Drugs and time...

In my last post I wrote that the three things that I believe enabled me to overcome late stage Lyme disease were:
- the antibiotic treatment
- minimizing stress
- time

In the last post I delved into the subject of minimizing stress. It wasn't until I was able to reduce stress, especially nutritional stress, that my recovery kicked into top gear.

But without antibiotics and without allowing sufficient time things would have been different.

Antibiotics



I was very lucky to be living in the Netherlands when I became sick with Lyme disease. I was stupid when I first started getting sick as I assumed it was something that would come right by itself. So I put off going to the doctor. For months. When I finally got around to going to the doctor I was very quickly referred to a neurologist and within a matter of a week or two I was in the hospital starting IV antibiotic treatment.

In those last few weeks before I began treatment the range, severity and frequency of the problems I was experiencing started skyrocketing.



For example I when it came to issues with my vision the problems initially happened about once every two weeks and, although disconcerting, were not that severe. By the time I was diagnosed I was losing my vision 5 or 6 times a day and the severity of the 'attacks' were getting worse and worse. Once I started the antibiotics my problems stabilized.

Herx reactions aside all of my problems, aside from the insomnia, subsided a month or so after starting antibiotics. By the way a Herx reaction is a common reaction that can occur when the borrelia bacteria die off from the antibiotics. Basically it means you feel a helluva lot worse before you feel better. It's good to know about this in advance otherwise you may feel the antibiotics aren't working and become discouraged.


Time



By the time I'd finished my 3 week course of IV antibiotics most of my Lyme disease symptoms were vastly improved. However a few such as insomnia and nerve pain in my feet persisted for months or, in the case of insomnia, years. The recovery was definitely not linear - it was very much a case of 3 steps forward, 2 steps back. Although progress was very slow, and very up and down, gradually over time I improved. I found ways, especially through nutrition, to maximize my energy.

And I began to accept and understand that rest and taking things easy was vital. I wanted to work, I wanted to be productive but it was only when I consciously allowed myself the time to really take it easy and focus on recovery that I began to sleep consistently well again.



- If you think you might have Lyme disease go see a doctor!!!!
If you're feeling sick and experiencing 'weird' symptoms do not ignore it like I did!!! Go to your doctor. It's much, much easier to treat Lyme disease and to make a full recovery if you catch it in the early stages.

Be proactive in requesting a test for Lyme disease. I appreciate I am extremely lucky to live in the Netherlands where Lyme disease is recognized and treated. In some countries it is much harder to get diagnosed and treated. The Lyme Disease forum at MD junction has some good info on 'Lyme literate doctors' in the US and other countries:

Don't stress with the ups and downs
At least in my experience, full recovery took a long time and the recovery process was very up and down. It was only when I was able to accept these ups and downs and not get (overly) stressed by them that I could really make progress towards a complete recovery.

Eat well, exercise and take steps to minimize stress
I talk about this in my post on minimizing stress.