Herbals instead of abx?

[tpotter]

DS18 has Lyme, PANDAS, and who knows what else. He was just diagnosed about 3 weeks ago with C-diff, and is currently taking only flagyl (he's apparently been herxing the past few days from that.)

 

Anyway, I spoke with the LLMD yesterday about what to do when we are done with the flagyl (he has started his 2nd round, because the c-diff was still there.) My concern is that it comes back easily, and he has always had stomach problems (even had laporascopic fundoplication when he was 6 years old, as he had almost burned a hole in his stomach from GERD.)

 

LLMD suggested that we switch to herbals at that time, because it should be better tolerated on his stomach.

 

What experience have any of you had? Are there side effects from those that we should be worried about? he is also allergic to grasses and trees, and I know I had problems with milk thistle when I was taking that to support my liver.

 

Thanks.

[JuliaFaith]

DS18 has Lyme, PANDAS, and who knows what else. He was just diagnosed about 3 weeks ago with C-diff, and is currently taking only flagyl (he's apparently been herxing the past few days from that.)

 

Anyway, I spoke with the LLMD yesterday about what to do when we are done with the flagyl (he has started his 2nd round, because the c-diff was still there.) My concern is that it comes back easily, and he has always had stomach problems (even had laporascopic fundoplication when he was 6 years old, as he had almost burned a hole in his stomach from GERD.)

 

LLMD suggested that we switch to herbals at that time, because it should be better tolerated on his stomach.

 

What experience have any of you had? Are there side effects from those that we should be worried about? he is also allergic to grasses and trees, and I know I had problems with milk thistle when I was taking that to support my liver.

 

Thanks.

My ds13 has been mostly on herbals and on abx only 3 of the last 8 months. We just got DNA testing results back that he is post-lyme which I take it to mean that it is in the background now. With the herbals, flare-ups were not as extreme as others that I have read about on this forum at all. But my son has been a bit different compared to others on the forums, all along, and his main problem now is mold illness and related other things, as well as, mico. His lungs are showing improvement after 8 mos. of inhaling iodine (thru a nebulizer) once a day and he may still have 4 months to go. The herbals, I truly believe, have kept him from getting much worse. The expense has been quite large though because insurance does not pay for any of his herbal supplements only for most of his prescriptions.

Edited June 30, 2011 by JuliaFaith

[Suzan]

Here's the book I always recommend:

 

http://www.amazon.com/Healing-Lyme-Prevention-Borreliosis-Coinfections/dp/0970869630/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1309482612&sr=8-1

 

I've been using these herbs in the core protocol and I can tell they are helping. But I am also on abx so I can't give you any herb only experience. The book will give you a good place to start if you need it. I had horrible herxing with Cats Claw. I had to build up very slowly.

 

Susan

[tpotter]

So, it sounds like you guys are saying that it doesn't do the trick alone...that abx are also necessary. I guess maybe we should do it slowly, and just keep watching for the c-diff.

 

JuliaFaith, I also have been struggling with mycoP (I probably had it for at least 3 years...symptomatic, but no dr. ever checked for it). I also HIGHLY suspect mold problems, as I am very allergic to mold, and have felt for a long time that my house is a part of my problem (we are getting ready to change out the a/c, and have all the ductwork cleaned, and repaired for starters.) I have never heard of using the iodine. Who prescribed it? I am now seeing a lung specialist at a well known lung program, but have only done the initial visit and started doing some tests he ordered. I have found, though, that since starting treatment for Lyme, my asthma/breathing is not as bad. In fact, I've had 2 days this past month, where I realized I was feeling 100%. It was a very odd, but amazing feeling. DS18 has also said that he had 1 such day last month.

[justinekno]

My son and I are both taking herbs only for Lyme. We have also stumbled upon the mold issue and have had our home tested recently (remediation to start in 2 weeks) and our mold related bloodwork was very suggestive along with HLA results. We have added in bentonite clay to the mix but will be seeing our LLMD on Tuesday and I will be asking about changing to chlorella instead of the clay. We initially started with antibiotics but changed over after about 4 months on them (my ds had been on antibiotics for a few months before that when we thought he had PANDAS). I must say that our biggest improvement has come with using the clay and supplementing with salmon oil. That is probably more evidence that we have mold related illness in addition to Lyme.

