My action plan

[hunkeymonkey]

Hi All,
Not sure if this is the right place to post this. But I thought I should make a log of what I'm trying out and what effects it has over the next months. Every doc I've gone to has told me I have a different skin condition. I think I've probably got several, I've decided to declare war on demodex mites and any fungus that might be lurking on my skin. I did my own skin scrape and confirmed demodex under the microscope, definitely a lot more than 5 per cm2.

Tomorrow is D-Day, I'll update this thread with my progress and I'll possibly post pics...

Wish me luck


HM

[Aurelia]

Hi Hunkeymonkey and welcome to our stretch of the jungle

I've moved your post to the General Stuff section, since The Lounge is strictly a rosacea-free zone, a place to hang out if you want to unwind and chat.

Making a log of what you are trying and the effects noted is one of the very best things possible, especially if you add food and drink consumed and possibly even weather extremes. We will all be wishing you the very best of luck. Pictures would be a bonus.

Kind regards,

Aurelia

[Aurelia]

PS To all newbies - we don't often move posts or threads, but if you can't find something easily, there are two simple options:

Run a site search for a key term
or
Click on Board Index, then View Active Topics to display all recent posts.

Kind regards,

Aurelia

[hunkeymonkey]

(I'll update this post so that it's complete by the end of the day)
Ok, day 1:-

Today I've put all my bedding in the wash. Dovet at 40 degrees linen at 60. I've got my old english sheep dogs fur cut short and washed both my dogs with Tea Tree shampoo from the vets. I've washed the dogs bedding as well. Cleaned through the house.

Last week I did some patch tests with Permethrin (Lyclear Dermal Cream) and Malathion (Derbac M in the UK, Kwellada in US) lice lotions, luckily I didn't have a bad reaction to either. I'm tackling this on the inside and the outside. After reading about SIBO and Helicobacter Pylori (http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/145177.php) I'm trying to tackle my inside naturally. First thing in the morning I had a bowl of broccoli, followed 1/2 hour later by a glass of orange juice. Before I go to bed I'll have a pro-biotic. In theory a few weeks of this will kill off the bad bacteria and build up the good bacteria.

I've just had a 1/2 cup of Borax bath for 30 mins. As I'm trying to target my face I was aiming to keep my head under water most of the time breathing through a copper pipe (not the best plan). I found water got up my nose and through the corners of my mouth. So I ended up holding my breath a lot and keeping my head under. Next time I'm going to use a snorkel and do it properly, probably with 1 cup and 1 hr. It has given me a bit of a head ache which I've ready can be a side effect of the borax, but it could also have been my holding my breath so much. I guess I'll find out next time
Straight after the bath I covered myself all over in the Malathion liquid. All my towels have gone straight in the wash and replaced with fresh ones. (Thank god today was sunny for all this washing).
Just about to put on fresh sheets. I usually have 4 pillows, but after reading that demodex can survive off of you for up to 2 days I put 2 in a cupboard for 3 days. The idea is to swap my pillows every 3 days and pillow sheets every night. I'm not sure about my bed sheets yet, but I'm thinking every other day should be a good start.
... Damn just went to flip my mattress and it has a sticker on the other side saying bottom side only :( Seems I might be buying a plastic mattress cover after all :(

One thing I haven't got is a household mite spray. I've looked at at few but I'm quite wary of chemicals, even so called natural ones. The last thing I want is for my dogs to get ill in any way. At the moment I'm leaning towards:-
http://www.kleen-free.com/
But I'm still very open to suggestions.

Also I know some people say the Borax, lice lotions, etc are toxic and that Tea tree oil is safe. But if you read about Tea Tree oil as well you'll find people saying it's toxic. I think the bottom line is anything that kills the mites and/or fungus/bacteria is going to be toxic to some level, otherwise it wouldn't kill them!

I've read about some people drinking diluted Borax, but I'm not going to be trying that any time soon, lol


HM

Sources:
http://rosacea-support.org/demodex-mites-treatment
http://rosacea-support.org/just-how-do- ... mites.html

[CrabbyCathy]

Hi there!

