How do I know if I have Lyme disease? This is a question I get a lot. Sometimes the person
remembers a tick bite other times they don’t. But they can see from their online research that
they do have many of the typical symptoms:
- Fatigue
- Brain fog
- Stomach and belly issues
- Headaches
- Fevers that come and go
- Joint pain
- OCD, bipolar
- Anxiety, and panic
- Depression
- Muscle pains that move around the body
- Joint pains that move around
- Nerve pain, neuropathies
- Dizzy spells
- Insomnia
- Air hunger, breathlessness
- Heart racing
- Weakness
- And many more
As you can see, these symptoms are broad reaching and can be a part of many different clinical pictures. Parasites, heavy metals, environmental toxins, EMF sensitivities, mold illness, all can manifest these same symptoms in varying combinations. And there is no definitive set of symptoms that are the exact same for everyone. This is why it is so hard for doctors to diagnose or embrace this illness. The problem at the heart of all the controversy over Lyme disease is the absence of a gold standard test. The standard two tiered CDC test misses more than half of cases according to ILADS ( International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society of medical practitioners) and the data coming out of the largest Scientific study ever done on Lyme disease patients. More than half do not ever remember getting a tick bite and or never got a positive test. The CDC tells us that they have 30,000 cases reported yearly but they project it is more like 300,000. They also claim the testing is 80% accurate and standard treatment with Doxycycline is 80% effective. You can deduce what you like from that but to me, it seems that those of us who have suffered for many years had the odds truly stacked against us. Either we just weren’t tested at all because of the indoctrination that “ We don’t have Lyme in our area”, or just medical ignorance on the topic led us to no testing or poor testing, as well as substandard treatment or no treatment at all.
ILADS doctors use more sophisticated testing, however even they will admit none of it is gold standard. For myself, I spent thousands of dollars back in the day desperately trying to get a diagnosis, and learned the hard way that no test is gold, even the expensive higher quality tests.
So does that mean we should just not test at all? Is it a complete waste of time? I don’t think so.
Testing is something I still advise – if you get a positive, then that is going to be helpful in your treatment protocols. However if you are one of those people who have gotten negative tests and still have a Lyme-like clinical picture, I advise going through a holistic, natural lyme / autoimmune treatment protocol anyway. There is no harm done, and the vast majority of people who elect to go this route have found significant relief and complete remission in many cases. IF you prefer to use antibiotics and can find a doctor willing to prescribe them for you, they are far less likely to work if you have been sick longer than 3 months. For a minority of people, they will get relief of symptoms with Doxycycline alone after 3 months of the illness, so it may be worth a try if your insurance covers it. In my experience, safe, effective, holistic treatment is the better option. IF you would like to come talk to me regarding your situation, I offer free 20 minute in person
consultations to discuss these complexities. I can answer your questions and if you elect to
work with me, and get you started down a road of effective, safe, holistic healing. In the last 4
years I have coached hundreds of people and learned so much about guiding those with Lyme
like symptoms back to health.
– Theresa Haselmayer RN & Holistic Health Practitioner
Stay tuned for more information – And CHECK OUT this month’s supplement SALE in celebration of Lyme Awareness Month! 
Click the Balloons to see Supplement List!