I was thinking on answering to a Facebook friend my thinking and experience with "IVERMECTIN"; but decided to do a blog about it because I'm having many requests about the topic, lol; I'm the "expert here"? No way!!!! But I'll try my very best because I do want to share my experience thinking it might be of some help!
Before starting let me say that I was going to say to my friend that precisely because we get to that point of desperation we become more resourceful and even creative. I was saying to her: "I guess sometimes we have to do things according to how desperate we are and that sometimes pushes us further or at times could make us crazier?
Well my Ivermectin story of course is product of desperation. I would have to tell my story with the Doctors and the treatments I have had already to finally get to the "Ivermectin chapter"! do I need to confess it all?
Being with a disease ten Doctors dismiss, facing death every day in pain and fear and seeing there was no hope, no care, no probabilities, well, if that doesn't make you "creative' what does? The instinct of survival is wonderful, so as many of you, I did research and found people suffering symptoms like me; so many they were innumerable. I went to this "Infectious Disease Specialist" (Doc number nine), after I "suspected Lyme, and gave him my "reduced list of symptoms", just 21... the tingling or twitching or even the bells palsy where not included.... and of course he said that "for sure I had no infection at all, but probably an allergy"... God bless the guy, ha.
Desperation plays a very crucial game in Lyme because it makes us so strong we move even though we can barely hold tight. So I started by understanding the cause of Lyme disease? Bacteria. No, it is not accurate. The word "BACTERIAS" in English doesn't exist, but it should have an "S" at least to describe Lyme Disease. So, because of this linguistic thing I found: multi-bacterial syndrome; more accurate right? But not complete, why? Because the tiny tick seems to transmit more than just many bacteria (s). It is not that the person MAY have "co-infections". The "may have; might have" is the second linguistic trick that is stopping Doctors and our selves to be treated properly and on time and are pushing us far from recovery!!!! Lymies have co-infections, not every case have the same bugs; but weird not to find multi or poly bugs inside a Lymie!
Co-infections of what or how?
- Found that Bartonella is a kind of bug. Not a parasite, not a bacteria, it is it's own specie. It "jumps" to the blood and swims freely in it's host. This little round motile bug seems to attack the brain and the neuro-cognitve functions... has to be killed to improve; no way to co-host-share the space with this one! Strong medications are needed and you feel the "effect' of the fight inside our body when killing this one; it's certainly a terrible war, but you have to know you would win. Cipro is good but Bactrim was my angel... the swelling came down, even lost five pounds of "liquid" in about a week!!! Yeah, have to fight her hard!
- Found that Borrelia is a bacteria indeed but has certain "intelligent" ways of surviving that some antibiotics won't kill her; other help her to hide inside the cells and some might hurt her. Even though it is a bacteria it is similar in something to Malaria. I don't know why it is called "malaria like", because Malaria goes to the liver and kills the host fast; or goes to the brain and the damage is very notorious and fast. Borrelia seems not to have a "favorite place' but all the body. Muscles, bones, glands, circulatory system, heart, brain...? I really don't know scientifically this, just my conjectures... In my thinking if Borrelia was as malaria I would be dead long time ago, and unless this is a dream I'm still here. So, I define my enemy as a very powerful but one that is giving me more time to give it a fight. Until we are not treated and we get to the worse case scenario where desperation is our closest friend, meaning let's try to get to the point. Borrelia doesn't die with two weeks of antibiotics, it is not totally killed not even with the most powerful medicine of the GALAXY in such a short time; we need really long term treatments.
- My answer for when I hear that long term antibiotic treatment is "not good", I just ask, but long term bacteria and parasites are better?
- It is a personal choice, but hey, when you get to desperation you'll understand the only choice is killing those bugs as long as it takes; or they kill the host. There's no linguistic nor political arguing there; it is a no reverse discussion. To treat or let die!
- Babesia: this other bug inside us is a bigger one; meaning, in size and weight is bigger so it does lots of damage and just trying to get rid of it is harder and when it dies it leaves pieces so big they might hurt us worse, so we cannot kill as many but not as little so they won't have time to reproduce... etc. Babesia is a parasite, how should we get rid of parasites? It is also called a "malaria like parasite"; so, Borrelia is bacteria malaria like and Babesia is parasite malaria like; all relatives? Meaning, all dangerous to human life spread by an animal and hard to control, detect and treat?
- Can talk about Erlichia, viruses and so many others that come with Lyme, but I'm not an expert and just wanted to "slightly picture" what was gong on inside me or inside my Lymie friends...?
WHAT HAPPENS TO SOMEONE ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD WHO IS INVADED BY PARASITES AND NOT TREATED? ANY HUMAN BEING OR ANIMAL?
