News you won't see in controlled mainstream media.

The title of the post says it all really. Just wondering if anyone else has experienced this? It's nothing too troublesome but I'm trying to pinpoint what's causing it. I haven't made any changes in diet or supplements. Soon after taking my DMSA/ALA dose (50mg DMSA, 100mg ALA) my stomach goes gurgly for a little while. Not always. Every now and then I have a short bout of diarrhoea from an unknown source, say maybe once every 2 or 3 days.

The other symptoms I initially had when I increased my doses are gone. Not even any euphoria anymore. So if the chelation agents are causing the upset, it's the only "side effect" I'm getting.

I'm chelating more or less all the time at the moment because if I don't, the SAD symptoms start getting on top of me. As it is, I still seem to be slowly losing the battle this winter, but if I can at least slow the deterioration down then that's a plus. However, the gastro upset started before I did this, when I was still having 3 days on/3 days off.

Any advice would be appreciated, thanks.

Hi Linda, sounds like it could be a yeast issue going on. Even though you haven't had this before, sometimes it's hard to explain why it can occur out of the blue without any other changes.

Chelation can be problematic for yeast, both directly and indirectly. But again, I don't know if this is exactly what's going on, it's the only thing I can think of.

Have you asked this on the frequent dose forum? You could copy and paste your comments here and send them on that forum and see what they say. They are REALLY informative about this protocol and chelating agents.

It maybe just the fact you have been chelating for sometime now and maybe it is just starting to flare up yeast issues than before. Could it also be the SAD mixed in? Depressing you a bit at the sametime as using chelating agents?

I cannot remember exactly, but I do know on one website regarding candida (the SCD diet), they have stated that using chelating products like DMSA and I think ALA, may not allow the diet to work properly against candida, because they were well aware that yeast can flare/flourish with chelating agents.

I wish I knew what to recommend to help, but it has happened to me too. I slipped up on one dose and took it too late and redistributed some mercury to the gut and then found I had gut/yeast issues after that. You can sometimes move metals into the gut or around the gut area and yeast can flare during that process also I believe.

It is really hard to know what is going on exactly. I woudl definitely ask this on the frequent dose forum!

hi linda: I started to get mild stomach pain after eating , but only in the morning, it started after my 3rd round of chelation , I am only doing 25 mg of dmsa and ala each for now, no bowel problems ,just the stomach pain , have you tried light therapy for the sad depression ,I have heard good things about it ,,also vitamin d about 800 mg daily is suppose to help make up for the lack of sun in the winter months, hope you start feeling better soon

Hi guys, and thanks for the help. I haven't been to the other list for quite some time; just wasn't a friendly place to talk. But you're right Bex, maybe I ought to try asking there. My guess is that it's a mild reaction to the chelation agents themselves, because the indigestion starts soon after I take them, and fades away afterward. It isn't pain, just a rumbling in my stomach. Odd. I've been taking DMSA and ALA for months without these troubles. I'll get over to the other list and ask.

Hi Mikey, thanks for your response too. I'm thinking right now that the SAD is being caused by mercury. Bex knows my history with that but to keep it short, 3 years ago I thought the problem was purely SAD. I owned a giant light box and two light visors. They helped a little but not a great deal. I can't use them now anyway so I sold them; eventually I got desperate enough to go on an antidepressant, and a rapid withdrawal from it caused cortisol problems that linger to this day. A few minutes with the artificial light sent my heart racing. I also take 2000mg vitamin D a day as well as a variety of other good supplements. Believe me, I'm a tenacious person and I've poured my heart into trying to kick this illness. I'm functioning just fine at work, which is wonderful; but my heart is frozen and I feel very little emotion, even for my own daughter.

It doesn't feel at the moment as if chelation is helping, but I've got plenty of DMSA and there's no reason to get discouraged and stop. Hopefully, eventually, the effort will start to pay off.

Hi Linda, have you tried just using ONE of the chelating agents to see which one of them is really causing this rumbling?

