I am now going thru all the symptoms of this nightmare....does it ever end? How on earth does one deal with this? I've had about enough!Scared even to try to get into my bed. The more stressed or afraid I get, the worse the stiff/paralysis gets...you're right Jinx, this is in fact HELL on earth (or anywhere else for that matter)

What kind of symptoms are you having?

Katson i get this too. It's almost like a paralysis and i fear when i walk im going to look like Frankensteins monster(seriously!). It comes and goes in waves and when i get it its when my body is doing a chelation push(i suddenly get tense) then when it relaxes its ok.

Im taking DMSA right now and when im off it im far worse with these symptoms so i stay on it as long as i can. Are you supporting your adrenals Katson? I feel less tense when im addressing these(well it helps with the DMSA).

If its any consolation i think its mercury wanting to be released, trying to push itself out.

I didn't have it to that extent, but I did have stiff joints to where if I put myself in one position - to move out of that position created quite a bit of pain, stiffness and difficulty. This was when I was very mercury toxic.

I felt like an old woman. Unfortunately, sometimes as you are getting mercury out of you, the very symptoms it causes can intensify at the time it's moving around and/or being removed. Wherever the mercury is and where it's causing the most problems, the symptoms stem from there. Psychological symptoms can also occur and a person's depression/anxiety can increase during that time also. As can any other symptom. It is not easy to go through. The key is to try and keep those symptoms as tolerable as humanly possible (within reason). Which is easier said than done, because sometimes increased pain from what you already have is already intolerable.

Which is why I believe Cutler's protocol is so important. It can sometimes help with symptoms too. It does not always increase them, because the idea is to keep the movement of mercury more even and stable. So there are times when I felt better during chelation. Though sometimes it does increase certain symptoms, so I knew that I was detoxing too. Hard not to when you're very poisoned. The more poisoned you are, the more symptoms can be expected.

Yes this illness can indeed be a Hell on earth. Cutler refers to it as tremendous suffering. And indeed it is. If the physical symptoms aren't bad enough, the mental ones are torturous in their own way. And couple that with the typical overgrowth of candida that occurs when immune compromised, and it's no wonder some people go over the edge. Which is why controlling candida is (to my mind) essential - even to help lessen toxicity and help a person cope better. It saved my life I'm sure of it (or had a part to play in doing so).

thanx to all for the info/reassurance. Being stuck in this w/chair for these 5 yrs hasn't helped for sure.I am forced now to try attivan to see if I can relax some of the muscles in my legs/hips and hopefully it will have some effect on the sciatica,

Russ, I've had every concievable symptom listed in cutler's writings from adrenal/thyroid to sciatica and almost everything in between (and as many diagnosis') the panic attacks are getting bad again tho I've been thru worse when I couldn't see, swallow, breathe etc.

Katson, do you mind me asking what kinds of foods you eat? Do you exclude the stuff that in itself, can act as a poison to those already poisoned? E.g. sugar/wheat/gluten?

Giving up just those alone, enabled me to function much easier, even though I was still mercury toxic. Though I have to be much more strict now, because my health is worse due to infection (viral and perhaps hidden infection from dental work). Once, I only had to give up the obvious and my health improved after a few weeks.

I say this because sugar suppresses immunity and feeds the wrong things inside us, but certainly does not feed our health. Wheat/gluten can act like poison to a person who is unable to digest it properly, plus wheat is treated with mercury fungicide. This maybe why after eating wheat cereal, I would get immediate symptoms of poisoning and cry and salivate right after having it.

Giving those things up enabled my circulation to improve, colour to improve and much more health returned to me. Many symptoms were lifted or at least improved. Natural sugars contained in fruits maybe ok, if you haven't got a severe case of candida. Giving up certain foods that contain the undesirables, can in itself, create a massive withdrawal and detox, releasing many stored toxins/poisons even a certain amount of metals may come out in the process.

