| Lyme Disease Story |
| My first encounter with Lyme Disease took place sometime during the Spring of 2001. At the time I was studying a semester of International Business and Trade abroad at American University in Washington D.C., and didn't give my fatigue much thought at the moment. I was taking challenging courses with grad students and interning 18 hours a week for a financial consulting firm, plus attending parties and clubbing every weekend. So my personal conclusion was that I had overdone it with activities and the fatigue would go away as soon as I got a chance to get some real rest. But that was not the case. It was not until I came back from Washington D.C. to Mexico and had nose surgery that I felt something was wrong with my body. I can't really describe it but I just knew I wasn't doing well. I was depressed and had flu like symptoms, my whole body ached. (A few months later, my curiosity to understand what was happening to my body brought me back to consult the surgeon who had performed my nose job once more. From whom I learned that it is "standard procedure" to give patients a cortisone shot after their surgery to "help" reduce swelling. To the best of my knowledge this is what brought out more agressive Lyme symptoms in me. Any type of steroid aids the bacteria to spread.) Needless to say even two wonderful weeks at the beach that summer were a hassle. I made napping a habit, and could only stand physical activity for a few hours each day. Otherwise I felt like I was pushing myself too much and eventually fell apart. I became irritable and melancholic, two new words in my vocabulary since I had always been a very cheerful person. The first noticable symptoms I had were rashes....... in all shapes and sizes! After a few weeks of trying every allergy medicine I could get my hands on, the pain started rolling in. I felt as if my bones were being cracked open from the inside out. I was in excrutiating pain and the rashes kept on coming on a daily basis. The first doctor I saw was a Traumatologist who gave me shots, which he said would relieve both the pain and the swelling. Each shot seemed to work for a little while but after the medication wore off, I would get even sicker. Within the next couple of weeks I saw a dermatologist, an allergist, a rheumatologist, a general practitioner and an internal medicine doctor. Almost a month had gone by since I started feeling sick, so I got blood work done for EVERYTHING (or so they told me). The results were shockingly abnormal!!! My red blood cells were extremely high (almost triple the normal amount), and several other indicators in my results showed that I had some sort of infection of some sort but not one of the doctors was able to pin it down. I heard scary words like leukemia, multiple sclerosis, immuno suppressant illnesses like lupus, within many others. Four months later and after giving it a lot of thought, my family and I decided that it was time that I looked elsewhere for answers to my health problems. So I traveled to Houston, Texas in search for hope. I spent endless hours browsing medical books at the local Barnes and Noble. I researched, and researched for weeks until I came up with a list of possible illnesses that I wanted to start discussing with my doctors. But after a few weeks of medical attention in the United States I remained undiagnosed and felt miserable. Something was definitely wrong but nothing could be pinpointed and I was getting more and more ill as time went by. I flew back home with little hope left, only to find out that my father was out of a job and my family was struggling financially. I started college courses the week after I came back from Houston. Academically it has been the most challenging time in my life but I fought hard and did well in my classes that semester. Unfortunately my life had been reduced to attending classes and laying on the couch either reading or watching TV. Anything other than that was a real hassle and would literally give me a headache. I was still agonizing and continued to visit doctors in Mexico, one after another but really needed my life to move forward. I felt as if my whole life had been put on hold for the past 8 months. The best time of my life was passing me by and I was frustrated. So I decided to sign up myself to work for the United Nations Conference for Finance and Development that took place in Monterrey, Mexico in March 2002. I was one of the chosen few who got a chance to work side by side with dignitaries and political leaders from all over the world. Even though I was struggling I knew that this was an opportunity I didn't want to pass on. So I didn't, I worked hard, so hard that I would come home at night and weap. At the end of the first day of the conference my feet were so swollen with hives that my shoes wouldn't fit. I called the doctor and he gave me more cortisone shots. I rested my feet that night and went to work 16 hours straight the very next day. I got a call from a close friend (just in case you are curious, this friend is Drew) inviting me to spend a few days with him in Indiana and then a weekend on the Smoky Mountains in Tennesse. I didn't even hesitate to accept his offer...... I really needed a break! We had a great time together but the rashes continued to