Should you maybe try one thing at a time, so you know what works and what doesn't? Except for the linen washing, of course. I say to that. I've, numerous times, confused myself with trying all types of products and things, and ended up not knowing which one gave me a flare, which one maybe helped but I couldn't tell because of the flare, and of course, thrown in the mix was eating a potential trigger. Food? Product? Which hurt? Heck if I knew.

[Aurelia]

Thanks for that fascinating report, HM.

With or without borax, can mites be drowned by keeping the head under water for a certain period of time? If so, lying in the bath with the nostrils clear might be worth a try, but then I guess none of the nose would be covered by water, and the nose is one of the main Demodex problem areas, isn't it? Hmm.

As for pillows, putting them in the freezer or pegging them on the clothesline on a winter's night is supposed to kill all mites. Would they really die after just two days left alone in the pillow? That would certainly be a lot simpler.

I don't recall the name of the only anti-mite spray I ever used on bedding but it produced such a choking cloud of chemicals that I felt in danger of suffocating or having an asthmatic attack, and I don't even have asthma! I would never try one again without using some kind of mask.

Kind regards, and best of luck,

Aurelia

[hunkeymonkey]

Cathy,
That's a good point. I'm going to stick to my mixed plan for now, you never know, maybe this things are only really effective when used together? After a couple of months or so I might separate things out like you suggest.

Aurelia,
I'm not sure if the bugs can be drowned. They are probably like spiders where they can be under water for ages. I got my mum to bring around my old snorkel today so that'll solve the breathing problem.
I did a search for them living without a host, http://www.demodexsolutions.com/default ... ~mainFrame reckons 36-58hrs. I thought 3 days would be safe, but maybe freezing is better as I guess that would get dust mites and all sorts as well.


I've ordered some STROMECTOL (Ivermectin) from drugdelivery.ca, but that won't be here for at least 2 weeks (that's if it gets passed customs). I went to my doc to try and get some Rifaxamin, but it's not available in the UK. I should have gone back there to try to get the Ivermectin really...

One thing I feel like I'm missing is a cream. I've read good things about the ZZ cream and the acarid soap, but it's expensive...


HM

[Aurelia]

Hi HM,

Thanks for hunting out that info for us. Much appreciated.

One thing I feel like I'm missing is a cream. I've read good things about the ZZ cream and the acarid soap, but it's expensive...

You might want to consider Eurax cream, which has been around for years, is widely available (and inexpensive) in the British Isles, and has an excellent record for killing scabies and other acarids including Demodex. There have been some very good independent studies on rosaceans, if I remember correctly.

Kind regards,

Aurelia

[LoisAnne]

HM!!

I read your action plan with fascination but when I read that you covered yourself with Malathion liquid I freaked! Maybe you are talking about something different but Malathion liquid is an insecticide and a potent nerve poison. I just checked with my chemistry professor husband and he said NO, it should not be put on your body, it can do nerve damage. Like I said, maybe it is different where you live but in the US it is very toxic. Please excuse me if I have misunderstood but if indeed you are using the insecticide, check with a chemist or pharmacist before using it again.

[hunkeymonkey]

LoisAnne,
http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/medicines/100000721.html it was proper stuff from the pharmacy. Not neat Malathion. From all the reviews I've read it's supposed to be less harmful than Permethrin based lotions and recommended for those with sensitive skin.

Aurelia,
Thanks for the tip. After looking it up I'm sure my mum has given me some Eurax cream before. Probably out of date by now, but I'll definitely get a new one.


After searching a bit more online, I ready about Borax and 1% Hydrogen Peroxide mixed together and left on the skin over night. So tonight I'll be patch testing this on one cheek. I know I should probably leave it a little longer to see if the other stuff has more effect, but knowing my skin if it didn't like the bath or lotion it would have gone crazy already

I am going to adjust Dr Annette Anderson original suggestions a little from:-
http://rosacea-support.org/demodex-mites-treatment
She says to use the lotion once a week, yet Wikipedia:-
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demodex
says the mites get to adulthood around 7 days. This to me says there is a chance the little buggers could get a mating and egg laying session in before the next treatment. So I'm going to cut it down to 5 days between my all over lice lotion (plus borax bath).


HM