And since we are often taking different regimens we are even more so. In my case I have had to choose between the DM and some other supplements that have proven valuable and the latter have won out. One of the reasons they work is that some are natural MAO inhibitors and as a result are not compatable with the DM, much to my disappointment.

I don;t know what Steve takes besides his prescribed meds but it may be that DM is a good choice for those who don,t use a lot of other stuff that might react with it.

Steve do you take much other stuff? And what about you Ann? Just looking for patterns.

I take;..

Sianmet 3x25/100

Mirapex 2x.25

I am definately undermedicated, and should at least take 1 more Sinamet daily

No suppliments, and I dont pay attention to my diet and have taken Sinamet just before or after eating protien or what have you

I take anywhere from two 25/100 Sinemet per day to three halves of 25/100. Sinemet makes me grind my teeth, so sometimes I cut it in half. I take one 100 Amatadine per day. Finally, from dinner on I take three .5 Mirapex.

Did anyone else have a rapid heartbeat? I looked up DM and rapid heartbeat and got it as a side effect of overdosing with DM. Was half a tsp. too much?

Ann

Never thought you'd hear that, did you?

but to get serious, Steve is a good example of a standard medication program and that could be why he is doing so well - i.e. no "stealth" MAO inhibitors.

Ann is a tougher guess, but one possibility is the "slow metabolizer" explanation that I mentioned in an earlier post. I forget the exact number but I think five percent of us have a system where a little DM goes a very long way.

So, if those guesses are right, then it would be sensible for someone who didn't want to tackle the "alternative" route to simply do like Steve.

And if someone has a body that doesn't get along with the DM might want to investigate things like green tea extract which offers some of the same protections/

I think there are several lessons here but the big one is that there really can be something important lying right under our noses for years. It is almost a textbook example and I find it encouraging. I nominate Steve for the Big Cheese prize to be shared with Robert, Ashley, Cara, Ann, etc etc

This may be Ann's answer too. Close call.

1: Arzneimittelforschung. 1982;32(10):1241-3.

Effect of 1-aminoadamantanes on the MAO activity in brain, liver, and kidney of
the rat.

Wesemann W, Ekenna O.

In order to elucidate the possible interference of the antiparkinson drug
1-aminoadamantane (D-1, PK Merz) and the antispastic compound
1,3-dimethyl-5-aminoadamantane (DMAA, D-145, memantine, Memantine) on
neurotransmitter metabolism, the effect of D-1 and its C-alkyl derivatives
memantine, 1-amino-3,5,7-trimethyladamantane (D-191), and
1-amino-3-(n)-butyladamantane (D-178) on MAO activity in brain, liver, and
kidney of the rat was investigated. A radioisotope method using
[14C]5-hydroxytryptamine as substrate was used. The highest MAO activity was
found in liver followed by brain and kidney (Vmax: 137, 64, and 26 nmol/mg
protein X h, respectively). The Km values did not differ significantly for the
three tissues (liver: 107 mumol/l; brain: 96 mumol/l; kidney: 86 mumol/l). The
MAO activity in liver, brain and kidney was noncompetitively inhibited by all
1-aminoadamantanes studied, each derivative, respectively, showing in all three
tissues about the same percentage inhibition. The inhibitory activity was found
to be increased with the degree of C-alkylation: D-1 (Ki approximately 1 mmol/l)
less than D-145 (Ki approximately 0.1 mmol/l) less than D-191 (Ki approximately
0.07 mmol/l) less than D 178 (Ki approximately 0.02 mmol/l).

PMID: 6891223 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Thought I would do a med check-in too. I take 4mg 3Xdaily of Requip; 1200mg of "wafer-type" CoQ10, 1500 mg Curcumin and my little teaspoon of DM at bedtime. So far, so good since adding the DM. As I said in previous post, a bad mucus problem in my throat has cut way back and my internal tremors are ten times better since adding the DM March 4th.

Caya

It is possible that you are sensative or maybe alergic to DM..A half teaspoon is a very small amount, but it seems to go an awful long way

On a lighter note..That stuff has been useless for any cough Ive ever had in my lifetime..

Of course Im a good example..People say it all the time..

The effect of almost two weeks of Robitussin has been a little uneven. I switched to taking it at night, since that sounds like the best time. I still take only 1/4 tsp. Some days I feel markedly better, but not with any real consistency. The DM seems to help my balance, and it helps me stand up from sitting. I still have to struggle to get up, but my "speed" and success rate have increased. Balance and standing up have been two of my worst symptoms, so DM is taylor made for me.
I still take a minimal amount of meds. after 10 plus years of PD. 8 1/2 mg Requip, 1 1/2 pill of 25/100 carb/lev/ 100 mg Amantadine and 1500 mg Curcumine is my daily portion, divided into three dosis.
I have never had 'offs', and on good days I sometimes forget to take my mid day pills until late in the afternoon. Like Steve I am not adversely affected by anything I eat. I have had no ill effects from the DM. My blood pressure is normal to low, and I have not felt any increase in heart rate after taking DM. I will continue taking it. My good days by far outnumber the not so good days, and DM makes them better still.
A little dab'll do ya.......

birte

I have been following members comments here on their new experiences with dextromethorphan with a lot of interest and some surprise. My intent on bringing attention to DM was to make people aware that through my own experience with LDN and more importantly the research done on DM and naloxone (naltrexone) at the NIH that there may be a cheap and safe drug, DM, that could slow or stop disease progression. The NIH research on DM claims that it could work in small doses for many brain diseases caused by neuroinflammation such as PD, MS, Alzheimers etc. Since their work was with rodents, I guess they did not get much feedback on symptom improvement but they did seem to see a slowdown in disease progression. So I have been surprised by some of the observations made here on almost immediate symptom improvement for such a small amount of DM and don't know what to make of it. I think the main purpose of DM and LDN is to stop or slow disease progression. I don't know if any of us can claim or know if this new opioid receptor antagonist drug therapy is working for many years to come. It takes a certain amount of courage or foolishness to go down this unbeaten path, especially against your doctors orders.
Ashley