Chelation is the only real cure for mercury toxicity, but diet plays a big role in enabling the body to cope and detox better and some of the toxins making a person sick may not be ALL mercury, even if mercury is the reason behind a person's immunity being suppressed and other toxins occuring as a result. I never realised how important diet was until I finally decided to take it seriously and do it.

The relief can be dramatic in some cases. Again, I'm not claiming this as a cure for all ills, but a very necessary aid. Since the body relies upon the right foods to build itself up and it cannot do so when one consumes certain foods that tear it down. Even good foods on top of it will not be able to make the difference, because the body becomes unable to absorb nutrients properly when it's suffering candida overgrowth and gluten/wheat intolerance. This is very common in any immune suppressed situation, whether mercury, viral or other.

Bex, I don't eat wheat,I use a little honey (no sugar)I do eat brown rice, eggs, yogurt, chicken, avacado, spouts, broccoli etc. love walnuts,grapes, oranges,apples,strawberries....now I confess I do have a coffee now and then. I take a multimineral daily, vit c, multi B, cal mag zinc.

"I use a little honey (no sugar)"

Honey has a huge amount of sugar in it and is basically the same as using sugar. Stay away from honey!

http://www.drmirkin.com/nutrition/9875.html

Instead of honey, you could use stevia, licorice root, or cinnamon to sweeten things and avoid the sugar.

Grapes, oranges and apples have a huge amount of sugar in them. Imo they should be avoided. It is probably best to avoid all fruit, and eat vegetables instead.Some suggest that sweet potatoes and potatoes also be avoided. I still don't eat fruit, but have added wheat back into my diet after being off it for several months.

Katson, have you tried licorice root? I get some relief from it. Licorice root tea also tastes great. it has many medicinal properties.

http://www.herbwisdom.com/herb-licorice-root.html

Ya know, I just wonder what would happen if you had some good air. Have you had oxygen before for any length of time?

Russ, I have often thought that I needed oxygen but didn't know how to get it.I have doubts that a mainstream Doc would take a request seriously. I have found that (in my opinion) they play stupid but I believe they know the 'real' problem...noone could really be that dumb.

Hi Katson,

Sounds healthy. However, if you have any kind of a yeast problem, this diet will likely be creating problems. Brown rice, oranges, apples (all fruit), honey etc, all have high natural sugars contained (potatoes included). And all have the potential to feed yeast and keep a person very sick, if they have candida.

Depending on the severity of it. You may wish to do a trial diet and exclude all fruit, all grains (high in carbs) and all high carb vegetables (potatoes, carrots, peas/beans/corn etc).

The way through this to cope with hunger is to make sure you get enough proteins in eggs and meats and enough healthy animal fats like butter (which is very healing) and fat on meat. These fats are healing, not harmful as much false information has been propogated.

You'd do well to read up on Dr Weston price's studies
http://www.westonaprice.org/knowyourfats/skinny.html
http://www.westonaprice.org/splash_2.htm (check out the topics on the left).

I did so much better when I took onboard animal fats and proteins. I didn't realise what I was depriving myself and the harm I had been doing by restricting them. If you want to help lubricate your skin/joints etc, increasing your intake of healthy fats/oils (e.g. lard, butter, extra virgin olive oil, extra virgin coconut oil, cod liver oil/fish oil (mercury free),) is a GREAT help. For cells/skin/brain etc.

Are you sure you are getting enough iodine? I recently added kelp to my supplement regimen and I think it is helping. I was feeling horrible in the mornings and often my temperature orally was in the 96.5-97 degree region. I also read that iodine and kelp(which has iodine and selenium) are very antifungal.

I wonder if it would help though. I'll be perfectly honest with you, with the current mix of toxins that are being placed in the air, if I don't wear a mask, I cannot function. All I have to do is be without it for 30 minutes or so.

Here is a short list of symptoms that I get: Achy muscles, sharp shooting pains in my muscles, horrible fatigue and tiredness, headache, stomach ache, dark circles under my eyes, joint pain, nausea, tingling in hands and feet, salty-metallic taste to the air, inability to concentrate, racing and looping thoughts, anxiety, and more.

