djf2005
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 11449
posted
I am being told that my extremely high dhea reading in the am is "falsely elevated"
so its not falsely elevated from what I am gathering, the dhea is trying to make up for lack of cortisol, and its why im waking up in a panic every am.
sooooo...... i guess ill try relora to bring it down in the am again.
any other suggestions?
what are other options for bringing it down/re-balancing things?
and there is conflicting info too, as to whether or not the relora will just make more dhea (which i dont need) or re-balance things (which i do need)
hormones are so important and i feel this is one that needs addressing.
please everyone share your experiences, etc, especially w/ am anxiety and HIGH DHEA (male) it was around 700-900.
thanks
derek
-------------------- "Experience is not what happens to you; it is what you do with what happens to you."
Tamoxifen is a PKC inhibitor used to treat BREAST cancer..you (males)may need to look at similar drugs used for prostate cancer... and then...supp. EPA with those drugs to make them more effective.
Try sub B6 = P5P. Your body is upregulating aldosterone 'cause B6 is depleted. This involves Na control.
Posts: 9424 | From Sunshine State | Registered: Mar 2001
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djf2005
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 11449
posted
Marnie-
Thanks for the response.
I unfortunately just ordered a b-50 complex which has b-6 in it along w/ the other b vitamins.
Do you think this would suffice for the time being or if sub b-6 necessary? I've been spending a ton of $$ recently....
Thanks in advance
Derek
-------------------- "Experience is not what happens to you; it is what you do with what happens to you."
Lymeorsomething
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 16359
posted
If you have adrenal fatigue, have you tried low-dose Cortef? Isocort is also available online. It's essentially a weaker Cortef.
My LLMD says licorice helps too. However, licorice may screw with testosterone levels.
Supplementing DHEA in men is probably not desirable....converts to too much E. So maybe your ballooning levels are increasing E.
Yes, B complex, C, and some zinc can't hurt. Maybe some ashwagandha and rhodiola too. You'll probably be better off to try simple supplements first.
On a side note, Marnie mentions Tamoxifen and this drug is also an effective short-term fix to boost T levels and reduce E for men. It works by increasing LH levels. It is generally only used on a short-term basis because of the associated sides.
Of course, you don't want too much T or increased thyroid meds (if you take them) if your adrenals are sluggish. It may make you feel worse.
Good luck.
-------------------- "Whatever can go wrong will go wrong." Posts: 2062 | From CT | Registered: Jul 2008
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Abxnomore
Frequent Contributor (5K+ posts)
Member # 18936
posted
I would have a neuro/adrenal panel #9028 run by neuro science. www.neurorelief.com
It's a very good lab, can be done at home with a home kit and will provide a graph of your cortisol rhythm for the day, DHEA levels and levels of at
least 9 or ten important neuro transmitter and the lab will suggest a protocol using their high quality targeted nutrients designed to re-balance the situation.
I'm pretty sure the website shows sample test results, so you can see what a test will look like and if your LLMD won't help you, you can email the lab and they will sent you a list of practitioners in your area who use their lab.
Posts: 5191 | From Lyme Zone | Registered: Jan 2009
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CD57
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 11749
posted
Have you tried Seriphos? My LLMD told me waking up in the AM in a panic is due to either liver toxicity or dumping cortisol....Seriphos which is natural has stopped that from happening to me...tamps down the adrenals somehow.
Posts: 3528 | From US | Registered: Apr 2007
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djf2005
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 11449
posted
NO I have not tried it, thanks for the suggestion CD.
What does seriphos do?
-------------------- "Experience is not what happens to you; it is what you do with what happens to you."
Abxnomore
Frequent Contributor (5K+ posts)
Member # 18936
posted
It's a form of phosphatidyl serine. Phosphatidyl serine is one of many supplements used to lower elevated cortisol levels.
However, it's probably best to have you levels checked by testing it 4x during a day with a salvia kit, as I described before by neuro science to know exactly what the rhythm and pattern of your cortisol levels are.
If you don't have that information, you won't know when and how much phosphatidyl serine to take of if you need it.
If you have low cortisol levels, which is what you described, then you don't want a product that is going to lower your levels further but one to that supports the adrenals while your body is undergoing all this stress from Lyme disease
Have you had your adrenal function tested?
Posts: 5191 | From Lyme Zone | Registered: Jan 2009
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disturbedme
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 12346
posted
DHEA confuses me. I had a blood test done at LabCorp that said my DHEA was low, so I started taking supplements at my doctor's request. The supplements were very small in mg. I wasn't even taking as many as he wanted me to.
We do a Cortisol test via saliva and that actually shows really high DHEA. Very confusing to me.
-------------------- One can never consent to creep when one feels an impulse to soar. ~ Helen Keller
My Lyme Story Posts: 2965 | From Land of Confusion (bitten in KS, moved to PA, now living in MD) | Registered: Jun 2007
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CD57
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 11749
posted
I took Seriphos only at night before bed, it's called an "adrenal modulator" and there are some papers that call it a whatever needs to be done kind of supplement. All I know is that is seemed to help the AM anxiety/panic feeling.
Posts: 3528 | From US | Registered: Apr 2007
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seekhelp
Frequent Contributor (5K+ posts)
Member # 15067
posted
OK DJF2005, now I've become real interested in this answer too as my recent saliva panel shows very elevated AM DHEA. Maybe we're in the same boat?