Like just use DMSA for a while and see if this is donig it and try the ALA alone for a while. I know it's not ideal because using both together can make things easier, but it may help you find out which of these is the problem.

One guy on frequent dose forum has issues with DMSA and some people do and have to drop it. He has gut problems with it. So he's choosing to wait things out for a few months and then chelate with ALA alone.

I had BIG problems with DMSA at one stage, but it was because I had redistributed metal into my gut, plus I was not on a strict candida diet. So the yeast must have proliferated around that area and still does to this day whenever I do anything wrong.

One doctor reckons the gut problems I have are related to a cavitation. Odd eh? I never used to have this problem. I personally think it's just immune related because of the virus I got many years ago. Gut and immune system are apparently connected.

Anyway, Linda I feel for you with what you suffer with this SAD and the quick withdrawal from antidepressants. I too got off them very quickly and lapsed into a dangerous depression and was close to hurting myself badly. I used to curl up on my bed in a foetal position.

Nobody had told me about the dangers of going straight off them at onetime. No doctor or psychologist said a thing. So because I had side effects, my reaction was to "stop taking them". I was only 21 years of age.

Just remember, that the first year or two of trying to eliminate mercury can be disheartening for many people because you really feel like you're not making progress. And then you have a good patch or you feel the detox happening and you KNOW at that point something is going on, but because you keep being pushed back into this, it's a hard thing to endure.

In fact, living with amalgams was actually almost easier than withdrawing from them and eliminating the storage. Very weird and not something I expected either. What a slow grind it can be. Don't give up, you are doing so much for yourself. Think about this, no amalgams, good diet and chelation. Something will be happening, but this is how it can be.

I did not really notice improvements until enough mercury had been well and truly cleared to where I could actually FEEL the results. Before that, I was too full of the stuff to notice....though I sure noticed detox reactions when they hit.

Right now I am taking DMSA every 4 hours after the dental office visit. Not noticing any changes yet, but hoping there will be. Usually it takes days before things start to happen, either detox reactions or vague lifting of some symptoms. These days I don't have enough of the extra cellular mercury to really feel DMSA working. My next trial will be with alpha lipoic acid. That will hopefully show me if there is any lingering brain/organ mercury.

Gotta be done, I NEVER bothered with ALA in the past when DMSA alone had done so much for me that I didn't feel the need. I think that was a bad move, considering leftover mercury can make you vulnerable to future problems! And then I got this horrible viral infection that I never healed from....makes me wonder sometimes.

That plus possible cavitations. I get sick and tired of problems stemming from my teeth and jaw affecting my entire body. You'd think the dentists woudl make the connection...luckily a growing number are!

I have definitely noticed issues with the gut and my liver when I detox with any chelation drugs or ALA. I noticed it a lot after the last round so I am taking a break, getting the diet even stricter then I will try another round in a few weeks.

Thanks to you both. Bex, when you tell me about what you've been through, I'm always filled with admiration that you are still here and still chipping away along with the rest of us. Who needs antidepressant aggro on top of the rest eh?

If the gastro problems remain or get worse, I may do what you suggest and cut out the DMSA or ALA. At the moment the thought frightens me. Maybe I was too quick to say they weren't helping. True I can't feel very much, emotionally, but my sleep seems to slowly be improving. In the US I was waking at 4 am. I seem to have been stuck at 5 am here since we got back. The past few nights the 5 am waking has been less of a jolt, more of something I can recover from and go back to sleep; and last night miraculously I didn't wake at 5 am at all. My sleep seems to be a very good measure of how chelation is going; in time I hope my emotions will be affected too, and start to recover. My husband is waiting patiently while I feel no love for him and my sex drive is at absolute zero. I'm waiting for the next time he decides he's losing patience and complains to me. All I can ever say is that I'm doing my best.

My diet has been excellent since I got back from the US. No sugar, hardly any fruit, just lots of nourishing meat, fats and veg. Would that be enough to stop yeast from being a problem? I haven't noticed any other possible yeast-related symptoms apart from the stomach upset.

