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Attempting to identify members of my subgroup - Subcutaneous Fat Loss

lint7

Senior Member
Messages
116
I did. I looked like a skeleton.

This was reversed with antibiotics.

It was cefdinir and doxy, both standard doses.

The problem now is that doxy gives me head pressure when I take it, so it has to be managed carefully if I were to take it again.

Can you please give more detail? I'm in the same boat as you and this is the first time in six years that I have come across anyone who has said they were cured or reversed their fat loss, so this is a big deal for me.

What were your symptoms beforehand?
How long were you sick?
How long did you take these two antibiotics?
How long did it take for your fat to come back and other symptoms to disappear?
What symptoms remain now?

Thank you.
 
Messages
80
Can you please give more detail? I'm in the same boat as you and this is the first time in six years that I have come across anyone who has said they were cured or reversed their fat loss, so this is a big deal for me.

What were your symptoms beforehand?
How long were you sick?
How long did you take these two antibiotics?
How long did it take for your fat to come back and other symptoms to disappear?
What symptoms remain now?

Thank you.

Symptoms started off with me losing 10 lbs of water weight over the course of a week or two, some joint pain, emotional liability. Slowly I began losing muscle and noticing I was getting weaker despite working out just as hard and eating as much. Then I noticed losing fat on my shoulders, hands. Next I noticed my muscles were getting soft instead of solid as they were before. Next came the cognitive problems. Soon I was losing weight pretty quickly, and I lost fat on my calves, face, and arms. Had joint pain on and off affecting different joints.

Finally, I looked like a skeleton and decided I had enough. It had been three years since symptoms began. Took a month of azithromycin, didn't seem to be doing much then I did a month of doxy and cefdinir. I gained weight very very quickly on the doxy and cefdinir. Felt my muscular strength come back. Felt vital, athletic again. Looked normal. Brain fog gone, personality back to normal.

Then I stopped and symptoms slowly returned. Its now been 5 years since symptoms started.

All my symptoms are back, and I got some new symptoms. I started feeling inflammation / cracking in my neck bones, then having fasciculations in my inner neck muscles. Soon after, I felt like I actually lost muscles on my neck and started having neck pain. It's like whatever I had spread to my neck.

As soon as I get the resources I plan on getting an aperiomics test for synovial fluid and possibly CSF. Plus some other testing.

Doxy has some interesting properties, including being an MMP inhibitor, anti-inflammatory, and is also effective against some RNA viruses.

I'm hoping that it's instead some known bacterial infection.
 
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lint7

Senior Member
Messages
116
That sounds very similar to me.

How long did it take for symptoms to return?
Have you continued to progressively lose fat?
Have you experienced loss of skin elasticity and signs of rapid aging? Increased wrinkling?

Thanks
 
Messages
80
That sounds very similar to me.

How long did it take for symptoms to return?
Have you continued to progressively lose fat?
Have you experienced loss of skin elasticity and signs of rapid aging? Increased wrinkling?

Thanks

It took at least four to six months before I started losing muscle again (or it was occurring slowly and it took that long to become noticeable), the fat took about as long to start coming off. The cognitive problems came back quicker.

I have started to get wrinkly/stretchy skin on my biceps - this started awhile ago but was not present before symptoms began. No signs of rapid aging yet.
 
Messages
80
I was so close! That's discouraging, but I might try your treatment anyway.

I mean, my body feels like that of an old man if that's any consolation.

I also have these sunken eyes which make me look a bit older, but that's just because of the loss of fat. A few white hairs from stress too.
 
Messages
19
The symptoms you're referring are so atypical/vague that it's hard to pinpoint the exact cause unfortunately. There are numerous conditions that could explain your symptoms and viral infection is just one of them. I believe a lot of my symptoms are caused by a persistent CBV, but I'm not a specialist and to find out what you have you need to consult a doctor. Have you already considered this?
Have you had any news about your condition? Any leads? Is it still progressing?
 

Rufous McKinney

Senior Member
Messages
13,249
My hypothesis: subclinical infection causing catabolic and proinflammatory state, resulting in excess fat/muscle metabolism. The problem is, WHICH infection is it? Or maybe doxy is just that powerful of an anti-inflammatory agent. Doubt it though.

I'm still unclear why these antibiotics would be helpful. Your suggesting some type of bacterial infection...thats undetected? I assume?
 
Messages
80
That sounds very similar to me.

How long did it take for symptoms to return?
Have you continued to progressively lose fat?
Have you experienced loss of skin elasticity and signs of rapid aging? Increased wrinkling?

Thanks

I think I've started to see some of that aging you're talking about. The skin deterioration seems to be spreading slowly.
 
Messages
80
I'm still unclear why these antibiotics would be helpful. Your suggesting some type of bacterial infection...thats undetected? I assume?

Sorry for the super late response. Doxy is an MMP inhibitor and an anti-inflammatory agent. They prescribe it for receding gumlines. If it were just a connective tissue-like disorder, this alone could be exerting an effect.

I think however, yes, it's an undetected bacterial infection. Mycoplasma, bartonella, are some options.
 

lint7

Senior Member
Messages
116
Could be. I think it has something to do with peripheral insulin resistance. Maybe the head and extremities are missing insulin receptors, so fat cannot be generated and stored there. The lack of these receptors would also mean that insulin could not have its lipolysis inhibiting effect in these areas as well. Basically, fat would be burned faster than normal in these areas, but not regenerated.

Based on that article it seems like the Melavonate Pathway could be involved.
 
Messages
62
Yes here....continued weight loss....slow rate but still continues .

My face has lost lots of fat. Look rather awful and can do nothing about it. Fingertips all collapsed and wrinkled...skin loose, crepe paper etc. Few muscles left.

Eating more food for several months while in the care of my daughter, didn't result in me gaining any weight.

But yes I am paleo rather, low carb for 15 or more years. Sugar currently minimal.
Hello,
How are you comperad to 2019? Did you gained back some facial fat ?
 

vision blue

Senior Member
Messages
1,877
I think i have this but am not sure it was following viral illness. Some kind of atrophy a deem called it. (I suppose i should make sure mine is fat and not cartelidge or somethibg)
 
Messages
62
I'm trying to identify members of this community with the following symptoms following a flu-like "viral" onset:

Loss of subcutaneous fat in face, hands, feet, arms and legs.
Wrinkling skin, and increased prominence of veins/muscles.

If we can clearly identify 20-30 of us, I am going to raise money to do a thorough study to search for a pathogen.

If you have these symptoms, please respond here. If you know of someone with these symptoms, please refer them to this thread.

Please also indicate whether your illness is contagious.

Thank you.
Hello
How are you ? Still suffering from the subcutanous fat loss ?