i think it depends on what you think your main infections are
as time goes by i think the evidence is mounting that most people have more than one
if Babesia is suspected - then i think its worth going after that as primary target 1st - but keeping the pressure on Lyme with 1-2 drugs all the time - as it seems pretty well founded that Babs inhibits the immune system from dealing with the others and keeps people sick.
fibrin treatments / anti biofilm treatments seem to be needed for many to clear the parasite. some recent work was published on this by LLMD's at ILADS
if Bart is in the picture then i think this needs special focus as seems to be the hardest/slowest to get to turn around - many many patients report months of treatment with little or no progress - but many also do eventually recover after v long term abx use. i think it has to do with the way bart is intracellular most of the time and you can only wear the infection down by killing it when it comes into the blood - or when the body recycles the old infected cells.
Fibrin treatments seem to be particularly important in bart - it is well documented to cause the body to produce excess fibrin ( a sticky gel like substance ) that clumps together in the circulatory system, protecting infected cells from the immune system.
Methylene blue has also helped me somewhat - but with bart all treatments are a long haul - often with little encouragement in the beginning - i am around 6 months in and had to build up v gradually
we now know that all chronic bacterial infections involve biofilms - the longer you have been sick the larger issue this component is likely to be - and the longer treatment is likely to take.
so i would also consider trying different biofilm agents apart from serrapeptase
from my own trials i find that whenever i try a new one alongside antimicrobials i get a significant herx like response - as if its peeling away additional layers - even though i have been on a biofilm agent for 2 months previously
each is pretty specific and breaks down only one or two elements of the complex mix of compounds these organisms use to make their biofilm - and all biofilms in nature are multispecies - further adding to complexity of the matrix - this may vary from patient to patient - so worth experimenting
there are many biofilm disrupting agents and each has efficacy for different types of biofilm or the different compounds within it.
the most effective anti-biofilm regimes may require multiple approaches in combination - but be aware that rapid breakdown of biofilm can cause dramatic herx - so need to pace at a rate your body can cope with.
some examples of common types ( but there are others)
proteolytic enzymes - mainly focus on fibrin ( important in bartonella ) - not bacterial biofilm - but do also have some activity against amyloid in biofilm and maybe other compounds
hard to know which are best
-bromelain has worked well for me - visibly reducing biofilms in my blood - see my microscopy thread
-now trying lumbrokinase - which seems to be 4-8x as strong per capsule
xylitol / other sugar alcohols - seem best against bacterial - lipopolysaccharides - where they are taken up by bacteria and causes them to make weaker biofilms
metal ion scavengers - lactoferrin - DMSA ( interphase plus ) etc - weaken biofilms by scavenging the metal ions bacterial use to build them - weakening their structure.
the other element that is worth considering is - especially in chronic infections - this is a kind of long term war of attrition against the bugs - but its important to remember our bodies are not passive bystanders in a war between the bugs and ABX -
instead the abx are working alongside our own immune systems - the abx may kill some bugs and weaken others - biofilm agents may weaken biofilms and loosen bits of bacterial colonies - but our immune system has to come in and clean up the rest - so the rate we recover at is often largely dependent on the degree of immune function we have.
anything we can do that aids this function can help the process along
-a wholefoods ketogenic diet has helped me a lot - probably more than antibiotics
-focussing on sleep has been a big impact for me also
-exercise was near impossible to begin with - but i have worked hard to gradually build up what i can do - from near nothing to now half respectable workouts - it still doesn't feel anything like it used to - but it is proven to build immune function and defo seems to help me move forward.
these things are discussed much less often than antibiotics - perhaps because we all want to believe we just need to take x months of the latest abx or combo and our illness will be gone - i would like to believe that too!!
but in reality i have found the above to help me more than 9 months of a triple abx combo - so faced with that experience i have had to adapt.
i still use abx - but also focus on these other things just as much - if not more so - as i have more control over them than i do over whether the abx work or not.
hope my thoughts are of some use
Post Edited (Garzie) : 4/8/2022 4:21:27 AM (GMT-6)