A continuing education 3 of 3

[Guest guest]

From: Rick on <rdharrison@...>

and list members,

My apologies if this turns out to be a duplicate, my origninal post did not

appear to go through.

RE: Hotz's concerns about my recommendations for a Gulf War Illness

treatment plan.

's remarks assume Gulf War Illness is a toxin induced illness. I did not

deploy to the Saudi theater of operations, I went to Germany in support of

Desert Storm. I had no exposures of the type to generate such an illness

(chemical weapons, oil smoke, pesticide collars, PB pills etc. - I had none of

that. I may have become sick from something in the vaccinations I received or

through contagion from coming into contact with someone or something returning

from the Gulf with biological warfare agents on them. I suppose there is a

slight chance that some extremely toxic chemical may have found its

way onto equipment which in very minute amounts could create an illness from the

slightest contact,

but I consider that highly improbable. What chemical would that be, and why

have we not detected it if so many are ill? I have also noticed similar

symptoms in several family members, which makes the likelihood of the toxin

theory very remote indeed. On the other hand, I don't claim to know the bottom

line, only what has worked for me.

I figure if it worked for me, it might work for someone else.

My symptoms were joint pain, fatigue, memory problems, diminished eyesight, skin

problems (loose, floppy skin, strange growths, weird looking lines or patterns

of skin cells which started on my hands and climbed up to my upper arms, red

bumps on my hands and feet, cognitive problems such as word substitutions,

sexual problems, itching or creepy crawly sensations on the skin, killer

headaches, constant sinus problems, severe allergies, a variety of digestive

problems, pin point pains in the muscles that would move around from place to

place, mood swings, depression, weak joints and muscles which developed injuries

at the slightest strain, racing heart beat that vibrated my whole body

when I laid down to sleep, waking up with a start ( a panic like feeling), blind

spots in my visual field where I wouldn't notice things in plain sight,

occasional distortions of taste and smell, ringing in the

ears (caused by running water or fans), clumsiness (bumping into things,

knocking things over - not overly dramatic, but far more than normal), waking up

several times during the night, trouble getting to sleep, dreading going to

sleep because of the racing heart episodes and panic attacks, unusual patterns

in the bathroom requiring repeated attempts to completely void the bowels or

bladder, bruising too much, too easily, dental aches with no apparent source,

three of four isolated episodes of severe diarrhea and dehydration over the past

7 years, back aches from the slightest exertion (base of the spine and on the

inside of the shoulder blades, blisters in the mouth, sore spots on the skin

that

feel like sunburn and don't heal,...etc.

If these symptoms sound familiar, I suggest you take note of the fact that I no

longer have any of these problems except a small fraction of the fatigue, which

continues to gradually improve.

You should closely evaluate any information you get from any source, including

me. Talk it over with your doctor. A ninety day trial of a Doxycycline based

program like mine should not be any great hazard to your health. I have to

wonder why some people are so concerned about us trying something that might

actually work. Every time I provoke a response like this I just become more

convinced that I am on the right track.

If you know for a fact that you have a toxin induced illness and not one

possibly caused by a biological warfare agent (a germ) [and if you do, I would

be interested to know how you do], then you should of course consider my remarks

irrelevant to your situation and proceed as you and your best doctors see fit.

Rick on, MSgt, USAF (Ret.)

http://www.compuage.com/~rdharrison/Index.html