Posted by bleauberry on June 17, 2009, at 17:27:41
In reply to Re: Anxiety or Depression can be Lyme Disease ?, posted by Phillipa on June 15, 2009, at 20:54:03
Hi Phillipa,
Yeah, I have no doubt brain dysfunction can be seen on a scan in Lyme patients.
In many people I believe it is probably that even when the infectious organisms are eradicated, problems still exist due to two things:
1. Permanent tissue or nerve damage.
2. Dysfunctional confused immune system...kind of like being loopy after being punched in the head, you don't get clearheaded just because the person who punched you is no longer punching you.
My LLMD has his own theories that seem to be working in realtime realworld. That is, Lyme changes the way the immune system operates, and it is that dysfunctional operation that causes most of the symptoms. He has seen patients reach remission when in fact they were still infected. He talked detailed immune stuff way over my head. Alpha factor 1 was something he kept mentioning, though I have no clue what it is.
In any case, his track record is 95% of patients get 95% well. Not just better, but 95% well. It involves taking a antibiotic A for a long time, and then adding a small dose of antiobitic B, have a small Herx, raise the dose of B, another small Herx, raise the dose again, and bingo, the patient is well. He says it is like magic. Remove the meds and the patient immediately relapses. Restart them and they are again well. The only way they know when they have been on them long enough to stop them is to keep trying.
The two antibiotics are Tetracycline and Clindamycin.
My own theory to add to that is that the family of Tetracycline, Doxycycline, and Monocycline, are very good anti-inflammatory meds as well. So they have distinct beneficial healing effects completely separate from their antibiotic effects. And according to my doc, they have distinct immune modulating effects as well.
Lyme is not just devastating, and a major cause of psychiatric illness, but mysterious throughout the entire spectrum of diagnosis to treatment to post-treatment. It takes a real talented doctor's eye to navigate through the maze.
It would not surprise me at all if a large number of pbabble participants have a Lyme-like infection, the resulting brain inflammation, hormone disruption, immune disruption, and everything else, and that is why doing things like manipulating things like serotonin and dopamine is so fruitless for those people.
poster:bleauberry
thread:900949
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20090611/msgs/901577.html