Heightened sensitivity after first big herx on treatment

I wanted to post this as an FYI as this may happen to others, though it is somewhat rare (according to my LLND)...but not unheard of. It may save others time and unneeded misery.

I've been on treatment for Bartonella (peeling away the layers, Babesia next, then Lyme) since September. Dx'd in September after 20 + years of symptoms.

We started with the Byron White formula A-Bart, along with several detox cocktails and some anti-inflammatory support. I was doing swimmingly, slowly ramping up the A-Bart and keeping on top of the die-off. My energy was improving. My sleep was improving. My mental clarity was improving.

Then, in February, I hit a wall...hard. We assumed it was a Herx response when I got to a certain level of the A-Bart (10 drops twice a day): my hands swelled, I got terrible pain in my thoracic spine, ribs, shoulders, and sacral area. So, we cut the A-Bart back almost to nothing. I didn't improve. We cut it out altogether. I didn't improve. She wondered if maybe the Lyme had come to the forefront when my knees started to swell up (had to have them drained 3 times), so we added a small amount of A-Bart back in, and added Teasel with Solomon Seal. I didn't improve.

The pain (especially in the upper back and ribs) was so bad at points that I wished I could pass out. I never had actual suicidal thoughts, but I imagined if I had any emotional instability (or a neural symptom of the disease) it could have been a dangerous time. The knees remained swollen, the ankles and feet started to swell, the elbows started to swell. I was eating pristinely, trying to detox physically on top of the herbal detoxes (baths, sauna, dry brushing)...but I had also developed a new heat sensitivity and couldn't tolerate ANYthing over my body temp and would be much worse the day after.

She wondered then if it was the Babesia rearing up and we added Byron White's A-Bab to the mix. But within a week of that I finally called uncle. I'd been stiff upper-lipping it, thinking, "how could I be herxing this LONG? This must just be the treatment working or that we're missing some new angle that needs to be addressed." But when she finally saw me again, after THREE months of this, and saw my joints...she made it clear that this kind of reaction and pain was NEVER an acceptable state to be in while treating.

We stopped all antimicrobial treatments last Thursday, quadrupled the detox cocktail (Renelix and Itires, plus tons of water...and I took it upon myself to start ionic foot baths...the water was bright orange...guess what that means? Joint detox...), and added additional natural anti-inflammatories... And guess what?

Four days later, and my pain is mostly gone. I still have swelling, but it's clearly reduced for the first time in two months. I went from hobbling across the house to (slowly) walking half a mile out under the sun and the sky today. And I feel a very solid foundation of improvement. I don't want to get ahead of myself...but this is truly the first marked improvement I've experienced in 3 months.

So...what we learned: it's possible to Herx, and to come out of that with an ultra-heightened sensitivity to all anti-microbial treatments...like anything at all, and just keep building up toxins. So, apparently when that's the case, it's best to give bug-killers a rest, try to bring the inflammation down to almost nothing, detox thoroughly, and take a breath...

Once I'm completely stable and feeling like I can function again, we will start back up with likely individual herbs...very gentle ones...and ease back into treatment.

In the mean time, I'm going to stick with the ionic foot baths as often as I can (not sure I'm ready to invest in my own, but am open to brand recommendations if you've had good luck with one), start coffee enemas (that will be a whole new world...I'm nervous, but have read such good things about them), try to add the baths and FIR sauna sessions as I start to tolerate heat better again (hopefully), walk more and do yoga as my body starts to allow the movement again, and above all, I won't let myself try to push through pain and discomfort being caused by the treatment itself. It must be addressed.

So, that's my experience getting over my first major hurdle of the treatment. If this can help anyone at all, GREAT! If anyone has any suggestions for me...let me tell you I am all ears!

Cheers!

PS Above all, it's been important for me to keep a positive outlook. I think there's a marked emotional aspect to healing, and our thoughts can and will manifest themselves in our body. I believe I will get well, and that's all there is to it. However I must learn to differentiate 'believing I will get well' from 'denying just how bad I am at any given time.' The latter won't do me any favors in being treated appropriately. Our bodies are smart. They will tell us when something's not working.