Do you get fevers? Ever?

[Freewindblowin]

I never ran a fever, a real fever, until this year, after taking Valganciclovir for 11 months. I was able to actually throw off a pneumonia! Every year I was getting worse and worse cases of pneumonia. Otherwise, my temp would be 96, 97 then maybe 99.something-very uncomfortable. Kind of like a 101 or 102 fever-"real fever" feels better than just edging around 99.something. My understanding is that our immune systems are so compromised, it no longer allows the important helper and macrophage cells to recognize bad stuff coming onboard. My not so great memory thinks this theory was demonstrated early on in Judy Mikovitz' work, also in the work of Jose Montoya, M.D. They used microchip assays and found people with M.E. harbor 30-50 viruses, while healthy people might have 2-5, at most, adenoviruses (colds).

The Valganciclovir saved my life, and my husband's-literally. It was a close thing. Had to save up some money in order to be able to go see Dr. Montoya in a couple months, so I gave mine to my husband, he being much sicker much longer than I. Cannot afford the $750.00/month to pay for mine and have gas and visit $. I am trying to be very careful, and I take Valtrex to try and keep a lid (hopefully) on the nastiest immune marauders-the Human Herpes family. I did notice during the Valganciclovir I had more of my mind back while on it, and I would say "the floor" came up, so to speak. Now, my pain medicines are almost enough to help me have some function-so now I do not feel "flu-ish" all the time, along with the catastrophic thinking, depressive symptoms, "sickness behavior" as they call it (like I want to "behave" like this, suuure) because of the interferons/cytokines going crazy making everything hurt so horribly everywhere. The immune system starts firing off blanks.

So yes, I think the "low grade fever" and "low normal" are part of this disease process.

Fascinating-and scary-about the pregnancy and labor changes. Wow.

Thank you,
Lois

 

[Lala]

Here is a very similar thread. http://flash.lymenet.org/ubb/ultimatebb.php/topic/1/106251
I think sudden experience of normal fevers or normal onset of common flu after long period of time without these phenomena can be connected to the changes in the immune system. Mine provably improved when on antibiotics. The thing about hypothalamus is very interesting too.

 

[Athene]

Thanks for that link Lala, very interesting.

They mention taking vitamin D, which is of course important for the immune system. I wonder if it has any direct relationship with generating fevers?

 

[Lala]

I do not know, but I am also on high dose vitamin D and I found I had more problems with raising vitamin D than with antibiotics. Vitamin D is a powerful staff for me. It causes significant reaction when increased even only by 1000iu. It surely is a must for proper immune functioning.

 

[Athene]

Hi Lala,
Apparently Vit D is essential for activating the T cells of the immune system - the ones we have underactive - and reducing the allergic responses. In other words it corrects the imbalance we have in our immune systems.
So I think the reaction you get to vitamin D must surely be a big immune reaction - almost something like a herx reaction as your body fights the infections.
That makes me think it may really be a key factor in restoring the ability to develop a fever. I think the vitamin D helping to restore the immune balance seems to fit with what freewindblowin said about the helper and macrophage cells needing to be active as part of the process.

What do you guys think?

 

[Lala]

Vitamin D does many things. I did not know it can lessen allergic response, but it is necessary for nervous system repair and due to vitamin D our body produces natural antibiotics- cathelicidines and defensins, that directly kill many bugs, borrellia and many species of fungus included. It is necessary also for pain management and our mood. Reaction to vitamin D can be wild herx and can be quite overwhelming.
Here is little more info
http://www.cpnhelp.org/importance_of_vitamin_d_p
http://www.cpnhelp.org/vitamin_d_abstracts
http://www.cpnhelp.org/vitamin_d_supplementing_p

 

[leaves]

I never vet fevers either. My cytokyne interleukin 6 is zero. It is needed for rsistance against strep, parasites and fever. You Guys have low il-6 too?

 

[taniaaust1]

Im feeling like the odd one out after reading about so many who dont get fevers at all. For myself, ME has been a very feverish illness. For over the first year of this illness, I very regularly ran extremely high fevers 39-40 Celicus.. most of time about 39). I used to get high fever and wet the bed with sweat. My normal temp when Im not sick thou is low.

After 14 years of this illness, Im so used to running fevers that I dont even realise when Ive got one...both at home and when I was in hospital, I've discovered my temp is often in the 38 celicus range Im unaware of it. (I had to tell the nurses at hospital not worry about my fevers as they kept on wanting to dose me up to bring them down.. but I wasnt noticing them).

Currently getting the 38 celicus on and off, I see them often on the therometer if I wake up not knowing why and take my temp.

 

[Athene]

Hi Leaves,
My IL 6 was measured at 5.8 - the results sheet that I have says 0 to 15 is normal. I wonder if that means normal for a person without an active illness??? Perhaps both of these are too low for someone who is infected with something?

Tania,
I think all your fevers must mean you are still fighting this illness like crazy! My son used to have fevers every night and wake up amazingly drenched with sweat. He would be scampering about and playing with a temp of 38 as if everything was normal, rather as you describe yourself.
Lately these fevers are happening less and less frequently, and I don't know whether to be happy about this or not.

 

[sandgroper]

For many years I had had no cold or flu besides gastro ones. Then last year I had a chest infection. At least I think it was. The doctor
thought it had left me with asthma but I think it just did not resolve noramlly and i had it for 6 weeks. This I saw as a positive sign
as I had the flu 19 years ago before a partial remission. Actually I am mildy better than I was 12 months ago so perhaps I was right.
I felt quite hot but the dr did not think I had a fever. I was so out of it I cannot remember my numbers. I think one of the triggering
events prior to getting ill was severe strep infection in 1982. At that time I had a very severe fever and I am wondering if it was the
fever which caused the beginning of the long spiral downwards over the next 6 years.

