Symptoms of the Lyme were headaches, back aches, knee swelling/feeling pressure, testicles hurting, anything that was attached to my body hurt, sudden and rapid weight loss, and just an overall feeling of down and out, heart palpitations and upper left chest discomfort. Also felt very dizzy and cloudy at times. Eventually the Lyme symptoms all subsided other than a pressure in the right knee.
March 8th, I started to notice I was getting really hungry, almost an empty feeling in my stomach way before mealtime. I usually eat at 9am,2pm, and 6-7pm. I was starving hours earlier than normal. I would make a huge plate of food, but only get through about a quarter of the plate before I was super full. I was thinking just a minor stomach bug. No improvement after a few days. I started noticing myself rapidly losing weight again. I would try to eat, but get a feeling in my throat like I just couldnt swallow anything else. Almost like when you have to take a huge horsepill or smell a certain putrid smell. I wanted to heave my food back up. I figured oh man, here comes the Lyme rearing its ugly head.
Went to my family doctor on March 21st, complaining of stomach pressure and overall feeling of sickness. Headaches, lower back ache, unable to eat, etc. Laid me down on the table and started feeling around. He immediately pointed out that my lower abdomen felt fine. When he got to my stomach, right above belly button, he siad thats where it hurts? Yep, thats the spot. He said it felt hard and tight. Wanted to do a blood test for Pylori after asking me about diet and other minor things. Gave me 60mg of Dexilant to start that morning as he had free samples. I currently do not have health insurance, so that was a big plus for me.
March 22nd, I received a call from my Dr, not the nurse. I knew somwthing was up otherwise, the nurse would br the one to call. Mr ___ you have a positive test for H Pylori. He started me immediately with a 2 week course on Amoxicillin (500mg) two tablets by mouth every 12 hours (2000mg per day), Clarithromycin (500mg), 1 tablet by mouth every 12 hours (1000mg per day) and Dexilant (60mg) once a day. I asked how these antibiotics would make me feel in comparison to the Doxy for the Lyme. He said you will feel maybe a little worse, based on the triple therapy. Damn it
I started a diet of either 2-3 scrambled eggs in the morning along with a banana or a parfait of 1 cup Blueberry, 1 cup Oikos Triple Zero (lowest sugar content Greek yogurt I could find), and a half of a cup of Natures Valley Granola with whole grain guarantee. Usually brown rice, grilled chicken breast (Foreman Grill for reduction of fats), and steamable vegetables that consist of broccoli, cauliflower, corn, green beans, and peas. Pretty much homemade chicken fry rice. Dinner consists of either the same meal, or switched a round a little using Grilled Salmon or Tilapia. Also eating some asparagus and brussel sprouts for some veggies. This food is all UNSEASONED. Plain Jane. I have once again eliminated Gluten as much as possible, along with any sugars that are not natural occurring, and processed or red meats. Im Italian and I love to eat food. All flavors and all different kinds. This was going to be a frustrating few weeks. I also am a heavy marijuana user, so to cleanse my body, I stopped cold turkey (prob not the best idea) as to let my body do its job without any extra toxins or any of the smoke.
3 days into the Antibiotics, I was feeling nausea, headaches, fatigue, insomnia and all kinds of soreness in different parts of my body. I had upper left chest pain when breathing in and I could tell my Kidneys and Liver were going through a shock from the medicine. I drink lost of water, so constantly am flushing it out. Trying to lower my stress level was hard, due to the new diet, not smoking marijuana, and overall feeling of "why me". I worked hard to put the weight back on, just to have it all fall back off. I told myself, this is all in your head. Mind over matter. You have been through this with the Lyme. Its just another obstacle in this thing we call life. There are people out there that wish they had Pylori, as opposed to other diseases or illnesses that are worse and life altering.
I am now on Evening 5 of my treatment. My symptoms of the upper abdominal pain have subsided greatly as compared to before. I still have lower back pain, accompanied by the random aches and pains throughout the day. Headaches are still come and go, but have gotten less painful as treatment has progressed. I started Friday 25th on a Probiotic called PrebioPhage 10b cfu twice a day. (Could not find a probiotic with the bb12 in it anywhere)
B. subtilis
L. acidophilus
L. casei
L. salivarius
L. rhamnosus
L. brevis
L. plantarum
B. bifidium
B. longum
B. lactis
Streptococcus thermophilus
Today 27th, I feel good. Not nearly 100% but much better than I have. I rest as much as possible, as to not overexert and use up all my nutrients. I was down to 122lbs at the start of treatment. I am now up to 124-126 in the mornings, usually after bowel. I am sticking to this diet and making positive changes in my daily life to help me succeed in this setback. I also have a great and unbelievable support system in my friends and family. Mind over matter!
I will continue to update this post when I can. Any questions or comments are all welcome. Think I could do a little more to eradicate? Let me know. Think Im doing a great job? Let me know. I kicked the Lyme disease ass, now its time to make this H Pylori my bitch (sorry for the language). Updates coming and until then, everyone be healthy. YOU WILL CONQUER THIS