I know most people , like M.S believe that M.E. dosent really exist and its caused by the Mercury, but I read a book about M.E yesterday which was written by a doctor suffering with it herself. She has done mech intensive studying and also gone down the line of amalgam removal and Chelation and saw no improvement. She has been suffering for years. She says that M.E is caused by a virus that can lie dormant in your sytem for years. She says that once something kicks it off, which could be dental work, trauma or a viral illness, all the chemicals in your body and brain change. Every symptom she listed was the same as Mercury poisoning, but she says this is just one of the many things that you can become suceptible to. She said that the M.E virus has been proven to exist by autopsies and some didnt even have fillings. I am so confused cos I had a similar illness 20 years ago and didnt have any dental work, just a mega bad virus, then slowly recovered over 6 years. Although I still had some of the symptoms, occasionally, I lived a full life. So now what Im wondering is did the dental work just spark things off again. I really dont know what to believe right now. Id be interested in any opinions on this. I do know of a lady who had M.S. and had amalgam removal and Chelation and still has her condition.

Tracy - this is one of those grey areas where we'll never really know. I know that I have a high Epstein Barr titre in my blood, which could also be causing my symptoms. My illness started after a trip to the dentist, when she removed a mercury filling without taking any precautions at all. With 12 amalgams already in my mouth and a mercury load accumulated over 30 years, this was the final straw that broke the camels back. I have all the classic symptoms of Amalgam Illness as discussed in Cutlers book - adrenals, thyroid, hypoglycemia, fatigue, low hormones etc.

I suppose Cutler would say that those who have removed their amalgams, chelated and are still sick did not chelate properly, and probably caused more damage with bad chelation protocols. This may explain why they still feel sick. Also, mercury makes the immune system more susceptible to candida and parasites and other bacterial infections, so it may be a whole combination of issues. The only thing to do is deal with each issue at a time, in a process of elimination. Mercury, parasites, candida, bacterial infections.

There may also be physiological reasons why a person might not get well after amalgam removal. A lady who posts on the frequent dose chelation forum has been talking alot about the methylation process in the body. If this is not working properly, then the body will not release heavy metals, even if chelation is taking place. There are supplements you can take to increase the methylation process and she is now seeing good results. This is also the reason why autistic children don't excrete heavy metals very well.

It is a minefileld, and one which we have to navigate by ourselves, because doctors are so clueless about the whole thing. I believe that having mercury fillings removed is a positive step, however, and providing you don't mess it up with a bad chelation protocol, your health should improve, albeit slowly. The only protocol I would contemplate doing is the frequent low-dose DMSA and ALA, as I think Cutler really knows what he is talking about.

Don't let yourself get discouraged!! Read your Cutler book, take your supplements and see how you go for about 18 months. Then you can start thinking about other possible causes.

Nicola

I have ME and I am trying to treat both suspected causes. I use cilantro for mercury and natural supplements to try to kill the virus such as oregano oil, grapefruitseed extract and garlic. I have had this illness for many years and removing the amalgam gave no improvement whatsoever. I am therefore using cilantro in case mercury is already stored in my brain area.

I agree, it is very difficult to know what the heck is going on..... <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" /> Especially since both mercury chelation and virus killing give me really bad side-effects or so called die-off.

I can totally empathize with you. We shouldnt have to self diagnose or treat. The medical profession has a lot to answer for, but to quote them I am waste material. I tried DMSA and was very ill. The only thing I have to rely on now is my natural healer, she has also treated ME. A couple of years ago when she was treating me I got about 70% better, but still had problems with anxiety and insommnia, but stupidly because I thought I was so much better I stopped using her. She told me if I had told her I was having my amalgams removed in one go, she would have told me not to cos I wasnt strong enough. She knew everthing that was going wrong in my body without me saying a word. She is a very caring person and I can tell her anything. She really has seen me at my worst when I've been crying and saying that I'll end up insane. She tells me how far my mental field is out and whether lymphs are draining ect. She does all this work in her spare time cos shes a teacher. She hasnt charged me for many visits and sometimes has spent four hours with me instead of an hour. She will not give you anything that she believes will harm your body even more. I know I only have her to rely on and whether I get better of not, shes certainly not prepared to give in. She utterlly and totally believes she can give me a full recovery in time. Hugs Tracy

Tracy, what did your natural healer treat you with when she helped you a few years ago? Was it hands on healing, or did she recommend any supplements?

Thanks

I had Chronic Epstein Barr Virus for a long time (years). When I had my 17 amalgams removed my Epstein Barr Virus went away. I still do have some symptoms of chronic fatigue. Some of it is attributable to allergies, some to adrenal fatigue, and some to candida, (all probably caused from my metal toxicity) -- at least that's what I've uncovered for myself so far.

