Lyme and Constipation

both constipation and loose stools very common in this population i think

i have had both - sometimes alternating

Tick-borne infections can affect the GI tract in a lot of ways - dysfunctional nerve signals, dysbiosis, permeability, etc. - so it's fairly common to have constipation, diarrhea, and other chronic GI tract symptoms, unfortunately. One of the severest forms of constipation is a form of dysautonomia called gastroparesis, wherein the nerve signals to the GI tract stop or considerably reduce.

Are you able to eat normally but just don't eliminate regularly? Do you have other digestive symptoms? Are you taking any meds or supplements, such as binders or iron, that are constipating? Have you had stool testing done, such as those offered by Genova? Do the usual remedies help - calcium citrate, Miralax, dietary changes, enemas?

Hope you find some relief soon!

Quin - Not doubting your theory but wondering how it was determined the cause was adrenal fatigue. I suspect that with symptom surge, including a return of struggles to "go" when need. And, once again, I urinate much more.

Did you have any testing done for your adrenals? I deeply suspect that and posted about possible adrenal involvement (it must be a boring subject, based on lack of responses)

And how does naltrexone play a role to help?

And good questions were asked by saraeli.

that's interesting Quin

i have constipation - mostly controlled by magnesium and vitamin C etc
also sleep disruption - which i cam gradually improving to manageable - with a stack of supplements like L-Theanine, magnesium, melatonin, and now inositol

i have been supplementing long term with Acetyl -L -Carnitine - 500mg 3x day - which has helped overall with energy levels ( fatigue has been worst symptom)

B12 levels are fine - but am supplementing with Methyl B12 - 2000mg / day

am also taking low dose naltrexone - which has helped me somewhat with fatigue i think - but have flares of insomnia and pains in my limbs if i step it up by more than 0.1mg dose per week - so having to go really slowly - currently at 3.1mg

i currently take low tonic doses of adaptogen herbs - eleuthero, ashwaghanda and rhodiola - which are supposed to help with adrenal function - i notice eleuthero in particular helps me get more done

when i can sleep better my overall health improves noticeably - pain and stiffness typically go down - productivity goes up

does this sound like adrenal issues to you - I'm afraid its not something i have dug into much - i found all the controversy over "adrenal fatigue" vs "cortisol tolerance" pretty opaque and off-putting

Carnitine synthesis requires vitamin C and B12, so if you're stressing your adrenals and depleting these vitamins then it can affect your carnitine too. I didn't have any symptoms that I could attribute specifically to low carnitine that were distinct from just feeling bad in general, but a blood test found that I had low carnitine, and after I took some Acetyl-L-Carnitine then the next blood test came up normal.

Endorphins make you feel good, sort of, but what I would notice is that I would get hungry but then when I ate I would feel bloated and get a lot of gas.

Naltrexone would reverse this effect and I would get some mild diarrhea. I also noticed the weird dreams from it when I first started. If I took too much at once, it seemed to shift my metabolism in a way that raised my blood sugar a bit, and caused some ketosis smell. This is basically because insulin resistance and opioid tolerance have a related mechanism.

Bartonella caused a lot of painful bowel problems, but it was different from the adrenal/endorphin thing. Bartonella seems to produce a toxin and it smelled really bad when I pooped it out.