Panic attacks from meds??

Hi NurseLisa!
I'm so glad you came back to post about this - there are several things that you need to be doing to help.

Those are fairly usual herxing symptoms, whether your doctor understands this or not. It's not the abx, but the toxins from the dying bacteria that are doing this to you. Are you detoxing? How much? You can also add in the use of binders to help you get through particularly rough periods. If you wish to list what you do for detoxing, we can help you see if you can maybe add in something else.

When you start new meds, or increase doses, it's always best to start off on a very low dose and titrate up to the full dose that the Dr wants you on. This minimizes the herxing. If you started off with full doses, many times lowering your dose for a few days to a week will allow the body time (with good detoxing practices) to play 'catch up' with those toxins and it at least lowers the severity of many symptoms.

Traveler: Thank you for your help. My meds are always either a capsule (Amox.) or a enteric coated tablet that I can't cut and he'll have me take a full one. It makes it difficult to titrate myself. I had a feeling it was some herxing but I since I'm so new to this, once again, I don't have all of the education I need yet.

I'm not on a detox program. I've done a couple of epsom salt baths and I have "Burbur" tincture that I was given at the Midcoast Lyme Convention. I'm not familiar with "Binders." I guess I really need some help with detoxing because I feel like I'm going crazy. I'll do anything to make this better.

Jinna: Thank you for all of your helpful information also. I'm going to look up "Stress Relief" and see if I can purchase some. I've had to use Valerian root the past few days, but I'm sure it's not the same effect. Is there an organ support you can recommend? I was just asking "Traveler" about recommendations for detoxing considering I'm not on any program at all. I didn't even know about that until reading some comments. Can you also recommend some of your detox programs you feel are helpful? I would really appreciate it..

Thank you very much..

Traveler: Thank you for all the great information. I'm going to start with something simple today that I have in the house: the foot soak and then get some of the other things to try but I will go slow. I'm looking forward to hopefully feeling better. Thank you again so much!

Sometimes it's hard to tell between health and financial panic/anxiety and organic problems that come with Lyme and Co. I get all of this in my own way but it's sort of okay sometimes like when I hear good music and cry, it lets things out, the fear, panic and depression tends to be more disturbing, and I feel like my adrenal fatigue is maxed out like a credit card.

Sometimes I really wish I had some Ativan or Xanax, but my basic health care is not ok with benzos so they give me Metoprolol which is just a beta blocker hpb med. It doesn't get rid of the worrisome thoughts, it just dampens my body's adrenal epinephrine response to those thoughts. I take 100mg Metoprolol at a time.

And about binders. An easy thing to get prescribed is Cholestyramine. It is a bile sequestrant. Designed to remove toxins. You have to space it out away from other meds and foods but it's a really effective supplement to have. The night after I dose 3mg of Cholestyramine in water (or another option is Chlorella blue algae or Activated Charcoal 200mg are also good) I have great energy afterward usually. It can really pull some bad stuff out of you (ie. metals, toxins, bacterial and viral debris).

Jinna: Thank you for all of your helpful information also. I'm going to look up "Stress Relief" and see if I can purchase some. I've had to use Valerian root the past few days, but I'm sure it's not the same effect. Is there an organ support you can recommend? I was just asking "Traveler" about recommendations for detoxing considering I'm not on any program at all. I didn't even know about that until reading some comments. Can you also recommend some of your detox programs you feel are helpful? I would really appreciate it..


Answering you then:
chlolestyramine as suggested above is good.

I took mostly 3 things:
- chlorella vulgaris at first, then chlorella pyrenoidosa (liver, gut, lympnh, most digestive organs are cleaned)

- bear garlic tincture (first by Biopure, then home made) (cleans kidneys, urine)

- MSM in powder (helps very fast, but you can't be sulphur intolerant) (it's a precursor to glutathione, that detoxes the whole body through the liver)

The easiest is bear garlic tincture. Never felt a bad reaction with it.

Chlorella takes a bit of time and patience, and some people cannot tolerate it AT ALL. that is why I think vulgaris is better than pyrenoidosa, as it's easier to digest.