Have you tried Maca powder for libido? It has worked wonders for …….emmmm…..for me!

http://herballure.com/ubbthreads/sh...&sb=5&o=&fpart=1

Third post down.

Hi Linda, thanks. I just think I hang on by the skin of my teeth, nothing heroic, just plain not knowing what else to do lol.

Oh yeah, antidepressants were just adding to the toxic problem, which all the pscyhologists were missing completely. THey had me pinned as severely depressed and yes I was, but it sure had nothing to do with ..."depression" in isolation. I was just very sick all over.

So I can relate to you a lot with that senario and the loss of feelings too. That is a real horror. When you can look at a member of your family and you cannot "feel" love, but intellectually you know you do somehow. Definitely don't ever think badly of yourself for that, it's very normal Linda. part of these syndromes is a loss of ability to feel and numbness. Deadness. NOt everybody gets it, it depends on each person. But I have it a lot, nearly all the time to such a point I wonder if I"m as cold as ice. But I know I'm not.

And yeah libido just goes along with it I guess. Loss of interest/feeling. Which is fine for me, I'm single. I cannot imagine being married, that must be very difficult. It's not your fault or your husband's.

I think you're doing all you can, your diet sounds just fine to me. So the gurgling is a bit odd, but again who knows what's going on? Other changes maybe taking place. Chelating other areas maybe? I don't know, I'd hate to guess to be honest.

I can understand your feelings of not feeling much difference, yet the little things that maybe happening you become too scared to alter your routine and chelation because even the smallest thing you hang onto.....so Linda, personally if the gurgling isn't "too" big a deal? I would continue as you are.

Andy seems to think that treating yeast is important, but should not stop a person from chelating. He feels that a bit of yeast flare ups or feeding from chelation is insignificant compared to how much a person needs to keep chelating....

So I'm not sure how you feel about that? Frustrating eh? You feel damned if you and damned if you dont. But again, if it's not too bad? I'd personally continue. I think that chelation can in some ways cause a person to regress, but part of that is necessary in order to go forwards. Regression from yeast, or basically from further metals being moved and removed.

I have big gurlging issues now, I just have to put up with it. Ever since one short course of antibiotics. I'm on a good strict diet too, but did cheat around XMas...but it's been two weeks now with no cheat and I'm still waiting for improvements. Gurgling happens with me at the smallest thing now.

I really hope things start to happen for you. I forget if you have Andy's book? If not, I'd recommend you get it and re-read it many times over. I relied on mine so much, the cover has now come off!

Linda, if the MACA doesn't do anything for you, you might want to see someone about your hormones. Have you read the info at www.adrenalfatigue.org or www.thryoid-info.com? Has some good info on it. Here's a website that has good reading materials on it www.hlmcenter.com. might help you determine if you've got a thryoid thing going on. I'm also going to this place on Monday, just look at the testimonials! These are important to me because I was diagnosed with Hastimotos disease (thyroid) and low thyroid and need to get this addressed.

Cheers

low thyroid= no sex drive, this is a very common symtom of hypothyroidism. even if your thyroid is slightly low, it can affect sex drive and emotion.

Yeah no surprise, mercury blocks the action of the thyroid hormone apparently. So whilst testing may show there is enough thyroid hormone there, mercury can still block its action (according to Huggins if I'm not mistaken).

As it can with anything else, so you can show you have enough but it's not getting where it should....

Gosh guys, I'm not sure what to do. At the moment I'm trying to balance my cortisol. A year ago when I worked, my cortisol was so consistently high, even with taking powerful cortisol-lowering substances, that I had to quit. This year I've found that my body is much better at adjusting. My cortisol goes high at first with extra stimulation, but after several days or a week my body starts to recover.

When I started teaching a week and a half ago, my cortisol shot up and I was anxious, having crying spells, jittery, etc. I take a supplement called Relora when that happens and it helps tremendously. The past few days, though, I'm experiencing some big drops in energy and motivation, and I think it's because my body is adjusting to the stimulation and I need less Relora. I'm trying to baance it. Low cortisol sometimes contributes to my sleep problems. Last night I dozed off at 9pm while watching a Shakespeare play I need to teach, and I was wide awake at 5am again.