I wonder if you could just ask for it and see what they say. If it lessened your symptoms, you could begin to make some connections.

I agree. Iodine is very important and I had swapped my iodised salt for natural rock salt. The problem with this was, the natural salt did not contain enough iodine. I wound up iodine deficient and gained symptoms so bad, I could barely function at all. I was tested and found that my iodine levels were severely low.

I had to increase my iodine intake again and my symptoms improved. Also with mercury toxicity and other toxins, iodine is usually even further depleted - considering mercury displaces/blocks the action of iodine. Replacing iodine can cause a detox, so one has to be careful not to overdo it - but to take it slow.

Check out just how important it is:
http://www.alkalizeforhealth.net/Liodine.htm

And take a look at this in relation to it:
http://www.alkalizeforhealth.net/Liodine2.htm

Thanks Bex. That article about iodine was very interesting. Perhaps I should be taking at least 2 mg a day of iodine? I noticed Iodoral, which is 12.5 mg per tablet. The kelp tablets I have have 225 mcg. of iodine each. I took six of them today.

The only thing that raised my oral temp was a supplement containing bovine thyroid. Armour would work too, but its Rx. Iodine, even after supplementing it for quite a while, gave too many symptoms and didn't help my oral temp rise.

I do think I iodine is important...but most important is getting the mercury out of your glands and organs so they can function properly.

JK98, I'xe been taking 50mg iodine for the last 2yrs...it was what saved my life when my thyroid shut down.I will stay on it and try the oxygen if I can get it.I just don't know how much more of this I can take...I've had enough.

Katson, I am also not doing so well. The past two years have been especially rough. I had many dental problems, and had 25 amalgam fillings (yes 25!)replaced. Are you using any herbs to help detoxify yourself? There are some detox tea formulas that might help, such as those by Triple Leaf and Yogi. Licorice tea has been a great help to me. Dandelion, alfalfa,chamomile and milk thistle may also be helpful. It is important to drink enough water. If you aren't taking selenium then you should add that to your regimen. Are you getting enough iron, B12, and folic acid? Are you taking a molybdenum supplement? Have you tried taking DMG? Are you taking coQ10? Are you sure you are getting enough zinc, and that you don't have a copper deficiency?

Have you done a parasite cleanse recently? Many here have had problems with parasites.

I just noticed that kelp may contain arsenic, mercury or cadmium, so using kelp for a large dosage of iodine is probably not a good idea. One or two kelp tablets a day for a short amount of time might not be bad, however if one wants a large intake of iodine, taking many kelp pills is not a good idea.

You're welcome. They are good articles, I saved them on my favourites. I'm not sure how much exactly one should be taking, but I have certainly uppped my daily intake. I used diluted lugol's and take a few drops a day. Bear in mind, it's the diluted version, so if one hasn't got the diluted version, they'd need to be more careful. It can be powerful stuff.

I cannot tolerate kelp, or algae or anything like that. I have tried and it messes with my gut. I have problems in my gut area that happened following virus and dental work, nobody knows what is causing it.

I took probitoics recently and have been pretty devastated since. Though people claim "die off", this has been long term consequences from it. Since then, though I've been off it for a few weeks now - I'm left with being less tolerant now to my yoghurt and raw nuts (which I could consume freely before) and my diet is probably now going to have to be even more restrictive than before.

I am putting up with pain, bloating, and unable to think straight, which appears worsened by certain foods I eat, which sadly were on my safe list (were). So i'm far worse off for taking it and regret it. So far, no sign of improvement or relief. I feel that my candida is either stronger/worse than before, or a tremendous amount of toxins were released into my poor gut area, which is already extremely vulnerable and my body simply cannot excrete it and instead is creating gas/bloat as a response.

