Methylation issues / COMT Met/Met and poor acetylator

Hi Triff,

many thanks for your reply!

The bad thing is that it seems to have not only destroyed methylation (if at all the cycle was running...), but also it and primarily the Glutathione seem to have relocated critical amounts of mercury which seemingly used to be stored "safely" somewhere in my belly and brought it into my head and the CNS...

I still have strong symptoms of CNS irritability: mostly nerve pain in my back and head (ears, teeth), headache/tinnitus, slight tremors, and muscle twitching at almost any location in regular intervals.

After having done some more lab work ordered by my doc, I will therefore start the Cutler protocol using 25 mg of DMSA (due to my body weight - 240 lbs) every 4 hours on Thursday and truly hope that this will help about these symptoms...

Does the need for a "cancer avoidance strategy" also apply to DHEA?

I am also taking 50mg every morning, but I cannot really say that they help regarding my COMT Met/Met related anxiety/agitation...!?

I am also already taking 50mg of P5P (evenly divided between morning and evening), but can definitely try to go to 100mg. Regarding Trimethylglycine, I did not know that this exists until now. My doc had prescribed ordinary Glycine, but I left this out recently due to the fact that I did not feel any difference from taking it. Should TMG work better? If it is a methyl group donator, it might make me even more anxious and agitated like SAMe does (probably also due to CBS and/or SUOX issues which have not yet been looked at)...

My doc and I decided to stay away from 5-MTHF for now at least, as we just got the lab news back that I only seem to have a neglectable MTHFR issue (MTHFR A1298 = AC), and wait and see how my body will be able to cope with the Cutler protocol (while still continuing with Levaquin)...

Thanks again for your kind help & BR,
awl29

I also have two CBS +/+ genetic defects. I actually think the DHEA is what helps (and maybe the only thing that helps) with that (as testosterone helps with that and that is one of the things made with CBS). When my test results showed the dreaded CBS mutations I was terribly depressed until I realised that I had priorly had a homocysteine test and it showed elevated homocysteine (despite what my genetic mutations were SUPPOSED to cause). So that cleared up my depression right away as I realised that LABS TRUMP GENETIC TESTS. I have 18 out of 30 genetic defects and was able to get my homocysteine perfect. However to do so it is NOT just a small amount of pills. I posted my protocol here once under Rydra Wong...it is very extensive. The core of it is Freddd's protocol, but Freddd's protocol is often misrepresented as his support nutrients are neglected. If you should neglect zinc, for instance, or have it be used up by allergies as happened to me, your "core methylation protocol" will no longer do the job. So the support nutrients are needed! For me, this is the core protocol that works:

1 Jarrow mB12 sublingual (I have proved I only need this during allergy season due to compromised absorption then)
2g TMG
50mg P5P (but I take 100mg if I am having any trouble)
1 Solgar metafolin
2 Thorne Basic B, divided dose
I do not need adenosylcobalamin

ut the other supplements I take are too many to list (again...I did it once). DHEA, pregnenolone are hormone replacement and could potentially lead to cancer. I take Life Extension's cruciferous vegetable extract (with DIM and I3C) as an anti-cancer supplement - it contains cysteine, fyi, but it works for me). I also take 7000 units of D3/day (I have the VDR genetic defect) and he Thorne multi which has active B's but also has selenium. I had read that breast cancer is linked to insufficient D, selenium, and/or iodine. I cannot take iodine or it drives me hyperthyroid (that is a worry bead for me). The broccoli supplement I take is due to Meridian Valley labs who wrote on my hormone test that broccoli is one of the things that prompts your body to make hormones that don;t lead to cancer.

Anyway, anyone trying to follow a methylation protocol w/o a good multi probably will not achieve proper methylation. There are many support nutrients needed.

My method is simple and cheap...gt your homocysteine reading ($60) and try your supplements until you get it to 6.3...then your methylation will be perfect. Since testosterone helps get around the CBS defects, it will help shuttle away methyls and that is what works for me. The dose of DHEA required for dealing with depression is - well you google it - but there were studies done on depression vs DHEA and the dose was 100mg for men. I am female and 75mg does it for me (but what it does for me is pretty prompt in regards to anxiety).

As I understand it, the sulfa antibiotic reaction is indicative of an acetylation problem so we are really talking about different forms of sulfur and different problems. Although, acetylation is pretty closely linked to the methylation problems discussed in detail on this site. Acetyl-Co-A is formed as part of the Kreb's Cycle from pyruvic acid, and this ties back into the use of B12, folate, & direct methyl donors.

I do think you would be wise to use caution with the epsom salts in case you can't handle the sulfate. RVK has hypothesized that they may be problematic for those with large numbers of sulfate reducing bacteria. Interestingly, Taurine, can also be reduced to Sulfate in humans... I'm not sure to what degree. Theoretically, someone with problems with sulfate may also experience similar problems with taurine. .

If this proves to be difficult, you might want to consider oral DMPS, which is available in DE. It offers the benefits of having a much longer half-life; therefore, it needs to be dosed less often. Additionally, it is less likely to cause a yeast flare up. Good luck.

Hi Triff, hi Vegas,

sorry for my much delayed response - I fell really ill with antibiotics-induced diarrhea during the last two weeks, but as I am now treated with tinidazole (it is still neither proven nor disproven that Clostridium difficile is involved, but other Clostridia spp. definitely are), things seem to slowly improve...

I already know that I have two NAT2 issues making me a real "slow acetylator" causing the reation to sulfa antibiotics like Bactrim, but thankfully it looks like I neither have issues with thiol-containing foods nor with sulfate such as in Epsom baths: I have taken two Epsom salt baths in the meantime, and I am able to tolerate a typical dose of one cup per bathtub quite fine...

So the bacteria in my gut that have gotten out of control seem to be the Clostridium species , not sulfate-reducing ones...

Even through the period of diarrhea, I have made it through my first two rounds on the Cutler protocol - I noticed some increase in agitation and anxiety, but also very noticeable improvements related to tremors, involuntary muscle twitching, tinnitus and brain fog. Unfortunately, headaches and my special variant of a pulsating ear noise that is synchronous with my blood stream did not improve so far.

So I think that the initial theory of the i.v. Glutathione having caused Mercury redistribution (the "all hell broke loose" effect I suffered from) can be confirmed from this.

I am still hesitant to add ALA that early into my chelation rounds, as I assume that I currently still carry much more toxic mercury/heavy metals in my belly fat (weighing ~ 240 lbs) than in my head/brain.

Does anybody have some advice as of when to add ALA (I am also thinking about 25mg initially, as this is the lowest dose capsule I can get hold of) starting from a similar situation like mine?

Thanks again & best regards,
awl29

Just noticed that I forgot to add that DMPS is available in Germany, but only as a prescription drug.

Also, from what I read about the Cutler protocol, DMPS might be more difficult to tolerate for people with chronic infections like myself than DMSA.

Yes, the seemingly inevitable yeast also is/will become an issue, but this one is currently my least severe, I think/hope...

BR,
awl29