But yes, I agree I'd like to know what's happening with my thyroid and hormones. I'm finally going to be earning more money with my job. A big portion of it is going to have to be spent on things we haven't been able to afford to repair and which are falling apart. But I might be able to manage the £200 I would need for a mail-order hormone test. Not sure what to do about the thyroid. That centre in California looks nice. Don't know if there's anything similar here, but I imagine it wouldn't be cheap. Dawn, did you say you were taking a thyroid supplement yourself? How did you arrive at a diagnosis?

I take a lot of supplements and while I want to feel better, I'm conscious of seeing still more of my money being drained that way; I'd want to feel sure it was money well spent.

This wouldn't be such a lot of guesswork if the doctors we pay our taxes for here were anything other than useless.

I just spent £140 in seeing an adrenal/thyroid specialist. Dr. Peatfield. IMHO I think that is money much better spent than on a £200 hormone test that is real difficult to figure out what it means and then figuring out what to do about it. Dawn recommended him to me. He helped me out and saw what I was doing wrong. If you have read “Adrenal Fatigue, the 21st century stress syndrome” by Wilson…..this Dr. Peatfield treats his patients in this style.

He said see 95pct of his patience only once. Sets them up of a plan of action then the rest is done via email and telephone.

I had to wait 7 weeks for an appointment but was worth it. He travels a lot up and down the country so I’m sure you can find somewhere close-ish to Leicester
http://thyroid-disease.org.uk/index...=85&limit=1&limitstart=1

Old guy, knows his stuff. He was a pain in the arse to get hold of, took me 6 or 7 phone calls to get him. (IMHO people don’t return phone calls from people they don’t know, so I don’t leave messages.)

I had all the tests done and didn’t tell me anything I didn’;t know. The £140 I spent on seeing Dr peatfield was money well spent IMHO

I will look into this Sunshine, thanks. I'd much rather see a specialist. Did he recommend lots of supplements to you? Would you mind sharing what the outcome was exactly? Just so I have an idea of what to expect.

Thanks <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> Can barely move today. Odd, I haven't felt like this since I started taking liquorice extract and a teaspoon of Himalayan sea salt in the morning.

Dr Peatfield comes to my area 6 and 7 March, so I have e-mailed for an appointment with him and they are sending me information. Till then I am planning to start cleanses. Coming to this site has really given me hope, although at first I was totally overwhelmed by what i read about mercury especially since my poisoning is not just amalgams but also from 6 months of age and mercury filled medications (teething powders) and playing with the stuff at about 8. So thanks again for all of the knowledge and experience that you are sharing.Sorry I do not come on much, it is a struggle just to survive at present.

hi linda : I have the same problem with cortisol ,it is on the high side , I was able to lower it with ginseng which is an adaptagenic herb ,but also found out at the same time that there is a reason that it is so high, the high cortisol is trying to compensate for other hormones that are out of whack , for me it is testosterone , when I raised my testosterone with herbs according to my blood work , then the cortisol level came down , you probably have high cholesterol levels too , cholesterol is the very first ingredient in creating other hormones , that is why most people that are truly mercury poisoned have high cholesterol levels or very low levels

If hormones are out of whack then the body tries to compensate in other ways , the key is to find out what hormones are out of balance and try to balance them as much as you can with herbs or through supplimentation while you get the mercury out of you body , It made a big difference on how I feel through mercury detox

Mati I'm sorry things are so rough for you. Any time you want to talk here we'll listen.

Thanks Mikey. I know why my cortisol is high; the problem began the instant I withdrew from an antidepressant. It's a common effect of withdrawing too quickly, though most people don't recognise it for what it is. I take an adaptogenic herb too: ashwagandha. I also take ginkgo. They work very well for me. Relora helps lower cortisol but if I don't quite get it right, it can lower it too far and then I'm a walking zombie. It's usually not quite as dramatic as this though, not quite sure what's hit me.

