Posted by SLS on December 10, 2012, at 14:53:32
In reply to Re: What to do about elevated WBCs » SLS, posted by Tomatheus on December 10, 2012, at 13:30:36
> Hi Scott,
>
> See below for my responses...
>
> > Are you convinced that you are not experiencing a microbial infection?
>
> No. Certainly a microbial infection is a possibility in my case. However, I tend to think that my depressive symptoms were brought on by the prolonged partial sleep deprivation that I subjected myself to just before the onset of my symptoms. Acute sleep deprivation has been shown to elevate white blood cells, and although it's not known what the long-term effects of prolonged partial sleep deprivation are on white blood cells, I tend to see the sleep deprivation as being the most likely explanation for my depressive symptoms. That's not to say that there aren't other possible explanations...
>
> > I am wondering if minocycline is worth a try for you. It would address some types of infections, including Lyme, and act as an antidepressant at the same time.
>
> I think that minocycline might be worth trying, assuming that I can get my psychiatrist to go along with the idea. It's a good suggestion, and I thank you for making it.
>
> Tomatheus
Stress, even in the absence of infection, can produce inflammatory reactions in the brain and elsewhere in the body. Increased cortisol secretion is partly responsible for this. Part of the inflammatory reaction is the stimulation of WBC production. I am guessing that sleep-deprivation is a type of stress that is capable of doing this. Minocycline exerts significant anti-inflammatory effects. You might not be looking to reduce WBC count so much as the inflammation that causes it.
- ScottSome see things as they are and ask why.
I dream of things that never were and ask why not.- George Bernard Shaw
poster:SLS
thread:1032711
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/alter/20120530/msgs/1032764.html