Patient166,
Hey there! Good for you that you got tested and identified mold issues. That’s the first step. Like sandyfeet said, avoidance is key. Ongoing exposure has to be addressed. Did you do an ERMI or HERTSMI -2 test on your environments - home and workplace?
As for binders, I have taken the following - cholestyramine, activated charcoal, Pectasol-C modified citrus pectin, Pectaclear, chlorophyllin, Zeobind, GI Detox, Mediclay, and chlorella.
Cholestyramine was the first I took and was too potent for me to tolerate. That was several years ago. I have a Rx for the pure CSM powder and hope to try that soon on my own schedule/dosing😊.
I had to work up doses on Pectasol-C, so I know it did something. Zeobind made me feel great for 2 weeks and then I felt worse after that. I have been on TUDCA Plus from Microbe Formulas for 3 weeks now. I felt better consistently after starting it until last Friday (see long story below). It’s not a binder, but it increases bile which is where the toxins are. I am starting to suspect it may have initially made me feel relief but may now be causing toxin overload.
It’s hard to know if I had herxing from the binders, as I am extremely sensitive to mold and was never able to get in a clean enough environment to become desensitized to it. That means my symptoms continued and even worsened. I believe I may have mold colonized in my gut. I don’t know for sure if it’s mold or yeast, but whatever it is, it has responded to Candicid Forte supplements and Nystatin. Still, it has not been eradicated. I’m convinced I have toxin producing pathogens in my gut based on gut symptoms, OAT and MycoTox test results, heightened chemical and mold sensitivities, response to certain treatments that fluctuate independently of external exposure to mold triggers.
Of all the people on this forum who talk about
mold, I am probably the most severely affected and most hypersensitive. Mold seems to be my primary driver of debilitating symptoms with coinfections secondary or possibly third. I suspect I have heavy metal issues of some variety. I know I have endless ropeworm, but I am not sure about
other intestinal parasites. Al these things factor in to why I have such a hard time.
Like sandyfeet said, mold can be tricky to figure out. For example, I have been in a pickle since last Friday trying to figure out what’s happening with me. Had bad flares of mold and chemical sensitivities and headaches, nausea, and intestinal discomfort. It all coincided with being around (but not inside of) the house we bought and just had remediated. I got sick Friday. Felt extremely well Saturday. Got sick again Sunday and Monday.
The day I started getting sick, my mold sensitivities surged where I was smelling mold toxins on my clothes and other things. I have been wracking my brain trying to figure out if it’s from some new or worsening external exposure that needs to be identified and avoided or if it’s due to some of my treatment or if it’s related to some internal exposure from my gut.
Yesterday I was feeling okay and went inside the remediated house for the first time without a suit or respirator. I did not smell any mold/mycotoxins, but I did have inflammation (mainly burning in my face, scalp) but not enough to send me running, as my insides felt okay (hard to explain).
When I woke up this morning I felt fine. I just had a BM though, and am now starting to feel inflammation rising (mainly burning in my face and head). I will be going back to the house today to meet with a contractor. I will know more today about
how I am affected.
As I am writing this, my mind is already tangled up wondering if my flares of symptoms following BM’s are related to gut pathogens/issues or if related to the environmental exposures I had yesterday or days prior and the same toxins I was exposed to externally those days are toxins I am being re-exposed to today as they come out via poop. This is the kind of mental jungle I deal with. (Face in palms.).
Just writing this gave me a whole new mental perspective to my symptomatic dilemma. Maybe the recurring toxic symptoms I have felt for years is actually re-exposure to everything I get exposed to in external environments instead of being due to toxin-producing gut pathogens. (Sighhhh.)
As for timing binders, it depends. Some like Cholestyramine (CSM) and Zeobind are taken 30 minutes before a meal (fatty meal is best). Charcoal needs to be 2 hours away from anything else. I like to take a binder in late afternoon and early morning when I wake up to use the bathroom.
Sorry for my long, discombobulated, self-centered ramble.
Post Edited (WalkingbyFaith) : 2/6/2020 6:55:59 AM (GMT-7)