I'd give anything, though, to be free of the SAD. I'm fed up with not being able to feel, and feeling like my body is made out of lead. It's psychological as well as physical -- just so very heavy. Every winter has been like this for 3 years. So the SAD is mixed in too, but god knows what I do about that without a light box. I'd be tempted to take a supplement to lower my melatonin as that may be a factor, but I'm not aware of any that do this.

I've emailed Dr. Peatfield; there's a clinic in the neighbouring county in March. Does anyone know if he does phone consultations?

Hi Linda

My meeting with Dr Peatfield…..

He was astonished & extremely complimentary about what I was already doing. At one stage he stopped me and said “but why are you here? You are doing all the right things already!”

I have recently read 4 adrenal books back to back so I know what I’m talking about….just I don’t have any first hand experience.

He said Liquorice, Himalayan salt, maca powder, d-ribose, Vit C, COQ10, ACE etc…., diet and life style changes I had already made where perfect.

The temp graph showed how bad I was and how much better I was getting due to the above supplements and this gave him lots of information on what was wrong and what do to next. I was already doing 90pct of the right things. Its important for me to know I’m on the right track.

He confirmed what I though was most wrong…which was adrenals and anyway….adrenals get treated first.

However I have reached a plateau. My temps where not getting any higher, they where stablER but still struggling when stressed and my fatigue and lack of energy remain, even if they where not as bad.

He told me the thing I had got wrong was the dosage and the timings of ACE (Adrenal Cortex Extract). I was on way too high a dosage and way too quick ramping it up and that’s the reason it made me feel weird and had to stop taking it. he said my target dosage of ACE was 200mg which should be reached over 4-6 weeks. Starting at 25mg for 7-10 days…then 50mg for 7-10 days etc until 200mg or whatever depending on symptoms. when I dosed myself I was up at 200mg within 2 days and that’s why my body could not cope with all the extra thyroid….errr….thyroid stuff.

We talked about Cortisol and lots of other hormones I could take, but he said I was already responding well to what I was taking and the next step was to get the Ace right. If that doesn’t work….then will be HC but he said looked like Ace should do the trick.

He said keep him posted on email from now on…….

He didn’t’ recommended any other supplements because I’m already taking them.re megadosing…he said I’m so skinny it was obviously what I should be doing….

For the record my cortisol levels are “awful” and way too low.

As I said money well spent.

Edit~: yes he does do telephone consultations, but when I talked to him on the phone initially he said the first appointment should be face to face….but depends where you are

Edit edit: he didn’t reply to my email. I had to get him on the phone, once I got to talk to him, I made an appointment there and then and it was fine.

Oh god I feel just awful tonight. I've felt so rotten all day. I keep wanting to cry. Once I get to work tomorrow and get teaching, I should start to snap out of it (I hope). Bloody SAD. I need a break from this, I just keep going downhill.

Sorry, needed to vent. I hope I will hear from Dr. Peatfield; and if not, I will get some tests through the post. It's all just going to take time.

Thanks Sunshine, I may try phoning him. My question, I guess, would be how he would know what the problem actually is. Sounds like you did a good job of diagnosing yourself already. Maybe if things like estrogen or progesterone are out of balance, I'd be better off getting a test? In the past when I've had little spells of feeling better, they've usually coincided with a specific point in my cycle. Would he know anything about that do you think?

i don't know linda. he is the expert not me. Give him a call, he is a real nice old man. A gentleman.

Hi Linda
I am sorry you are feeling so bad at this moment. You were coming right along for a while. I hate winter it always gives me the blues and as it drags on it gets worse. By this time of the year I start getting ansy and wish it would HURRY UP so I can see some sunshine LOL
Maybe when you get back to work some of this will subside. I will be praying for it too!!! Hang in there! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/hangingonanlimb.gif" alt="" />
Rachel

Thank you. I'm thinking my cortisol had gone very low for some reason. Despite cycling a fair bit today (considering my post-fitness state) and working, I didn't take any Relora today -- not one. That is very, very unusual. Often all it takes is exercise more vigorous than a walk to set me off with the jitters. I'll just stay off the Relora completely for now unless the jitters come back. I can't remember this happening to me before.

