Herxing and how to minimize the discomfort of Lyme treatment

A Jarisch-Herxheimer reaction (or herx) is the term for what happens when there is a massive die-off of pathogens, and the resulting toxic microbial debris overloads the body’s detoxification pathways. The unfortunate result is that you often feel worse when a treatment is effective. There are two schools of thought on herxing: The “bring it on” group who feel that the suffering is worth it, and perhaps even a sign that progress is being made; and the “proceed with caution” group, who feel that herxes can slow down the healing process by further toxifying an already toxic system. I belong to the latter group, in no small part because severe herxes can become a deterrent to continuing treatment. Primarily, however, I feel that disease is due in large part because our pathways of elimination are overwhelmed, so it doesn’t make sense to challenge them further without providing consistent support. A helpful way to look at it is that Lyme treatment should always include a detoxification component.

Ongoing support of the primary emunctories (parts of the body that remove or carry waste): kidneys, liver, bladder, intestines, etc. See an herbalist or a nutritionist for a custom-designed liver/kidney etc. support formula.When a primary emunctory is overloaded, the secondary emunctories go into overdrive and skin issues for example will show up as a sign that there is an intestinal disorder. It is important to make sure that all of the body’s elimination pathways are functioning well. If you are chronically stuffy or constipated or have chronic skin issues for example, that is something to pay attention to and remedy rather than suppress and ignore as western medical “wisdom” would have us do. See my post on hormone havoc for clues as to why some of your detox pathways may be overloaded

Choosing a protocol (or designing your own) with built-in detoxification: Condensed Cowden Protocol for example. Info on the protocol can be found at http://www.bionatus.com/nutramedix/pdfs/publichealthalert_cowden.pdf  and products can be purchased at https://www.nutramedix.com/store/comersus_CowdenItems.asp

Mitigating herxes: If you have just done a therapy that you know will likely cause a herx, it is wise to dose before the herx starts. You can even begin dosing before the therapy, as sometimes (ie with Rife therapy) the herxing can be nearly instantaneous. Besides the supplements listed below, there are various “kitchen therapies” that are helpful: Drinking water with sole (salt water solution) mixed in can sometimes stop a herx in its tracks. Some people also swear by drinking water with a tsp of baking soda (I have not tried this) or taking coral calcium or even water with emergen-c in it. Others add lemon juice or apple cider vinegar to water and drink that. What all of these therapies have in common is that they have an alkalinizing effect on the body. The herxes, as you may have guessed, are acidifying in the extreme. This is why these therapies (and the ones below) can be helpful. It is important to remember that as Lyme patients our bodies are detoxifying constantly. This process uses a lot of water and alkalinizing minerals; therefore we need to constantly replace water and minerals. Quinton Marine Plasma is one way to replenish a broad spectrum of minerals. So is drinking sole (mentioned above).

• Systemic enzyme supplementation to digest the microbial debris can be helpful. Wobenzym is not recommended as they have changed their formulation to include talc, which is an irritant and known carcinogen. See about getting a professional quality pancreatic enzyme formula such as Thorne’s Di-Pan 9. However, if you have irritation in your gut, this may be an irritant with long-term use. 
• Zeolite supplementation can be very helpful. Zeolites are known for their ability to chelate (trap and remove) heavy metals. Because of the close relationship between Lyme and Mercury toxicity (see my post on heavy metal toxicity), it is probable that part of the discomfort of herxing is caused by a release of heavy metals that were formerly sequestered by the pathogens. The smaller the zeolite particles, the more effective they are at chelation. For this reason I prefer Advanced Cellular Zeolite (ACZ) available from http://www.resultsrna.com. 
• Chitosan is a product made of chitin from the shells of shrimp and crabs. It probably should be avoided if you have irritable bowels. However, it is also known for mopping up fat-soluble toxins such as heavy metals and microbial debris. Kevin and I have used all of these treatments with some success and no known side effects.

Self-care daily detoxification supplements: Chlorella, Alginate Plus, Quinton Marine Plasma, sole made with Himalayan salt, Nutramedix parsley, burbur, and pinella extracts, homeopathic drainage remedies, and plant stem cells can all be great allies in the detoxification process.

Detoxification therapies: SLEEP! if you can, take a detox remedy and go to bed. When you are sleeping, your body is able to focus all of its energy on the healing process. When you are not herxing, exercise to your level of health. The thing to remember is that you should feel invigorated and recover easily. If you are exhausted afterwards and need to lay in bed the next day, you have overdone it.  Body brushing, neti pot, oil pulling, far infrared sauna, epsom salt baths, colonics, lymphatic drainage, massage are all potentially helpful therapies.

This article on the Cowden Protocol includes some ideas on detoxification not covered. It is a really excellent article. here:http://www.bionatus.com/nutramedix/pdfs/publichealthalert_cowden.pdf