Please people, do be careful when taking strong products like antifungals/probiotics, if you have a condition like mine that is unpredictable and not easily understood - things can be disastrous. I have already mentioned how garlic supplementation had me taken to emergency and I suffered for 7 months of pain before things settled again. Nobody knew why or how, but that's what I deal with.

So right now, I"m in yet another horrible state that I can only hope time will remedy.

I think you can get ones that have been tested and certified free of toxins. Plus, you can always get iodine from other sources other than kelp. Check out the healthfood shop and see if they can advise you. I take lugol's (diluted) iodine in my vitamin drink. I also noted that some iodine is in my multi vitamin/mineral supplement also!

Natural salt is great, but the lack of iodine in it is of concern and is what caused my health to plummet due to that alone. It happened over time, so it was not immediately seen for what it was.

Is is particularly concerning if you live in a place like mine where our products/soils are depleted of certain nutrients (iodine is one). Couple that with mercury toxicity and other chemical burdens, and sometimes it's a recipe for disaster.

Bex, have you done a parasite cleanse lately? Parasite cleanses have helped me.


"I took probitoics recently and have been pretty devastated since. Though people claim "die off", this has been long term consequences from it. "

Some probiotics have psyllium or other fiber that absorbs plenty of water. Perhaps that might be what is giving you the problem? I can't tolerate psyllium at all. Kelp tablets also absorb plenty of water. Perhaps you might have an easier time digesting sunflower seeds than nuts? Sunflower seeds are also a great source of calories,magnesium and vitamin E. a few articles I read claimed that a major source of flatulence is eating too fast, which results in too much air being swallowed. Peppermint, ginger, fennel, and anise also help reduce the amount of gas produced. Peppermint and ginger are also good to calm down cramping.

There are certain herbs that you can take which will cut down on gas and bloating.

I've done the parasite cleanses before and not had much from them. I cannot afford one right now anyway. May give one another go at some point.

I don't think this probiotic had psyllium, they were just straight potent strains of bacteria. I have a condition in my gut anyway and things go wrong for me very easily and sadly for a long time afterwards. I'd say it unleashed hell in there and many toxins were probably shunted into my gut in the process, which maybe why there is bloating/gas/cramping.

Nuts are ok, but at the moment anything that has higher carbs is causing trouble, whereas before, I easily tolerated nuts and yoghurt. Only after probiotics has this appeared to have become an issue. So much for probiotics! I don't think I'll ever be taking them again after this.

I have eaten sunflower seeds before. I do ok on those.

No the gas is not me eating too fast or sucking in air, this has all erupted after probiotics. This has caused havoc in my gut. Even though I stopped weeks ago.

I have peppermint tea, and I have ginger tea too, thanks for the suggestions though. I don't have the other ones however.

Right now, I'm not keen on getting any supplements i'm unsure about since all this. I am hoping time and patience will be the cure. My diet is good, I may need to remove yoghurt and nuts now though, thanks to the probiotics. I'd really not recommend them after this. But again, other people may do very well on them.

Antifungals also hurt me in the past. I really think products like this can be too potent in their action and if a person has gut problems and difficulty excreting toxins, then effects maybe long lasting as they have been for me. The only safe way for me so far has been diet. Other stuff seems to cause problems or even hurt me badly.

You could be right.

If you do try to get oxygen, please let us know what happens. I know for me, the air is so bad that I cannot function without wearing a mask. I know it sounds extreme, no one understand that better than I do, but it makes all the different in the world:

http://urlbam.com/ha/Jzzzz

I think we have some horribly dark things happening in the world today and I believe it's time for extreme measures to protect ourselves. After all, it's likely that most sickness in the world today is man-made.:

http://urlbam.com/ha/M0022

Please keep us posted.

Sciatica is a classic sign of toxicity . It responds best to fasting. All drugs make you toxic , including attivan . Recently there have been many commercials on tv warning people that abilify , an antidepressant , can result in permanant muscle stiffness. All antidepressants can have this effect and so can many other drugs.

