AP for RA

[Guest guest]

I have had RA since Spring of 2006. As soon as I was diagnosed, I hit the

internet and found this support group. Serendipity was hitting me over the head.

I had just spent the past year fighting a digestive " issue " that my doctors kept

telling me was a dairy allergy. Lab tests came back negative. But someone in

this group was saying that RA is often caused by leaky gut syndrome. HELLO!!!!

And Leaky Gut is often caused by parasites. YES!!! So I read their links for

getting rid of parasites, started by eating 3 cloves of raw garlic per day, had

a heck of a Herkzeimher response on the 3rd day (had only read about those

before, but recognized it when it happened). Anyhow, only took the garlic for 5

days, but felt as tho I had cured myself of parasites. A few months later, had a

colonoscopy and YES...they found the results of GIARDIA having been in my

system. (they leave these scar-like mounds of tissue behind). So, started on

probiotics to replenish all the good guys. At the same time, there were those on

the site recommending the Henry Scammell book on Arthritis...which I immediately

purchased. So after reading that, and spending two months totally wasting my

time taking handfuls of Motrin to stop the RA reactions (it did virtually

nothing), and also figuring out that certain foods (probably due to the way they

dissolve in the digestive system, they can enter the bloodstream thru the leaky

gut ) seemed to cause immediate flares (like popcorn, tomatoes, pork, peanuts

and peanut butter, and others I don't recall right now) I saw my Rheumatologist

again and told him I wanted to try the minocycline treatment. He said yes,

probably just to placate me and he certainly thought it would not work. However,

within THREE WEEKS my RA flares had virtually stopped. I still had to watch the

food thing, but month after month I continued to improve and finally was totally

free of any symptoms. I had a couple of setbacks when the first time, I switched

drugstores to get a cheaper price for my meds, and discovered that they were

using a different generic brand than what I was taking. (By that time we had

switched me over to doxycycline, generic, instead of minocycline, to avoid

getting grey teeth). Once I figured it out, went back to the other brand, all

was fine, then a year later the manufacturer changed their ingredients, and

again I started sliding back into RA...it was really awful...I got so I could

barely walk, my hands were virtually crippled, I could not hold a cup by the

handle, could not pick up a frying pan by the handle, had trouble turning the

key in the ignition of my car. When it was finally discovered that they had

changed the inert ingredient used, I went to the BRAND Vibramycin. (out of

pocket, not covered by insurance) then slowly regained my health. Then started

alternating between the generic minocycline and the brand Vibramycin each month.

Now I only take 100 mg on Mon, Tues, Thurs, and Friday. I can eat anything I

want, but I am cautious about not overeating any of the foods that I had found

to cause a severe reaction. My RA levels are practically normal (tho the other

indicators show the RA is still there, lurking, waiting for a chance to spring

out.) It has been 5 years, and my Rheumatologist, while impressed, still refuses

to recommend the treatment to his other patients, because it is not the industry

standard. I just shake my head. I feel SO SORRY for those who take those

horrid, expensive drugs that are so very toxic to the system, cause cancer and

everything else lethal that you can imagine, when they MIGHT, just MIGHT, be

able to use this very simple, non toxic antibiotic treatment. My kidney, liver,

etc. functions are all just perfect. I do so wish that I could get every single

person suffering from this horrible disease to try this!!!!