Posted by bleauberry on March 24, 2018, at 6:38:54
***my own comments are added in parenthesis
***when I say "in the real world" I am referring to two Medical Doctors and one Nurse Practitioner who have treated me and shared with me their own clinical experience with psychiatric patients - their experience is more valuable to me than the gathered literature of this study, which had no patients and no doctors, just literature gathered, and analyzed from the vantage point of academia not real world experience - we have no idea how complete, incomplete, biased, slanted, or whatever, the gathered literature was. But regardless, this one study supports my claims that everyone here needs to consider this stands a more than 50/50 chance of being their actual problem.Lyme disease: a neuropsychiatric illness.
Fallon BA1, Nields JA.
Author information
Abstract
OBJECTIVE:
Lyme disease is a multisystemic illness that can affect the central nervous system (CNS), causing neurologic and psychiatric symptoms. The goal of this article is to familiarize psychiatrists with this spirochetal illness.
METHOD:
Relevant books, articles, and abstracts from academic conferences were perused, and additional articles were located through computerized searches and reference sections from published articles.
RESULTS:
Up to 40% (ACCORDING TO REAL DOCTORS NOT GATHERED LITERATURE THE REAL ESTIMATED PERCENTAGE IS CLOSER TO 90% - my own comments) of patients with Lyme disease develop neurologic involvement of either the peripheral or central nervous system. Dissemination to the CNS can occur within the first few weeks after skin infection. Like syphilis, Lyme disease may have a latency period of months to years before symptoms of late infection emerge. Early signs include meningitis, encephalitis, cranial neuritis, and radiculoneuropathies (EARLY SIGNS ARE OFTEN NOTHING AT ALL - my own comments) Later, encephalomyelitis and encephalopathy may occur. ("MAY" OCCUR - maybe, might, may, but leaves out 100 other potential problems). A broad range of psychiatric reactions have been associated with Lyme disease including paranoia, dementia, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, panic attacks, major depression, anorexia nervosa, and obsessive-compulsive disorder. Depressive states among patients with late Lyme disease are fairly common, ranging across studies from 26% to 66% (real world is closer to 90%) The microbiology of Borrelia burgdorferi sheds light on why Lyme disease can be relapsing and remitting and why it can be refractory to normal immune surveillance and standard antibiotic regimens. (this is why the books are so important, as to understand the science that is happening in the body)
CONCLUSIONS:
Psychiatrists who work in endemic areas (not just endemic areas - everywhere - people move, ticks show up where they are not supposed to, ticks fly with birds anywhere, ride on mice) to include Lyme disease in the differential diagnosis of any atypical psychiatric disorder. Further research is needed to identify better laboratory tests and to determine the appropriate manner (intravenous or oral) and length (weeks or months) of treatment among patients with neuropsychiatric involvement.(this kind of research and testing is simply not possible - because the infections present themselves differently from person to person, depending on genetics and condition of the immune system, with psychiatric symptoms being the common denominator in 9 out of 10 cases. one patient can get better in 2 weeks of treatment, another requires 2 months, another 9 months, me 36 months, and often multiple medications are required, which vary from patient to patient, depending on their presentation. This would be impossible to accurately test in a lab setting) the variables are too massive to try to squeeze nice and neat into a box, or into "more research".
One patient may have 'clusters of symptoms' which are more consistent with Bartonella than Borellia. Or maybe Babesia. Depending on the presentation, they require different prescriptions. Antibiotics effective against Borellia are not very effective against the other 2. Babesia is a parasite that requires treatment with anti-malaria meds and herbs. I'm just briefly mentioning these things to show how impossible it would be to test populations in a clinical setting.
More research is NOT needed. What IS NEEDED is for existing current psychiatrists and patients to study and learn the information which we already have. We have all we need already. Everything we need is found in a book called "Why Can't I Get Better" - Richard Horowitz.
In my case 3 years treatment, following 20 years of failed meds and failed ECT, multiple suicide attempts, then 2 years remission, and now treatment on 3 antibiotics again due to relapse - thankfully my current relapse (or possibly new infection from fire wood) doesn't have the same dark psychiatric stuff the original presentation did - this one presents itself as massive anxiety, tremors, stage fright, shaking, for no explainable reason - my condition is the kind of thing doctors prescribe Lorazepam for - but that won't cure anything - antibiotics will.
