Jessica's Biography

Jessica is a 33 year old Lyme patient living in California. She is infected with Lyme Disease and Anoplasma. She probably has Babesia and Bartonella too.

Jessica suffers from muscle and joint pain. She also has numbness, tingling and burning mainly in her arms and legs, but those things can be felt in other places on her body including her face. She often has a rapid heart rate and can be over 200 beats per minute. She suffers from heart palpitations, dizziness/lightheaded, ringing in her ears, muscle spasms, twitching and fatigue. Jessica experiences temperature issues almost always feel cold, but has hot flashes. She has shortness of breath, ADD symptoms. The most scary issue involve her heart though the pain, dizziness and feeling lightheaded are bothersome too.

Jessica experienced her only known tick bite over 20 years ago. She's experienced severe stomach problems (Irritable Bowel Syndrome) and the fatigue started 15 to 20 years ago. The last 15 years or so, she's experienced most of the symptoms. The dizziness really started in around 10 years ago. Jessica felt weak in the knees and her fatigue increased along with insomnia.

Jessica was diagnosed with ADD seven years ago and began medications for it in the last two years, but she's had symptoms of ADD since elementary school. She began to get short of breath, having the heart palpitations and heart racing about 5 years ago. She's also been diagnosed with Asthma and inappropriate sinus tachycardia after a treadmill stress test showed that her heart rate went as high as 272. She was put on Beta Blockers. Jessica had a scary episode of severe muscle pain that left her with no strength in her arms to such extent that she couldn't even squeeze toothpaste out the tube. She had ongoing episodes of weakness, tingling and burning. She was told that this was anxiety, depression and possible Fibromyalgia.

Jessica saw a chriopractor/nutritionist who suggested that it could be Lyme Disease. Lab Corp testing was negative, but at this point she had read enough to know to try to find a Lyme Literate Doctor. She found one in San Diego and tested IGeneX positive and officially diagnosed April 28, 2010. Jessica decided to find a new Primary Care doctor after the last one saw the positive test and said she didn't have Lyme or any other serious condition. Her new doctor is well versed in treating Lyme and agreed to help her. Though due to the denial of disability, she had to see a third doctor ... and Infectious Disease Doctor. She actually agreed with the diagnosis and was concerned over the heart issues. She feels Jessica has Lyme Carditis. Since Jessica's most severe symptoms started 5 to 7 years ago, she's seen three family practice doctors, 2 cardiologist, 1 GP/Cardiologist, 1 Neurolgist, 1 Psychiastrist, Multiple ER and Urgent Care doctors prior to being diagnosed with Lyme Disease.

Jessica's LLMD felt she was too sick to start medications right away so Jessica began with supplements and added medication later. She is currently on Doxy, Mepron, Biaxin, Plquenil, artemisinin, teasel root, similax, transfer factor mulyi-immune, tinidazole, nystatin, magnesium, and a handful of other supplements and herbal tinctures. Jessica is supposed to be adding Levaquin for just 30 days. Once this is completed, she'll have a chest port put in for IV Rocephin for a minimum of six months.


None of Jessica's family has been tested, but she does have two daughters (ages 4 and 7) that need to be tested. Her biggest prayer request is that her disability gets approved and that her daughters don't have Lyme.

Comments

I wanted to post a couple of "comments by Dayna" up here so that the intended people could be reached. :) I will leave out her email address in one of them. If you go down to your biography, you can find it.

This is for Debbie whom I featured in September 2009:

I am 24 years old and I live in Canada and my parents recently bought a house in Mesa, AZ. I was diagnosed with Lyme about 2 months after they purchased it. After we realized that Lyme could not be properly diagnosed and treated in Canada we knew we had to go to the States. Coincidentally, we found a LLMD 9 minutes away from our house who does conventional meds (IV therapy, oral antibiotics) as well as alternative/natural treatments such as saunas, foot detox, lymph drainage etc.

I was there for 3 months and I cant say I had any improvement with this drs protocol and we spent a tremendous amount of money (as we don't have insurance being canadians). However, i have talked to people who have had success so i guess it really depends on the person and if you are willing and have the funds to go this route. After i got back from AZ i still continued the drs protocol but still had no improvement and got beaten up pretty bad by all the antibiotics. I then discontinued this protocol as i felt there was little support by the dr after i left and still no change in my symptoms.

I am currently not on antibiotics and am working with a naturopath from new jersey who has Lyme as well as her whole family. So i hope this is my time to heal. I just wanted to share this with you b/c i no you were looking for a Lyme literate doc in AZ. Unfortunately, I didnt have success but you may want to try it. If you have any questions my email is (left blank). I wish you all the best as this is truly a nightmare, but there is hope!


This is for Jenny N whom I featured in December 2009.

Hi Jenny,

By reading your blog you have the most similar symptoms to me then anyone else i have met with Lyme. When i went to AZ my LLMD didn't understand the tightness in the throat symptom...I am now with a naturopath who said its a common symptom. What kinda treatment are you on have you had improvement with this symptom?

Hope your doing well.

