Lyme, Herxes, and Drug Reactions

You know those medical questionnaires you have to fill out when you see a new Doctor? They always ask if you have any allergies to any medications. I have proudly always answered NO! I've never had a reaction to any medication except for Prednisone (which I now know was probably a reaction because Lyme and Steroids DO NOT MIX).

Anyway, I was on Doxy for about 6 months over the past year (off and on) along with a few other antibiotics mixed in. I had a few herxes but no drug reactions that were more than an annoyance. That has now changed.

My LLMD put me back on antibiotics last month as I recently posted. He switched me from Doxy to its more powerful cousin - Minocycline. Unfortunately, my body didn't handle the more powerful Tetracycline member very well. For the first 2 weeks I was OK. I had a minor herx, and had the dizziness that is typical of Mino. It was annoying but not debilitating and I figured it would subside if I stayed the course.

In Week #3, things went downhill fast. The dizziness got worse. And one night, I broke out in hives. Horrible, itchy, burning hives. I popped a Trazadone and fell asleep, but when I woke up I was short of breath and so dizzy that I could barely walk. I was holding onto counters, walls, furniture, just to make it across the room.

I couldn't take my 3yo to daycare that day, because I was afraid to drive the car. Thank God for television, our DVR, and On Demand. My poor baby had to watch TV most of the day because Mommy couldn't get off the sofa.

I was so nauseous, I couldn't eat all day, which probably didn't help with the symptoms. I drank a ton of water, hoping to flush out the medicine from my body. I went to bed very early that night, praying for a better tomorrow.

The next day arrived with a slight improvement. I was able to move about the house a little easier, but still spent most of the day horizontal on the couch. By that afternoon, I was feeling a lot better and by Day 3, I was back to "normal" (whatever that means when you have Lyme).

I called my LLMD to let him know what had happened. He said because of my bad reaction to Mino, the chances of having a reaction to Doxy are much greater now. These things can pop up at any time, and because Doxy and Mino are both in the Tetracycline family, I probably should stay away from them now.

So he's switching me again. I'll start back on the Zithromax this weekend. Rifampin starts back up on Monday. And then I'll add Bactrim to my regimen next week as well. I haven't taken Bactrim yet so I'm anxious about what to expect there.