My Battle With Lyme Disease

Lyme disease is a complicated illness that varies differently in each individual. Typically, Lyme disease is transferred to humans through tick bites. The most common symptoms of Lyme are flu-like symptoms, fatigue, fever, muscle aches and pains, etc. Since every case is so vastly different from the next, Lyme disease is commonly misdiagnosed and improperly treated, leaving the disease to manifest in the body longer, causing even more damage. You will commonly hear stories of people falling ill 1-2 years prior to actually discovering the real issue of Lyme disease, as was the case for me.

I started noticing a change in my health about a year before actually being diagnosed with Lyme disease. For me, Lyme really settled in my endocrine system affecting my hormones and female organs, which is somewhat uncommon. I ended up bleeding for about 4 months straight, jumping from doctor to doctor taking test after test trying to determine the cause. In the meantime, I was losing cognitive function. I had absolutely no control over my emotions, my memory was rapidly fading (I even forgot where I lived while driving home one day), and I could feel my body physically and emotionally shutting down. Every day I seemed to lose more control over my body as the pain and suffering amplified.  I eventually developed an infection due to the prolonged bleeding and was prescribed a heavy dose of antibiotics. It was not until I starting having severe reactions to the antibiotics that I realized I may have Lyme disease. The antibiotic caused a “herx” reaction, or die off, and I became violently ill…fever, nausea, body aches, etc. The doctor said I had an allergic reaction to the medication, but a friend mentioned it sounded more like a herx reaction from Lyme disease. At that point, I was helpless and would take any test to figure out what was wrong with me.  A few months later I finally was diagnosed with Lyme disease. Despite the fear and unsettling feeling of knowing I had Lyme disease, I also felt a tremendous amount of relief and peace in knowing and that I could finally begin the healing process.

I started out on antibiotics which instantly helped me in the first few months. However, I eventually reached a point where I felt like I was taking medications for my medications and that the antibiotics may be wreaking more havoc in my body than actually healing. I decided to stop all medications for Lyme disease and begin implementing the GAPS Diet by Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride. The GAPS Diet is a healing protocol that is founded upon the idea that if we heal our guts, we can begin to heal our health issues. I started noticing improvement in my health almost instantaneously upon implementing the diet. It has been nearly a year now that I am completely off all Lyme-related meds (woohoo!) and finally feel like I have regained control of my health again.

Healing is a practice with a lot of ups and downs along the way. I decided to become a Nutritional Therapy Practitioner and Certified GAPS Practitioner so that I could help others in their journey to wellness. So many times people feel helpless and alone in the healing process and this should not be the case. I created Fairy Gutmother so that whether you are fighting an illness or are simply interested in living a healthier lifestyle, there would be a place for you to turn for support. Thank you for taking the time to read my story, I hope my experience and site can be helpful for you!