What are they and how do they affect our health?
If you have read much about Lyme or you have it yourself you will see the term CO-Infections mentioned. Co-infections are simply put, bacteria, viruses, fungi or yeast, and parasites that add to the symptoms of the patient. They exist in harmony with the Lyme disease bug called Borrelia. They build communities in our bodies called Biofilm- a slimy, sort of fortress. Within these fortresses which can be located almost anywhere in the body, but mainly the gut, they communicate with each other by means of quorum sensing. Quorum Sensing is a highly sophisticated means of communication between bacteria and other bugs in our bodies. By using this communication, They help each other to survive the onslaught of antibiotics. As a nurse, I was semi-aware of resistant infections years ago, as we were learning why so many of our patients with wounds and incisions were not healing. We were told that there were resistant forms of bacteria in our patients’ wounds creating the inability to heal, however we just weren’t taught about the biofilm that kept those bacteria protected. I remember feeling astonished and puzzled why certain people were taking so many powerful IV antibiotics for months on end and still not beating their infections. OR they would beat it for a few months, only for it to return. It took studying Lyme disease to finally help me understand WHY this was happening. Those poor souls had biofilm filled with strep and staph infections and more. Antibiotics have a lot of trouble getting into biofilms and killing off the bad bacteria.
Living in the biofilms of those of us with Lyme disease are some really nasty players such as Bartonella and Babesia, Epstein Barr Virus, Anaplasma, Mycoplasma, and Rocky mountain spotted Fever, mold, candida, parasites and more. There are a few we know more about and there are many that we still just don’t know that much about. Most of these co-infections are commonly missed on testing, if they get tested for at all. They are thought to be introduced into the body at the same time as Lyme disease itself was. The study of ticks and all that they carry have demonstrated that they rarely carry just Borrelia in their bodies, Most of them carry many of these co-infections, so its possibly that one tick bite actually injects multiple nasty bugs into our systems, however those of us who have multiple co-infections never really know when or how they were introduced. Things like Candida and Epstein Barr Virus are usually there long before a person gets a tick or other insect bite and they just join the party once Borrelia enters.
Antibiotics and pharmaceuticals can help to kill off many of these IF TREATED EARLY ON. But when a person has been treated according to CDC guidelines and still not recovering from their symptoms, we suspect that co-infections and resistant forms of Borrelia were left behind in the biofilms. This is why some people you may know or have heard of have taken years of antibiotics and still cannot seem to beat Lyme disease.
Another thing I learned as a nurse working in hospitals for many years is that we are now living in the age of superbugs. These are germs that are completely evolved to resist any antibiotic thrown at them. MRSA, VRE, Acinetobactor baumannii, and other strep and staph infections. For those of us with Lyme, we know that Bartonella or Babesia can become quite a difficult superbug to beat. And the more we use antibiotics the more resistance that keep forming. We suspect that there are superbugs that have formed that we have not even developed a test for yet. The World Health Organization has been saying for years that the day is coming, in our life times even, when no antibiotic will work anymore. Many superbugs are now being linked to autoimmune illnesses and other rare chronic illnesses that we have previously had no explanation or cure for.
SO what do we do for these resistant Lyme disease, Bartonella, strep, Babesia and other superbugs that are keeping us chronically ill?
Fortunately nature has given us gifts of plant medicine that actually do work without provoking the formation of resistant organisms and biofilm in our bodies. Herbal medicine is on the rise world wide in an attempt to deal with these superbugs and Lyme and co-infections.
People like myself have taken their knowledge of traditional treatments for disease and combined that with formal training in the use of herbs and other natural medicines. These gifts from nature along with lifestyle changes actually do help our bodies heal from Lyme and Co-infections and other super bugs which may be provoking autoimmune and mystery illnesses. By using these wonderful gifts of nature, we can help ourselves to heal from such things as
Chronic Fatigue
Fibromyalgia or fibromyalgia type syndromes
Autoimmune illnesses
Chronic inflammation
Multiple food and chemical sensitivities
Migraines and headaches
G.I. disorders
Skin disorders
Psychiatric disorders
Interstitial Cystitis and prostatitis
Allergies, asthma, eczema
ASD spectrum disorders
As a traditional trained medical professional I used to view plant medicines as unintelligent- harmless but ineffective solutions. Now I have looked at the science and seen in practice that they are the most intelligent and effective solutions. They offer real support for healing without the side effects and without contributing to the overall problem and actually making things worse.
If you or someone you care has Lyme disease and have not been making good progress with their antibiotic or natural treatments, I specialize in finding root causes of their inability to heal. I do bioenergetic testing that is very helpful in determining if co-infections and superbugs could be part of the illness. I also look at environmental toxins, heavy metals, mold, food sensitivities and EMF as potential influences in why someone is not getting better.
For more information or to make an appointment, feel free to contact our office.
admin@foundationswellnesscoaching.com
– Theresa Haselmayer