- After Dr. "J" diagnosed me he gave me Biaxin but taking it was a bomb to my chest and heart... so much pain, so I asked him to change it to Bactrim to try. Wow... it was like a "cure"... it was not a 100% but just the first relief it gave me I have not felt it in years... I cried of happiness and thankfulness and hope! ... Had Bactrim and combined it and found it was not good; just Bactrim and Amox. were good together!!! Bactrim took my swelling away, Bactrim did kill the bugs but didn't hurt me. Anyways I was eager to "jump" to Flagyl to kill bigger bugs so tried them together and was terrible so keep on the Bactrim for another month and started Flagyl and still had antibiotics until just had the Flagyl alone and start feeling good and better, but then again a downfall but slower... my declining was not as strong...!! WOW. I thought I was finding some real help, so I decided to try the Ivermectin and this is the story why and how I am doing it:
- IVERMECTIN: I heard about this medicine when I was living in my home country Colombia, South America ( have to clear it because some think it is in the district of "Columbia", lol). I remembered a TV ad about "IVOMEC" a veterinary medicine given to cattle, horses and I guess also for pigs, to de-worm them. I remembered it say something like "against worms and parasites"... yeah, we become creative, mooo!
- As I said before, I had call my Doctor in Colombia, finally found him after more than ten years without seeing him and lucky me, he still trusted me and without seeing me or testing me he decided to help me. He first did with the antibiotics so this time when I asked about Ivermectin he had all the answers: he said IT IS BEING USED IN HUMAN SINCE 1990; he said it is proven to really cure the most advanced cases of "poly-parasitic infections and malaria"; he used words like "multi-bacterial infections" - I thought that's me!!!!
- I asked Dr. Q. about IVERMECTIN in cases of Lyme Disease. He has not treated patients with Lyme Disease but he has treated thousands of patients with bacteria, parasites, worms and mostly every type of possible infection alone or combined. He said they are doing studies in Colombia demonstrating the benefits of this medicine in these extreme cases and even in the simple ones like just a kid having "lice" in it's head - the use it topic here.
- Dr. Q. stated Ivermectin was a medicine now produced for humans, not just veterinary - so the concentration of the product changes and the bottles are smaller; ha... the cattle or horses ones are huge bottles of litters of medicine, the human presentation is a little bottle like the eye drops bottles! I looked for it everywhere in he US and I couldn't find it, just the veterinary presentation. Then I found some pills, three for $35 dollars/ something crazy. And one single dose as many state in the US or Europe is not enough, it simply won't work. I finally got the drops from Colombia; my family and friends have literally saved my life so many times now; I'm in eternal debt!!!!
- What is and how it works? My theory? ha! Being a veterinary medicine was the good beginning of Ivermectin because medicine for animals is supposed to cure them because sick animals mean money loss; the opposite with humans because when we are sick we produce money to pharmaceuticals and everyone in the medical field... so my thinking is that Ivermectin is produced to kill bugs; many and in the fastest easiest way. We don't need big pharmaceuticals to copy it and produce it at costly prices to "cure' Lymies... hope...
- Dosage? Dr. Q. said it depends on the infection and the reaction. The general rule is one drop per KILOGRAM of weight. Remember US pounds are just 450 gr; in the rest of the world 500 gr is a pound. So a kilogram is one thousand grams. Don't mean to be confusing, just want you to look carefully to learn your weight in kilos not American pounds. I wanted to start big and I took more drops the first time... bad joke! It was really awful! I called the Doctor and confessed my sin... he asked me to cut the dose in half for next time and during the first month. So I started again with less drops, half my kilos. Took the Ivermectin that day and nothing else, any other medicine. Felt a little tingling - I know.. - later on a little blurry vision and then, hours later nothing... NOTHING BAD.... like everything fine? Could this be possible?
- Dr. Q. stated that most times after the THIRD treatment patients feel so good they sometimes stop the treatment thinking they're cured. I though, not my case; this roller coaster has been with me now for almost five years I don't think a third treatment could make such difference... well... if I say it did it could sound like a plot? I'm not selling the product and don't let anyone use my words to sell it to you or anyone; copy righted ok??? My experience is that after the third treatment I just know I start feeling HUNGER... hunger that I have not felt since 2005 - 5 years now? Hunger that felt painful at first because I couldn't recognize the feeling, ha... I was hungry for first time in years and I was so hungry it hurt, and I had to eat right away what ever, but then I was extremely happy with this feeling. The awesome part was that the FOOD TASTED GOOD TOO and that was also unknown!!!!
- I found out that the first two or three days after I take the Ivermectin are not the very best, but are not as bad as the horrible herxes I've suffered with many treatments. They are not the best days but are decent ones. The I have some good days and even glorious super good days!!! I have been able to work and to eat and to party and write and dream, and sleep. I smell right, taste right and read fine! I am still not cured and my heart reminds me of it a lot, but boy I am having such better days!
