Dementia

Do a lot of people with chronic lyme disease develop dementia? My father has it, and I think I'm following in his footsteps. However, he got it when he was 70. I'm only 40, but I'm starting to notice symptoms. Not sure if there's anyway I can prevent it.

Thanks Girlie.

I just read that Lorazapam causes dementia. I've been taking this drug for a long time. Maybe a decade. Geez.

I also read that Lorazapam causes tinnitus.

I have really bad anxiety due to my job, so I don't think I could function without it. I tend to snap when I am in a stressful situation and not on lorazapam.

Maybe I should try to lessen the dose over time. I think I'm on 1mg per day. Maybe try to get down to .5mg per day?

lyme causes inflammation in the brain

inflammation in the brain causes hyper reactivity, rage, anxiety, depression etc etc

it also causes memory problems and cognitive problems that can mimic dementia

long term it can also cause actual accelerated dementia in some cases - but that seems to be relatively rare

the primary medical paradigm is that pretty much all mental illnesses that are not caused by a gross physical anomaly - like tumour or traumatic brain injury - are caused by imbalances in neurotransmitters.

as a result since the 1950s the pharmaceutical companies have produced ever more drugs that are designed to raise or lower the various neurotransmitters in the brain - as these were seen as the primary cause of symptoms - and thus this was perceived to be an appropriate treatment.

no one seemed to ask - even simple questions like-
"is this persons neurotransmitter levels actually too low or too high?" before prescribing these drugs - and
no one seemed to ask the obvious questions like -
"if the neurotransmitters were high ( or low ) in this patient - what was causing that?"

as should be apparent - humans are simply way more complex than a single mechanism causing all illnesses relating to one organ.
and in this case they have simply ignored other mechanisms that can impact the brain - like
-infection,
-inflammation,
-immune reaction,
-etc
-etc

as a result - the effectiveness of neurotransmitter targetted medications for mental health disorders is typically only marginally better than placebo in trials, they have many undesirable side effects - and are often addictive or have withdrawal issues.
in addition, their original use was as a short term treatment to help get the patient under control. but many people are now taking these drugs for years or decades.
none of the trials were anything like this duration.

i write this only to highlight that benzodiazepines may not be the best solution long term if your issues are actually driven by infection and inflammation - that their use is largely the product of a mistaken set of assumptions, and as a result they are typically a sticking plaster for the real underlying issue - and there may be other more effective treatments for such conditions worth exploring.

eg
there are natural treatments that can significantly reduce inflammation in the brain
antimicrobial treatments can reduce infection to remove the underlying cause of inflammation

as mentioned by others - if you do decide to discontinue this medication - please do not do anything sudden or rash - as its known that weening off these medications can be difficult - and so a v gradual approach is advised

all the best

I'm so sorry to hear about your father, and that you're concerned about similar symptoms you're beginning to experience yourself. Your question about Lyme and dementia being connected reminded me of Kris Kristofferson's story: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/a-slow-slipping-away-kris-kristoffersons-long_b_577c047be4b00a3ae4ce6609

My father-in-law (75yo) has advanced dementia that he developed following encephalitis in early childhood, multiple concussions from playing American football in high school, and ten years of taking pain meds and benzos for constant migraines. Obviously he had lots of risk factors, but I definitely understand your concern about the long-term effects of your meds.

Weaning slowly off of lorazepam might be a good idea, as long-term benzo use is associated with so many possible complications, but I know that's so difficult to do. Have you tried cannabis (or the derivative CBD, legal everywhere, with no psychoactive effects) as a way to help with withdrawal and with your work-related anxiety symptoms? Maybe one of the SSRIs, SNRIs, or bupropion? Adaptogenic herbs (ashwagandha, rhodiola, holy basil, eleuthero) or calming herbs (kava, valerian, lemon balm, chamomile)? Maybe one of these or a combination could be helpful.

I'm sorry to hear that your job keeps you in such a stressed state! Is there any option for switching roles? Needing benzos in order to work doesn't seem sustainable for workers.

my partner had extreme anxiety and rage with lyme and bartonella

she was able to control it almost completely with L-theanine daily and pasque flower tincture as and when if it flared up - neither are addictive or have long term ill effects

i think some of the newer MRI scans and such can measure the altered chemistry it causes Astro

and i think they can detect inflammatory markers in the CSF if they were to do those

but i dont think there is any doubt that lyme causes neuroborreliosis - as that's one its main known presentations - even in the conventional medical world.

we also know the spirochetes make it to the brain in around 12hrs from entering the bite site - and we know borrelia cause inflammation wherever they go - so i think its more than "lyme folk lore"

of course how much brain inflammation people get will vary from case to case - from life threatening in the case of severe acute neuroboreliosis - to pretty much non existent in people who get over it quickly

i have had some benefits from buhners bartonella herbs - but dosages were rather high - and benefits useful - but not enough for me to completely recover

i am also taking the buhner extended protocol of lymeherbs from his 2nd edition book - as i have a positive lyme test from Armin labs - and the combination of lyme and bart is likely contributing to the difficulty to treat.

other newer therapies that have helped me are Methylene blue - as per in vitro studies out of Johns hopkins on its activity in stationary phase / persister cells of bartonella

oil of oregano - again in vitro studies and newer LLMD clinical experiences support this

fibrinolytic enzymes - such as lumbrokinase or bromelain are also important parts of many LLMD's bartonella protocols - eg Dr. M

the other things that have helped me, perhaps more than any antimicrobial drug or herb, are things that help the immune system fight the infection better itself
-focus on getting good sleep - via a variety of measures
-ketogenic diet
-exercise - walking daily and weights every other day
-active stress reduction strategies - eg meditation, mindset changes, walking in nature, yoga etc

for me recovery has been a matter of layering these things together over time at a pace my body could cope with without inducing so much herx like reactions that i could not function well enough to look after myself

Good luck

Dr. Tom O'Bryon did a great talk about this on the recent Lyme Summit. I did make a recording of it but it is 1.13 gb so I don't really know how to share it. Besides the basic descriptions of just how the disease effects your brain he said the 4 keys to begin healing: Stop taking in toxins, Detox the toxins already in you, heal a leaky gut and create a great microbiome. Not really any specific details on how to do that. But I love hearing him talk. He is so positive.

There was also someone else who did a talk (can't remember their name right now sorry) on the Lyme Summit about how much she helped someone with brain memory diseases.

So it is possible to detox your brain and begin turning things around. I'm sorry I don't remember more details but the info is out their somewhere.

I just found a summit coming up that should be helpful. https://drtalks.com/reverse-alzheimers-summit/?uid=379&oid=46&ref=2286 hosted by Dr. Heather Sandison and Dr. Dale Bredesen. June 13-19, 2023