Zithromax and adrenal test--update

[Guest guest]

Just a quick update. I finished my 7 week trial period on Zithromax. After

herxing, I began to feel a little better around the sixth week. My GP has

decided to prescribe it for another 8 weeks with the understanding that we

will re-evaluate it at that time.

In January, I did the Adrenal Stress Profile through saliva testing. The

results are interesting. My cortisol pattern was o.k. in that it peaks in

early morning and declines through the day. However, the 8 a.m. reading was

higher than normal, the noon reading was definitely high, and 4 p.m. was

low as was the midnight reading. In addition my DHEA is very low. So the

verdict is tired adrenals or some degree of insufficiency. I'm not

surprised after such a long time with severe RA. The good news is that my

naturopath had suspected that my cortisol levels were much worse than they

seem to be. So, I'm starting licorice extract and extra B vitamins,

especially B5. She also wants me to supplement with DHEA for a short time,

10 mg daily, but I just found out that it is extremely difficult to get here

in Canada. My medical doctor would have to phone a speical agency in the

nation's capital; they would then tell him which doctors are allowed to

prescribe it and where it would come from, etc. I was even told it is so

controlled here that anyone found bringing any amount across the border from

the States would be in serious legal. So I think I'll probably just start

with the licorice extract and extra B vitamins as well as a

visualization/energy technique I discovered in Dr. Christiane Northrup's

book.

(RA 23+ years, AP 2 years)