JUST DIAGNOSED - Please help a fellow lymie out:)

So I figured out I had mono and THANK GOD my GP just happened to test for lyme at the same time. She said she didn't think I had it but "just in case" some symptoms weren't related to the mono.

Results came back for mono and lyme. I'm pretty much over mono but I need your help asap. I arrived at the doc appt with recurring low-grade fevers (now gone), extreme fatigue (now gone), horrible headaches (for the most part gone), and sore throat (now gone). I think most of those symptoms were from mono.

Lyme is what scares the crap out of me.. I think I caught it early though. What is strange is I was given 21 days of doxy (200mg per day) as well as some Vitamin D which was very low. I'm using probiotics for my GI. I'm taking the meds but I'm having issues.

The GP said 21 days then we wait a month to see if the lyme is still there I guess? My symptoms (I feel that are unrelated to mono which is pretty much over now) have gotten worse after starting meds. My knees are killing me, my taste has changed (I'm assuming doxy side effect), and I'm getting a lot of muscle twitching at night. My joints are cracking more than usual too... Is this herxing?!

On November 1st, I told my parents I MUST go see a LLMD in West Chester. My GP is great for catching it and starting doxy but I want it GONE. The internet is just making things worse and I'm afraid I will never get rid of it or that I'll have joint pain forever. Is it normal to demand the LLMD do a confection test for things like babesia and bartonella? My GP didn't do that. I'm also hoping I can get the doctor to prescribe more doxy and only stop them AFTER 30 days of CONSECUTIVELY feeling normal. What do you guys think?

Please help me out and guidance is much appreciated. My parents act like it's no big deal but there's a chance I contracted it 4-5 months before. My symptoms during my first round of doxy aren't bad which makes me think I got it early. What is the twitching? What is the knee pain? Should I demand antibiotics UNTIL I feel better? HELP!!!

genevieverusso said...
So I figured out I had mono and THANK GOD my GP just happened to test for lyme at the same time. She said she didn't think I had it but "just in case" some symptoms weren't related to the mono.

Results came back for mono and lyme. I'm pretty much over mono but I need your help asap. I arrived at the doc appt with recurring low-grade fevers (now gone), extreme fatigue (now gone), horrible headaches (for the most part gone), and sore throat (now gone). I think most of those symptoms were from mono.

Lyme is what scares the crap out of me.. I think I caught it early though. What is strange is I was given 21 days of doxy (200mg per day) as well as some Vitamin D which was very low. I'm using probiotics for my GI. I'm taking the meds but I'm having issues.

The GP said 21 days then we wait a month to see if the lyme is still there I guess? My symptoms (I feel that are unrelated to mono which is pretty much over now) have gotten worse after starting meds. My knees are killing me, my taste has changed (I'm assuming doxy side effect), and I'm getting a lot of muscle twitching at night. My joints are cracking more than usual too... Is this herxing?!

On November 1st, I told my parents I MUST go see a LLMD in West Chester. My GP is great for catching it and starting doxy but I want it GONE. The internet is just making things worse and I'm afraid I will never get rid of it or that I'll have joint pain forever. Is it normal to demand the LLMD do a confection test for things like babesia and bartonella? My GP didn't do that. I'm also hoping I can get the doctor to prescribe more doxy and only stop them AFTER 30 days of CONSECUTIVELY feeling normal. What do you guys think?

Please help me out and guidance is much appreciated. My parents act like it's no big deal but there's a chance I contracted it 4-5 months before. My symptoms during my first round of doxy aren't bad which makes me think I got it early. What is the twitching? What is the knee pain? Should I demand antibiotics UNTIL I feel better? HELP!!!

Lyme has a cycle, plus it has a habit of hiding/disguising itself so that you may need other kinds of antibiotics that can breach the blood brain barrier to expose it to more killing. 30 days is not long enough. My protocol required 90 days, followed by other antibiotics to chase it down. You can also choose to use certain herbs in various forms with the antibiotic(s) or by themselves.

Throughout all of this treatment as was mentioned by multifacetedme, you need to be detoxing, to remove the killed bacteria along, out of you, and do add them in slowly as suggested in her links. That intro we have at the top is excellent reading, and can answer many of the questions in your head.

Sorry you're having to go through this, you're in very good, supportive company in this group.

Also, you can type key words from your questions into the search bar under where it says "Join HealingWell", and ad "Lyme" so that you're directed to a previous topic in this group that discusses it.

Hi genevieverusso - welcome to our community!


You've been given some excellent information - I wanted to say 'welcome' and add my 'two cents'.

First - 100 mg twice daily of doxy is too low of a dose. It should be 200 mg twice daily.

If you did have it for 4-5 months prior to treating...21 days will not be enough. It's important to keep treating until symptom free...and then several weeks (4-8) after that.

Yes, increase in symptoms, in addition to new ones...after starting treatment - is herxing.

Some LLMD's will do further testing for co-infections, others prefer to diagnose the co's clinically - meaning how you respond to certain antibiotics, what your symptoms are, etc.

Twitching is from the nerves being affected by the infection.
It is common for knees and other joints to be affected by lyme. Sometimes it occurs with swelling, sometimes not.

I have had the knee pain...but no swelling.

As the other two Mods mentioned - you should start detoxing...start with a few methods...and every few days add in another one...you need to employ several methods daily. This helps to flush out the toxins that are created when the bacteria dies off. This will help alleviate the symptoms of the herx.

So, do you have a LLMD appointment scheduled?

Hi genevieve...just wanted to welcome you to the community. The people here are very wise, compassionate, and supportive. A new diagnosis can be very scary and unsettling. I'm sure you'll be getting a ton of information from many different sources. It can be overwhelming! Don't be afraid to ask questions. And don't be afraid to re-ask the same question! (I do it all the time lol)

Detoxing definitely helps a lot. The list on the first thread has many methods so find the ones you are comfortable with. (In the beginning, I wasn't comfortable using items I'd never heard of, so I opted for lemon water, alka seltzer gold, dry brushing, and detox tea. I've slowly gotten over my fear of herbals!)

Good luck with your journey! xo

Welcome Genevieve,

You have come to the right place. This board saved my sanity. Congrats that you got treated and found it quickly that is a plus. Detox, change your diet, get lots of rest and look into herbs. Lyme has such a steep learning curve so don't be afraid to ask questions. We're here to listen.