Lymes and remission

[DebE13]

I haven't posted in such a long time because I gave up on finding anything that would help my MC. Apparently, Lyme's is my answer. I am really scratching my head and thinking "only me." I had Lyme's in 2017 with the classic bullseye and was treated with doxycycline. After a few days on the antibiotic, I had my first "normal" stool since 2007 when I was dx with MC. A few years later, my GI put me on it again just to see if I could achieve the same results. There was no change. I chalked it up to a fluke and thanked him for letting me give it a try.

Last week, I was put on doxy once again for a another tick bite that resulted in some Lyme's related symptoms. So here I am again, a few days into it and now I have the most "normal" poops than I've had since the last time I had Lyme's. I tend to get yeast infections when taking antibiotics so I ramped up on my probiotics in hopes I wouldn't have to go down that road. I am currently taking Florajen and Florastor. I've tried more probiotics in the past than I can count and none have ever made any improvements with my MC so I am doubtful that is the reason. Has anyone experienced anything similar? I'd sure like this trend to continue without the use of the antibiotics or ticks. I'm actually rather annoyed that my body has the ability to act somewhat normal but only chooses to do so when distracted by Lymes.

[tex]

Hi Deb,

It's good to see a post by you, especially one describing at least temporary control of your symptoms. It's a shame that you had to catch Lymes disease again, in order to accomplish it. Since it's beginning to appear that no one else has any comments on this, I thought I would point out that this is probably the first time that anyone has been able to verify that a treatment regimen for Lymes disease has consistently (repeatedly) brought remission from the symptoms of MC, especially when their MC has been refractive to conventional treatments. Very interesting,to say the least.

I hope that you'll be lucky, and when the treatment ends, you'll be able to remain in remission.

Thanks for sharing this insight.

Tex

[jessica329]

Deb-

I contracted Anaplasmosis from a tick in 2017 and Lyme disease this past April. I went on Doxy for the Anaplasmosis and boy did my body hate that antibiotic. For Lyme, I did a round of Amoxicillin followed by a round of Azithromycin 6 weeks later. I'm pretty sure I crapped out all of my organs. My system doesn't tolerate antibiotics and they cause massive diarrhea for me. Has anything else changed for you while you've been taking the doxy? I calmed down my recent flare by ripping out the carpet in my bedroom, replacing the curtains and deep cleaning. Apparently my environmental allergies were triggering a MC flare-up.

[DebE13]

The first time I had Lymes a few years prior, I took doxy and it actually caused remission from MC. I've had CC since 2007 and have never been able to get it under control. The D returned after the course of doxy was over. It was really weird. This time around, nothing. I don't believe I have any lasting issues from Lymes. Sorry to hear you had such a hard time with it. I hope things are better for you now.

[HealingJourneyDay1]

I'm new to the site, and found it through a lot of googling MC and Lyme. I am happy to find these threads connecting different issues. I have struggled for over a decade with GI issues, but only this past year caught the Hashimoto's, L colitis, SIBO, leaky gut, and now adenomyosis and ovarian cysts (ultrasound last week). I had classic (bullseye, fever) Lyme about 5 years ago and was treated unsuccessfully with antibiotics. I had a blood test this summer by an independent lab on IgG and IgM of many different tickborne pathogens, and had several of the antibodies at high "enough" levels for the ordering ND to assume that I am positive for several of these pathogens to this day. I cannot get any regular MDs to accept this test, however.

I've been chasing the SIBO all year, unsuccessfully, with herbs. Now I am coming full circle to again questioning whether most of my problems originate with Lyme, and I am considering trying to treat the Lyme again, but I am desperate for a knowledgeable doctor with an understanding of all of these problems and their interactions. If anyone has any advice on where to begin the healing journey, or where to find a good doctor, I would be so grateful for your recommendations.

[jessica329]

Welcome HealingJourneyDay1!
I was diagnosed with adenomyosis in March 2022. My Lyme was sometime around summer/fall 2021 (I'm only guessing based on bloodwork, but I don't know when I actually got bit). I was diagnosed with lymphocytic colitis in 2012. I suspect that the LC might have been triggered from long term use of high dose hormonal birth control, along with a predisposition in my family to IBD. Also, at the time, I was under a lot of stress, from working full-time while attending grad school full-time. It was probably the perfect storm.

I live in the tick capital of the world, close to Lyme, CT. Unfortunately the doctors here are no help. They feel that you can't possibly have Lyme after a few rounds of antibiotics, despite the research showing otherwise. I turned to herbal interventions and that seemed to help the Lyme and keep it in remission, but aggravated the adenomyosis. In the meantime, I'm full blown going through menopause. Menopause has helped with the adenomyosis, but comes with its own issues. However, I tried an herbal supplement for the hot flashes and night sweats, but the supplement cause an LC flare last Friday that has finally just calmed down.

Honestly, what's helped the most has been a super clean diet of no alcohol, no sugar, no gluten, drinking only water. Also, the only dairy I eat is 1 plain sheep milk yogurt a day. That really helped with the SIBO caused by all the antibiotics I was on for the Lyme. I notice that if I don't eat the yogurt for a few days, I start getting the SIBO side pain again. Also, finding my food triggers. Going to bed early. Keeping a journal to see what things help/hurt me.

[sonja]

Hi,

In my case there is something special with Lyme. In the last 20 years, I had very often tick bites, mostly not with a bulls eye.
I tested several times positive and got the antibiotics. after that I continued to test positive on the IGM test. Normally that means that you have an active infection. At the specialized hospital they did not find any other symptoms. Years later I was tested again positive. After testing several times and took the antibiotics because my doctor insisted, I had to conclude that I still test positive, but I don't have lyme disease. let time I did not take the antibiotics again.

About getting normal stools after antibiotics, this happened to me two times after being treated for helicobacter pylori with a double dose of antibiotics. Now I think that The second time I was tested for h, pylori, I did not have the infection, because my symptoms did not disappear after the antibiotics. I think I tested positive on H. pylori too, just like on Lyme disease, while I don't have it. I think my blood is full with antibody's.
I hope this helps, but I think it makes things more complex. Sorry for that.
Sonja