I'll work on getting hold of Dr. Peatfield; I may as well give it a few days and see if any emails come back.

Thanks for the support. It isn't often that I feel so lousy, but it's good to know where I can come and talk when I do.

hi linda, sorry your feeling so crap!
i too have high cortisol, i balance mine with 20mg H.C, at night when cortisol is rocketing i take phosphatidyl serine, it works so well. i tried ashwaghanda, siberian ginseng for ages but they didnt help. because of high cortisol i found it hard to sleep at night and working after a night of no sleep absolutely messed me up.
my crying spells are few and far between now, i am also using progesterone cream to balance my sex hormones.
i had 90% of my thyroid removed 13yrs ago because i was hyperthyroid, found out about armour (natural thyroid hormone) now my doc prescribes me 2 grains. The H.C i get myself, it really has helped me, i am trying to wean off soon as i have been on it for well over a year at different doses. i hope you feel better soon!
Dawn

Hi Linda

Thanks. Sorry to hear you are struggling. Me too. I am getting the anti-candida diet established after going through shock at having to do it all over again after two years of it in the past. This time i am not going to be so strict and am going to have a little fruit though not just any fruit. I will do it as strict as it is improving my symptoms. I don't want to get like I was before when i was obsessed about having anything fermented and did not have one piece of fruit for all of that time. I don't expect to get rid of the candida till i get my mouth seen to. I am seeing a little bit of improvement but I was really low, feeling drowsy all of the time and falling asleep twice a day. Now I stay awake all day. I have been getting myself some macrobiotic things to help like Kuzu to thicken sauces - it is also medicinal. Also bancha tea which I love and it is full of calcium with no caffeine and amazake which is very nice as a desert.. Any little extra helps on this diet. I am also experimenting with tiny amounts of rice syrup. Macro's do amazing things with rice! You can even get sweets made from it. Look on Goodness Foods site.

I got a reply to my e-mail to Dr Peatfield asking for my contact details so I hope a form arrives soon and a date for the appointment.

Sometimes it is hard to keep going as I have been struggling with ill health all of my life but more so the last 17 years and intensely the last 9, just struggling to survive really. I am going to start doing the cleanses now. Where can I get Humaworm?

Only one place to get Humaworm... www.humaworm.com

postage is the same worldwide

Thanks Sunshine, all ordered.

Linda, I'm so sorry that you're going through so much pain. While I don't formerly have SAD, I am no stranger to experiencing depressive episodes. And I've had many problems with adrenal gland function and like Dawn, I was placed on H.C. cortisol for severe adrenal fatigue. Prior to my adrenals crashing, I had been experiencing the high cortisol levels for years. And before my adrenals were being treated with the H.C. and other natural supplements, I used to experience unpredictable bowels frequently.

Did I hear you say that you have a light therapy machine for home use? I've heard good things about them from a neighbor who uses one for his SAD. He also had his adrenal gland function tested via saliva testing and found out he actually had adrenal fatigue, but was experiencing spikes of cortisol around 3-4:00 a.m. His doc felt this could be attributable to being mildly hypoglemic at that time of night. So, the neighbor was instructed to eat a protein snack or drink a protein supplement shake before bed. That seemed to help the hip-hopping effect he had been feeling with the cortisol. Addressing the cortisol formerly and then using the SAD light/lamp setup has made thing much more bearable he said.

One thing that has really made a huge difference for me was learning that I had a serotonin deficiency. A holistic doc of mine put me on L-Tryptophan and it has helped with the depression in a wonderful way. I don't whether something like this could be beneficial to you or how it might interact with the negative effects you are trying to purge from the benzos you had been placed on. Anyway, I just thought I'd mention it.

