Aa
High Cortisol
I had a Western Blot done a few months ago from one of the regular labs, tested positive for a couple bands, and started my journey. It has taken a while to find someone but, I saw a Lyme NP a couple of weeks ago. She ordered testing from Igenix. My next appointment is next Thursday.
I am already hypothyroid and insulin resistant. I just recently found out that my thyroid is enlarged. My naturopath ran some additional testing along with my scheduled follow-up on thyroid levels. Now, my cortisol is extremely high. He told me to try to limit my stress to get the cortisol down. My chiropractor (who is also into holistic medicine) told me that he has never seen cortisol that high just from stress. He wants me to get tested for Cushing's.
I have been told that Lyme can affect the entire endocrine system. I will ask the Lyme NP when I see her but I am really concerned as the cause of this high cortisol. So much for keeping my stress level down. :) Have any of you had high cortisol along with Lyme? I am starting to wonder if this is an unrelated issue and maybe I should go to see an endocrinologist.
I am already hypothyroid and insulin resistant. I just recently found out that my thyroid is enlarged. My naturopath ran some additional testing along with my scheduled follow-up on thyroid levels. Now, my cortisol is extremely high. He told me to try to limit my stress to get the cortisol down. My chiropractor (who is also into holistic medicine) told me that he has never seen cortisol that high just from stress. He wants me to get tested for Cushing's.
I have been told that Lyme can affect the entire endocrine system. I will ask the Lyme NP when I see her but I am really concerned as the cause of this high cortisol. So much for keeping my stress level down. :) Have any of you had high cortisol along with Lyme? I am starting to wonder if this is an unrelated issue and maybe I should go to see an endocrinologist.
My doctor is sure it's adrenal fatigue. It's terrible. No sleep and I have to take a tons of meds to sleep then I wake at 3. I am always exhausted.
My sleep is disturbed sometimes with waking up during the night. My chiro wants me to have the ACTH test done along with the 24-hour urine test.
Did your Lyme doc order the cortisol testing? Does he suspect Cushing's? Please keep us posted.
Did your Lyme doc order the cortisol testing? Does he suspect Cushing's? Please keep us posted.
I just took the 24 hour saliva test for cortisol testing. I can't sleep and high cortisol and adrenal fatigue is often the reason. The results haven't returned yet. I also am hypothyroid. It doesn't hurt to test for cushings in your case.
I am still taking Mg now (several years after completing Lyme treatment) along with other daily vitamins and supplements. Twice a day, I currently take a dose of 3 magnesium pills. Each dose (3 pills) has 425 mg of magnesium malate, which is 106% of the 'daily value' according to the label. So I am taking 106% x 2 = 212% of the recommended daily value (tho they don't use the word 'recommended' -- they call it 'serving size' ha ha). Can send you a private message through this system if you would like the name of my mail order vits/supps vendor. Been using them for several years now, quite satisfied, and no I don't get kickbacks. :)
A while back, I went to see another MD about some minor, non-Lyme-related matter and gave him my list of then-current vitamins and supplements for his information, and this cranky old doc sneered at my Mg intake -- rather grouchy about it, in fact -- and he said 'it will give you diarrhea' at those levels -- but it never has, and I'm pretty sensitive to meds of all kinds. fwiw.
(The hard magnesium pills I am taking now [as opposed to filled capsules I have previously taken] are rather large, and next batch I buy, I'm going back to capsules. For now, I cut the hard pills in half with a pill chopper, but it's still pretty big. Capsules are easier and don't need cutting.)
You're lucky (!?) that your Western blot test came up positive ... that test, to my understanding, measures your immune system's reaction to the Lyme infection, but the human immune system is made to jump in and do the dirty work to kill an infection, then stop after a relatively short period of time, based on the quite short life-cycles of most bacteria and the assumption that the bacteria must all be dead. ... Lyme has a relatively longer life cycle than most bacteria, however, and it can also go hide in biofilms where the immune system can't see the bacteria to kill them. Result: a long-lived infection that has outsmarted both the human immune system AND the Western blot and ELISA tests. The patient's next tests then come up negative, because the human immune system shrugged its tiny shoulders and quit fighting, NOT because the bacteria are all dead. Lyme specialists know this, but other docs ... just don't.