Chlorella was my life-savior, without it, I am pretty sure I would be still ill with lyme. It took me out of trouble 80% of times.

MSM was great with babesia, or super strong herxes. It's very bitter, cheap, you can take it in capsules or powder. I took it in powder, diluted in water, but it's bitter!

A very EASY detox, cheap, is clay. Any type of clay. But the effect is very small compared to the 3 substances above.

Foot baths (hot with lots of salt, epsom slats, himalaya, dead sea salts...) feel good.

Some people can also stand zeolites. It was too much for me.

Some other swear by Diatomaceous earth: it's easy to take, in my experience, but I only feel it's doing something sometimes. Every person is different, that's why.

Omega 3 is must supplement (brain, nerve cells), as well as A GOOD type of magnesium (1000 chemical reactions in the body are helped!), and milk thistle.

these 3 things, I think, virtually everyone with lyme will profit from them. We rarely hear bad things about these 3 supplements. It takes just a bit of time to find a good magnesium that fits your body.

I never heard anyone reacting badly to milk thistle and it's excellent for the liver! Buhner highly recommends that too now.

As runningwild says, neurofeedback, biofeedback, any type of energy testing by a good practitioner can be EXTREMELY helpful.

I used a lot of Heel products for organ support.

One of my favorites is Lymphomyosot, that is very popular here in Germany / Switzerland. it helps the lymph.

Recently I'm trying a lot of Vital Force Products, and one that seems even better than milk thistle is the Liver/Pancreas Formula. I'm very surprised with it, as it is even stronger and better than Heel Hepar Compositum.

I look like a marketing person for them, but I'm not! I live in Switzerland, and I know they do not sell formulas easily directly to customers. I'm just sharing my recent experiences!

Their Stress RElief formula is very good! I do recommend it. I think you can buy this specific formula from their website.

Post Edited (Jinna) : 5/30/2017 7:23:51 AM (GMT-6)

Everyone here is amazing and so helpful. I have made a list of some of the things I'm going to get for detoxing. Yesterday & today I did the Epsom salt/Peroxide foot soak and I haven't had a panic attack since yesterday. I also held my antibiotics today because I just needed a break. I'm going to get a binder also. I'll probably get something OTC as my PCP hasn't been very helpful. I would love to do Neurofeedback but right now I'm trying to pay my hospital's health insurance, since I'm on LOA.

As far as the panic and whether it's from an outside source ie financial, etc, I think what bothers me the most is that I've suffered from panic attacks, major depression, disassociation and depersonalization since getting bit by the tick decades ago, and when under stressful situations I would have more panic and anxiety. But right now, it just comes any time, for any reason. It's horrible. I agree with "Pirouette", I would rather have the worst intracranial pressure headache and body aches than this crazy head panic where I feel like I'm going to die. I'm not trying to be dramatic, honestly, I'm just describing how it feels when it happens.

I'm so happy to read that with treatment the anxiety goes away because I've had it most of my life. I'm trying to have more faith, reach out when I feel hopeless, and try to think positive that this will get better. I really do wish that my Lyme Dr educated me a bit about the detoxing. It would have been helpful. But I know now, and that's the important thing.

Thank you again to everyone who took the time to help me. I really appreciate it and all of your information was so very helpful..

Georgia Hunter: What you wrote was very interesting. I read the article and it made sense. I was thinking, I just got used to the Lyme diet: gluten free, dairy free & sugar free, and thought oh my gosh, how can I eliminate more foods and not lose more weight..But I do understand the reasoning behind it, I think I'm just a bit overwhelmed about my already poor appetite. As far as a supplement, can I ask if you use one certain one that replaces all you need with this PKU diet? I was doing some research and I saw a powder that was called "Phenyl-Free", and I wasn't sure if that was what you were referring to when you mentioned supplementing with vitamins.
Thank you again for all the helpful information..

I'm so happy to hear that increased detoxing has made a huge difference for you!! That's wonderful!