come and go as they pleased (usually every day or every other day). I couldn't seem to get away from what was making me sick. While I was on my way to Indiana my latest blood work was being sent to California. As soon as I came back from the trip I was told that my blood tests came back positive for Lyme Disease. Ohhh, by the way it wasn't just Lyme Disease, it was CHRONIC LYME DISEASE. I didn't know much about it but started digging up as much as I could find....... I was determined to get better! The doctor who diagnosed me down in Mexico for Lyme told me that there wasn't much he could do about it because he didn't know how to treat Lyme. I talked to many more doctors, they all said that Lyme Disease did not exist in Mexico and that they were unable to help me. I was willing to move to any city in the US where I could get appropiate treatment for Lyme. But had to reconsider once I discovered my insurance would not pay for ANYTHING outside Mexico. I prayed God to help me and he did. One of my aunts called me one morning to tell me that another one of my aunts had met a Lyme Disease patient that goes to her church in Houston. I quickly called her up and asked for advice. She had Lyme since she was a child and it wasn't until she found Dr. William Harvey in Houston that her symptoms decreased. So after performing a nation wide search for a good Lyme Literate MD, and viewing all my options I decided to start seeing Dr. Harvey in Houston. It was my pick because Houston is only an hour plane ride away from my hometown, and I have both friends and family in the area. Plus I now had references from several people telling me how great he was. I will never be able to thank him enough. He was an angel who held my hand during the next two years and helped me recover my life. Dr. Harvey himself had suffered from Lyme Disease at some point in his life and understood the symptoms and frustration that come from such a disease. His compassion and sympathy were amazing and his staff was always very helpful and kind. I started an IV treatment at the end of July of 2002, I spent over a year infusing myself 1 gram of IV Rocephin (basically penicillin) through a catheter EVERY SINGLE DAY! Yes, I had a catheter in my chest; which in plain English means I had two - not very sexy looking tubes - coming out of my chest. There was a time when I was swallowing almost 30 pills a day, plus infusing myself the IV medication. It was a constant "high"....... I gradually reduced my intake of medications and my body got accustomed to the IV, so towards the end I didn't feel like I was walking on clouds anymore. Slowly but surely I began to feel an improvement, both physically and emotionally. I made a decision to drop out of college for two years, concentrated on my recovery and continued the fight against Lyme. I continued to fly to Houston every 6 to 8 weeks to see Dr. Harvey. I was also seeing doctors in Mexico, they were all curious about my health and although they know close to NOTHING about Lyme right now, I hope my case helped open their eyes to the fact that Lyme does exist in Mexico but it probably goes undiagnosed most of the time. I took a job with the Canadian Chamber of Commerce in January of 2003. I became the general manager of their office in Monterrey until March of 2004. I was functional once more and quickly turned into a workaholic. I was swamped with work, facing numerous challenges professionally and meeting lots of people through the new job. My dream of moving back to Washington D.C. had to be postponed for a couple of years. I HAD TO GRADUATE COLLEGE FIRST and RECOVER FROM LYME! As you can see, all this has turned my life around dramatically. The plans I had for the short-term had been put on the back burner indefinetely. But I learned so much during the process that I am actually thankful to have survived the whole ordeal. Even though the treatment was not easy and the road was very bumpy, I am happy to say that I am out of the woods. My immune system is strong once again!!! The biggest problem that I have now is deciding what to do with my life after Lyme! (All things considered, this isn't really a problem, more like a concern about what to pursue next) There's a WHOLE world out there waiting to be explored!! I am now realistic and know that it is unlikely that I'll change the world, I just hope to leave a positive mark on those who cross my path in life. Before Lyme Disease I thought I knew exactly what path to take into my future. I now know that life sometimes throws curve balls at us and I believe it's ok to get hit by one of these balls once in a while. But I won't live in fear of getting hit! I'll continue to lead a life of joy and trust that God will be by my side no matter what. I owe my recovery to God, incredible doctors, wonderful health are professionals, a supporting family, marvelous friends, and all those caring individuals on Lymenet who have stayed by my side through good times and bad. I wouldn't have been able to pull it off without you! I THANK YOU ALL FROM THE BOTTOM OF MY HEART! Or like they say in my country, GRACIAS! I hope that the above description has helped you understand Lyme some more. Please do not hesitate to contact me. It wasn't too long ago that I was e-mailing strangers seeking help as well. |