Sending you warm huggles and hope you feel better,
Sharon

Thanls Sharon. I did get a little relief from light therapy in the past. Unfortunately with the antidepressant-induced cortisol problems, it isn't possible to do it now. I sold all my light therapy kit.

Also because I am in recovery from that drug, I cannot take anything that will artificially boost my serotonin. I need to recover from having done that with the drug. I do eat a lot of turkey though, which is very high in tryptophan <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> Unfortunately it doesn't stop the cravings for sweets.

Guys, I've got an appointment with Dr. Peatfield now, at a clinic not far from here in the beginning of March. I like his credentials, I like what he says. I'm really excited about this; I would have seen someone like him ages ago if I'd known how to find him. Thanks very much for letting me know about him.

Good stuff Lindalou. I’m positive it will be money well spent. Long wait eh! Beginning of march….he is in demand. There are not many people like him in this country.

Reading that book by Wilson “adrenal fatigue” is good preparation for your meeting.

The thing is, I don't know if I've got adrenal fatigue. My cortisol can still go up to the point where I need to take Relora. That seems to happen toward the end of my work week.

Apparently I've got to start taking my morning temperature and pulse rate, so maybe that will help.

This will be my first appointment with an alt med practitioner. The appointment will be over an hour long it seems -- wow. And this is actually a doctor who might be able to help -- double wow. Can't wait <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

"Soon after taking my DMSA/ALA dose (50mg DMSA, 100mg ALA) my stomach goes gurgly for a little while. Not always. Every now and then I have a short bout of diarrhoea from an unknown source, say maybe once every 2 or 3 days. "

Some people would say that mild diarrhoea is good for detoxifying your digestion system. If it is severe though, or you feel that you are losing too much of beneficial minerals, then perhaps you should cut back on your vitamin c intake? Didn't you say you are taking a crazy amount of vitamin c, around 20 or so grams a day? I take 2 grams a day of vitamin c. Imo that amount is plenty.

Crazy amount-? I take 9g a day, in divided doses. I used to take less, but this is what seemed to be required for me not to be ill all the time. I've been taking this amount for months and it's been working well. I agree, diarrhoea can occur when you take vitamin C to bowel tolerance -- I've done that when I've been ill. I don't think my vitamin C intake has suddenly decided to bite back at me however.

I seem to have been OK for a while, so it's possible I just had a touch of a bug. You just never know do you. Something else seems to come along quickly enough. I've felt awful today and I've decided to sucker into buying this little trinket which is claimed to be a "harmoniser" that protects you from harmful EMFs. You do anything when you feel bad enough LOL.

hi linda, i have many books on the adrenal/thyroid subject and adrenal fatigue means high and low cortisol, alot of people with adrenal fatigue will show symptoms of both high and low, mine is very high.most of the time hope this helps, dawn.

Ah, thanks Dawn. I didn't realise that.

It's hard to separate out what's been caused by the antidepressant and what's been there since I got ill. The antidepressant made things worse in some ways, and threw some new symptoms into the mix.

At the moment I am finding that if I'm busy with work 4 days a week, or if I'm busy with it in the evening (i.e. planning lessons), I'm on an even keel. But Thursday night and the three days after, when I'm not working, it's like I crash and become leaden and low. The sleep problems slap me in the face. My motivation goes. Logically it sounds like being busy with my job keeps my adrenals working better, and they just lay off over the weekend and leave me feeling crappy. Resting used to feel like a well-earned pleasure. Damn it, it ought to.

I don't know if this would have happened before the drug withdrawal, because I wasn't working. I do know that cortisol dysregulation is a common effect of withdrawal. My internet ND says the only thing that will heal it is time, diet and supplements.

I'd been intending to wait to see Dr. Peatfield before I do loads more research on my own. He's an expert, right? Or do you think I would benefit from learning a few things first? I'm honestly not sure how far adrenal fatigue and thyroid are problems for me. It would be nice to see more evidence than vague symptoms which to my meagre knowledge could point to many different things.