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Hair Loss, Weight Loss and Weight Gain
Hi Everyone, its been awhile for me as well since Ive been on here. I hope everyone had a wonderful christmas and New Years. Let us believe that this year WILL BE better this year then the last.
Need your help on what is going on and what I should do.
I was on Azithromyacin for oh I dont know 6 months if not longer.... the doctor and I decided that I should try a differnt antibiotic so we switched to the Generic form of Biaxin.... Clarithromycin...... I was on it for 2 months and dropped 18 pounds and 3/4 of my hair..... we pulled out what was in the shower drain alone and you could of made a wig out of it pretty much...... the only other symptoms I had while on this medicine apart from the hair loss is that my hands would swell and night......I had excessive bruising all over..... and the arthritis was 100 times worse...... felt like my joints were being ripped out of their sockets when I would walk..........
The Azithromycin is more intolerable but less hair loss it seems......and almost seems like it might be doing more good??? Cuse I seem to get constant yeast infections with the Azithro so it seems like it might be wiping out more bacteria........I also have intense pressure in my head..... intercranial pressure I guess its considered? and dizziness and intense muscle pain and tightness...... so bad in fact the pain is soooooo intense from the muscles being contracted that I cant even breath or move, even with muscle relaxers and muscle rub....... I was feeling much better on the generic Biaxin but yet again dont know if it was doing any good and maybe just letting the pathogen roam free??? my hair didnt start falling out excessivly until I started the generic biaxin.......and we did test my thyroid funtion but did not test it until after I went back on the Azitho.... which the results were normal and im still losing hair but not as fast.......
When I was 19 before any of this started i was said to have lupus and hair loss and swelling of the hands were some of my symptoms...... I took prednisone when the hands and other areas would swell and it would help the condition.......now? predinose has bed ridden me in the past and almost killed me....... so I dont know if I have both conditions or not but if I do I was thinking maybe the generic biaxin might be triggering the lupus for swelling of the hands and hair loss are two symptoms.....
I am off antibiotics for one week now and things dont feel well at all...... I dont know whats going on whats triggering such excessvie hair loss (which all you know is not excepted in our society :( and I dont know which antiobiotic to start again......
my doctor isnt helping much so please dont advice to speak with him.....he is fine with whatever antibiotic I decide to take....... let me know what you think...... and a big thanks prior!! :D
Need your help on what is going on and what I should do.
I was on Azithromyacin for oh I dont know 6 months if not longer.... the doctor and I decided that I should try a differnt antibiotic so we switched to the Generic form of Biaxin.... Clarithromycin...... I was on it for 2 months and dropped 18 pounds and 3/4 of my hair..... we pulled out what was in the shower drain alone and you could of made a wig out of it pretty much...... the only other symptoms I had while on this medicine apart from the hair loss is that my hands would swell and night......I had excessive bruising all over..... and the arthritis was 100 times worse...... felt like my joints were being ripped out of their sockets when I would walk..........
The Azithromycin is more intolerable but less hair loss it seems......and almost seems like it might be doing more good??? Cuse I seem to get constant yeast infections with the Azithro so it seems like it might be wiping out more bacteria........I also have intense pressure in my head..... intercranial pressure I guess its considered? and dizziness and intense muscle pain and tightness...... so bad in fact the pain is soooooo intense from the muscles being contracted that I cant even breath or move, even with muscle relaxers and muscle rub....... I was feeling much better on the generic Biaxin but yet again dont know if it was doing any good and maybe just letting the pathogen roam free??? my hair didnt start falling out excessivly until I started the generic biaxin.......and we did test my thyroid funtion but did not test it until after I went back on the Azitho.... which the results were normal and im still losing hair but not as fast.......
When I was 19 before any of this started i was said to have lupus and hair loss and swelling of the hands were some of my symptoms...... I took prednisone when the hands and other areas would swell and it would help the condition.......now? predinose has bed ridden me in the past and almost killed me....... so I dont know if I have both conditions or not but if I do I was thinking maybe the generic biaxin might be triggering the lupus for swelling of the hands and hair loss are two symptoms.....
