Low dose naltrexone for Post-Covid Recovery experiences?

P.S. Maybe, if your symptoms were limited to balance and dizziness problems (not fatigue, brain fog, etc.,) your doc decided to treat you only with LDN. Why not just ask your doc to explain?

I have 3PD, and Mayo's PT was able to give me exercises in one session that have already been tremendously helpful. They started me differently than my previous PT did, dealing with the sensory side before the visual or the inner ear side, and that has made a huge difference. I still have some orthostatic dizziness too, but it's not nearly as bad, and I feel so much more stable on my feet, after just a few weeks of doing the exercises they gave me.

@stuartkjones4 I had tried LDN after my Mayo Rochester visit in September 2023 along with Cymbalta to no affect. As for Dr. Patterson's team, Dr. Bream is using it in an attempt to solve one of my symptoms which I find incredibly hard to describe that I refer to as a 'head sensation' that just wrecks me mentally and physically for hours of the day. Its occurrence is highly variable, sometimes hitting me right out of bed, sometimes later in the morning, again lasting for hours. The only thing that stops it is a Power Nap or alcohol. Thus, naltrexone, starting at 1.5, now at 4.5. Dr. Bream said that in the cases where naltrexone helps, for many people that. occurs at 2.5. It is far too early to tell, but after my second dose at 4.5 my head sensation occurrence is zero. But, I am also tapering off Maraviroc at the same time so its possible it's the result of one or the other or both. A bit of a mystery to us all unfortunately.

@dhawker08. What is SOB? In my day it was 'slide over baby' describing a tight turn in a car causing your girlfriend to slide closer 🙂

Have you tried to alter your diet? Gluten is a known cause of brain fog. You may want to try eliminating eating gluten, dairy and soy. I suffer from Long Covid as well and I also have Hashimoto’s with Hypothyroidism. I stopped eating those 3 mentioned foods above as I had brain fog from Covid and a lot of other symptoms of Long Covid like brain fog, balance issues, stuttering, body tremors (which I still get if I push beyond my limits), no taste or smell (I still don’t have that back and it’s going on 3 years). I also had 7 Stellate Ganglion Block injections which finally helped my PTSD/Anxiety, but didn’t bring back taste or smell. I’m not ready to give up either, but it’s getting very old!

Shortness of breath...didn't occur to me how SOB might be interpreted when I posted the entry. I blame the brain fog.

One has to get LDN through a compounding pharmacy so how do people get theirs?

I have been taking LDN for about four months and it is a life saver for minimizing inflammation (and hence minimizing pain) and for a little boost of energy so I can get more done during the day. For me, it seemed to help my immune system as my allergies have backed off and my various skin rashes and itching has gone down to a dull roar. It did initially make me sleepy for about two weeks and then gave me insomnia if I took if after 2 pm. I did have very vivid dreams for about two weeks when I started. I worked up to 4.5 mg but feel better at 3mg so that is the dose I will stay with. I have not seen any reports stating it will help with dizziness or balance.

I got mine via a script from my doctor at Cleveland Clinic

That’s good news, Beachbum, about LDN helping with your “head sensation.” (I also have a head sensation - maybe heaviness? thickness? un-clearness.) Maybe your head sensation is what others call brain fog. No one here has described what brain fog is. (All of us could help each other a lot by writing more carefully and thoroughly. Goodness knows we have the time, and this subject is very important to us.) So, I have QUESTIONS: (1.) Did Dr. Bream explain why LDN, in particular, would help with your head sensation? Was he just guessing? Had he similarly treated others with head sensation? If head sensation (HS) is the same as brain fog, and brain fog is one of the three worst symptoms of LC, a lot more docs should be prescribing it. Right? And maybe Dr. Patterson should be adding LDN to his standard treatment! QUESTION 2.
Do you have any idea why LDN with Cymbalta didn’t work for you in 2023, but now it IS working for you? Maybe you had a different set of symptoms back in 2023? Or maybe the combination of LDN and Cymbalta wasn’t good, and LDN ALONE would have worked. So, did you have different symptoms in 2023? I had chest pain and SOB in my first bout with LC, but not now during my second bout. Now it’s fatigue, neuropathy, poor balance, a swaying feeling, weak legs, and recently a rash. IMPORTANT - I’m taking VALACYCLIR for the rash, and suddenly, after two days, my fatigue has disappeared, my brain is clear, my legs feel a little stronger, and I’m not as dizzy. Hallelulia! I’m crossing my fingers. Another writer here said she had a cold sore, took the same med (Valtrex) and here LC symptoms disappeared after two weeks. She went on a lower dose to keep the symptoms from returning, and it worked. So there’s hope, folks. Spread the good word. Best wishes, Beachbum. By the way, how’s the water?