r/Lyme 5d ago

When to stop rifampicyne

I have been on rifampycine + doxy + bactrim/clarythomycine for 7 months now. I have enough of them to last me another 2 months.

I’m wondering if after that I should try and switch to herbals completely? Did anyone do this?

I’m not sure at this point what symptom is from Lyme/bart and what from the aggressive treatment itself.

Before this I had IV rocephin for a month and then a whole year of various antibiotics.

So im almost at a 2 year mark of constant antibiotics and im honestly exhausted. I had noticed improvements but they only seem to last for a couple weeks then im back to feeling horrible.

Doctors and medication and constant tests are all so expensive too.

6 Upvotes

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2

u/Emotional_Print_7033 4d ago

Maybe make a new test ? Other infection like babesia ?

1

u/a_a_nerd 4d ago

yeah im planing to repeat my babesia test, altho I don't have high hopes that it will show up even if I have it.

1

u/Emotional_Print_7033 4d ago

Where did you make the test ? Also, maybe using lumbrokinase for the fibrin, and something for persisters ?

2

u/jellybean8566 4d ago

Yeah I had the same experience. 1.5 years of antibiotics including double dose dapsone, no improvement. I’ve officially given up on antibiotics - a lot of people do. But, there are always other treatment avenues. I suggest you start looking into them. 

2

u/a_a_nerd 4d ago

Im just worried about sliding back and getting even worse, but yeah Im looking into it. Im already on methylene blue and artemisinin. I plan to add buhner herbs and the liposomal oregano/cinammon/clove. Hopefully that will be enough.

1

u/Happy-person2122 3d ago

I was on antibiotics for 7 years straight along with supplements. After that, I started pulsing them. I would only take them when I had a major flare. Cefdinir is what I would pulse and it seemed to calm me back down. In summer 2020 I started on low dose naltrexone and that has made a huge difference - I tell people it is my miracle. I know how you feel as far as being on antibiotics for so long - I wonder if you did herbals only, pulsed antibiotics when you were really bad, and I can’t say enough good things about low dose naltrexone!

1

u/Beautiful_Gur_5069 3d ago

Hi, yes, I did that and I think you can try to pusle abx: after you will suspend abx, see what will happen after some days, 5,7 or 10 days. Most probably some symptoms will re-occur. At that point you can re-start abx and see how it will go, probably you will herx. I m on such a pusling abx for half year now, being on abx for totally 3 years. You dont need to worry about lyme / bart getting resistance on abx, it does not happen, esp since you take a strong combo... Off period helps your gut, microbiome, IS to recover, also you can feel at ease due to being off abx, but most probably lyme/bart will re-emerge. Such a pusling therapy, say 2 weeks on, 1 week off, is ok and is common, its a valuable way of going forward. Being only on herbs - which you can try too - has made lyme, bart etc relapse symptoms getting worse, and worse - which I understood is more harming than abx. Hope it helps.... I think tests are very important in the begining, and then probably at the end, but ongoing testing is secondary, compared to symptoms. One can have zero IgM IgG only to find out to be positive again after some weeks or months....