Some things that have helped my Lyme

Lyme affects everyone differently. That's one of the reasons why it's such a bitch of a disease.

There are so many schools of thought on how to treat Lyme, many of which I have tried in one form or another. Most of which, I must admit, made me worse rather than better. But there are a few things I've tried that did offer improvement.

For example, the IV vit. C thing really helped when I was at my lowest point of health. It didn't provide miracle but perhaps that was because I didn't take it often enough or strong enough doses. Then again, maybe it was just the rehydration and extra vitamins it provided to me when I was in a malnourished state.

Long term Antibiotics did a great deal of good for me. They tipped the balance, putting me on the path to better health. They really did save my life. But it got to a point where they weren't helping any more. In fact, eventually the side effects from the drugs were causing more harm than good. It was at that point that we decided to stop them.

It is possible that the Lyme symptoms that remain are simply permanent damaged from having the infection so long (20+years) or even other genetic conditions that have been aggravated by the long term pressure on my immune system. Or, the infection might still be very active. We are currently at the point where we are investigating this.

If I had to choose one thing that had the most influence on my health so far it is lifestyle changes: Specifically my diet and environment.

Before I even knew I had Lyme, I began working on my diet. I knew something was wrong with me and had hoped that it was simply a food sensitivity. Isn't that the natural place to start looking when you have a grumpy immune system and chronic fatigue?

I began by cutting out all dairy (a food I've always been sensitive too), wheat and soy from my diet. It had a small beneficial effect on my health so we dug deeper. There are blood tests you can do (for a few hundred dollars) to judge your immune response to different foods. A naturopath can order this as well as some family doctors. I had high and moderate IGG immune responses to about 14 different everyday foods. So, with great difficulty, I cut these out of my diet as well. Doing this pretty much stabilized my condition. It reduced the load on my immune system which allowed the antibiotics to start working.

My personal opinion on the matter: It is worse than useless to try to cure Lyme with antibiotics unless you modify your diet first. The Lyme infection is just too strong and the body cannot fight it if it is also fighting your food choices.

But then again, that is my personal opinion. Everyone is different and must choose their own path... but maybe...when Lyme is such a horrid illness... why not do everything possible to help your body recover?

It turns out that wheat was not one of my wrong-foods after all. The beneficial effect I had from removing wheat from my diet happened because ....... well, when I buy flour I assumed that I was buying a bag of ground wheat. In fact, I was buying a bag of ground wheat with a whole bunch of additives. It is like how they now put soy in cinnamon for some reason. When buying ingredients, you have to be certain to read the ingredients list. It's very annoying.

Ones environment has a huge effect on the immune system. There are a lot of toxins in the modern world. New clothing is treated with fire retardant and sizing (both highly toxic), as is carpet, the mattress you sleep on, person hygiene products... it's a long list.

What I had success with: got rid of the carpet in the house and replaced it with wood flooring (bought at the local floor auction for less than new carpet would have cost), changed my clothes to all natural fibres, replaced my mattress with a wool one, got rid of all stinky things from the house and replaced all cleaners with ecofriendly ones.

Another factor that made a difference was dirty electricity. I got rid of the electric clock and make certain that just about no electrical devices are on in my room while I sleep. Also, we opted not to get wireless internet in our home and I'm very keen on replacing some of the portable phones with wired ones.

The environment is harder to change than diet, but just as important for relieving stress on the immune system and giving it a chance to fight the infection.

Staying active and motivated to do things everyday was one of the more difficult aspects of recovering. It is also an important step and one I took great efforts to make. It began by making certain I did a little bit of yarn time every day. No matter how much my hands hurt, I spent a few minutes knitting or spinning or doing something that I enjoy. Crafts are good because you're not just doing something, you are making something. It's beneficial for the spirit.

When we got chickens then I had to go out at least twice a day and see to them. It's not a huge thing, but being a place where I had to do something every day, even a small task like feeding and watering a few birds, motivated me to try more things. Even on my worst days, when I couldn't physically accomplish the task on my own, I would still go out and be there while someone else saw to the chickens. That way I'm out of the house at least twice a day and I get so much joy out of watching the birds scratch in the yard.

Biofeedback has also helped with pain management and stress reduction, but I find it difficult to motivate myself to use it. Mostly I just use it when the pain is too great that I cannot sleep.

More recently I've had success with two other treatments.

Microcurrent treatment has been very good for joint pain. Especially because I can no longer tolerate pain pills. I understand that they also have a Lyme protocol.

And finally, I've recently started taking Teasel. So far, this has had a very good effect.

I'm not saying that Teasel is a miracle cure for Lyme and I'm not saying that this is for everyone. In fact, I'm not saying much of anything about it just now. I'll devote a post to it in the next little while where I hope to discuss the effect it has had on me so far, my musings on why it is working so well so quickly, and of course my doubts as to how good this will get.

In conclusion: I'm not all the way better. I'm not even well enough to be a functional member of society. But compared to how I was when I started this blog, there is finally hope that I might recover enough to do something productive with my life.