I am off antibiotics for one week now and things dont feel well at all...... I dont know whats going on whats triggering such excessvie hair loss (which all you know is not excepted in our society :( and I dont know which antiobiotic to start again......
my doctor isnt helping much so please dont advice to speak with him.....he is fine with whatever antibiotic I decide to take....... let me know what you think...... and a big thanks prior!! :D
Generic for Biaxin (Clarithromycin) is an antibiotic prescribed to treat/prevent a wide variety of bacterial infections, International Drug Mart
Your doc would have to advise you on meds -- I really don't know. To my understanding, yeast infections are caused by antibiotics killing off the good bacteria in your body along with the bad ones, which is why some docs will advise you to take probiotics while you are on antibiotics, but not to take them at the same time.
There are some probiotics that are yeast-based, on the concept that the 'good' probiotic yeast will crowd out the 'bad' yeast that cause yeast infections. Different docs advise different things, and some docs just don't discuss the subject at all.
Your doc is the one to make these calls, but with so many issues from the treatment, if the doc isn't willing or able to discuss the subject with you, then I would find a new doc.
If you take all the spaces out of this link:
chronic lyme disease . com / llmd - referrals
it will take you to a page online that explains how to find a Lyme specialist near you.
Also try the referral service at:
ilads [dot] org or call them at 301-263-1080
I got these online, and don't know if they still work, but ILADS is the main group for Lyme specialists, so I know they are still around but not sure they are giving referrals.
Sorry not to be more helpful. I looked around online but didn't find any clues to an LLMD near Phoenix. They are harder to find in some places than others, but that doesn't mean they aren't there.
Go for it -- I know how hard it is to do when feeling so lousy, but it beats being sick.
Best wishes --
There are some probiotics that are yeast-based, on the concept that the 'good' probiotic yeast will crowd out the 'bad' yeast that cause yeast infections. Different docs advise different things, and some docs just don't discuss the subject at all.
Your doc is the one to make these calls, but with so many issues from the treatment, if the doc isn't willing or able to discuss the subject with you, then I would find a new doc.
If you take all the spaces out of this link:
chronic lyme disease . com / llmd - referrals
it will take you to a page online that explains how to find a Lyme specialist near you.
Also try the referral service at:
ilads [dot] org or call them at 301-263-1080
I got these online, and don't know if they still work, but ILADS is the main group for Lyme specialists, so I know they are still around but not sure they are giving referrals.
Sorry not to be more helpful. I looked around online but didn't find any clues to an LLMD near Phoenix. They are harder to find in some places than others, but that doesn't mean they aren't there.
Go for it -- I know how hard it is to do when feeling so lousy, but it beats being sick.
Best wishes --
Thanks Jackie =) I live in the phoenix area...... the hair loss was happening more with the generic biaxin the one that was not causing yeast infections.... so I don't know if its caused by that....... knowing all the facts that I listed about the two...... which do you think I should start again tonight? I really taught myself that I can't be off them, like I thought maybe I could =(
Hey -- good to hear from you, just wish you were feeling better.
I'm not medically trained, so all this is guess work about what approach I would take if I were going through what you are --
From what I understand, there is usually not much difference in the body's reaction to generic vs brand name meds, such as Biaxin/clarithromycin, but there are some instances when it can occur because of tiny differences between the specific chemical structure of the two medications.
I'm puzzled that your doc doesn't seem to be jumping on this situation and trying different meds in case it IS this specific drug you are reacting to.
And also I'm puzzled that he doesn't switch you to another antibiotic altogether. Biaxin/clarithromycin isn't the only med that works against Lyme.
One thing that caught my attention in your post about having a recurring/constant yeast infection. Docs often don't pay a lot of attention to that, thinking it's not a big deal, and I was one of those for whom it was indeed a Big Deal. Some people are just genetically more likely to get serious fungal infections, and I am one of those, it seems. My body doesn't easily fight it off, and I look back and think that was true also of at least one of my parents.
For me, the symptoms of the yeast infection were so similar to the symptoms of Lyme that my Lyme doc didn't pick up on the true problem for a long time. He finally did a blood test for it, and said I had one of the highest test levels for yeast that he had ever seen. I learned a hard lesson from that and am very careful now, but it also told me that docs just assume ho-hum, a yeast infection, no big deal.
