Newbie with Questions

[clong1057]

I am in only my second week of AP and I did great the first week, no reaction at all. I do 100 mg. MWF Doxy to start. I know my Dr. told me to avoid prolonged sunlight and I have but today riding in to work (about 40 minute drive) the sun was coming through the windows the whole way and when I got to work I looked in the mirror and my face was beet red and my left arm. Could that be possible through the windows and should I just wear sunscreen all the time to be safe? It has stayed bright red for the five hours I have been at work. I’m new at this and not sure if it is the sun or a reaction but I had no problem last week. Also I seem to get the runs a bit the day after taking my pills…is this normal? My paperwork from Dr. says to stop pills if this happens but it seems I have read that others have had this and it’s not real bad so I don’t want to stop. Any help or suggestions from others would be appreciated.

[richie]

Taking a med in the tetracycline family {such as doxycycline} can make your skin very sensitive to the sun –wile I have never been bothered by this many people have —the redness will clear up –just use a strong sun screen –good luck –
richie

[Maz]

@clong1057 wrote:

Also I seem to get the runs a bit the day after taking my pills…is this normal? My paperwork from Dr. says to stop pills if this happens but it seems I have read that others have had this and it’s not real bad so I don’t want to stop. Any help or suggestions from others would be appreciated.

Hi Clong,

It’s nice to meet you and a warm welcome!

Your doc may not have mentioned that it’s very important to take probiotics while on AP. Antibiotics can upset the balance of gut microbiota and so replacing the good bacteria that are lost is vital to maintain gut health. It’s also wise to avoid sugars that can promote yeast overgrowth in the gut, as a result of disturbed gut microbiota.

I’ve been on heavy doses of various combos of abx for Lyme disease and coinfections for 6 years now and have never had a bout with diarrhea or yeast. I use PB8 vegetarian caps (8 to 10 caps daily) as a staple, but there are many good brands of probiotics out there and each person should find one that suits them best, as we are all different. Trying a few different brands to start with isn’t a bad idea and some people will rotate brands or combine brands to ensure they are getting enough good strains of probiotics. I will rotate brands or combine them on an intermittent basis, but PB8 has remained my staple as it’s worked so well for me. This is good, because it’s also relatively inexpensive. Really important to also ensure that a good window of two hours is maintained between taking abx dose (usually on an empty stomach, if tolerated) and then the probiotic dose (usually with food) so that abx do not destroy the probiotics.

If you’ve only taken 3 100mg doses of doxy, it may be too early to tell if this has made your skin that sensitive to sunlight already, but anything is possible. I also thought that it wasn’t possible to get sunburned through glass, as UVB rays are reflected off? UVA rays, however, aren’t reflected off and can still do damage to skin…just not visible sunburn, I think.

http://indianapublicmedia.org/amomentofscience/sunburn-through-a-window/

It’s probably just wisest to cover up or use sun block if you have sun sensitivity while on doxy as Richie already mentioned. I’ve used minocycline, doxycycline and tetracycline and my sun sensitivity has been worse while on doxy and in higher doses I’ve used of tetracycline. Minocycline, on the other hand, seemed to be fine for me in the sun and I actually got this really fab all-over CA sun tan, which I never get normally, as I’ve got pretty fair skin.

Hope this helps, Clong! 🙂

[Anonymous]

A different newbie muse – I and it seems others only chanced onto this site and the info for AP protocol. When you search for “RA treatment” nothing comes up referring to antibiotics. While I consider myself extremely lucky, I feel for the minions out there who are unaware this option exists. Is the reason for this the exorbitant price for advertising online? Isn’t there some way to make this info more accessible?

[clong1057]

Thank you both for the help and I will take your advice. Maz, I am taking PB10 (don’t know brand because it’s not with me) but I was taking it along with my Doxy. I will start at my next dose to separate it by 2 hours. Also do you take the probiotic everyday. My Dr. told me to eat yogurt on the days I don’t take Doxy also. I am also doing pretty good at cutting out the wheat, dairy and sugar. I also take VitC. Any other suggestions would be welcome at any time.

Thanks again,
Clong

[gratefulgirl]

Hi Clong, I, too, am a newbie — 3 months old here. There’s so little time, but I do make time to read and learn something everyday from the discussion posts, etc on this site. Posting your questions is best, but to supplement, I also enter relevant key words in search of material shared in the past. I know Maz has a list of supplements and ways to help with herxing and gut cleansing, etc. I’m slowly incorporating the advise shared from her and others. The RB community is so very supportive and so many have already done the research, giving us newbies a chance at quicker ways to try what works for us as we are on the road to healing. I wish you the best & good health! GG

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