Edited July 1, 2011 by justinekno

[tpotter]

We've been using bentonite clay, recently started alternating with activated charcoal, and also supplement with omega 3 fish oil (but not salmon oil.) Why is that evidence of mold?

 

Also, what herbs are you using? We take a ton of supplements, and have spent a huge amount on them in the past 4 months (we see a holistic chiropractor who does applied kinesiology...muscle testing.) We've mostly been targeting the gut and immune system, which have helped, but there's certainly no question we have to deal with the lyme, strep (which we do know, at least with my 15 yo, is definitely there), and everything else in between.

 

What is chlorella, and how does it work differently than clay or activated charcoal?

 

My son and I are both taking herbs only for Lyme. We have also stumbled upon the mold issue and have had our home tested recently (remediation to start in 2 weeks) and our mold related bloodwork was very suggestive along with HLA results. We have added in bentonite clay to the mix but will be seeing our LLMD on Tuesday and I will be asking about changing to chlorella instead of the clay. We initially started with antibiotics but changed over after about 4 months on them (my ds had been on antibiotics for a few months before that when we thought he had PANDAS). I must say that our biggest improvement has come with using the clay and supplementing with salmon oil. That is probably more evidence that we have mold related illness in addition to Lyme.

[Suzan]

So, it sounds like you guys are saying that it doesn't do the trick alone...that abx are also necessary. I guess maybe we should do it slowly, and just keep watching for the c-diff.

 

I think herbs alone can work. I hear that some people can get the same if not better results. I always knew I'd give abx a try for a year and see where we were then. I hope to transition to herbal treatment and other natural treatment around the year mark unless I think we can still get more benefit from abx.

 

Susan

[justinekno]

I think the fact that the protocol for mold is showing some benefits coupled with our tests results just convinces me that mold is possibly a big issue for us. We didn't see these types of results when we were on a strictly Lyme path. Also, our LLMD took my son off of fish oil when we got our mold bloodwork back and put him on the salmon oil. Something about it being a better omega for people dealing with mold. I can't remember if he said that advice came from his conversation with Klinghardt or Shoemaker.

 

My son is taking Neem Synergy for Lyme and I am taking FC-Cidal for Lyme/yeast. My son was also taking A-Bart but we stopped because I really saw no difference other than symptom flares that were causing issues for him. I plan on talking to our LLMD next week and seeing if we should tackle mold before Lyme.

 

Chlorellla is a binder but my son would have to take 20 pills a day and so I opted for the clay. We've had a lot of constipation issues with the clay so I'm wondering if chlorella would be better. I will say that I am taking the clay also and have noticed that I don't seem to get as many headaches as I used too and my migraines go away pretty quickly when i do get them. Not sure if it's related.

 

We've been using bentonite clay, recently started alternating with activated charcoal, and also supplement with omega 3 fish oil (but not salmon oil.) Why is that evidence of mold?

 

Also, what herbs are you using? We take a ton of supplements, and have spent a huge amount on them in the past 4 months (we see a holistic chiropractor who does applied kinesiology...muscle testing.) We've mostly been targeting the gut and immune system, which have helped, but there's certainly no question we have to deal with the lyme, strep (which we do know, at least with my 15 yo, is definitely there), and everything else in between.

 

What is chlorella, and how does it work differently than clay or activated charcoal?

 

My son and I are both taking herbs only for Lyme. We have also stumbled upon the mold issue and have had our home tested recently (remediation to start in 2 weeks) and our mold related bloodwork was very suggestive along with HLA results. We have added in bentonite clay to the mix but will be seeing our LLMD on Tuesday and I will be asking about changing to chlorella instead of the clay. We initially started with antibiotics but changed over after about 4 months on them (my ds had been on antibiotics for a few months before that when we thought he had PANDAS). I must say that our biggest improvement has come with using the clay and supplementing with salmon oil. That is probably more evidence that we have mold related illness in addition to Lyme.

[JuliaFaith]

For Myco (and another one that I cannot remember) my son's ND has him taking tri-quench by Scientific Botanicals, Inc. in the nebulizer at night for a year (3-4 drops). His lungs are slowly improving. She now has him applying Tri-Quench once a day externally on a cotton swab for thyroid problem as well.

[tpotter]

Thank you so much for all your responses. It really helps to have people that I can turn to for their own experiences and opinions.