BHT
★★★★★
Firstly, I never received an official diagnosis of EBV, but I am pretty certain that it, and possibly other viruses are at fault. It has been building for several years and peaked last year. I have very low vitamin D for years which destroyed my immunity, and I got shingles 6 months before the first lymph node was discovered (the shingles cleared up on it's own). Only now have I found any relief from the multitude of symptoms that prevent me from doing anything at all. Even walking or just reading would usually bring on an attack of fatigue, photophobia, dizziness, nausea, and what feels like meningitis. I have had swollen lymph nodes in the classic EBV spots for over a year.
After trying virtually everything else, I gave BHT a try. For a few weeks I did not believe it was working. For the first 5 days I took 500mg per day twice per day on an empty stomach; against the recommendations I have read everywhere because I was desperate (I weigh nothing and eat a low fat diet). After 5 days I developed a nasty rash on my legs and systemic joint pains. It cleared up in 4 days and I started on 250mg.
No problems there.
After 2 weeks I was frustrated with the lack of results, but decided to run an experiment. I would make myself sick and then take the BHT at the height of an attack. To my complete surprise it completely reversed the symptoms in one hour. I repeated this each day, gradually going back to 500mg per day (this time with no complications). Each time it made me feel better and allowed me to do the activities I had been unable to do for even a few minutes for the past year. I could play guitar again, walk again, read again for hours. Eventually the symptoms would return, but by then it was time for my second dose.
After another two weeks we come to the present. I am now pushing myself for the entire day like I used to before I got sick, and am only experiencing a bit of heat in my head, and perhaps some mild general malaise a few times per day. This has been the case for the past 4 days. Absolutely remarkable! I am terrified that the virus might build a resistance so I am now taking biofilm enzymes. I am pushing myself because I want to bring the virus out whenever I can so I can stomp it out. This is just me guessing very unscientifically of course, but it appears to be working. I am hopefull that I will not have to take this the rest of my life but time will tell. If I go for months without any sign of symptoms I will ween myself off of the BHT slowly.
I am still symptomatic, but with the BHT I can actually function. I have not tried actual exercise yet, but that will be next.
TLDR: After 5 weeks of BHT I went from being completely useless to almost my old self again with (probably) EBV. After trying every reasonable supplement including Monolaurin, BHT was the only thing that had any perceivable effect, and the effect was miraculous.
Coconut Oil
★★★★★
I have mentioned here at Earth Clinic my history of ITP (idiopathic thrombocytopenia – or, low platelet count for no known reason.)
It appeared that regular use of coconut oil “accidentally” cured my ITP.
Apparently, coconut oil kills lipid coated viruses, like Epstein Barr.
And if you look at a symptom list for Chronic Active Epstein Barr, it includes the symptoms below.
- Anemia
- Thrombocytopenia
- Swollen lymph nodes
- Mouth ulcers
- Hypersensitivity to mosquito bites
There are other symptoms as well. But I had each of the above symptoms for many years.
I know that Dave has mentioned the viral connection to ITP before and it made sense.
Now I may have narrowed it down to a specific virus for me, anyway – Epstein Barr. I wonder if I was ever tested for it back when I had a gazillion tests for my ITP (including a bone marrow biopsy! ) Of course, I suppose it is irrelevant as I wouldn't have been prescribed coconut oil as a treatment. 😊
And my original question doesn't quite make sense. Idiopathic means the cause is not known. If it is known that Epstein Barr causes ITP (Idiopathic thrombocytopenia) it wouldn't be “Idiopathic” thrombocytopenia, it would just be thrombocytopenia, which is a known symptom of Epstein Barr.
I have mentioned before that my children had mono several years ago. Only one was tested (the child who was not getting better from a “cold.”) and he tested positive for mono. Coconut oil was his amazing cure. A different one of my children (now an adult) seems to get mono like symptoms now and again. (Even though you “can't” get mono twice.) EVERY time, coconut oil turns him around in 12-36 hours. So I suspect he is dealing with an Epstein Barr Virus flare up.
Essiac Tea
★★★★★
