Posted by Emme on August 10, 2004, at 15:19:58
In reply to Re: immune system/ depression, posted by SLS on August 10, 2004, at 7:14:16
Hi Scott,
> Regarding the use of doxycycline as a treatment for depression:
>
> > Interesting concept. I presume you mean like a 7 to 10 day course to jump start some improvement?
>
> No. Actually, you would want to take it for an extended period of time - months. If it is going to work, the improvements in depression sometimes come in waves on the way to remission. It is possible to feel a transient worsening before feeling an improvement. I am considering this treatment, but I can't decide whether or not to start it now or wait until I see what Cymbalta will do for me. I already have a prescription for doxycyline.Stock up on acidophilus! :) In general I have concerns about prolonged antibiotic use and generation of treatment resistant bacteria, both from a public health and from an individual point of view. However, in a serious situation such as yours, you need whatever will give you your life back and it would great if you got relief.
> > I wonder if there are actually any psychiatrists who have tried it.
>
> My doctor has used it with some success. I'm not really sure what his criteria are for choosing it for any given individual. He is big on treating Lyme disease and has an interest in the possible contributions of chronic inflammation processes to psychiatric syndromes.Very interesting. I'll put this on my list of things to ask my pdoc about. I wonder if measurements of IL-1 and IL-6 would provide an indication of whether an individual's psychiatric problems would benefit from antiinflammatory treatments.
> As disgusting as this is to contemplate, the number of microbes festering in your body outnumber your cells by a factor of 10.
Well, yeah, they do breed...and don't even think about the mites and bacteria riding around ON your body. :)
I heard someone once say that the main goal of a bacteriUM is to become bacteriA. But hey, as one of my professors once put it, bacteria are good company if you hang with the right ones.
> > You're posting over on alternative. Are you considering some alternative ideas?
>
> In the past, my experimentation with "supplementation" has been expensive and fruitless. However, I cannot logically exclude any alternative from consideration, and I try to keep an open mind. I can't help but to think my illness involves pathologies that are physiologically too severe an anomalous to be amenable to the alternatives discussed here.Do you have some specific ideas of anomalous etiologies? (You don't have to bother answering if you don't feel like it.)
> My doctor has recommended both inositol and omega-3 as things to try. I've got them, but haven't committed to a course of treatment at this point in time. I tried both separately a year ago without any improvement, but I don't think I gave either a fair chance as I didn't take them for more than a month or so. I'm sure they are healthy and otherwise benign, but... I don't know.
You know, I've been curious about inositol. I haven't tried it yet. 5HTP was bad. Tryptophan was okay but ho-hum. SJW didn't pan out. SAM-e is helpful in microdoses and I'm reserving that as something to go potentially back to. I'm thinking I may drag in an article or two to my doctor about inositol.
> Maybe after Cymbalta fails...I will consider revisiting some of these things. I've got quite a list of other things to try, though.
It sounds like you may be the first Cymbalta guinea pig on the board unless someone beats you to it. I admire your perseverence in generating options.
> Thanks for your persistent concern about me. It feels nice. :-)
You're welcome. You're always concerned about everyone else, no matter how bad you feel.
Emme
poster:Emme
thread:375393
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/alter/20040718/msgs/376088.html