Thoughts on Buhners protocol?

Anyone have any opinions on Buhners protocol?

I recently ordered his book and I'm thinking of jumping in on that. It doesn't seen more expensive than going to LLMD appointments and it seems like the herbs are less risky than some of the antibiotics I've been prescribed too so I kind of feel like why not try it out for some time and see if it helps.

Hi
Many members use or have used Buhner's protocols. what I like is that he has herbal suggestions for specific symptoms so you are able to target those symptoms.

I wouldn't say herbals are not risky, some are very potent so do be careful and make sure you check on the side effects and contradictions each herb before using.

His book will help with that. It is an excellent book about Lyme and treatment.


Take care, Jo

I'm doing it for the same reasons.

I find the herbs to be quite potent and I am VERY sensitive so I start out with 1-3 drops of any tinctures and around 1/16 tsp of powders. I haven't been that sensitive on all the herbs, but I am with japanese knotweed, cat's claw, and cordyceps. I was able to take EGCG with Quercetin, hawthorn, rhodiola, and ashwaganda at normal dosages without any herxing. I seem to be sensitive to the immune herbs, cytokine remodulators, and ones that kill anything.

I bought Buhner's books and Dr Rawls' Unlocking Lyme book. I like Dr Rawls' book because it is very easy to read and is very helpful in sorting through all the various things that people use to try to treat Lyme. He gives the pros and cons of those.

Herbs do have risks, so be sure to pay attention to any warnings or contraindications. Also, I've noticed that Buhner doesn't always mention those things, and I'm not sure why. It may be because he doesn't agree with it. An example is EGCG. I don't recall Buhner mentioning anything about possible liver or kidney damage with excessive or long term use, but I have read that in other places, and Bulk Supplements brand of EGCG even states that on their packaging.

I have immense respect for Buhner, but it's always a good idea to get more than one perspective. At some point if I ever get organized, I'm going to look at other sources for herbs to see if there are some that should not be taken long term or can cause organ damage, etc., besides what Buhner indicates in his books.

Buhner is quite the life saver. I've been on his protocol about 5 months but on and off for over a year. The reasoning being... i underestimated the herbs. They are STRONG. I had to start and stop several times before i found the doses that worked for me. And then slowly increase the dose, one herb at a time. So i still have a long way to go. But some notable things... vasculitis disappeared within 60 minutes of my first dose. My palpitations are becoming less and less frequent. Neuropathy is decreased a bit. I stopped getting new symptoms. No more feeling like i'm having strokes all the time. In other words, i'm pretty much stable. Just carving out the more stubborn symptoms slowly. I've never taken antibiotics either and have been sick for almost 3 years. I fully support this plan and have similar reasons. In fact i personally HATED working with LLMDs. It's really nice to be in control of my illness. Herbs can still harm you in rare cases so i still intend to go back soon and get my liver and kidneys checked. But i never had problems in the past

Xelaetaks I understand your want to just buy the herbs, but in my opinion, it is best to buy them when you are about to use them and buy the smallest bottle you can buy.

This way you can "test" the herb to see if you can handle it before buying in a larger quantity.

I did one herb at a time. Very low dose (as in 1 drop) and slowly moved up until I just felt that it was enough. I can't explain it any better than that. My body just said "that's enough." Then I started the next dose.

Eventually you get all the herbs working in unison or synergy and that is when they really work well together. I healed rather quickly and so did my husband doing it this way. We also did Beyond Balance Tox Ease GL and MC-BB-1.

BUT - both of us caught our lyme disease rather soon and we did everything by the letter. We were huge detoxers and ate super healthy. We have no stress and quit the news and did happy things.

It is the total picture that heals, not just the taking of herbs.