Lyme Disease affects both people and animals.  It’s truly a very NASTY disease.  It’s “Buddies” (aka: Co-infections) are just as nasty.

That in itself is difficult to deal with.  It gets compounded by those that act upon their ignorance in a very negative and hurtful manner.

I’ve been struggling with health problems for over 20 years.  It took about 20 years to find ONE Doctor to (first off) believe me when I told them the physical problems I was struggling with and then test me for Lyme Disease.  This one Doctor is outside of the “Main Stream” of doctors – meaning, She’s a Naturopathic Doctor. 

Don’t get me wrong.  I am very open to Alternative methods.  We’ve used them in combination with “Conventional” methods for ourselves and for our animals.  However, I was a bit skeptical when she told us (prior to having me tested) that due to my symptoms, she believed I not only have Lyme Disease, but possibly some co-infections that accompany the Lyme Disease.  This fact is known by many (in the Lyme World) but either ignored or not known by those who are ill informed or improperly informed about Lyme Disease. 

Prior to being tested, I thought “No way.  I couldn’t have Lyme Disease.”  My problems began with a bite I got on my right leg while sitting on the floor, inside a suburban home in Orlando, Florida.  I did not see what bit me.  The bite marks were similar to that of multiple fire ant bites or possibly spider bites.  Even my doctors were not sure which kind of bug bit my leg. 

ALL the doctors that I’ve seen (over the 20 yrs prior to seeing the one who believed and tested me) all treated me like I was a fool for even wanting them to test me because – and I quote, “We don’t have a Lyme problem in Florida.”   I WAS physically fit and very active.  As the years went on, my health problems increased as my wellness decreased.  I could NOT understand what was wrong with me.  I saw MANY doctors and “Specialists” with the hope that someone could help me figure out what was wrong with me and then help me to get better.   I was determined to keep going even though it was physically growing harder and harder.  It sucks when you don’t feel well and have to keep going.  It sucks even more when you have people treating you like crap all because they don’t believe you’re feeling awful simply because you “look fine” or “normal.”   I grew tired of so many people treating me like I was a liar, faking it, over exaggerating it, etc.  So what did I do?  I gave up sharing how I really felt and pushed myself to keep going.

I am forever grateful at the handful of people that believed me, like my husband and son.  My health was declining rapidly.  My husband was determined to find someone who would help me.  He found the Naturopathic doctor.  She was the first to believe me and suggested I get some proper blood tests done.  She was the first to tell me, “I believe you have Lyme Disease and several co-infections.”  We agreed to get the test done. 

The test we had done was NOT the one most “traditional” doctors are using and the CDC uses.  There’s a WHOLE story behind that “test” – but that’s for another time.  The test we had done was a more thorough test and expensive.  We were struggling during that time (yet another story).  God bless my husband.  He scraped together what we could to have those tests done.  They sent my blood to a lab in California that specializes in this lab test.   FYI – There are MANY strans of the Lyme Disease.

When we got the results back – I was in shock and disbelief at the results.  To say I had mixed feelings when the results came back positive for Lyme Disease and several co-infections (which include Babesia, Bartonella, EBV, Candida, etc.) would be an understatement.  We couldn’t test for ALL co-infections because that would be too expensive.

Part of me was relieved that we FINALLY KNEW and have evidence that there IS something physically wrong with me and identified what that is.  However, another part of me was in shock, especially when I was told that there is no cure for me.  Perhaps had it been caught sooner, but because these infections had years to live in my body – my chances have greatly decreased.

I am still learning about these invaders and figuring out how to live with it while treating my body in hopes of (at least) getting my body stronger to keep fighting them and giving me some type of “normal life” back.

I will share more about my journey, thoughts, feelings, and things I’ve learned in my Blogs.   It will take time to get to that point.  Being the stubborn and determined person that I am, I am trying to find that balance between taking care of my family & farm, taking care of myself with my treatments, Homeschooling our son, and starting this business.  This is a large task for a healthy person – even more so for someone, like me, who has this disease & it’s multiple co-infections.  I feel like I need the theme music for “Mission Impossible” – However, I do choose to accept this mission.  In the words of Santa from an old Christmas show called “Santa Claus Is Coming to Town” – I will “put one foot in front of the other….” until I reach my goals.  I hope to inspire others that are struggling with a Chronic illness to NEVER give up on themselves or their dreams.  We may need to alter our dreams to fit our abilities – but that’s part of life…. We Can Do IT!