There are good antifungal meds (by prescription) that work, but they are serious stuff. I would suggest you press you doc to focus on your yeast status and deal with it. The first step is to test you for what fungal infection you may have. If your current doc blows you off, I'd find another doc, perhaps an immunologist, but maybe better is an openminded internist or GP, since specialists seem to get lost in the weeds to often. That's what I would do first: see another doc about the fungal infection.
It's possible that the hair loss is related to or caused by fungus, and it sounds like when you are on Biaxin/clarithromycin, the hair loss gets worse. Hmmm. Cause==>effect? I also got very bloated when I had the systemic yeast infection, and your weight gain could be a similar symptom. Dunno.
Lyme can often mess with thyroid function; I was put on thyroid supplements for a while, but once I began to kick the Lyme, my thyroid sorted itself out, so consider that too.
In your situation, I would find a new doc. The current one doesn't seem to be paying attention, based on your comments. Sometimes docs just lack imagination and knowledge, and don't know what to do next. It's like going again to a restaurant where you have only had bad meals: time to try a new place.
So if you are up for it (and I know you don't feel like it), finding a new doc might be a good move. I forget what part of AZ you live in ... if you'll post back, I'll see what I can dig up online as possibilities for you, okay?
Take care -- sending you hugs! Will watch for your message --
I'm not medically trained, so all this is guess work about what approach I would take if I were going through what you are --
From what I understand, there is usually not much difference in the body's reaction to generic vs brand name meds, such as Biaxin/clarithromycin, but there are some instances when it can occur because of tiny differences between the specific chemical structure of the two medications.
I'm puzzled that your doc doesn't seem to be jumping on this situation and trying different meds in case it IS this specific drug you are reacting to.
And also I'm puzzled that he doesn't switch you to another antibiotic altogether. Biaxin/clarithromycin isn't the only med that works against Lyme.
One thing that caught my attention in your post about having a recurring/constant yeast infection. Docs often don't pay a lot of attention to that, thinking it's not a big deal, and I was one of those for whom it was indeed a Big Deal. Some people are just genetically more likely to get serious fungal infections, and I am one of those, it seems. My body doesn't easily fight it off, and I look back and think that was true also of at least one of my parents.
For me, the symptoms of the yeast infection were so similar to the symptoms of Lyme that my Lyme doc didn't pick up on the true problem for a long time. He finally did a blood test for it, and said I had one of the highest test levels for yeast that he had ever seen. I learned a hard lesson from that and am very careful now, but it also told me that docs just assume ho-hum, a yeast infection, no big deal.
There are good antifungal meds (by prescription) that work, but they are serious stuff. I would suggest you press you doc to focus on your yeast status and deal with it. The first step is to test you for what fungal infection you may have. If your current doc blows you off, I'd find another doc, perhaps an immunologist, but maybe better is an openminded internist or GP, since specialists seem to get lost in the weeds to often. That's what I would do first: see another doc about the fungal infection.
It's possible that the hair loss is related to or caused by fungus, and it sounds like when you are on Biaxin/clarithromycin, the hair loss gets worse. Hmmm. Cause==>effect? I also got very bloated when I had the systemic yeast infection, and your weight gain could be a similar symptom. Dunno.
Lyme can often mess with thyroid function; I was put on thyroid supplements for a while, but once I began to kick the Lyme, my thyroid sorted itself out, so consider that too.
In your situation, I would find a new doc. The current one doesn't seem to be paying attention, based on your comments. Sometimes docs just lack imagination and knowledge, and don't know what to do next. It's like going again to a restaurant where you have only had bad meals: time to try a new place.
So if you are up for it (and I know you don't feel like it), finding a new doc might be a good move. I forget what part of AZ you live in ... if you'll post back, I'll see what I can dig up online as possibilities for you, okay?
Take care -- sending you hugs! Will watch for your message --
Forgot to mention that as soon as I went back on the Azithromycin I started gaining the weight back again....and quickly.
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