Bex
I'm no big fan of mercury pockets. Bacterias seem much more likely. You will have it extremely difficult to explain all those symptoms with mercury (there is still no evidence for that mercury causes any detox reactions, some may excrete mercury when a "detox reaction" happens, while others do not), while a Herxheimer reaction does it all nicely, including the release of endotoxins, and electrolyte imbalances. Remember also that ALA is especially good against intracellular invaders, like viruses and mycoplasma bacterias.

Did you also know that Lyme "detox" symptoms are pretty much similar (although usually more severe) to those caused by amalgam illness? Lyme treatment is also pretty much similar to the treatment of amalgam illness: e.g. anti-candida diet, and natural/synthetic antibiotics, like grapefruit seed extract. So the underlying cause must be similar too, bacterial and viral infections + co-infections and other parasites.