Flagyl reaction??

Ok, so I've been reading that Flagyl really stirs up Lymes.  Well,  a few days prior to my sx developing I was taking Flagyl for a suspected bacterial vaginosis.  They had prescribed it as a precautionary action, as I was having the burning/frequent urination, but neg. for UTI.  They said I may have a bacterial infection that was causing irritation.  Well anyway I had been taking it for several days and felt fine, but then one night woke up with horrible anxiety, nervousness, and my chest was all red and blotchy.  I assumed it was a reaction to the Flagyl and quit taking it.  Well shortly after that (maybe a couple daysto a week) my numb toes and sx came back.  I've taken Flagyl before and hadn't noticed any ill side effects, so it was very strange.  Anyways I was curious if maybe somehow the Flagyl "woke up" the lymes?  I know this may be far fetched, but is it a possibility?  

   Thanks!
   Karey

[JackieCalifornia]

I spent 4+ months on Flagyl, and was fine except that I got a very irritated stomach/gut -- now that I've been off it for 3 weeks, I'm doing much better gut-wise, but the neuro-Lyme symptoms are coming back -- fogginess, slightly anxious, hard to concentrate.

I was very afraid of the Flagyl, and it did wonders with the Lyme.  I hope I can go back on it.

My LLMD wanted me to take NSAIDs with the Flagyl, but I'm allergic to NSAIDs, so maybe that was the reason I didn't tolerate the Flagyl indefinitely, but it does have a reputation for being a tough drug.

Don't know why you reacted to the Flagyl, check with you dr.  Good luck!

[JackieCalifornia]

Yes, Flagyl can have side effects, but you should check with your doctor to determine whether these are from Flagyl or a Herx or something else.  I too am cautious about taking Flagyl, but nothing is risk free, and I had SIGNIFICANT benefits from it while I was on it, and if my gastroenterologist okays it, I will go back on it.  It's understandable to be 'scared' of the drug and to 'fear' side effects; making a good decision where much is unknown is difficult, and made more difficult by the anxiety Lyme can produce.  

There is no silver bullet, there are no drugs without some risk, but in my opinion waiting for a CDC positive Lyme test could simply mean waiting to get sicker.  Lyme is a 'clinical' diagnosis, meaning that tests are part of the diagnostic process, but symptoms are a significant determinant of the diagnosis -- partly because the tests (especially the CDC tests) are far, far, far from 100% accurate, and perhaps only 50% or so -- the tests are so inaccurate that no one knows for sure what percentage is right.

(The Igenex tests are more respected by LLMDs because the Igenex tests count more 'bands' than the CDC tests, each band measuring for a different kind of fragment of the Lyme bacteria (if any) in your blood.  It would be like looking for cockroaches in your basement:  if you find a leg here and an antenna there, and then find wings and more bits in another corner, the more bits you find that look like roach bits, the more likely it is that you can tell you've got roaches in the basement.  If you only look for antenna and ignore the other bits, you might be missing a lot of evidence and come to an unwarranted conclusion that they are just stray antennae of harmless ants from last summer and not roaches at all. [I'm no entomologist, so this is just a made-up example.])    

Talk to you your doctor and decide with him/her whether you had an allergic reaction, or a dose-dependent reaction, or a Herx, or whatever, and then make as good a rational choice on what to do next.  Fear and anxiety are normal, and we all have to put it aside as much as possible to make informed and rational decisions.  I too have been very fearful at times, as well as depressed and anxious esp. while the disease was raging, so I may know something of how you feel.  I try to acknowlege that I am afraid, to know that it is a normal reaction, and then set it aside while I make as rational a decision as possible, and then watch for side effects to report back on -- just as you are doing now.

Take care and let us know how you are doing --

[JackieCalifornia]

Sorry for all the messages above:  there was another message posted that has now disappeared, and my second message was to respond to some things said in the disappeared message ... Whatever!  

Now, back to my day job .....