(This feature is why the IGeneX tests for Lyme are so important: they do not rely on the human immune system response to Lyme in order to report a Lyme infection as present: instead, IGeneX tests look for the presence of Lyme bacterial DNA [genetic material]. This is a direct test, not an indirect test like ELISA and Western blot. ===>>> Bottom line: if ELISA/W.blot tests are positive, they are reliable; if they are negative, they could be in error. The structure of the IGeneX tests avoids this problem entirely.)
"I just thought that since I have an enlarged thyroid and if I could have something as serious as Cushing's, maybe I should see an endo." That's good thinking! -- being proactive never hurts.
"I think I will have the tests but put off seeing the endo for now until I hear what the Lyme NP has to say." Good for you again: wrangling docs is not for the faint of heart, but is definitely a good approach. Keep us posted!
A while back, I went to see another MD about some minor, non-Lyme-related matter and gave him my list of then-current vitamins and supplements for his information, and this cranky old doc sneered at my Mg intake -- rather grouchy about it, in fact -- and he said 'it will give you diarrhea' at those levels -- but it never has, and I'm pretty sensitive to meds of all kinds. fwiw.
(The hard magnesium pills I am taking now [as opposed to filled capsules I have previously taken] are rather large, and next batch I buy, I'm going back to capsules. For now, I cut the hard pills in half with a pill chopper, but it's still pretty big. Capsules are easier and don't need cutting.)
You're lucky (!?) that your Western blot test came up positive ... that test, to my understanding, measures your immune system's reaction to the Lyme infection, but the human immune system is made to jump in and do the dirty work to kill an infection, then stop after a relatively short period of time, based on the quite short life-cycles of most bacteria and the assumption that the bacteria must all be dead. ... Lyme has a relatively longer life cycle than most bacteria, however, and it can also go hide in biofilms where the immune system can't see the bacteria to kill them. Result: a long-lived infection that has outsmarted both the human immune system AND the Western blot and ELISA tests. The patient's next tests then come up negative, because the human immune system shrugged its tiny shoulders and quit fighting, NOT because the bacteria are all dead. Lyme specialists know this, but other docs ... just don't.
(This feature is why the IGeneX tests for Lyme are so important: they do not rely on the human immune system response to Lyme in order to report a Lyme infection as present: instead, IGeneX tests look for the presence of Lyme bacterial DNA [genetic material]. This is a direct test, not an indirect test like ELISA and Western blot. ===>>> Bottom line: if ELISA/W.blot tests are positive, they are reliable; if they are negative, they could be in error. The structure of the IGeneX tests avoids this problem entirely.)
"I just thought that since I have an enlarged thyroid and if I could have something as serious as Cushing's, maybe I should see an endo." That's good thinking! -- being proactive never hurts.
"I think I will have the tests but put off seeing the endo for now until I hear what the Lyme NP has to say." Good for you again: wrangling docs is not for the faint of heart, but is definitely a good approach. Keep us posted!
I just wanted to correct my post where I said my journey began a few months ago when I had a positive Western Blot. What I should have said was that was when I became aware that I had Lyme. Before that I didn't have a clue. I just knew I was not well for a long time. The Lyme NP I saw believes I have had Lyme for many years and that I am now in the chronic stage.
I am glad to have found this community.
I am glad to have found this community.
Re: "Lyme can be stressful all on its own, not just as a side effect of the Lyme infection." You got that right! And what we have to go through along the way to finding someone to properly diagnose and treat adds to the stress as well.
And you're right. The chiro doesn't know everything about Lyme because he looked surprised when I suggested that might be the cause for the high cortisol.
Just to clarify, the chiro didn't suggest that I see the endo. He gave me a referral for the testing. I just thought that since I have an enlarged thyroid and if I could have something as serious as Cushing's, maybe I should see an endo. I think I will have the tests but put off seeing the endo for now until I hear what the Lyme NP has to say.
