Georgia on my Mind

Yesterday I had a follow-up phone appointment with Dr. Conley. First we reviewed my symptoms. He was encouraged that I haven't had any more of the 'spasm' episodes of paralysis and that the Valtrex finally seems to be helping my energy levels. We went over my continuing orthostatic symptoms (low blood pressure, high heart rate) and he recommended that I monitor both of those on a daily basis and see what they do, so I guess I'll be getting a blood pressure cuff. 

Second we reviewed the bloodwork results (from those 20 vials I had drawn over the past three weeks.....!!) and everything looked pretty good. Some levels weren't as low as he thought they might be, which could be good. But that could just be because I am young and so levels are higher than a range of normalcy, but for me at my age they are still lower than they ought to be.

Third we discussed some blocks in my energy production. Although I'm taking 1.2 mg of vitamin B-12 daily (which is 20,000% the DV), my B-12 levels are low, so I'm taking more B-12 lozenges and going to start a CoQ-10 supplement as well. All of my other medications and supplements are staying the same until further notice. 

Towards the end of my appointment, Dr. Conley reitterated something I've been hearing a lot from Heidi recently: do whatever promotes healing. So, part of my prescription is lots of comedy/romance movies ("No 'Murder on Elm Street'!"), light reading, and light exercise when I feel up to it. 

In keeping with that prescription :) I'm currently on vacation in a place where I have tons of free time, clear and warm sunny days, and a nice patio outside to read. I am very thankful for Uncle Bob and Aunt Linda allowing me to stay with them in Georgia for two weeks! The sun and pool-side reading this morning was so relaxingly wonderful. 

Aunt Linda has been telling me about a naturopathic doctor here in Atlanta, Dr. Agolli, who offers IV vitamin treatments. Interestingly enough, one of the first CFS/ME doctors I found in Indianapolis also offered IV vitamin treatments (this would be Dr. Guyer, for anyone who is interested to know). From the little research I've done, I found a study that says vitamin C IVs seem to help reduce fatigue about two hours after they are administered and the effects last about 1 day. That's not too impressive, but I also discovered that vitamin IVs have seemed to help some CFS patients who have POTS (yes, please!!). So, although my research has been limited and my findings not very conclusive, it seems vitamin IVs have some helpful benefits and no known side effects or drawbacks (if you can stand the needles and aren't adversely effected by plastics). Will keep you posted! :)