 

[faith.hope.love]

I get low grade fevers almost every single day. But it's not related to CFIDS, it's related to benzo withdrawal. (See my thread for a thorough explanation.) I was fine before the Ativan. Be mindful of the drugs you take, there are plenty of side effects and withdrawal effects that mimic CFIDS.

 

[Ocean]

Yes, I have some kind of temperature every day, ranging from 99 something to 101 or slightly higher. I wish I could get rid of it. Both uncomfortable in the physical sense and the emotional sense, of not knowing why I have it.

 

[Seven7]

Never. Had 3 times in my whole life. I have low TNF-I and super low TNF-II

 

[Cath1972]

Apparently, the hypothalamus initiates a fever and triggers it by releasing something called prostaglandin E2.

The Wikipedia article about fevers is interesting
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fever

Oddly enough, this same prostaglandin is what opens the uterus at the start of labour. I had absolutely no contractions of labour whatsoever when pregnant, even when they tried to induce (by putting a synthetic version of this on the cervix).
I think maybe our bodies not only stop producing this stuff, but also stop reacting to it???

Some types of bacteria can cause their own fever by releasing other substances that act on the body, without this prostaglandin, e.g. malaria. If I understand rightly, these are the illnesses where you can get an out of control fever that kills you.

That's interesting, through both labours of mine pre CFS, I ran a high fever to the point where the midwives were worried. After both births ( which ended in caeserians) I ran a high fever non stop for weeks with no known cause. After CFS, I do not run fevers, my normal temperature has dropped from 37c to 34.6c. (I rarely go above 36c) I very rarely catch anything but do get regular flu- like aches that can last for weeks with no other illness or temperature rise(if anything it tends to drop a little) interesting about the prostaglandin .

 

[mellster]

That is very telling for CFS - try raising your body temp - doesn't necessarily have to be a fever, but if you can get it consistently back to 'normal' it should help to 'kickstart'. There are various ways to do this. Don't stick with the low basal temp.

 

[Calathea]

I was very fluey my first year of ME, and my trigger. No idea what my actual temperatures were, but I would get roasting hot and pouring with sweat, or freezing cold, and kept on noticing (when out of bed) that I was wearing significantly more or fewer layers than everyone else. In my third year of ME, I was put on Depo Provera and that caused my temperature to go up and down like a yoyo. Apart from that, nothing in particular.

The other year my partner and I both had what I am convinced was a nasty dose of flu, judging from the symptom severity and duration. The doctors kept insisting it must be a cold (it was nothing like a cold - I get those too) because I didn't have a fever. At the time I wondered if it was swine flu, as apparently not everyone gets a fever with that, but now I'm just wondering if it was an ME thing.

I take my basal temperature every morning for FAM tracking, and it's normal. I also get a normal thermal shift at ovulation.

I've had occasional problems with feeling chilled, especially my hands and feet, though nothing too dramatic. Then I had my gallbladder out a month ago, and I have been icy cold ever since. Living under the heated blanket, wearing far more layers than I do in winter, taking hours to recover every time I wash my hands or get changed, shivering in the shower no matter how hot it is. About a week ago I added suddenly pouring with sweat to my repertoire, along with shaking fits, and when it got really bad on Tuesday morning, my partner had to dash home from work to peel me off the floor and call the doctor. By this point I was getting uncontrollable shaking fits going on for quite some time. The doctor stuck a thermometer in my ear (I do not trust those things ever since one completely missed when I had hypothermia during a gallstone attack, five min after we'd taken my temperature orally) and said it was 37.7, which he called a slight fever. It's not really all that high, maybe he was going more off the other symptoms. Anyway, he thought I may have a post-surgical infection and prescribed me some fairly heavy-duty antibiotics. I still have no idea whether it was the right diagnosis, or whether it's something else such as a reaction to the anaesthetic. If we knew more about why my temperature has gone crazy, that might help - well, my perceived temperature, or whatever you call it when you're icy to the touch and shivering like mad but the thermometer reads normal.

 

[mellster]

My initial viral trigger - if not EBV reactivation (which could have been opportunistic) could as well have been swine flu in Sept. 2009 - I always wondered about that as it was very unspecific for a flu with weird symptoms and hardly any fever (maybe low grade). The docs never tested for it at that time claiming only if you are sick enough to be admitted to a hospital they would test. For all the panic and fanfare around the swine flu I do not understand how they did not test me and it almost seems like borderline (criminal?) negligence to act like that in the US, esp. in CA where they were worried it could spread fast and hard (from Mexico).

 

[maryb]

That is very telling for CFS - try raising your body temp - doesn't necessarily have to be a fever, but if you can get it consistently back to 'normal' it should help to 'kickstart'. There are various ways to do this. Don't stick with the low basal temp.

I have very low basal temp, it is usually 35ish - how would you raise this??

 

[Calathea]

Another thing: I sometimes find that eating a meal will raise my temperature, even make me come out in a sweat. It always happens with miso soup to some degree. It's been happening a lot over the last week, to the point that I could soak through my clothes from just eating a meal. Does anyone have a clue what is going on here?

 

[maryb]

Me too Calathea - I had a drenching sweat yesterday immediately after eating a meal, often get sweats after eating but this one was more like the nightime drenching ones I suffer from, absolutely horrible.... Be interested to know why this happens if anyone has a theory?