Posted 12/15/2017 1:30 AM (GMT 0)
I see KL.
She is very good. She is just what I needed. She listens to everything I say and write down and I am happy to report that she uses those as a guide to my treatment. She addresses my concerns with either a tweak in treatment or calming my fears about a symptom I am having.
I was such a mess, emotionally and physically, before I saw her.
I was seeing another llmd prior to this clinic. For some reason I just never felt safe. I felt unsure of everything happening to me. I also felt like he blew off my concerns. In fact one time he stated that us lymies are all alike...so no big deal to him when I had a concern about something because since in his mind he saw it all, so nothing concerned him. ugh. Well if it concerns me, it felt important because I am the only lymie I know for heavens sake and I deserved to have my questions and concerns answered. He never ran labs and I had to have my primary care dr order the labs that I felt might be needed to watch my body systems and organ health. He gladly ordered whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted. But now I no longer have to do that, KL runs labs every second week of treatment for me. They give you a standing order for labs to be done on a schedule for you. I don't mean to trash this dr, but now that i look back my case was too serious for him. He would be good for someone with a fresh bite, not someone who has been critically ill for 8 years.
Anywhoo, after my 2nd appt with her I really felt like she had my back. She had me covered. She ran the labs, she responded to those appropriately, answered every question I had and I could finally just trust the process.
She is kind, energetic, intelligent, confident, thorough and I never ever felt rushed.
I no longer lay in fear at night worrying about every little symptom or what will become of me then or in the future. I don't know if that is from healing or just because I find I really trust her and that she knows exactly what she is doing with me.
I feel she has a plan...she will change it up if my symptoms warrant, but for the most part she is not flying by the seat of her pants.
Not saying this hasn't been hard, but I trust the process now and can report that I actually am starting to see improvements. Yay!!! And you know what? She celebrates with me when I come in and have positive changes going on!
Something that really impressed myself and my husband about her. She knows her pharmacology. Really knows it! You can throw out a drug or herbal treatment that is and is not involved in your lyme protocol and she will know how it works, the chemical stuff behind how the drug works, how it works in the body, the side effects, the good the bad and the ugly about the drug, she can rattle off dosages and interactions with other drugs. I have many drugs that I have used in other situations I am in and she is right on them. She explains everything. This is huge for me because I have a fear of medication. So big that I will have panic attacks just by adding in a new drug. I can't even take an ibuprofen without being nervous. I usually have every side effect listed on every drug...that is how i got to this point. I have had drs stop treating me because I can't take drugs they write prescriptions for...they get frustrated with me and end the dr/patient relationship, if they can write a drug for me they give up. Not with KL. She gets it. She believes me when I tell her a trouble I am having with a drug and willingly works with me to find a solution. And...I feel so comfortable with her knowledge of pharmacology I know she knows possible interactions and is thinking about them and discusses the meds she is giving me and safe dosages for me. ahhh...my mind can rest.
One time I asked her if activated charcoal would have any affect on my insulin. Meaning, If I have insulin that I just took or took within 3 to 4 hours...(they call this on board insulin...meaning it is active in my body)...would this active insulin be affected by the charcoal? I asked because, I can't have my insulin be pulled from my body...I would have no way to know if it is still working in my cells and if I go high on my blood sugar I would be nervous to take more insulin, because if it was in fact still working and I took more, I could have serious problems with too much insulin floating around in there. So I asked would activated charcoal affect the insulin in my body. She actually did not know, but she said she would do extensive research and get back to me on it. And she did!!!
So my point is, she knows her stuff and when she doesn't she will freely admit she is unsure and she does her research to learn the answer.
For me, KL is an answer to my prayers. Her approach works for me. She makes me feel secure. That in itself is huge because prior to seeing this clinic my anxiety was out of control, a combination of the bacteria and the unknown. And most importantly she gives me hope that I will resume a normal life someday.
I also saw Dr J on my first visit. He got me through a serious problem with my lyme. Because he got me out of the critical state I was in, I felt confident to move forward with the NP.
Also, with my first llmd, I herxed every darn day for 8 to 9months without a break. Not one minute of a break. The amount of pain I was in was off the charts, the weakness, inability to care for myself, and I never ever slept a night longer than 1 hour. The response to me was to suck it up. Nothing to help any of those situations. I honestly considered killing myself several times because I did not feel I could go on like that. Not to mention, all that herxing messed with my anxiety levels, and my brain and thought processes. After switching to Dr J clinic, his 1st priorities was to get me stable. Pain relief was priority, getting my strength back and getting my rest....we still tweak things because stuff may work for awhile and then stop working...she is willing to work with me to achieve all of those goals. No more herxing like I was and the goal was to restore my speech. he accomplished both in 6 weeks. I have never herxed like that again. Now there have been some bad days or two, but never like it was with no break at all and no rest. Dr J and KL specifically stated they do not ever want me in that position of herxing again and if it happens I am to be on the phone immediately to tell them about it. If I have severe herxing where I can not care for myself or get off the couch for 2 days, that is unacceptable to them. The quality of my life has improved dramatically with Dr J and ultimately KL. For this I am forever grateful....I am healing without destroying my body and mind in the process.
Good luck to you Girlie, I know you are traveling a long way to go to this clinic.
Rest assure, if you don't gel with the practitioner you see, you aren't stuck there. You can ask for fresh eyes or a new practitioner. It is okay to do this. You can also make appts to see Dr J if you feel you need to. I never have after the 1st appt because I felt KL was doing so good for me. Dr J will be available for me, I know, if I feel critical again...but so far so good. I feel that I am happy and confident with KL so I will not take up Dr J's time to see me...he can concentrate his appts on those who are like I was...needing top priority care to get stable.
I don't mean to sell anyone on KL or this clinic. I just want to share my experience. My story is not anyone else's story, I know that. But because my experience has been so positive in their care for me, I pray others will have the same experience.