Are you taking magnesium Katson ?

Magnesium is very important.Most Americans in general are magnesium deficient, and those who are mercury toxic are probably even more likely to be magnesium deficient. It is also important to take in enough salt. One article I read claimed that some causes of candida overgrowth are a high calcium/magnesium ratio(ie. a magnesium deficiency) and a high potassium/ sodium ratio(not enough salt intake). Sodium is necessary for hydrochloric acid formation, and those who are sodium deficient might not produce enough stomach acid(this in turn might make on succeptible to parasites, candida overgrowth, malabsorbtion of minerals, and other digestive problems.

THX, I will look into this more, good post...

Like Bex said get on thats tested, I use Kelp or eat it from www.seaveg.com, I have that at my local health food store and eat that from time to time. I tried to use it daily but the detox was too much and I ate too much daily IMO, so I now take Dulse from there instead of the Kelp and have some good results. You are right though some do contain that and it must be tested for those.

Magnesium has done wonders for me. I switched to a magnesium malate because it chelates aluminum which dramatically increases the toxicity of mercury. Most of us are getting high aluminum exposure through the aerial spraying.

Hopefully this will help.

Of course excessive amounts of sodium can be toxic. The recommended total daily intake of salt is 4 grams. Those who eat plenty of processed food(ie. most typical Americans) get too much salt, but many on this forum who eat mostly natural foods and tend to avoid restaurant food and canned food, may be sodium deficient. I noticed that I feel better when I increase my salt intake. I now try to remember to add salt to my food. I went for a long time without adding any salt to my food. Those who are mercury toxic probably have a greater than normal need for salt. Some studies of those with CFS(which some believe is really mercury poisoning) have shown that people have had improvements with increased salt intake. Of course those with high blood pressure shouldn't increase their sodium intake. Traditionally those who tend to retain water were told to limit salt intake, however a salt deficiency or an excess of salt can both lead to water retention.

Can one trust the testing of kelp? What levels of toxic metals are allowed? Even a level normally allowed for food might be much too high for those already toxic with heavy metals. If a batch tests too high, is it just mixed with another batch that is lower to bring the level of toxic minerals to just below the cutoff point? Perhaps it is just best to avoid seaweed completely? Since iodine is available as potassium iodide, there is no need to take kelp as a source of iodine. Seaweed does seem like it could be a good detoxifier, however how can one know that a specific batch of seaweed is really safe? After reading articles about a woman who got arsenic poisoning from taking 2 kelp pills a day then increasing the dosage to 4 a day, and a study that showed that 8 out of 9 brands of kelp pills they tested all had excessive arsenic, it makes me think that seaweed may not be worth the risk.

Increased salt intake contributes Cl to HCl and increases stomach acid improving digestion.

Mercury toxic persons are HCl deficient so salt could be thought of as advantageous in this context. Mercury binds to Cl. This is probably why mercury toxic persons experience heartburn. Mercury steals Cl leaving depleted stomach acid which causes heartburn because low acid conditions cause acidic gasses to form which move upward.

The problem is that barium binds to and lowers potassium levels as well as salt, and considering the widespread exposure to barium that we are experiencing, increasing salt intake may not be a good idea, especially of someone is having heart problems.

Instead, we may want to take an HCl supplement rather than just adding salt to our diet.

This is what I did when I had my amalgams in and was suffering from severe heartburn. It worked nearly 100% of the time.

Mercury can cause CFS (symptom set) as can other toxins. Increasing HCl (thereby increasing stomach acid) may improve protein metabolism, a common problem with mercury toxic persons.

Hopefully this is helpful.

The older we get the less hcl we have . If you drink water or anything else with meals, you increasse your pH and lower your hcl levels so drink between meals not with meals. Sodium is not a problem if you have enough potassium
Composite fillings have large amounts of barium.

Wher did you read that kelp has arsenic JK ? I thought that the greatest levels of arsenic were in our drinking water.

