone do tindamax instead of flagyl? I'm suppose to do a 1 week pulse of tindamax and amoxy.
Posts: 1276 | From maryland | Registered: Jan 2009
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MariaA
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 9128
posted
bump- can anyone tell me if Biaxin-Rifampin-Flagyl is OK or is there a major interaction?
I'm also still looking for more experiences with antibiotic combinations and Flagyl, as I think Ill pursue Flagyl more in the future.
-------------------- Symptom Free!!! Thank you all!!!!
ping
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 6974
posted
MariaA,
There are so many Flagyl combos and methods, I couldn't even begin to name them...
My absolute favorite was a suggestion by a poster here a number of years ago that had you on your regular abx only for four days, then Flagyl only for 3 days... and on it goes. This was much easier for me to deal with, once the Flagyl came into the mix. Bounce the idea off your doc and find out if you're in a position to try it.
ping "We are more than containers for Lyme"
-------------------- ping "We are more than containers for Lyme" Posts: 1302 | From Back in TX again | Registered: Mar 2005
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I am a Dreamer, Believer, and Conquer; I will overcome this disease !!! Posts: 382 | From Alabama Via PA | Registered: Jun 2008
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MariaA
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 9128
posted
interesting. I wonder if that wasn't a Lyme herx- since it seems to cause all kinds of bladder problems.
I've been on Flagyl for 2 weeks already and it's causing me to have actual arthritis for the first time, which makes me think that might be where the dang spirochetes are hanging out (or cysting up or whatever they do). I've almost never had true arthritis symptoms in all my years of Lyme, so it's interesting to see it come out on the cyst buster med.
-------------------- Symptom Free!!! Thank you all!!!!
CD57
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 11749
posted
My old LLMD would not rx Biaxin with Rifampin; he said they interact. Interestingly Zithromax, same class as Biaxin, does not. Maybe check this out.
Rifampin and Flagyl he liked.
Posts: 3528 | From US | Registered: Apr 2007
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MariaA
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 9128
posted
Rifampin, Flagyl, and anything else, or just the two of them together?
I'm making a phone consult appointment with my LLMD so I'm just trying to get some ideas on what else to ask for when I talk to him.
He technically wants me to do 5 weeks of bicillin and then add in the rifampin/septra with another 5 weeks of bicillin, but I'm thinking I can't do 10 weeks of IM (or afford it) because I really don't have anyone to give me the shots among other issues.
I also feel strongly that i need to do combos right now, so I"m trying to figure out what goes with rifampin AND flagyl, whether I'm on Bicillin or not.
I suspect bartonella from sore soles sorts of symptoms, and think I'm getting some improvement from this neverending Flagyl adventure. I already have the Rifampin so I don't want to try a different bartonella med quite yet.
-------------------- Symptom Free!!! Thank you all!!!!
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