This article only mentions one of the Lyme infections - the spirochete. It does not mention the other common co-infections, which include Bartonella (bacteria), Babesia (parasite), Mycoplasma (cell wall deficient bacteria), chlamydia, rickettsiosis, and a dozen or so more, including some viruses - all of which cause the entire spectrum of psychiatric illnesses.
We attempt to manage symptoms with reuptake inhibitors, and then exotic combos which fall short of successful management, and have obviously nothing to do with the infection itself, or inflammation, or endotoxins, or anything useful. Psychiatric drugs are awesome for managing short term or acute symptoms. But for long lasting enduring maximum improvement of quality of life, that requires a more comprehensive effort than merely seeing the doc for a psychiatric prescription. That rarely results in the desired outcomes, if you ask me. Imo
You have other symptoms besides your mood and behavior issues. It is wrong to assume those are separate issues from your psychiatric issues. Skin, gastro, muscles, bones, eyes, ears, hormones, glands - there is more going on that just your mood, and without writing another book to explain it all, they are attached to the mood issues. They are not separate issues.
We wonder why we can't get better. Sometimes it is because we just don't have all the information we need. Like, for example, the knowledge that chronic stealth unsuspected infections and psychiatry are married into a nice cozy deceptive marriage. Lyme is called THE GREAT IMITATOR for a reason! THE GREAT DECEIVER. Depression, Anxiety. Schizophrenia. Arthritis. Fibromyalgia. Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. Lupus. Multiple Sclerosis. Skin symptoms. Muscle symptoms. Bone symptoms. Gastrointestinal symptoms. On and on. Every part of the body can be impacted. Usually there are multiple issues going on that can be grouped into 'clusters of symptoms' which paint a story. Ticks can cause just about any disease or syndrome you can think of. The Great Imitator. There are even cases where the lesions on the brains of MS patients disappeared with long term antibiotic treatment. Alzheimers can improve with antibiotics. Dementia. It all should cause anybody with a little bit of curiosity to ask more questions and learn as much about this as possible. Because the potential benefits are huge! And, in my opinion, significant gains are within reach, even when the best of psychiatry has fallen short of desired goals.
One single nymph tick which is smaller than the tip of a writing pen can do all of that and you will never even see the tick. They are in cities, lawns, states where they aren't supposed to be, and of course anywhere off of the concrete sidewalk. I have actually personally seen ticks crawling up the bricks on the side of Walmart by the automotive department. Ticks are not supposed to crawl on rocks! Or across streets! But they do! Seen it myself.
Those in the know claim this issue is epidemic. I happen to agree, based on wisdom gathered by experience.
Personally, I say forget about the term "lyme". It is misleading. It is natural for people to think "oh that only happens to other people" or "I don't recall a tick bite" or "I never had a rash" or "my test was negative" or "I am too healthy" or whatever. On and on.
What really matters is not the name you give it, but the strategies employed. The blanket shotgun strategies, as well as some pinpoint tactics, include 4 basic pillars for the entire comprehensive treatment plan to get any psychiatric patient to their fullest functionality. 1.Anti-microbials 2.Anti brain inflammation. 3.Anti-systemic inflammation. 4.Toxin removal.
Some doctors do all that with just prescription antibiotics and time. When the pathogenic load is reduced in the body, the other symptoms automatically improve.
Some doctors do all that with just herbs and supplements. But many agree that many patients need meds to 'get over the hump'. Herbs are amazing for anti inflammation, anti toxin, and anti microbial, but often fall slightly short of remission.
Some doctors combine hybrid strategies of meds plus herbs. That is my favorite treatment approach because it covers so much of the mysteries we will never have answers for. And the results are better and faster than either meds alone or herbs alone.
The Chinese doctors describe it as "Support the righteous and dispel the evil". Doing that clears the brain of mood symptoms in ways that SSRIS and TCAs simply cannot do. 'Support the righteous' is translated as - support the immune system, balance the immune system, balance the hormones, remove toxins, help the body in every way'. 'Dispel the evil' means eliminate or reduce pathogenic insults and bad living habits, such as a sugary diet'
Really there is just too much to say and too little space. Need to write a book. How about suggestions for the title?
What Every Psychiatrist Should Know About Ticks. ???
poster:bleauberry
thread:1097634
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20180212/msgs/1097634.html