One warm summer night, I laid down in the grass in a locally cool field, and enjoyed the stars. I woke up the next day with bullseyes all over me, and 4 of the terrible critters embedded in my flesh.
If only I'd paid more attention, I wouldn't always be operating at 60% ..
Take this one seriously folks. If you're in ticks-ville, pay attention damnit. You don't want Lyme disease.
As a kid we were always playing in fields. My grandparents owned property in rural CA hills where we used to run around for days unsupervised, wading through tall grass with nothing but shorts and a T-Shirt on.
Did I get bit by a tick? Maybe? To my knowledge and memory, we never did find one on me... But then again, we weren't exactly checking every time we came in. I'm sure in all those years, I was bit by multiple bugs. Multiple times. Could that have injected persistent bacteria into my body that feed on my energy, and constantly drag me down?
Maybe it is just depression. But that sure feels like a symptom, and not a root cause. The root cause of all this is SOMETHING, and blanket diagnoses of ADHD and depression don't satisfy my need for an actual answer. With respect to medical practitioners, I still have to say, at times it feels like we're living in the stone age of medicine.
Also, you've got to get multiple tests if you suspect it. One point of data does not certainty, make ..
Maybe I should throw in the towel and accept the "you're depressed" argument. 14 years of dealing with 40-60% ... I'm reaching a give up point. Diet, sleep, exercise, all on point for the last 5 years. No improvements.
Best thing is to screen for the antibodies... but do get multiple tests from different labs.
Always get a second opinion on matters like this - not only can labs get things wrong, but so can doctors.
Of course, this is easier to do in a country that has adequate health care for its citizens, as is the case for me .. so, ymmv.
Tick embedded >24 hours: not necessarily true per my medical examiners - two independent specialists, as I live in an area with high Lyme rates and wanted a second opinion - as should anyone with doubts about it, and as to the second point, maybe its more correct that I didn't observe the bullseye rash until the next days, but either way multiple tests confirmed Lyme antibodies in the days and weeks following, whereas prior test (wasn't my first attack) didn't ..
Either way, don't lay down in a field where deers and rabbits live, in the middle of a warm, sweaty summer.
I read here in a comment here about a person that went through years of antibiotics, to no avail. What finally helped? A 2 week fast. He said he found the idea on some forum and decided to give it a go, since he had nothing to lose at that point.
As for me, thank you for your kind words. I'm still struggling, and I'm going to an out of state specialty clinic in September. Hopefully they'll do something that helps.
How much did you pay for surgury? It sounds like going to the US and paying out of pocket would be very cost prohibitive.
This was in combination with a strict diet, I cant seem to remember all the details anymore but it was something along the lines of 0 sugars, 0 carbs, high fats, lots of greens, protein via white meat only. I would also take a look at Stephen Buhner's protocol, the article below is a good read as well. https://medium.com/p/6e3664fce54f/responses/show
Anyone reading this with a therapeutic need should see a doctor, preferably more than one.
I spent 3 years (and thousands of dollars) trying to find out what was wrong with me until a neurologist tested me for Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever. It came back positive, he gave me 2 rounds of doxycycline and sent me on my way. Anyone with experience with prolonged tick-borne illnesses can tell you, that's not going to fix it. I went and got an appointment with a lyme-literate doctor (there's the typical 2-3 month wait for an appointment to see any of these doctors - if you're lucky.)
I don't need to be told that tests are unreliable or that doctors can be as misinformed as any of us. I am encouraging anybody in this thread who is personally affected to seek medical advice, not the advice of random internet commenters.
Congratulations on beating RMSF.
Unfortunately I have not yet beat it (or whatever other disease(s) the tick gifted me.) I'm still on 3-4 different antibiotics and feeling generally like crap. But it's 'only' been 3 months.
After seeing doctors and not getting better, it is useful to get an idea of what worked for other people because it might lead one on the right path.
Personally, I consider advice - both from doctors and on Internet forums - as advice, not gospel. I do research what doctors recommend, because they too are wrong or implicitly optimize for different criteria than you do (cost of treatment or their own liability vs your well being)
The side effects of Lyme's are not well treated or understood. It's terrible for those effected. Medicine is imperfect and there are still many holes in our knowledge. That doesn't mean you should go to a quack like a naturopath.
And how are you doing now ? out of the war zone ?
My wife diagnosed it over Snapchat. After that, the Physician she had been seeing agreed. (edit, Wife is a doctor of Physical Therapy)
The longer I live, the less I think Physicians deserve their Monopoly.
That way, physicians would have an incentive to actually cure people rather than bill them for some inconclusive diagnostic tests.
We already have a pain killer epidemic, and that would make it worse.
Painkillers treat symptoms but they don't cure anything.
The point is that diagnostics are expensive, and if you're not going to be reimbursed to run them, you're going to take the risk to find the cause. What's left is curing the symptoms.
They currently demand that patients do not even go to a hospital, hence the price penalties for going to an ER and lack of preventative care coverage. The only thing an insurance company will demand is what they currently do - the lowest cost, which is an Rx for pain pills.
Shouldn't I get payed for the work my software does, without interruption, day after day after day?
Physicians face similar challenges when it comes to the bureaucracy in the world of medicine, but with the added challenge of working on the unpredictable biology of human beings rather than a bunch of transistors that are predictable in their behavior.
And imagine if the system was setup in the way you suggest, which doctor in their right mind would take on patients where the treatments aren't as clear cut? Who wants to work for months or years with no guarantee of pay?
Honestly, comparing the two fields is pointless. I do not envy physicians. They are working within a broken system and most are doing the best they can. Blaming them will get us nowhere.
I've been following ZDoggMD for a couple years now and I really like listening to his perspective on the world of healthcare. Check him out if you have any interest: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9hEnAmfTBZs
Is it:
- Increased capabilities gained?
- Risks avoided?
- Alternative opportunities enabled (I babysit your kids, you get a night on the town)?
- Enablement of specialisation, expertise, and concentrated and efficient use of capital?
- Other?
Probably some combination of these.
Also, insurance companies are an opposing force here.
Managing conditions is clearly a useful outcome.
Avoiding conditions is even better.
Payment based on some quality outcome measure -- QALY, or quality-adjusted life-years is one such standard.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quality-adjusted_life_year
The Chinese healthcare model -- you pay the doctor when you're well -- is an alternative approach. (The doctor is obliged to try to get you well again.)
In both cases, there's a limited number of slots available for what's fundamentally a required educational program, and increasing that number of slots is difficult on a structural and staffing level.