Hi friends, I've tried Acyclovir in the past, but don't think I was on it long enough, or on the right dosage, to notice a difference. I shared the thread here about Valtrex with my OTO, and he gave me a script for 3000 mg per day for three months. I started taking them last Friday. I was wondering if those here on AVs noticed a difference right away, or does it generally take at least three weeks or more? Did you notice feeling worse at the start? I didn't notice anything one way or the other this weekend, but felt like I was on the verge of an attack all day today. This could just be coincidental, as my MM has been a bugger as of late, but was curious if this is a bad sign? I'm planning to stick it out for at least three months regardless, and will post any progress or issues here along the way. Hope you're all well!
Thanks Scott, I am definitely feeling worse today/tonight. Hope this is a sign that things are shifting inside my ear for the better in the long run.
It took me about 3 weeks to feel a bit better, extended by load dose per dr by another 3 weeks (so 6 weeks at 3x1000mg). By the end of that initial 6 weeks, my ear was relatively clear without pressure (first time in 3 years), minimal ringing and no vertigo. I don't recall if I felt worse initially, but honestly if I did I am sure I would blame it on Meniere's itself which gets worse on it's own randomly.
Thanks nicmger! I am going to stick with this for at least 12 weeks. Hopefully I see some improvement before then, though! Thanks for sharing your experience. Are you still feeling well? How long ago did you start the AV's? Thanks!
I started last April - so 16 months. Once the load dose kicked in, after the first 6 weeks, I have doing quite well. Every now and then I will start to feel a bit of pressure (nothing like previous) and at those times I take an extra pill (I am on the low 1x day maintenance and have been for over a year. If I am in too noisy of an environment - or as I learned recently - in a car for several hours with the sunroof and windows open with tons of air coming in - that will make me feel a little off the next day and impact my hearing. But within 12 hrs of the extra pill it is good again. As I was not able to start the a/v for over 3 years (couldn't find a dr who agreed to give it a try) I have not experienced any significant improvement to hearing. On the plus side, I have not lost further hearing either. Important to share that before a/v, there was not even ONE day that my "bad" ear wasn't full of pressure 24/7. I would pull on it without realizing it throughout the day because of the pressure. Since a/v, the pressure is very minimal and every blue moon I get a little bit - tired, excess noise, big storm coming in - but nothing like it was. And, knock on wood - never take a day for granted - I have not had a vertigo attack. Stick with it. Give it time. I think that sometimes what we initially think is the medicine making things worse is just that this darn disease has gotten more active - not necessarily connected. I know others disagree but IMO this thing is so random that there IS no pattern so an increase of symptoms to me is just what this thing does and how it acts. Good luck!