AV's are working

[CBS]

FWIW, Dr Lerner, who has been treating with AVs for a long time, is very, very strict about patients not overdoing and getting lots of rest. It sounds to me like you might, just might, be doing more than you should be if you want to give the antivirals the best chance of working.

I'm sure that Dr. Montoya would strongly second the need to avoid overdoing it and to get lots rest to give the AV's their best shot at working.

 

[aquariusgirl]

cbs, what does your doctor say about the notion of a narrow therapeutic window for AVs?
I know i have chronic EBV or reactivated EBV but I have held off the antivirals so far in order to build up my immune system to the point where I will be able to kill off virus.
Calculated risk.
Some days I wonder if it's smart.. the cancer risk and all.

The other variable.. valtrex modulates high adenosine. High adenosine inhibits methylation.
So if the valtrex is doing that.. it may pump up your methylation cycle and theoretically improve yr ability to suppress virus.

That's as much as I know on that score.

I don't know if any docs are using valtrex for that purpose.

Maybe some autism docs?

I wish I knew.

 

[heapsreal]

thanks for all the advice guys. Yeah i think working fulltime is probably too much for me. When working part time i was able to exercise in a cfs sort of way, have a day to rest up then go to work for 2 shifts a week. So im now looking into going part time. AS for not being exposed to other bugs, thats going to be the hard one especially because of my work and coming into the australian winter with all the coughs and cold etc.

I have started a product that has astragalus, olive leaf and miitake which is dosed quite high compared to other products Ive seen as well as some echinacea to help boost my immune system to the cold viruses. Thymic protein looks like a good product but to pricey for me at this stage but one day will try it. Also waiting on my order of cycloferon which is a med that can increase immune function, fingers crossed it does something, sort of in the same class as immunovir.

Thanks again for listening to my rant.

cheers!!!

 

[CBS]

cbs, what does your doctor say about the notion of a narrow therapeutic window for AVs?
I know i have chronic EBV or reactivated EBV but I have held off the antivirals so far in order to build up my immune system to the point where I will be able to kill off virus.
Calculated risk.
Some days I wonder if it's smart.. the cancer risk and all.

The other variable.. valtrex modulates high adenosine. High adenosine inhibits methylation.
So if the valtrex is doing that.. it may pump up your methylation cycle and theoretically improve yr ability to suppress virus.

That's as much as I know on that score.

I don't know if any docs are using valtrex for that purpose.

Maybe some autism docs?

I wish I knew.

Hi Aquariusgirl,

Please note that I am speaking from conversations with my doctor and I can't generalize beyond my impressions from my own care.

That said, I have the impression that he has found CFS patients very susceptible to side effects at doses that haven't caused side effects at other patients. As a result, he starts patients out at what seemed to be ridiculously low levels and tapers them up over a period of several months (I am deliberately leaving out dosage as I would not recommend that anyone try anti-virals without close supervision by an infectious disease specialist who is very familiar with which anti-viral for which infections and what to look for as far as side effects).

I went into my last appt. thinking I might need a higher dose and it turns out that I was actually showing signs of too much (turns out the very low doses were not so ridiculous after all). I suspect that if my doc had not seen hundreds of CFS patients and their response to anti-virals I might have come away with a Rx for a higher dose or we would have concluded that the anti-virals were a bust. Either of these conclusions would have been unfortunate.

As it is, I am now on a much lower dose and I seem to be slowly improving (side effects subsiding?) but we won't know for 3-4 weeks if that's the case.

As far as adenosine and methylation goes, we haven't discussed that aspect of anti-virals. Our conversations have revolved around rest and the anti-virals giving a weakened immune system a break from fighting off one of my more severe viral infections.

I hope this helps.

 

[heapsreal]

hi, ive been looking at a few of my previous threads in the past and i think i have plateaued or slightly gone backwards since moving from famvir to valtrex over last 6 months. Dont think its shonky valtrex cause when i have stop it i crashed and when back on valtrex improved. IM just wondering if famvir is my drug, more effective against ebv, while others find valtrex better choice for them.im going to order through an internet pharmacy and see how it go's and if no luck will order the very expensive overpriced famvir from here. Dont quote me but have read famvir has a broarder range of action, also read it has some action against entroviruses. We will see what happens.

cheers!!!

 

[heapsreal]

started famvir at 250mg twice a day today, this was the regime i was on when i improved alot. My last blood test showed all my lymphocytes were elevated again so will be keeping an eye on this as well. Im wondering if this dose of famvir is stronger then the 500mg twice a day of valtrex i was on. Im still better then pre av's but just starting to slide back abit. Also dr lerners recommendations are 1000mg 4 times a day, which i may also look into. Im going to give it about 2 months then add cycloferon to the mix which works in a similar way to immunovir but cheaper.

What i found interesting in Maija Haavisto's book 'reviving the broken marionette' is that when it mentions famvir and its activity against herpes viruses, ebv etc but also hepatittis B and other retroviruses and also mentions being effective against herpes viruses that are resistant to other medications. Maybe it has alot broader action against viruses then we actually know about.

Its such an up and down disease which makes it so frustrating, i know there are others alot worse then me but im hoping to one day get back to exercising at full speed and competitive sport(got to have dreams) as well as being active with the kids, at the moment im just working fulltime with a few sickies and being a lazy bum when not at work, and insomnia go's without saying. Im going to drop all the sleep meds for awhile and see what happens, atleast give my body a break from them and reduce my tolerance to them.