I just thought I'd share that even before my amalgam removal when my Epstein Barr levels were so high (I had daily fevers, sore throats, swollen glands, dizzy spells, overall weakness, high CRP blood levels, etc., etc.), I started taking a supplement that had Cat's Claw in it. Cat's Claw is apparently supposed to help in fighting EBV. The supplement I took was by Garden of Life called RM-10. It also had medicinal mushrooms in it. But, I figured out from experimenting that it was the Cat's Claw in particular that helped alleviate my EBV symptoms and fatigue.

I haven't looked around to see if there might be a better form or manufacturer of the Cat's Claw. Some people with candida can't tolerate mushrooms in any form (even the medicinal mushrooms) and they might want to avoid a supplement like RM-10. So finding Cat's Claw alone might be better.

Anyway, I just thought I'd post this in case someone wants to research this and it might be of help. Cat's Claw really, really helped alleviate some of my symptoms. I was surprised about this too because I'm so darn sensitive to herbs.

SomedaySoon (Sharon)

I apologize, the thread directly above is from me. I forgot to sign in!

SomedaySoon (Sharon)

she reccommends what supplements to take and everything is natural, she also uses electic acupuncture to open up lymph glands ect. I tooe have Epstein Barr and Cytomegla virus. I hope to see her soon cos at the moment I am getting progressively worse, especially my moods

Excuse my ignorance but what does ME stand for?

Myalgic Encephamylitis- I think thats the correct spelling, its a bit like Chronic Fatigue syndrome but I believe Chronic Fatigue syndrome is more common and you get over it quicker. Myalgic - means muscles affected and Encephamylits is the inflammation of the brain. But there are over 60 symptoms and you can have it for many years or more than once.

ME is what they call CFS in England. "CFS" seems to be an American term that was coined after the 1980s "outbreak" of it near Lake Tahoe.

IMHO, CFS can be caused by many things that stress your body beyond your ability to adapt and successfully cope with those stresses.. For some its chronic unrelenting stress at work followed by a particularly bad infection for which they don't recover normally. For others, they have mercury built up for years that weakens them and they finally succumb. For others they are born with a weak "stress axis" and they just have a lower tolerance for stress than others-they push too hard and they get it. For others they may have been exposed to lyme disease that was either never treated, or not treated properly, or reactivates under times of great stress preventing the body from recovering.

I have read and read and read, and it seems apparent to me that CFS isn't a new disease, its been known for ages as things like "neuroasthenia", "Adrenal Syndrome", "Atypical Depression", etc...

It "seems" to me that the overarching fatigue causing mechanism in "CFS" is Adrenal exhaustion coupled with increased sensitivity for cortisol in the CNS ala Hans Selye. Once you get there, you not only are intolerant to mercury, but every other stress as well. Your "stress axis" supresses the immune system when its overactive and underactive. The only way to recover is to remove all of the energy blocks (toxicity, infection, allergy, etc..) to allow your stress axis to heal. For people with many amalgams and/or genetic susceptibility to merucry poisoning, the most bang for the buck they will get its amalgam removal and chelation. Then with rest/nutrition, etc... they other stuff will fall back into line. It *is* possible to get CFS and not be mercury poisoned because you have been subjected to other stresses that were too overwhelming to your adaptive mechanism. Unfortunately, once you have CFS (by whatever means), your detox system goes south and you are more susceptible to levels of toxins that most people can handle fine. And since most people have amalgams (even if they weren't the root "stress" that caused your CFS), they can become more of a problem once you have CFS and prevent your recovery. Its kind of a never ending cycle until something gives and the stresses on your body are less than your body is able to handle and it can devote some energy to healing. I think this is why approaches like Teitelbaums and Dr. Myhill are so successful. They treat all possible loads on your system at the same time, giving your coping mechanisms a chance to rest and rebuild your body.

I'd be interesting in knowing how many people on this board had "sudden onset" CFS preceded by an unusually stressful life experience vs. a gradual decline of health that ended up in CFS.

Its pretty hard to sort out whats causing what, and I'm pretty sure its different for a lot of people.

BTW one of the best written books I have read on chronic fatigue is called "Chronic Fatigue Unmasked" (I think they have a year 2000 updated addition). Its written by a Dr. who's clinic has been treating CFS for 40 years. If nothing else, you can learn for their experience. Then you have to try to find out whats keeping you down, and remove the problems in order of priority (many times simultaneously). Another good website is that of Dr. Myhill in the UK. www.drmyhill.co.uk. She has her patients do a teitelbaum like protocol and also detox using a sauna.

If you think about it Cutler's program is just teitelbaum with the added treatment of frequent low dose chelation to deal with mercury. If your CFS doesn't primarily involve mercury, its likely to be less helpful to you that the supplements and hormones that are part of the program. If your overarching issue is mercury toxicity, then the chelation is what is going to make a big difference. Unfortunately, if everyone didn't have amalgams, it might be much less of an issue in CFS. And since just having CFS (by whatever cause) makes you more sensitive to toxins, the longer you have CFS the more likely your amalgams are going to be causing a problem.

my .50 :-)

http://thyroid.about.com/cs/fibromyalgiacfs/a/checklist.htm