Sudden increase in flu-like symptoms -- how to treat?

[el_squared]

Hi there,
I am sick all the time but right now the furnace has been cranked up on the flu/fever symptoms that I suffer. Feeling hot and then cold, clammy, massive headache, rising temp (though my temp is never that high). Extremely weak and bedbound.
The last time it was this bad, it lasted for a month. I really couldn't figure out how to make it better. Any ideas?
thanks,
Laura

 

[Diwi9]

Having just gone through 9 weeks of what you describe, sometimes cimetidine (Tagamet) helps tamp down some of the flu-ish symptoms for me. I know it's an H2 blocker, and I've tried famotadine and rantadine without similar results...I've read somewhere that cimetidine is also immune-modulating, whatever that actually means. I find during these times that I sleep so much more than normal plus multiple naps daily...with lots of light sensitivity. I hope you start to feel some improvement soon.

 

[Mary]

@el_squared - If you are fighting a virus or other pathogen, andrographis might help. I get sick with a respiratory infection every time I crash, which is generally once a week. These infections used to last 2 weeks or more, so I was basically sick all the time. I started taking andrographis 2 years ago or so after my sister had an amazing recovery from a very bad sinus infection using andrographis and now when I get sick I recover much more quickly. Andrographis is an immunomodulator as well as being effective against pathogens, so I take it while sick and also prophylactically in between, with periodic breaks. This is what I take.

 

[Mary]

Having just gone through 9 weeks of what you describe, sometimes cimetidine (Tagamet) helps tamp down some of the flu-ish symptoms for me. I know it's an H2 blocker, and I've tried famotadine and rantadine without similar results...I've read somewhere that cimetidine is also immune-modulating, whatever that actually means. I find during these times that I sleep so much more than normal plus multiple naps daily...with lots of light sensitivity. I hope you start to feel some improvement soon.

My doctor recommended cimetidine for me several years ago to help my immune system. Unfortunately, it caused a very dark mood for me which I could not tolerate. :thumbdown: I looked it up and sure enough that was a possible side effect. But I know other people take it with no problem. I just wanted people to be aware of this potential effect.

 

[el_squared]

Having just gone through 9 weeks of what you describe, sometimes cimetidine (Tagamet) helps tamp down some of the flu-ish symptoms for me. I know it's an H2 blocker, and I've tried famotadine and rantadine without similar results...I've read somewhere that cimetidine is also immune-modulating, whatever that actually means. I find during these times that I sleep so much more than normal plus multiple naps daily...with lots of light sensitivity. I hope you start to feel some improvement soon.

Thank you. Interesting. I've begun seeing a doctor who wants me to try Zantac for mass cell activation syndrome, among other treatments, but I haven't begun them yet. I was trying to treat sibo with xifaxan and neomycin. I had not taken neomycin before and it seems to be throwing my immune system into overdrive, or something.

 

[el_squared]

@el_squared - If you are fighting a virus or other pathogen, andrographis might help. I get sick with a respiratory infection every time I crash, which is generally once a week. These infections used to last 2 weeks or more, so I was basically sick all the time. I started taking andrographis 2 years ago or so after my sister had an amazing recovery from a very bad sinus infection using andrographis and now when I get sick I recover much more quickly. Andrographis is an immunomodulator as well as being effective against pathogens, so I take it while sick and also prophylactically in between, with periodic breaks. This is what I take.

Thank you. I'd never heard ot andrographis. I don't have a respiratory infection. Just this flu-like illness that is the hallmark of my CFS illness. Temperature a little elevated and all the flu-type symptoms without having a flu.

 

[Mary]

Thank you. I'd never heard ot andrographis. I don't have a respiratory infection. Just this flu-like illness that is the hallmark of my CFS illness. Temperature a little elevated and all the flu-type symptoms without having a flu.

Andrographis is not just for respiratory infections. It's for all sorts of illnesses, and it is an immune modulator so it might be helpful for you, or not. I had tried many different things trying to help my immune system before I discovered andrographis, and in my experience it's the best thing out there.