For me, I need a high level of detoxing support, but I still have issues with anxiety, so I've turned to Avena sativa and it's been just the help I've needed. Funny how it's not advertised to help with anxiety, but I'm far from the only one that has seen the benefits of it just for anxiety - plus it helps heal the nervous system.

Just something to look into if you feel that you may need a little something to help further control the anxiety.

I would at this time suggest that you work on adding in a few more detoxing routines still though.

Lvg123 - Hi Lisa, Nursing is an amazing field and I truly love my job. I wanted to say thank you for taking the time to leave me all of your history, because it was helpful. I remember getting bit by a tick in the head (it was engorged and in there for days) when I was 12 or 13, and I started having severe panic attacks when I was 18, and things just continued to get worse throughout my life. Severe depression landed me in the hospital several times, feeling suicidal and just terrified of life. Good question, though, about the Psychiatrist. I was pretty fortunate to have sought out help from a Therapist & Psychiatrist right away, but unfortunately, Lyme was never thought of or mentioned. I always think about that. Maybe I could have been diagnosed 30 years ago, but it is what it is. There I think that's where some of my anxiety gets triggered. I start thinking I'm in severe trouble having had this for decades. I'm so scared. My Lyme Dr. said to me when I had my first appt., "I think we caught in in time." I think what does that mean?
Anyways, I'm so glad you're better, I hope I can get there too. I don't seem to be able to tolerate the antibiotics very well, so that may make this more of a challenge for me. I'm trying to hard to have hope. Today I cried most of the day from fear that I seem to have not much control over.
I wanted to mention that I still have a Therapist and Psychiatrist, I'm also on Xanax, which I've been on a small dose for over 25 years, An antidepressant called Viibryd, and the Seroquel. Do you get overly sedated taking 200? I'm pretty groggy most of the day just taking 50 XR. But I was desperate and it literally saved my life.
Thank you for the hope you've given to me..

NurseLisaOR said...
Georgia Hunter: What you wrote was very interesting. I read the article and it made sense. I was thinking, I just got used to the Lyme diet: gluten free, dairy free & sugar free, and thought oh my gosh, how can I eliminate more foods and not lose more weight..But I do understand the reasoning behind it, I think I'm just a bit overwhelmed about my already poor appetite. As far as a supplement, can I ask if you use one certain one that replaces all you need with this PKU diet? I was doing some research and I saw a powder that was called "Phenyl-Free", and I wasn't sure if that was what you were referring to when you mentioned supplementing with vitamins.
Thank you again for all the helpful information..

I wish I had an answer for you but I don't. Sweet whey, also called sour whey, is something advisable to eat. As you mentioned, I was referring to vitamin supplementation. I've advocated an almost completely plant based diet for Lyme (similar to a Wahls Diet). I know what I had to do to get well and from what I've read, that is what the evidence points to. I'm not sure I've ever read about a "Lyme Diet." If you research the negative effects of babesia and how protozoans can affect the enzymes of the ornithine cycle, you can see where increased nitrogen intake can be detrimental to your health. Proteins are made of amino acids which are made of nitrogen. Getting even more specific, phenylalanine is the one that causes more issues as long as nitrogen can be properly processed by the body. If it is not, that leads to ammonia buildup through both increased absorption and failure to eliminate ingested nitrogen.

I wanted to address the fact of you having these infections for decades and the fear that it creates. I'm in the same boat - I've got 45 years and counting. Although I did heal once, after 40 years of living with these infections, but I got reinfected.

While going that long without proper treatment makes it harder for many, it surely doesn't mean we can't heal. We had to have something going right for us to have held on that long while living with these infections! I'm just not sure what, as it sure doesn't seem to be my immune system (supporting it will cause me to herx quite a bit).

So, we have enough to 'worry over', so please do set that aside. Who knows what your doctor meant that they 'caught it in time', but you are here now and know that you need treatments, and are getting them. That's the most important part of this.

Traveler: Oh gosh, I'm sorry you got re-infected. That must have been pretty discouraging to say the least. I really appreciate all your encouragement and hopeful words. I'm going to try really hard to "set aside" the worry. Maybe that's part of this whole illness too, I don't know.

Thanks again!