Has anyone here taken the max dose of Valacyclovir more than six months?

Coming off benzos is horrible for some people. Worse than heroin withdrawal, and much much longer. The withdrawal symptoms mimic lots of Menieres symptoms.

 

Yes, I did. It's very confusing because it mimics Menieres symptoms and you're not sure what's happening. But it passes. It might take awhile, but it does pass.

 

I don't know if I've taken it 6 months in a row, but definitely more than 6 months total. I reduce the dose (I've never gotten it to less that 2 gms/day), but then something causes me to have to go back up. I find that being on the JOH routine makes things even better.

 

Make sure you guys are not eating high arginine foods. That just feeds the virus. Especially avoid nuts.

 

http://prosurx.com/what-to-eat-and-not-to-eat-to-prevent-herpes-outbreaks/

http://www.herpes.com/Nutrition.shtml

 

I've taken it for more than six months and had great relief the first five. Been an absolute mess these last two months so I emailed Dr. Gacek. He recommended switched types of antivirals as in his words "it's common to develop a resistance". I am now on Famvir (for a week so far) and not seeing an improvement but trying to remain positive that it will turn around. Good luck!

 

"Common to develop a resistance"!! That's scary. But that does make some sense with my experience. I do avoid nuts, and I do better when I take lysine. I should probably talk with my oto about Famvir.

 

Thinking about this more, I am just having trouble lately with ear type issues-stuffiness, tinnitus, hearing. Maybe it has more to do with allergies. The Valtrex does seem to be taking care of the vertigo (which is huge--THANK GOODNESS!!!). So confusing.

 

I haven't heard anything on the other forums about developing a resistance. If anything, everything i've heard is that this is one of the few drugs that rarely conk out. But Gacek knows his stuff, so i guess it's true. It could be that the virus is mutating and you need another version to attack it.

 

I think there is more at work than a virus, in addition to the virus that is. Allergies, permanent damage to ear, other things, for instance, i remain sensitive to caffeine and it does affect my hearing and balance if i push it. That's just my two cents but 10 years down the road, that is what i think.

Think of other serious viral infections like mono or chicken pox. They can do permanent damage that persists after the active period of the virus. They can come back in a slightly different form like shingles. They can leave the body compromised so it has a hard time coping with other stresses like lack of sleep. As much as i think antivirals were instrumental in my recovery i also think allergy treatment helped too as did long term healing, avoiding caffeine etc. All in all, i have been in pretty good shape for years now (knock on wood). I do not take antivirals now and have not for years. I do think they kept the disease from progressing and reversed many of the worst symptoms.

 

I agree with you June. That is well said. Thank you.

 

Sunflower seeds are high in arginine. I wouldn't eat them personally.

http://nutritiondata.self.com/foods-012083000000089000000-2.html

I don't know about pumpkin, but most seeds and nuts are an issue, so eat with caution.

 

I can't find pumpkin seeds alone, but this might provide some info:

http://nutritiondata.self.com/foods-012083000000089000000-3.html?

http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/nut-and-seed-products/3067/2

Arginine is over 2000.

 

Withdrawal DOES pass. Even the hardest cases on benzobuddies find relief after a year or so. Don't let the scary stories wreck your hopes.

Whether or not it's that or Meniere's is impossible to tell. I was so confused about it from day to day. Had no idea what was going on half the time.

Let yourself recover from the withdrawal fully and then assess.