Suspected Lyme & Barely Functioning.. Next Steps?

Since Lyme affected many of my family members, I had researched quite a bit by the time I was bit by a nymph deer tick. Not surprisingly, I feel confident in the decisions I made after that....most especially seeking the care of a LLMD (Lyme Literate MD)

Many LLMD's don't accept insurance and some insurance companies put restrictions on the amount of time a person can take antibiotics.

I was fortunate to find a LLMD that accepts insurance (not mine, unfortunately) but his rates are liveable. It was $300 for the first appointment (1.5 hrs) and $85 for 15-min followups (but he has spent more time with me). My specialist co-pay is $50....I figure my health is worth the extra $35 :)

Lyme is a clinical diagnosis (based upon symptoms). Unfortunately, many of today's doctors have lost their clinical skills and people suffer as a result.

Your naturopath is pointing you in the right direction....and the ultimate place to find a LLMD is ILADS (International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society)

http://www.ilads.org/

I suggest that you read around on their site for general information and take advantage of their offer to send you contact info for LLMD's in your area.

You may know that Dr. Burrascano is one of the founders of ILADS and he has successfully treated over 12,000 Lyme & Co. patients. He no longer practices and, instead, is involved in a global effort to educate treating physicians.

You might want to read his diagnosis and treatment guidelines:

http://www.lymenet.org/BurrGuide200810.pdf

Steroids can cause more damage than good in Lyme & Co. patients and Dr. Burrascano mentions that in the guidelines I linked.

Best of luck to you in getting the proper treatment!

Hi Hopeful!
CD gave you some very good information! Welcome to our community!

As Cd said, the bulls eye rash is conclusive of Lyme disease. It's the skin form of the infection, and is the only thing that produces that particular rash.

If you haven't yet, please do read through our "New to Lyme? Start here!" thread that sits at the top of the forum as it's packed with important information, detoxing suggestions, symptom lists (Lyme is rarely the only thing passed) and much more information.

Also as Cd pointed out, the Western Blot is only looking for antibodies, not the bacteria. Considering Lyme, especially when combined with Bartonella, inhibits the immune system, so tests looking only for antibodies produced won't be very useful. Although if you would like to post the bands that you showed positive on - if there were any - we can help you understand what they mean. But it won't change the fact that you have had the Bulls eye rash, which, as we've said, is conclusive for Lyme.

You will need to find a LLMD or LLND (Lyme Literate Medical or Naturopathic Doctor), but there are most likely some in your area.

For information on finding a Lyme Literate Medical Doctor(LLMD) in your area, you can start a new thread titled something like:"Looking for LLMD/LLND in the _______ area." Although you will need to enable your email option in your profile in order to receive any recommendations, as we don't allow doctor's names and contact info to be posted on the forum for several reasons. You can enable your email option in your profile, under 'edit profile'. Be sure to click the submit button to actually save your preference.

​You can send me an email by clicking on my screen name or the small blue envelop under my screen name. I may have contact information for some LLMD's in your area as well.​
​Please include your state and area that you would like to find a LLMD in and I will see how close I can get.​


You can email Stephanie at: [email protected] You can also go to: www.turnthecorner.org/ if you want to learn a little bit more about Lyme Disease.

You can also go to The Lyme Disease Association and search for LLMD's 3 times in a month. You have to register first. Here is the link: www.lymediseaseassociation.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=277&Itemid=74

​ You can also now email TBDA (Tick Borne Disease Alliance) at [email protected]​
​ and ask for LLMD referrals also.
​
You will want to find an ILADS (International Lyme And Associated Diseases Society) trained doctor, as ID Docs (Infectious Disease Doctors) believe Lyme is hard to catch and easy to treat, and don't believe in the reality of chronic Lyme. Go to the ILADS site to read the new (2014) Treatment guidelines to get you started on your Lyme journey.www.ilads.org/lyme/ILADS_Guidelines.pdf