Guest guest Posted July 18, 2008 Report Share Posted July 18, 2008 Elaine, I am currently taking only herbs and OTC meds as I have been severly affected by long term use of prescription drugs. For immune function I take Echinacea w/Goldenseal, which i have taken for years but is no longer enough. But if I go off of it I immediately get weird infections, respiratory, sinus, organ (kidney, liver, etc.) Recently I have added Elderberry to the blend and I take more of it. Sometimes I use Red Clover to give me another boost. I also take Olive Leaf whenever I have any kind of infection which seems to be more often than not. It clears up EVERYTHING but it all comes back when I stop taking it. I also take a urinary formula with cranberry and a bunch of herbs in it. I am on an anti-candida diet, and have many severe food allergies. I just avoid the offending foods and take an herbal yeast cleanse when I feel the effects of yeast building again. I also take Emergen-C when I get really tired, but too much of it makes me hyper and then I don't sleep at all. I just started the i26 immune powder that Dommie suggests on her website, which seems to be giving me some energy, but nothing else has been helped yet. It was suggested that it works better if you stop all herbals when starting, but after only 5 days I now have a really bad sinus/respiratory infection, so I have to go back on my immune regimen. For sleep I have to take a whole drugstore to knock me out. I take a generic form of Zyrtec for sinus allergies that helps me get drowsy. I also take Calcium,Hawthorne (which reduces blood pressure as would happen naturally if you could sleep. I take it primarily because of genetic heart conditions that I have a predisposition for.) I take Valerian,Passion Flower, Scullcap, Kava,and Melatonin everynight. If that isn't enough (some nights are worse than others) I add chamomile. I am also now taking Dramamine as well as I have problems with dizziness again. I took it for years then went off of it when the problem went away, now it is back. The dizziness is so bad it wakes me up whenever I do sleep.When I wake up after only a couple hours of sleep I use a product called Sleep Now by Nutra Mist. It sprays on your tongue and goes to work quickly. It's more melatonin and chamomile with other herbs I don't already use. I also have to take some NSAID every night or the FMS pain wakes me up everytime I turn over in bed. (That is usually the only time i have problems with FMS) These I rotate between Tylenol, Alleve, and Motrin because what works tonight won't do a thing next week. I also have developed bursitis which got so bad that it partially dislocated my shoulder. It flares up if I don't use the NSAIDs regularly. Occasionally I take magnesium, but I have to be careful as it makes the restless leg thing worse for me. I also started taking an iron supplement because of the restless leg problem. I do not have a dr. currently because of no med. insurance, but they never could agree whether or not I am anemic. I have very low blood counts, but iron is supposed to be OK. But restless leg syndrome has been linked to iron deficiency, so I started experimenting with low dose iron, not taking it every day because the body stores it, and it has helped quite a bit. Now if I don't take it regularly every few days I get REALLY tired and run down. I also take Hyland's Restless Leg homeopathic remedy as needed at night for the problem which usually does the trick, but lately it hasn't been working. Then there's the herbs for hot flashes and menopause--Dong Qui, Chaste Tree Berry, Wild Yam,Evening Primrose Oil. These I rotate because their effects seem to wear off with continual use. Right now my CFIDS is not under control anymore, or it is cycling through a bad cycle again. I am really hoping that Dommie's i26 powder will allow me to cut back on all the supplements that I take. I know its a lot, but the alternatives are worse. You gotta do what you gotta do. I hope that this is helpful. I have done a LOT of research on herbs and have a lot of info about it, if I can help anybody needing that sort of advice. Hope this helps somebody, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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