Posted by bleauberry on April 13, 2018, at 9:15:02
In reply to Re: Why is alcohol the only thing that helps me? » bleauberry, posted by Prefect on April 10, 2018, at 11:18:47
Bartonella! Wow. Ok. Of all the various pathogenic creatures from ticks, Bartonella is the one with the most profound psychiatric presentation, in my opinion. And it is not as easy to treat as the others.
I am on antibiotics right now for Bartonella, and Lyme in general, but with focus on Bartonella. Relapse. This relapse is different for me - mostly trembling and stage fright but not deep depression. A combination that really turned the corner for me, twice, concerning Bartonella, has been Doxycycline plus Rifampin. Rifampin is generally a turberculosis med. But it happens to have good efficacy against Bartonella.
When it comes to dopamine agonists, antagonists, stimulants, whatever, my experience has shown me that armchair quarterbacking is not usually real helpful. It can help steer us in a certain direction but not useful for the actual drug choice.
Would Ritalin be more helpful or would Ability be more helpful? Dunno. Only a personal trial would answer that question. That said, my doctor said she prescribes Ritalin more frequently than any other medication because it helps so many more people with so many more symptoms than any other med on the market. I don't think anyone will ever say that about Ability. ???
Armchair quarterbacking did lead me to Prozac+Zyprexa+Modafinil which was a good combination that kept me functional and fairly well, but not remission, for several years. Studies at PubMed led me directly to that combo. It worked good for a while. But a personal trial was the only way to find out. Eventually lyme symptoms were able to overwhelm the meds and they pooped.
My doc said Ritalin might help me because I flunked the ADHD questionnaire badly. But because of armchair quarterbacking, I was afraid to start it - anxiety was already an issue - I couldn't fathom the idea of adding a stimulant on top of anxiety! But my armchair quarterbacking was completely wrong - Ritalin turned out to be the best anti-anxiety med I ever tried! Totally relaxed, totally focused, and lots of energy for multitasking. The exact opposite of what I thought would happen.
> BTW I should mention I've tested positive for Bartonella not even through a specialized testing lab but a public health lab.
>
> You mention Ritalin, would low dose abilify not rebalance dopamine levels as well? It's a D1 agonist.
poster:bleauberry
thread:1098005
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20180331/msgs/1098121.html