Fatigue on minocycline

[freyasam]

I'm on day 4 of minocycline. Day 1 was 30 mg and I've increased to 100 mg today. I'm taking it to treat acne and to see if reducing endotoxin would help with mood and my other issues, especially my sluggish liver.

The problem is that I've had awful fatigue and muscle soreness since starting the minocycline. Could this be die-off, and something to endure for a few days, or a sign to back off?

Thanks in advance for your help

 

[freyasam]

Also these are split doses and I am eating lots of sugar.

 

[HDD]

I am experiencing the same symptoms plus some dizziness. Today was day 2 for me and I was really dragging this afternoon and evening. I thought I had pulled a back muscle or the minocycline was affecting my kidney. I don't recall anyone posting about this before. I had only planned on taking it for a few days so tomorrow will probably be my last day. I am taking 50 mg twice a day.

 

[HDD]

I just reread Charlie's log about minocycline. He had achey legs and flu-like symptoms.

 

[freyasam]

Yes, my legs are sooooo achy. Not sure if I should continue. Would really love to find something to help with acne as it's been especially bad lately.

 

[HDD]

My daughter took it for an upper respiratory infection and was pleased that it cleared up her acne. She took it for at least 10 days if I remember correctly.

 

[kiran]

I had dizzyness when I took minocycline. Part of it might be that minocycline can cause a thiamin deficiency. Affecting the kidney, that sounds like a possibility as well.

 

[khan]

Minocycline is also a beta-oxidation inhibitor, which also could be the reason of fatigue

 

[Ben]

I also had the same symptoms on minocycline when I tried it, not surprisingly. For a more practical solution, I think non-absorbable antibiotics for small intestine bacterial overgrowth are a much better option.

 

[Jennifer]

I was on 100mg a day for almost a month and was just upped to 200mg a day. I'm on it for a bacterial infection. It took at least a week for me till the dizziness and aching muscles were gone. Now that my dose has been upped, the dizziness and muscle aches are back. I've read it effects the central nervous system and crosses the blood brain barrier so I attributed the dizziness to that. Wiki has this to say about it:

"Minocycline is the most lipid-soluble of the tetracycline-class antibiotics, giving it the greatest penetration into the prostate and brain, but also the greatest amount of central nervous system (CNS)-related side effects, such as vertigo."

I have to say, the Minocycline is awesome for the skin or at least it has been for me. My skin is so soft right now despite the dry winter weather where I live. It got rid of the rash I had developed from the bacterial infection and my teeth stay squeaky clean, even by the end of the day.

 

[messtafarian]

The tetracyclines eat magnesium like alcohol eats vitamin b. If you are doing doxy, which is a GREAT drug, you *have to* supplement magnesium and potentially vitamin E and A to protect collagen. Also Vitamin K2 and a probiotic wouldn't hurt since you are killing lots of gut bacteria along with the endotoxins.

One thing people tend to have success with is increasing foods with saturated fat, sometimes to the point of eating a ketogenic diet. If you back off of starches you have less endotoxin to begin with, and some have theorized that bacteria ( not cancer) are fond of sugars.

But that's extra credit. Just eat some magnesium in proportion to your doxy dose. You'll probably feel better in like 15 minutes. A strong reaction to doxy is probably an indication you need more magnesium anyway.

 

[Jennifer]

The tetracyclines eat magnesium like alcohol eats vitamin b. If you are doing doxy, which is a GREAT drug, you *have to* supplement magnesium and potentially vitamin E and A to protect collagen. Also Vitamin K2 and a probiotic wouldn't hurt since you are killing lots of gut bacteria along with the endotoxins.

One thing people tend to have success with is increasing foods with saturated fat, sometimes to the point of eating a ketogenic diet. If you back off of starches you have less endotoxin to begin with, and some have theorized that bacteria ( not cancer) are fond of sugars.

But that's extra credit. Just eat some magnesium in proportion to your doxy dose. You'll probably feel better in like 15 minutes. A strong reaction to doxy is probably an indication you need more magnesium anyway.

Well that would explain my binging on chocolate last night. I just upped my dose yesterday morning and couldn't figure out why the extreme craving for chocolate all of a sudden. I've also been craving and eating a lot of full-fat dairy, eggs and of course, the chocolate. I remember Lindsay was craving lots of cheese while on it.

Just one question, is mino the same as doxy? I read minocycline is gentler on the stomach so that's why my doctor put me on that one.

 

[messtafarian]

Yeah, they're all tetracyclines and have the same action in the body. It's something like, it uses magnesium channels to do its job and ends up in body collagen because that's where the magnesium is..something like that.

It also depletes some other minerals but magnesium is the main one and the one you would feel the most severely.

 

[Jennifer]

Ah, okay! Thank you for explaining, messtafarian. :)

 

[freyasam]

Thanks everyone!

I've been on 600-1000 mg magnesium glycinate so I don't know if I would need more. That seems to be a high dose already.

I have some thiamin and just took 90 mg. I hear thiamin also increases absorption of mag.

 

[freyasam]

The tetracyclines eat magnesium like alcohol eats vitamin b. If you are doing doxy, which is a GREAT drug, you *have to* supplement magnesium and potentially vitamin E and A to protect collagen. Also Vitamin K2 and a probiotic wouldn't hurt since you are killing lots of gut bacteria along with the endotoxins.

I wonder if this has anything to do with why I woke up with burning skin on my face, arms, and legs.

Burning skin on my face is a common symptom I have after ovulation, which is the phase I'm in now, but this is the first time my arms and legs have felt burn-y.

 

[messtafarian]

Freyasam, it's actually the other way around -- vitamin b uses magnesium to get around the body.

It's like this: the salts are different than vitamins. The salts: calcium, potassium, sodium, magnesium and chloride, are all conductors and carriers of nutrients. Vitamins, from food, are nutrients that show special affinity for certain organs and functions. Anytime you megadose a single vitamin or medicine, and feel some sort of systemic response, it is probably a deficiency in one of the salts. If you use thiamine, take even MORE magnesium. Although 1000 mg is probably plenty to cover it all.

is it burn-y in your muscles or burny, like red and flushed?

 

[freyasam]

It feels like I have a sunburn on my skin, though it's not red or flushed. I know I don't have a sunburn because I've been limiting my sun exposure since starting minocycline--I'm already sun sensitive and the abx increase that sensitivity. Anyway my legs haven't been exposed to the sun so I know it's not that.

The burning in my face is a symptom I developed about 4 months ago out of the blue. It feels like a hot flash. I'm 35. I suspect taking loads of progest-e the past 8 months has something to do with it.

 

[freyasam]

But apart from the skin burning, my muscles feel very weak and achy.

 

[messtafarian]

Well, hot flash.

You know, I went through two years of believing I was having hot flashes. I tried everything in the world, nothing helped. My stomach would get upset, and I would have this sense of the bones in my wrists getting hot and flushing down to make my hands ache.

I would wake up in the morning with a red face, wake up in the middle of the night dripping wet.

Turns out I had whiplash and a couple of bulging discs messing up my nervous system.

If magnesium doesn't work, I would just try anti-inflammatory things like collagen generally, bone broth, glycine, gelatin. Vitamin A can sometimes be depleted if you are using a lot of extra physical energy for any reason and that can affect the skin. If it's got something to do with your nervous system though just double up on a good b complex. Aspirin is good for inflammation, see if that works. If any of that works, it's not hormonal hot flashes.

One way to tell if it has to do with your nervous system and not particularly your hormones is to take a sedative like xanax or anything that works on GABA receptors to see if you feel better. But I'm guessing magnesium is at least part of the problem.