There are many articles. Here is one.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070406140955.htm

Do a Google search to find more.

Well, JK98, you have a strong point here. Im also wary when it is stated they have been tested for unsafe levels of toxins, but does it say they are toxin free? So that's what scares me a little, since I used to take a product that said tested for mercury and how it did not have "unsafe" levels of mercury.

However, I noticed symptoms after I took it and had to stop. So though it was not unsafe for most normal/healthier people, for those already toxic and have a tendency to hang onto toxins, rather than readily excrete them, it may be an issue.

There are plenty of other sources to get iodine. I have it in a supplement and also have diluted lugol's iodine and it seems fine for me.

Yes but will taking Iodone throw you other minerals or body off after a while since it is not actually a food? I always worry about that, which is why I hardly take things nowadays because I am scared to throw off the balance or create one So many things out there and so hard to find out what will really work and what will make you worse long term etc., it can get really confusing with us to say the least (Toxic people). I feel lost alot of times, seriously just at a loss. I will still wake up and go at it though, whatever I do.

I see your point as well....hmmmm. Well, I take a multi vitamin/mineral supplement, plus some extra iodine. Even though the multi contains some of it, it's only at 100 mcg, which may not be quite enough for my needs. So I take some diluted lugol's in water.

It would be great to have naturally containing supplements, but because of so much contamination now, it's left people in a bit of a catch 22 situation. Though they're tested for toxins, what level of toxins can people like us handle?

So it's a concern. I know how you feel, it's so frustrating. Sometimes I don't know what to do.

Alfalfa seems a great source of minerals as well, tha and Spirulina, might pick some good brands up on that and take them. I am scared of the Kelp too, I stopped it just for that reason and that alone, that and I felt crazy after a few days on it. Did it make me worse or was that just detox? Catch 22 like you said, I have no clue if it made me worse or it was working well. I know I felt really great one night after the Dulse dosage, energy through the roof but that never lasts as you know I want a natural source of minerals, Kelp was one of the best, but at what cost? It says the one I take is tested and below 3ppm for Arsenic and other things, www.seaveg.com is where the brand is at. I guess we need to just find something which can really help boost our iodine safetly, maybe I will try Lugols. I don't want to throw myself off balance worse though, thats the last of what I need right now.

Taking large doses of iodine is still controversial. While most agree that taking up 225 mcg(a bit less than 1/4 of a mg) a day of iodine supplements is safe, some recommend that people take up to 50 mg a day of iodine for optimal health. They advise this especially for those who have low body temperature, or heavy metal txicity.

http://www.iodine4health.com/special/metals/abraham_metals.htm

Perhaps you could take a middle of the road approach, and take 1-5 mg a day of iodine? I am taking around 15 mg a day of iodine, but may cut back on this after a month or two. I have a feeling I have been very iodine deficient, and have had low body temperature(96.5-97 degress orally in the AM).

If arsenic is found to be in high levels in kelp JK ,then wouldnt chlorella , spirulina and other microscopic sealife also have high levels ?I thought that heavy metal concentrations increased with the size of the marine organism which is why large fish have more than small ones such as shrimp . Maybe the best way to increase iodine intake is by using iodized salt instead of seasalt.Where does the iodine in lugols come from?

The problem with using iodized salt is that chloride ions copete against iodide ions for absorption. Some estimates are that only around 10% of the iodine in iodized salt is absorbed. Therefore the amount absorbed is quite tiny. Abiut enough perhaps to prevent goiters, but not the optimum amount for health.

Manganese is also supposed to help with muscle stiffness.

hmmm...

I'm also somewhat scared to make things worse.. generally. but now i'm using what works for me in moderation and will stick with that for now... and see...

Am getting better, but also has redistributions.... (garlic / sauna / coal with bentonite, real butter, real organic veggies... etc...).

Tell me.. joint poping sound in the throat while swallowing when the head is bowed forward... is that thyroid mercury? dangerous? should i be worried about this?