Posts: 7545 | From The 5th Dimension - The Twilight Zone | Registered: Mar 2008
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djf2005
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 11449
posted
I am doing the NS NT and adrenal testing kit today so I will have new results soon.
I'll share them and what is recommended once they are in.
DHEA is included in the kit.
From what I can gather in short though, elevated DHEA is a result of our body trying to compensate for lack of cortisone. The cortisone then turns to testosterone and then estrogen (which would explain my high estrogen through latest blood testing; it was slightly elevated)
The question is what to do about it.
Derek
-------------------- "Experience is not what happens to you; it is what you do with what happens to you."
posted
I think I have this similar issue. I have this surging feeling that will course through my chest area up into my head, almost like an adrenaline rush. I have had my hormones tested in the past, probably just on a basic level, on I'm fairly certain they weren't tested at the right time or the proper way.
If I have a similar DHEA/cortisol issue, can testosterone testing results still come back as low? My testosterone fluctuates based on the three or four times it has been tested in the last two years.
Posts: 194 | From Colorado | Registered: Nov 2008
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posted
Yeah my hormones are all wacky too. Its very confusing. Last night I could barely sleep because my body felt like it had an almost inner electric buzz to it even though I am very tired. Other times its just plain anxiety, and it kills my stomach, lots of clenching. I waiting to see an endocrinologist I'm sure that is spelled wrong).
Posts: 594 | From NJ/NY | Registered: Jun 2006
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djf2005
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 11449
posted
ott70-
I don't think the testosterone and DHEA issues are interrelated. I mean in a sense they are, because Lyme or whatever infection/imbalance/toxins are what is causing them both, but I am not sure that the one causes or compounds the other.
Low testosterone is common in men w/ Lyme unfortunately and high DHEA I "believe" is caused from what I described above.
The hope is that all the hormonal imbalances become corrected w/ treatment as the body realigns and we supplement w/ what is needed along the way.
It is frustrating, I know, I am too.
Elley-
Be careful w/ traditional endos. They can be helpful, but some if not most are trained in treating hormone and adrenal failure, not the dysregulation of those systems at the present.
If your LLMD can offer you a 4x saliva test (one day) to measure your adrenal levels as well as do a hormone panel via saliva I would go for that. If in fact your endo offers something similar to this, then I would say you could be the right track. A comprehensive LLMD, (which are hard to come across) should be addressing these issues throughout treatment. If they are not, request that they do.
Blood tests for adrenals and hormones are really not the greatest IMO, as is all the above info, IMO.
Best
Derek
-------------------- "Experience is not what happens to you; it is what you do with what happens to you."
posted
Yeah I'm going with caution. I don't have an appt with my new LLMD until Jan 30th, so I figured I'd at least get a jump on this.
I hate this anxiety and eletric buzz feeling if anyone knows what I mean by that. I just cant stand it. It's scary and I'm not even sure what to take to calm it down.
Posts: 594 | From NJ/NY | Registered: Jun 2006
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seekhelp
Frequent Contributor (5K+ posts)
Member # 15067
posted
I constantly feel like I'm in an anxious state. Not horrible most times, but never just C A L M. I can't figure it out. Maybe I am just pyschotic. I'm a totally different person than I used to be. It sickens me.
Posts: 7545 | From The 5th Dimension - The Twilight Zone | Registered: Mar 2008
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djf2005
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 11449
posted
I felt like that most of my life before I got sick. I was not in a paniced stated but always felt "on".
I actually did not mind it, I got a lot done etc, but it turned into unbearable anxiety as one if my initial symptoms 3 yrs ago upon onset which has improved a lot since then, although it is still there.
Is your Dr doing anything to address your latest testing?
-------------------- "Experience is not what happens to you; it is what you do with what happens to you."
posted
Same here, Seek. And it happened literally overnight. I wasn't feeling great the past year or so, lots of fatigue and stomach trouble, but out of nowhere a month ago I had a terrible panic attack and have not been able to shake the anxiety since. I started some supplemens Monday, but perhaps it hasn't been long enough to see an effect. I wish I didn't have to wait so long to see my new LLMD. I hate this, this buzzing feeling, heart races just from stretching or standing up. I only now get brief glimpses of who I was a month ago. I also know how it feels to think maybe you're just nuts haha-althouh I'm clinging to that not beng the case.
Posts: 594 | From NJ/NY | Registered: Jun 2006
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posted
I personally don't have a doc yet. I have a PCP which is looking into my adrenals-very high ACTH, low but technically normal cortisol. This is in the AM. I have an appt with an LLMD, one highly recommended, but it will be a wait.
I had lyme originally when I was 9-10. had it for over six months before diagnosed, was on abx for a month, relapsed, on abx for another month. Felt okish and all but forgot about it until three summers ago. It came out of remission after wisdom teeth surgery. Tooks months to get rid of it with doxy and tons of supplements and an strict diet, detox. Felt ok until a month ago. So awful. Feels like I am losing it.
Posts: 594 | From NJ/NY | Registered: Jun 2006
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posted
I recall now that my dopamine was high after having a hormone urine test when I was feeling some morning flashing sensations through my chest into my head. I think my cortisol checked out okay.
Posts: 194 | From Colorado | Registered: Nov 2008
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I'm a totally different person than I used to be. It sickens me.
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