 

[el_squared]

Andrographis is not just for respiratory infections. It's for all sorts of illnesses, and it is an immune modulator so it might be helpful for you, or not. I had tried many different things trying to help my immune system before I discovered andrographis, and in my experience it's the best thing out there.

Curious if you have tried LDN, which is touted as an immune modulator.

 

[Mary]

Curious if you have tried LDN, which is touted as an immune modulator.

I did try it, 2 or 3 times. Unfortunately it made me very spacey and tired, I couldn't function, and that was at a very small dose. We had a heavy rainstorm (very rare where I live!), anyways it was raining for several days and my roof was leaking into the living room of my mobile home. So I put out pans to collect the water, and by the 3rd day it began to dawn on me that perhaps I should do something besides setting out pots. I was just so spacey from the ldn, I literally could not assess what was going on in my home.

 

[Diwi9]

Thank you. Interesting. I've begun seeing a doctor who wants me to try Zantac for mass cell activation syndrome, among other treatments, but I haven't begun them yet. I was trying to treat sibo with xifaxan and neomycin. I had not taken neomycin before and it seems to be throwing my immune system into overdrive, or something.

Neomycin can have some nasty side-effects, permanent hearing loss is one if I correctly remember. If you are currently on it and doing this poor, I hope you will contact your doctor. BTW - cimeditine is OTC, but can potentiate certain drugs...so if you are looking for something to take regularly, I would discuss with your doctor. I think this complication is one reason most doctors prefer rantadine/famotadine, they just don't have the same effect for me.

 

[el_squared]

Neomycin can have some nasty side-effects, permanent hearing loss is one if I correctly remember. If you are currently on it and doing this poor, I hope you will contact your doctor. BTW - cimeditine is OTC, but can potentiate certain drugs...so if you are looking for something to take regularly, I would discuss with your doctor. I think this complication is one reason most doctors prefer rantadine/famotadine, they just don't have the same effect for me.

Yes my doc told me to stop the neomycin, so I stopped after three pills. Xifaxan always causes me to feel better. but unfortunately the boost doesn't last.

 

[Mary]

@el_squared - I should have added that though I did not do well with ldn, many people have had good results with it, so I think it's definitely worth a try.

Also, SIBO has been linked in many cases to low stomach acid. The low stomach acid allows bacteria to flourish in unhealthy numbers. Many people with ME/CFS are deficient in stomach acid, I learned years ago I had to take betaine HCL with pepsin with meals, particularly meals with protein or fat.

A simple test to check stomach acid is to dissolve 1/4 or 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda in 8 ounces of water and drink on an empty stomach. If you don't burp within a few minutes, it can be an indication of low stomach acid.

 

[el_squared]

Yes I have tried LDN a few times. It seemed to give me some energy, but what happens is that after, say, 5 days of taking it, I will develop terrible muscle tension. I have tried many different dosages, down to .25. So it's strange to me that it's for fibromyalgia, because it makes mine worse. I'm now attempting to get .1mg, but my doctor's office has to do a prior authorization appeal to my insurance company. Not sure if it will work. We'll see. I have taken HCL with pepsin before. Sometimes it seems successful but often times I get acid reflux or upset stomach. I just nibble part of a tablet. I may try it again when I try the zantac, because I definitely will not digest as well if i take the zantac.

 

[pcmenten]

Hi there,
I am sick all the time but right now the furnace has been cranked up on the flu/fever symptoms that I suffer. Feeling hot and then cold, clammy, massive headache, rising temp (though my temp is never that high). Extremely weak and bedbound.
The last time it was this bad, it lasted for a month. I really couldn't figure out how to make it better. Any ideas?
thanks,
Laura

Hi Laura. I'm sorry to hear about your troubles.

As a diagnostic, I'd be curious to know how antivirals such as Valtrex and Valcyte make you feel. The flu-like symptoms could well be a 'sub-clinical' reactivation of a virus such as EBV, HSV1/2, or HHV6. I know that Valtrex is well tolerated, so the risk is not high.

Good luck.

-Paul