Great Summary of New Lyme Disease Book

Posted February 8, 2013.  Here is a great summary of Connie Strasheim’s new book.  I read her book  Insights into Lyme Disease Treatment which was critical to my understanding of treatment protocols, co-infections, etc.  I would highly recommend this book as well.

Book Review, from Lyme disease.org

Author Connie Strasheim has written five books about Lyme disease and other chronic illnesses. She’s come to believe there are two groups of people with Lyme disease:

1. Those whose main health problems are caused by Lyme and other tick-borne infections

2. Those who have a whole lot of complicated health problems, of which Lyme and coinfections are only a small part.

She wrote her most recent book, “Beyond Lyme Disease,” for the second group. She maintains that other conditions—not Lyme alone—may actually be the primary cause of their woes.

Chapter One is devoted to adrenal insufficiency, which can be both a cause and an effect of chronic illness. The adrenal glands are involved in immune function and the body’s stress response. They regulate blood sugar levels, blood pressure and inflammation, among other things. Problems with the adrenals can lead to hypothyroidism. Alas, treating hypothyroidism without addressing its underlying cause can make the situation worse. Strasheim asserts that properly addressing adrenal fatigue and related hyperthyroidism may be central to a patient’s ability to recover.

Next, she looks at nutrient deficiencies and other food-related issues. The nutritional content of food in the United States has changed vastly in the last 60 years. A case in point: in 1951, three spears of broccoli contained 130 mgs of calcium and 3500 IU of Vitamin A. By 1999, the nutritional content of an equal serving of broccoli had fallen to 48.3 mgs of calcium and 1542 IU of Vitamin A. Today, those numbers would be even lower. This is just one example of how hard it can be for people to get the nutrition they need. Other problems include genetically modified, pesticide laden foods; food allergies; and differing nutritional needs among individuals.

The author devotes chapters to the following conditions that can also make it harder for people to get well: electromagnetic radiation and pollution; mold and mycotoxins; heavy metal toxicity; parasites; gastrointestinal dysfunction; emotional trauma and depression.

She discusses candida and other fungal issues; opportunistic viruses and bacteria; dental infections and amalgams; structural problems like misalignment of the vertebrae; and when the body is unable to properly detoxify.

Straisheim acknowledges that the need to discover and treat multiple causes of illness can seem overwhelming. Yet, if regular treatment doesn’t seem to be helping you, it can be empowering to find new healing strategies. “Beyond Lyme Disease” is an important book for anyone seeking insight into why they seem unable to recover from tick-borne illness.

I recommend staying away from negative, overwhelming materials, but Connie Strasheim does a good job of providing helpful information  so you can help yourself get to 100% Recovery.  You can order her book here: (just scroll down a little)

https://lymesymptoms.com/contactus/

Lyme disease book

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20 Bullseye Rashes and Doc Said No Lyme Disease

Posted February 5, 2013.  This poor guy!  He had 20 bullseye rashes and his doctor told him, nope, not Lyme disease.  So he was left  to suffer.

Several days later, 20 bull’s-eye rashes — a hallmark symptom of Lyme disease — broke out over Huck’s body. He went back to his family doctor, who insisted it could not be Lyme disease because of the doxycycline Huck had taken. Instead, he diagnosed it as rosacea and sent Huck home with medication for that skin condition.  Ugh.

bulls eye rash lyme symptoms

Don’t wait for Lyme symptoms if you have a bulls eye rash!


If you have a bullseye rash, you have Lyme disease.  Don’t listen to a doctor who tells you you have to wait for Lyme symptoms.  By the time the Lyme symptoms show up, it’s too late!  It’s best to treat right away! And make sure you test for co-infections.  Often times the tick or whatever bit you is carrying more than just the borrelia bergdorferi.  You will not get well if you still have other bacteria lingering in your body.

Read the full article here:

http://www.pennlive.com/bodyandmind/index.ssf/2013/01/when_lyme_disease_symptoms_sti.html

 

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Virginia Needs Physicians’ Help with Lyme Disease

Posted February 3, 2013.  There is a bill in the Virginia House of Delegates, a Lyme Disease testing bill -HB 1933.  The Medical Society of Virginia has worked closely with delegates on this legislation.  This bill would direct the Virginia Department of Health to improve education and outreach to clinicians and the public about Lyme disease.  It would give the best approaches to helping patients with Lyme disease.

They would like to hear from physicians.  They are supposed to vote on Monday, February 4.  Please encourage your LLMD to weigh in ASAP.   Link is below.  Education on Lyme disease and Lyme symptoms is so important!

doctors and lyme disease and lyme symptoms

LLMD’s needed to weight in!

 

 

http://www.msv.org/MainMenuCategories/MemberCenter/PressRoom/News/2013/House-to-vote-on-Lyme-disease-bill-Monday–.aspx

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What You Can Do and Lyme Symptoms

Posted February 3, 2013.  “Do not let what you can not do; interfere with what you can do.” UCLA Basketball coach John Wooden.


I know it’s a drag dealing with Lyme disease and Lyme symptoms.  You’re in constant pain.  I know, I was there.  But think about something you can do, to lift your spirits.  When I lay on the couch day after day, I tried to think about the things I could do, since I couldn’t walk or get around.  When I was feeling up to it, I could do math problems.  (Sounds crazy, but that was actually part of my recovery strategy.)  And even though I couldn’t walk, I could do 5 leg lifts on each side, once each day.  I read cookbooks and  I watched cooking TV shows and thought, someday I’ll do that! (and now I am!) Keep doing the things you can do, even if they are very simple,  and visualize what you will do in the future.  I used to watch salsa dancing You Tube videos and pretend I was actually dancing.  (You create powerful neural pathways doing this by the way)   Sending a cheerful card or e-mail to someone is something you can do right now.  Stay positive and focus on 100% Recovery.  It will come if you stay Relentless!

I sure miss Coach Wooden.  I used to see him at the UCLA basketball games when I was a little Bruin. Even when I had Lyme disease and nasty Lyme symptoms his words echoed in my mind….

 

John Wooden lyme disease lyme symptoms

Think of what you CAN do!

 

 

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States with High Incidence of Lyme Disease and Lyme Symptoms

Posted February 2, 2013.  Find a link below from the Lyme Disease Association to a pie chart graph of Lyme disease cases by state in 2011.  It’s informative, but I’m surprised California doesn’t figure in at all on the chart.  (These are only confirmed cases reported to the CDC however, so the Lyme disease information is rather limited.)

There is an epidemic of Lyme disease and Lyme symptoms in Northern California as well as in Malibu, Ventura and Santa Barbara counties of Southern California. (Ironically Malibu is a hot spot for Lyme disease, many areas of brush on the hillsides and cliffs above the ocean.)

Keep talking to doctors about this, wherever you are.  Any doctor I meet gets an earful about Lyme disease.  (Polite and concise of course, they are generally very appreciative to have the information.)

Let’s try to help as many people as possible avoid the agony of long term untreated Lyme symptoms and Lyme disease.  Tell someone today, there is Lyme disease in states other than those listed by the CDC!

Lyme disease and lyme symptoms by state

Lyme disease and Lyme symptoms by state

http://www.lymediseaseassociation.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1083:2011-lyme-incidence-top-15-states&catid=69:cases-stats-maps-a-graphs&Itemid=148

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