How much magnesium did you take? I could use a little mellow right now after this latest news with the cortisol. :)
No need to apologize. No need to be quiet. Your input is always appreciated.
And you're right. The chiro doesn't know everything about Lyme because he looked surprised when I suggested that might be the cause for the high cortisol.
Just to clarify, the chiro didn't suggest that I see the endo. He gave me a referral for the testing. I just thought that since I have an enlarged thyroid and if I could have something as serious as Cushing's, maybe I should see an endo. I think I will have the tests but put off seeing the endo for now until I hear what the Lyme NP has to say.
How much magnesium did you take? I could use a little mellow right now after this latest news with the cortisol. :)
No need to apologize. No need to be quiet. Your input is always appreciated.
I just did a quick search online for
---- lyme high cortisol ----
and got many interesting hits. Lyme definitely messes with the endocrine/hormonal system, and Lyme can be stressful all on its own, not just as a side effect of the Lyme infection.
The chiropractor who suggested the possibility of Cushing's may not have much (or any) background in Lyme, so I wouldn't assume he's right. If I were in your situation, I would check in first with the Lyme NP, so as to keep things orderly, and see what she thinks about testing for cortisol and whether its levels might be connected with Lyme.
You might ask the Lyme NP what she thinks about you seeing an endocrinologist, and if she is unsure or you are not persuaded by her response, then I would reconsider the chiro's suggestion. Lots of medical people (incl. chiros) think lots of things about Lyme, but they aren't necessarily right, y'know what I mean? Lyme is a still-developing area of medicine, so there are plenty of different views and recommendations.
[When I had Lyme, I took magnesium (Mg) supplements every day, since the Lyme critters use up Mg in the body. Mg deficiency can lead to the jitters and anxiety. I started taking Mg supplements when I had Lyme, and I still take them today ... keeps me mellow ... or at least more mellow than without Mg. :)
Any formulations ending in '-ate' (such as Mg malate, Mg orotate, Mg citrate, Mg aspartate, Mg orotate, etc., or blends of those) are supposed to be most absorbable. (And I've read that Mg mixed with calcium is not as effective, dunno why.)
I've also read that the American diet is often low in Mg pretty much across the board. Sorry for the data dump, read it when you're up for it. Oh, and I like Mg capsules rather than hard pills, which can be kind of large in some brands. I'll be quiet now. :)
---- lyme high cortisol ----
and got many interesting hits. Lyme definitely messes with the endocrine/hormonal system, and Lyme can be stressful all on its own, not just as a side effect of the Lyme infection.
The chiropractor who suggested the possibility of Cushing's may not have much (or any) background in Lyme, so I wouldn't assume he's right. If I were in your situation, I would check in first with the Lyme NP, so as to keep things orderly, and see what she thinks about testing for cortisol and whether its levels might be connected with Lyme.
You might ask the Lyme NP what she thinks about you seeing an endocrinologist, and if she is unsure or you are not persuaded by her response, then I would reconsider the chiro's suggestion. Lots of medical people (incl. chiros) think lots of things about Lyme, but they aren't necessarily right, y'know what I mean? Lyme is a still-developing area of medicine, so there are plenty of different views and recommendations.
[When I had Lyme, I took magnesium (Mg) supplements every day, since the Lyme critters use up Mg in the body. Mg deficiency can lead to the jitters and anxiety. I started taking Mg supplements when I had Lyme, and I still take them today ... keeps me mellow ... or at least more mellow than without Mg. :)
Any formulations ending in '-ate' (such as Mg malate, Mg orotate, Mg citrate, Mg aspartate, Mg orotate, etc., or blends of those) are supposed to be most absorbable. (And I've read that Mg mixed with calcium is not as effective, dunno why.)
I've also read that the American diet is often low in Mg pretty much across the board. Sorry for the data dump, read it when you're up for it. Oh, and I like Mg capsules rather than hard pills, which can be kind of large in some brands. I'll be quiet now. :)
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