Hartford_X, I got your email but there was no link in it to respond to you. Perhaps there was a checkbox you forgot to check off on these overloaded curezone screens. Anyway, I've only been fighting this for 2 weeks+; I absolutely agree that noone should repeat what I did. It could have killed me, but then doing nothing came within days of killing me.
I'm already experiencing some improvement. FYI, try to ensure your probiotic doesn't contain FOS, if possible. There seems to be some controversy as to whether or not it can also feed the candida, as well as the healthy bacteria. I got the sense that it made me worse.
Also, if you can afford it, order a group of anti-candida bottles from Aquaflora.com. I definitely think they work for me; they seem to be *very* effective. It's homeopathic medicine.
Like you, I can't possibly go months without improving. I'm already improving just after a few days of my new program, quite a bit I would say. Besides good probiotics, I use increasing doses of ascorbic acid form of Vitamin C. I buy empty veggie caps from Vitamin Shoppe online (most economical in 500 and 1000 quantities) and make my own pills from ascorbic acid powder.
Ascorbic acid is the unbuffered form of Vitamin C and is the only one you should use in high doses, in my opinion. Others (so-called buffered types) can cause
kidney stones in high doses, especially if you've ever had any. The problem with store-bought ascorbic acid pills is that they mix them with other ingredients like dextrose or maltodetrin, which adds to the problem. So get pure ascorbic acid powder and pure veggie caps and make your own Vitamin C pills. You can take these to "bowel tolerance"; in other words, keep increasing the doses until you get diahhrea, then back off a little. The sicker you are, the higher you can go. Normal daily intake is probably less than 1 gram. I'm currently taking upwards of 80 grams and still increasing. When I try to build up too quickly, I get die-off symptoms, so beware of that. I currently take roughly 4-6 pills (1 pill = roughly 1 gram) every hour, and every time I wake up at night (frequently). The reason C is so important is that candida seems to die/collapse under massive doses of anti-oxidants. Unlike other antioxidants that you could use, C has been proven to be completely non-toxic in high doses, except for the bowel tolerance. Your body will consume as much as it needs and expel what it doesn't. FYI, you may experience soft stools, but that is ok. The reason for wrapping the ascorbic acid powder in pill form is to protect the enamel on your teeth (ascorbic acid is very acidic). Also, Vitamin C changes the Ph of your body to make it unfriendly for the candida. It definitely helps, as does the aqua flora. These two products, plus great probiotics, are my main arsenal right now, and I am improving day by day, but I have to stay on the caveman diet (virtually zero carbs) to minimize setbacks. Even then, eating is not fun, especially because the food isn't great and some digestive complaints from the candida. Look for my earlier messages that describe the rest of my program.
Hang in there. You'll be amazed how much will power you have once you start improving (days, hopefully).
Also, remember that everyone reacts differently to candida and die-off, so be very careful. You can die from severe die-off, depending on what genetic and health weaknesses you currently have. I do think, however, that most or all of us who are experiencing die-off (which can include emotional, neurological, and physical symptoms) probably get tissue swelling, which is why die-off can be so dangerous. Tissue-swelling seems to press on my nerves, causing numbness and tingling all over at times. Nevertheless, all of my symptoms are improving steadily.
Also, I use hot showers and hot baths to calm my nerves at times when I feel I'm going nuts. I also use homeopathic pills for nerves, emotional upset, any symptoms you have for which there is a homeopathic pellet, I would recommend. Try not to take more than about 4-6 pellets of all kinds per hour, since they contain a tiny amount of lactose. You'll find them satisfying (for your cravings), but also can feed the candida if you overdo it.
As for the C program above, do a little research online (e.g., wikipedia) about vitamin C to satisfy yourself as to its safety. It's definitely safe for me, and I know of no reason someone else can't do it, but there are surely things about C that I still don't know. Just be sure to use ascorbic acid variety to avoid kidney stones. I got one years ago trying this same therapy by selecting the wrong type of C. I probably would have been cured back then where it not for the wrong type of C. It took me years to learn what I did wrong.
Time for my next dose!
Good luck.
Dirk