- For first time I am not just feeling better, I dare to say I am recovering. I am even afraid of saying this because I don't want to go down again, so I am not singing victory at all; but come on, if I feel so much better I hope others can feel the same. For first time I am not feeling like I am exploding inside. I am surprised to find I am kind of "normal"...??? I've been doing this treatment for just two or three months no more but I am different from last year for sure!
- Ivermectin is a poison to the bugs so it is for us too, so we have to be careful to not ingest poisonous dosages. Better little or small or few drops. Do not get the veterinary medicine unless you know how to do the conversion to human dosages. The little bottles for human are produced at a 6% concentration.
- Dr. Q. told me to keep on the Flagyl but stop the Bactrim while on Ivermectin and he said the treatment should be made for a minimum of three months and to even more than one year. He said Ivermectin it is proven not to hurt in long term treatments. He said they first used "Albendazole" but found it could hurt the Central Nervous system, and studies revealed Ivermectin doesn't do this damage!
- I am seeing that now I need to go back to antibiotics to fight again the bacteria, now she cannot hide behind the big bugs. I guess they co-exist really good: bacteria feeds from parasites left overs? or viceversa, but they create an environment for subsisting out from a host and help one another, so we need to kill one by one, then kill two at the same time; or mix and combine treatments...
- One thing I have learned for sure: what ever bugs these are their lives are cyclic so we need to combat them from time to time in different periods with various types of medicines so they won't adapt or create resistance.
- Ivermectin is a new option but also Tindamax - Tinidazole-, Bactrim, Flagyl, Albendazole and many others that kill bugs; plus all the famous ones: Doxy, amoxicillin, Zythro, Ceftin, Cipro, Factive, Malarone or Mepron and etc, so many medicines that are there to try to see if they help.
- NO THERE'S NO MAGICAL CURE, NOR A UNIQUE WAY TO TREAT THIS DISEASE.
- If your Doctor seems to be "experimenting" with you it is better than a Doctor that doesn't try to get a better recovery or remission and doesn't believe in changes and even risks. This is an every day changing illness and you need to be in the head winning the every day battle.
- I do not recommend the use of any medicine nor treatment because I am not a Doctor, nor I believe in anyone trying to sell me anything they say would cure me; they just want to make their money with my illness. Even proteins, vitamins, or any type of curative treatments.
- I just present my experience because it has been good after all! God is big;
- I also thank with my sould and "my hurt heart" to my family in Colombia who has sent me so many medicines, finding the way to make them pass without being detected. I'm sure sending bad drugs is easier than sending Amoxicillin, or Cipro, wanna bet?
- My beloved husband and daughter and my brother and sister have been part of my recovery, of my every day suffering, of my new hopes and my suriving; without them this journey would have been terribly painful and impossible.
- But I'm happy because I've learned to fight and that is more important than just being treated in a blind way by a super Doctor. I believe in trying and researching and mutual help, and new ideas, and traditional medicine, and alternative, and everything that flies is an angel, so what?
- I have learned to trust my body and that has been crucial in my recovery. I had a time where I felt the need of eating pineapple... lol... then I discovered this fruit is used to de-worm children... I have been eating "papaya", which I never ate nor even when I lived in South America... well, it helps to clean the gut! LOL! I'm killing the bugs, and cleaning the house in such a "naturalistic" way I never thought I could, my body is telling me how!
- Every time I have palpitations I try to know why they are there? I've found some come after taking certain medicines. Some times palpitations are because of the lack of the treatment, like a scheduled medicine not taken and boom palpitations. I learned my heart is talking to me and telling me how good or sick I am. It is not easy and sometimes it has been really difficult but it is a learning process that is not written in any handbook as Dr. J clearly states in his blog of today.
- I was so bad I really thought God had really abandoned me... plus all the doctors of the world... I don't think like that anymore. I know this is just another battle in my life and I am going to win it by fighting it and by sharing with who ever needs help or has something to give me too. I have learned to give but also to receive and that is something!
- Please read Dr. J's blog, he is very knowledgeable and he might really help you, medically and scientifically talking! He now "promotes" Tindamax and Bactrim; before he didn't do it based on IDSA but now his experience has shown him that bugs are killed with these amazing medicines! Read and learn: Sunday, February 14, 2010 Lyme 2010: A brief update
So yes, sometimes we reach desperation but do not loose the faith, God's help is there. Good Doctors are there; good family and or friends are there; I'm here, LOL! WE'LL WIN!
You can write me if you have any questions or opinions!!!
QUE VIVA IVERMECTINA!!!
