Thanks for replies everyone, much appreciated. Vegas, when you say three days after amalgam filling removal your body started dumping like crazy and this was not due to vapour during removal process, may o ask how you know this? Did you start chelating immediately after removal and so this is what you mean by saying your body started to dump metals like crazy?
also how did you establish that you had a high load of mercury?
And finally just to clarify am I right that you would recommend doing the meth supps for a while before considering chelation? Thank you
Exposure vs. Dump: While this is an assumption, I think it is a safe one. First, I honestly felt better after the removal, especially the first, and I only had some mild brain fog after the second procedure. For three days I was at my baseline. Obviously there was an acute exposure since it is unavoidable, but even if my serum mercury was elevated, as would be typical, I didn't really perceive it. It didn't come on until day 3 or 4 and the effects were very dramatic. In my opinion, an acute exposure wouldn't have produced such dramatic delayed effects.
When your body starts unloading this stuff you know. It comes in waves. The brain fog is very heavy and then subsides with greater periods of clarity. It cannot be overcome by taking Adderall, your head is not much clearer during relatively high cortisol periods. When the metals are mobilized there is very little you can do to improve your focus, mental clarity, processing speed, etc. When I had the acute onset of what I call a "mercury dump" I became very achy, especially in my shoulders, upper back, head & neck. There was a pressure sensation and headaches. I also experience numerous bm's stimulated by bile. 2-3 times a day is not my norm. Before and after a bm you get redistribution which I assume is via enterohepatic circulation. (I don't care what Cutler says & perhaps the effects are different in someone with intestinal permeability.)
I picked up on this whole bile thing back when I tried to force methylation by taking way too many methyl donors one time clearly before sulfation was properly functioning. I became very toxic and flat out ill for a few days with a massive headache that was unresponsive to anything I tried. Finally, this stimulated a huge bile dump that flushed out the system. I've never had burning like that before, I seriously considered using my daughter's diaper cream!
No I didn't take chelators immediately, but knowing what I do now, I would have started the DMSA on day three. Listening to my body has served me well. I doubt most people experience what I did, perhaps because they don't have everything in place to facilitate this release. Honestly, I don't know why this came about so abruptly and forcefully.
How did I know: mostly by my response to DMSA, which was rapid and pronounced, but also because the onset of my severe cfs 2 years ago was marked by textbook mercury symptoms: tremors, reactive hypoglycemia, upper arm weakness, severe brain fog, decrease thyroid function, halting/stuttering speech, adrenaline surges, etc. (Yes, I understand many of these symptoms can be attributed to other causes, but these came about very suddenly. Also, I had classic Canadian/Fukuda symptoms for a very long time before this happened.) Also, there are many other subtle clues, like response to zinc & b6. I'll post the details of my DDI hair test when I get it.
Methy supps, gut & chelation--which one first. This is the million dollar question. I think the order is going to be very individualistic, and there are lots of variables that come into play. In my view the only certainty is implementing gradual dietary changes should take place immediately; there is no reason not to do this. I would probably also start very low doses of the methyl supplements. The problem is obviously created by heavy metals which destroy your bowel flora, significantly impede methylation through multiple mechanisms and otherwise contribute to the oxidative stress picture further causing glutathione depletion. Those who are experts in mercury toxicity/chelation certainly look at mercury as the (in instances where someone has known mercury toxicity) fundamental problem. Clearly it is the fundamental problem in terms of interfering with and lowering glutathione, but they, in my view, tend to oversimplify the therapeutic options. Many of these people are not dealing with the same degree of physiological dysfunction with myriad secondary infections/illnesses. I suspect the big variable is just how impaired some of these biochemical processes get through extended illness. Sick folks can't just jump into chelation with the same results, there's more going on than just heavy metals. Nevertheless, getting the mercury out can lead to dramatic improvements in many of these problems and just a little improvement in glutathione seems to go a long way. Honestly, I don't know the answer, I go back and forth on this. I think there probably has to be some trial and error necessary. Sorry, I can't provide a more satisfying answer I'm a liberal arts major.
