3 very interesting treatments

[tcmgpt13]

Some more about why some people may need to pursue more serious treatments for reactivated herpes type infections than just 'natural' external methods and even 'natural' internal methods to recover from overwhelming fatigue symptoms which start with the sudden appearance of M symptoms (at least this was so in my own case--I know when I became ill to the day and even the hour of the day). The doctor quoted in this article mentions that people who do not recover by using more natural methods to treat fatigue have often had bad reactions to drugs in the past and often are diagnosed with more than one serious active infection. In my own case that has been true. For many years I avoided all drugs which lasted until I became hypothyroid. I have also as a child had life threatening anaphylactic reactions to some antibiotics. So for me to to try drugs is only undertaken when other more gentle methods have failed to provide a good recovery.

I have tried many things to treat M, to include using a FIR sauna regularly, lymph machine treatments, even ozone, and a boatload of herbs in many forms and from more than one herbal tradition. And this is just some of what I have tried over six years. This all changed when recently I serendipitously developed an infection behind one ear drum and used some doxy from the most ordinary conventional GP. After recovering an appetite and some relief from unremitting fatigue from just before Thanksgiving this past year (wow, food tasted so good again after so many years!) I sought out another doctor and was prescribed the drug discussed in this article after I was tested to see if my reactivated herpes infections were still present two years after stopping acyclovir. The energy I have now, compared to what I had three months ago is astonishing to me. It started to return within days of adding in the new antiviral to the doxy. I would not say I am back to where I was before becoming ill, but I am ever so much better and hope to get even better in the future.

Remember, too, that if you have any reactivated herpes infections this could be the cause of at least some of your lesions. When retested two more herpes viral infections were revealed and added to the first two which had been diagnosed in the past. Two of these infections are suspected to be behind at least some cases of chronic fatigue. This is why it is so important to be tested if you at all suspect you may have these infections and to be treated if the levels of these infections are very high and you have really bad fatigue.

BTW HHV-6, which causes roseola in children (most have this before they are the age of two) is one of my issues. Cytomegalovirus is the other. Both seem to cause fatigue symptoms. While the lesions which were on my back all dried up with the use of acyclovir it was not until I started using the drug Valcyte mentioned here that the fatigue I kept complaining about to the first ID doctor nearly disappeared when the second ID doctor prescribed valcyte. Sometimes it is good to see another doctor to obtain another opinion and to at least try something which may improve a symptom which could be affecting the quality of life in a major way. I hope that this will be a lesion free spring too...so far, so good.

Used with permission from the book: From Fatigued to Fantastic! 3rd edition (Penguin/Avery October 2007) Summary:

People with CFS/FMS are at high risk of having multiple viral and antibiotic sensitive infections because of their immune system dysfunction. That people usually have not just one, but several, infections simultaneously is significant. It suggests that although these infections may be a trigger for the illness in some cases, most of the infections occur because of the illness, setting you up for multiple and sometimes unusual infections that persist. These infections may then drag you down, further suppressing your immune system.

Fortunately, most people improve (and often get very healthy) by simply treating sleep, hormonal, nutritional, and yeast problems. Once these areas are treated, your body can often eliminate many persistent infections by itself. Some people, though, have infections that need treatment with antivirals and/or antibiotics, and almost all folks with CFS/FMS need anti-fungals (candida) treatment.

We are very excited about recent research by Professor Montoya which showed that a group of CFS patients with evidence of chronic viral infections with HHV 6 virus improved dramatically with 6 months of the new antiviral Valcyte. Our experience now with 100 patients who have gone through the Valcyte treatment at the Fibromyalgia and Fatigue Centers has shown that ~ 70% of these have improved dramatically. Some that I've talked to have considered themselves to now be healthy. I think this treatment is a dramatic leap forward for a significant subset of those suffering with CFS and Fibromyalgia. See Natural Immune Boosters and Antivirals.

Read on if you'd like more detailed information.

How can you tell if you need such treatments? First, I would try the other approaches discussed in this book. I would consider antiviral (and/or antibiotic) treatments if the following symptoms persist:

Predominantly flu-like symptoms, with debilitating fatigue and little or no pain or fever. People with these symptoms are more likely to have an underlying persistent viral infection, such as HHV-6, CMV, or EBV. In these cases, special blood tests for HHV-6 (an HHV-6 IgG level by IFA drawn at Quest labs and sent out to Focus labs—consider valcyte if 1:320 or higher) and CMV (a CMV IgG-consider valcyte if 4.0 or higher) can help identify who is a candidate for the antiviral Valcyte (see details below).

A fever over 98.6°F—even 99°F—and/or lung congestion, sinusitis, a history of bad reactions to several different antibiotics (people misinterpret this "die-off" reaction as being an allergic reaction), scabbing scalp sores or other chronic bacterial infections. People with these symptoms seem to be more likely to have bacterial, mycoplasma, or chlamydia infections that respond to special antibiotics.

endfatigue.com/health_articles_f-n/Infections-treating_hidden_viral_infections_cfs.html