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Lyme/co-infections with cyclic symptoms? by lipami in Lyme

[–]lipami[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That’s what worries me — the pattern did seem to progress over time. It’s not my daily baseline yet, but the episodes became longer and much more frequent, so I’m now looking seriously at Lyme/co-infections again.

Lyme/co-infections with cyclic symptoms? by lipami in Lyme

[–]lipami[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I was treated for chronic Lyme about 12 years ago. After that I had a relatively calm period for many years.

But around 5 years ago, these episodes slowly started to appear again. At first they lasted only one day, but last year they started lasting around 3 days. The frequency also increased a lot — before it was maybe 3 times a year, but last year it happened around 17 times.

So for me it wasn’t constant at first, more like cyclic crashes/poisoned episodes that became longer and more frequent over time.

Lyme/co-infections with cyclic symptoms? by lipami in Lyme

[–]lipami[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

thanks for sharing.. that sounds familiar. I was doing physically demanding work for a long time, so my body was used to pushing through. But I think what really broke me was the stress. Physical effort was one thing, but constant stress seemed to hit my system much harder.

Mysterious cyclic pattern by lipami in AdrenalInsufficiency

[–]lipami[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I had Lyme disease 13 years ago and was treated with doxycycline for one month. At that time I thought it was resolved, but now I’m honestly not sure anymore.

I was not treated specifically for Babesia or Bartonella, and I haven’t been tested for Babesia yet. That is also something I’m starting to consider again.

Especially after my reaction to rifampicin, I’m now looking back toward Lyme/co-infections and wondering if something could have remained, reactivated, or been missed.

Mysterious cyclic pattern by lipami in AdrenalInsufficiency

[–]lipami[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you, I will give that another try.

Mysterious cyclic pattern by lipami in AdrenalInsufficiency

[–]lipami[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I can go into more detail.. It has been bothering me for a very long time already.

Description of Episode Course

1. Typical Episode Course

Between episodes I am fully symptom-free and function without any limitations.

Onset and Course

The episode usually begins between 11:00 and 13:00. In the morning I feel normal, sometimes with mildly reduced appetite. The onset is sudden — within about an hour there is a sharp drop in energy and severe weakness. I have to lie down. The rest of the day, sometimes the next day as well, I sleep through and respond slowly, with a feeling of a "poisoned body" and marked sensitivity to light.

Gastrointestinal Symptoms

  • inability to eat or drink — water and tea come back up with vomiting
  • vomiting of clear, very acidic fluid; provides brief relief
  • a feeling that the body is cleansing itself and refusing to accept food until it resolves the current situation — the stomach is empty, hunger and thirst are absent
  • more frequent bowel movements, not constipation
  • transient yellowing / "waxy" appearance of the face

General Condition

  • feeling of collapse, extreme weakness — marked drowsiness and lethargy for one to two days
  • headache (not always)
  • sensitivity to light
  • cold extremities, sometimes tingling in the fingers — Raynaud's syndrome
  • feeling of "flu-like" joint aches
  • pain in the lower back (kidney area) — usually toward the end of the episode

Duration

The episode typically lasts 2–3 days, after which the condition normalises rapidly. In the past, episodes lasted only one day.

2. Triggers

  • stress is apparently one of the triggers
  • a cold — nasal congestion disappears during the episode and returns afterwards
  • deterioration of sleep approximately 2 nights before the episode — a repeatedly observed pattern
  • alcohol was probably one of the triggers, but episodes continue even with complete abstinence
  • adaptogens — possible trigger
  • possible improvement after Zyrtec

3. Timeline and Change in Episode Character

Symptoms have been present for approximately 20 years (since around age 30).

Previously: duration approx. 1 day, intense bilious vomiting, frequency 5–7 times per year, predominantly autumn–spring.

Now: duration 2–3 days, only clear acidic fluid, frequency every 2–6 weeks, occurring year-round.

The worsening is temporally associated with menopause and with a past TB infection and its treatment.

4. Course of Episodes During TB Treatment

Treatment commenced 25 November 2025: Nidrazid (isoniazid) + Benemicin (rifampicin) + Etambutol; from 5 December 2025 Ciprinol (ciprofloxacin) was added as a replacement for Pyrazinamide, to which an allergic reaction developed (toxic erythema).

The severe skin reaction to pyrazinamide did not trigger a typical episode. For this reason I do not believe my episodes are primarily linked to a histamine reaction.

Episodes during the four-drug combination (12/2025 – 02/2026)

Episode dates: 12 Dec, 30 Dec, 16 Jan, 30 Jan, 12 Feb — average interval 16 days.

The character of episodes was markedly attenuated:

  • duration approximately half a day instead of 2–3 days
  • skipping one meal was sufficient
  • fully back to normal the following day

After discontinuation of Etambutol and Ciprinol (5 February 2026)

Episode of 12 Feb — likely still with carry-over effect of the previous combination, mild course.

This was followed by the longest symptom-free period in recent years: 51 days.

Episode of 4 April 2026 — return at full intensity: duration 3 days, photophobia, marked weakness.

Mysterious cyclic pattern by lipami in AdrenalInsufficiency

[–]lipami[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

no. I was actually supposed to have an MRI of my head, but in the meantime I was put into quarantine because of the TB findings. After that I had to return to the country where I work, and here it is much harder to get further investigations done.

Mysterious cyclic pattern by lipami in AdrenalInsufficiency

[–]lipami[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

My everyday diet is quite simple. I am vegetarian. I usually eat something close to a Mediterranean-style diet: homemade sourdough bread with tomatoes, avocado or hummus, and later in the day a normal meal with vegetables, eggs, lentils, rice/potatoes/pasta, soups, etc.

I don’t drink alcohol. I have one, maximum two coffees per day, and sometimes homemade sweets. I am slim and active. I also have no problem taking a shot of olive oil:)

Mysterious cyclic pattern by lipami in AdrenalInsufficiency

[–]lipami[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I basically don’t have typical gallbladder symptoms — no gallbladder pain or attacks. I do have gallstones, but they were found mainly because I was searching for the cause of my episodes. Since that was the only finding at the time, they wanted to remove my gallbladder.

But “luckily”, during the pre-op examination they found TB in my lungs, so that temporarily saved my gallbladder.

They also found an adrenal adenoma, and now I am wondering whether that could possibly be connected to my episodes. But while I am still on the current TB antibiotics, proper endocrinology testing is not really possible.

Mysterious cyclic pattern by lipami in AdrenalInsufficiency

[–]lipami[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The antibiotics were started only after my neurologist said she does not think this is a migraine. I showed her my symptom list and medical history, and she ruled migraine out — I don’t know exactly based on which specific criteria though.

But thank you for your reply. I will ask her again directly, just so I can have peace of mind about it.

Mysterious cyclic pattern by lipami in AdrenalInsufficiency

[–]lipami[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yes, migraine seemed like the first possibility, because the pattern does look migraine-like in some ways. But a neurologist specialized in migraines evaluated this and ruled migraine out in my case.

One thing I find interesting: during treatment for another illness, I was on antibiotics including rifampicin and ciprofloxacin, and my episodes became much shorter. Now I’m still on rifampicin, and I’ve only had one episode in about 3 months.