Posted by bleauberry on September 26, 2009, at 17:50:09
In reply to Antibiotic interaction?, posted by ricker on September 25, 2009, at 19:16:58
It is hard to tell what is happening. It sounds like a Herxheimer reaction, a die-off reaction of neurotoxins from debris and corpses not being able to be cleared out faster than the death rate.
It is possible there is a different infection you are not aware of, possibly one that has been causing the psychiatric symptoms since the first day they ever hit you. Anyone here who knows me knows that I am thinking Lyme, but honestly there are a dozen possibilities that fit the profile. Minocycline is broad spectrum and hits a bunch of them.
The tetracycline derivatives such as minocycline have complex interactions with calcium and magnesium, and thus the common instructions not to take them at the same time as those supplements, or at the same time as dairy, and sometimes not at the same time as food. Lamictal might fall somewhere in that chemistry. There is a possibility of some complex interactions there, but I doubt enough to cause an immediate worsening of symptoms.
I am not familiar with the liver enzymes (CYP) associated with any of your meds. You would have do some searching on google and pubmed to find out which CYP enzymes metabolize each drug and what effect, if any, Mino has on those enzymes, in order to determine is Mino is possibly increasing or decreasing the plasma levels of any of the drugs.
Depression/anxiety where psych meds are rather impotent is a very common Herxheimer sign. Herx is good in the long run, but absolute hell in the short run.
I would suggest stopping the drug for a day, then restart it at 25mg per day or 25mg every other day. Believe me, it still does some killing at those doses, but more importantly weakens them so your own immmune system can kill them naturally. Every week, or as tolerated, increase the dose by another 25mg. This strategy is the strategy two of my doctors have used frequently. Or if your symptoms are bearable, just bear with it at your current dose. Of course, you should check with your doctor, but you are the final authority of what you do with yourself.
What you are experiencing could be anything but looks like Herx to me. Lower the dose and build it up slowly. That's what my doctors would do and have done.
I could be wrong. But your drugs are a lot more powerful than Mino is, so I don't see Mino over-riding them in any way. It is the neurotoxins of death you are feeling, in my best judgement.
poster:bleauberry
thread:918496
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20090921/msgs/918611.html