Sincerely,
Dayna :)

Dayna's Biography

Our next 24 year old Lyme friend lives in Winnipeg, Manitoba. For our US friends, that is in Canada. Dayna has three symptoms that are most disturbing to her. Those symptoms include a tightness/lump sensation in her throat, intense all over head pressure which includes the occasional sharp pain and bladder irritability. To Dayna, it feels as if there is always urine sitting in her urethra. Her other symptoms include eye floaters, occasional pain or tingling in her feet and hands. In addition, she has rashes off and on. Up until last year, Dayna was a very healthy and athletic person. She loved to go out with her friends and even went to school. However in the middle of July (2009), Dayna spent the day at her boyfriend's lake cabin. Upon returning home the next morning, her mom noticed a weird bite on her leg. Dayna thought nothing of it thinking it was nothing more than a mosquito bite since they are really bad in the Winnipeg area. Two weeks later though she just didn't feel right. She had a really weird feeling in her stomach and overall she just didn't feel well. She headed to the emergency room and all of her blood work returned normal.

Over the next few months, Dayna's health continued to escalate up and down. In December of 2009, she got her first major symptom of bladder irritability. She saw a Urologist who noted there was something major wrong with her bladder, but he had never seen it before in someone so young. By February of 2010, Dayna started getting a consistent feeling of tightness in her throat along with the lump sensation causing a shortness of breath. She saw two different ENT's and of course they found nothing wrong. By April, she began feeling pressure at the base of her skull and eventually the pressure was all over her head and entered her nasal cavity.

Dayna saw about 15 different specialists whom looked at her like she was crazy. The only doctor that thought something wasn't right was the Urologist. Dayna told him her other symptoms and asked if they could be related. He didn't think so, but he was the only one that truly believed that there was something wrong. She told her parents that she couldn't live like that anymore so they called her Urologist asking for Dayna to be admitted to the hospital. She stayed for four days undergoing various tests only to find nothing. Dayna was very distraught.

About two weeks later (at the end of April), she saw her Urologist again. He uttered the words she had been desperately waiting to hear. "Dayna I know what you have." He took her to a room and told her that she had Lyme Disease. Dayna had heard of Lyme, but wasn't quite sure what it was. Once she was asked to think back to where she could have been bitten, all of the pieces started coming together that she has been sick ever since she had been bitten at the lake. Of course, her Elisa test came back negative. However, her IgeneX Western Blot came back positive. In addition, she was diagnosed with Ehrlichiosis and three viruses. She realized right away there was no adequate treatment in Canada so she saw a LLMD in Arizona for three months. She used IV therapy with holistic and natural therapies. The treatment was unsuccessful for Dayna so she returned home following his protocol of oral antibiotics and detox remedies. The Urologist also gave her weekly IV's, but her body felt like she couldn't handle any more antibiotics.

Above all else, Dayna is thankful and fortunate that she has her Urologist. He's supported her since she first walked into his office. She doesn't know where she would be without his support. She can't believe there are so many people suffering with Lyme and can't get doctor's consent to perform the adequate blood work. Currently, Dayna is working with a Naturopath in New Jersey who also has Lyme Disease. This Naturopath said that antibiotics never worked for her and she healed through all natural supplements and detoxification. The Naturopath also believes that Dayna has a case of Babesia that needs to be treated before her Lyme can be healed. She's been on the new protocol for two weeks and the Naturopath is very uplifting and positive. Dayna is hoping that this is her time to heal.

Dayna's biggest prayer request is for the strength to get her through this struggle. She is ready to have her health back and prays the same thing for everyone else going through this. She prays that the people who have been ignorant towards individuals with Lyme Disease will eventually open up their eyes and start helping in the healing process instead of making matters worse. Lastly, she prays that they will allow for adequate treatment and diagnosing for current and future Lyme patients so that we all don't continue to suffer in the dark.

If you would like to post prayers or messages for Candice, go to the top to where it says "click here to post to blog" or leave a comment for her at the end of this post.

Praying for Lymies

I'm still here. Take a moment to go through all the previous prayer biographies featuring 36 Lyme patients, 1 Lyme doctor and several updates on biographies. Over on the left, I have broken it down into a "dozen" at a time. This makes it a little easier to keep up with where you've left off. Also I have each post labeled with the Lyme friend's name and location to help you find friends and or others in your area. If you come across a post that needs a more specific label, let me know commenting on the blog post that needs it with what you think needs to be added. I will contemplate such a change to the labels for the post and fix it if needed.

Dayna's biography is almost complete so it will be posted soon. If you would like to be featured, leave a comment with your email address so I can respond via email. Those leaving email addresses for ME to respond to will be deleted in the comments as soon as send the email. Those leaving email address for OTHERS will remain in the comment suggestion unless you leave a request asking for it to be removed. :) (example of this is where Dayna left her address for a Lyme friend to contact her should she have any questions regarding a LLMD in Arizona ... I left it up for that Lyme friend to read. Should Dayna want me to remove it however, I can do so easily!).

New Biography

There will be a possible new biography coming soon. I'm so excited to be featuring a new Lymie coming up in the next week or so. I just have to get her information from her. I'm still here. See I check comments every day!

Still Around

For those that are wondering, I am still around. I check for new posts and new comments at least once a week. Sometimes more than that. IF you would like to be featured let me know and leave a way for me to contact you.

You can leave an email address for me to piece together like this:


whateveryourscreennameis at gmail dot com

prayers

I don’t always post, but am praying for those featured here on your blog. I am lifting up Lisa and Jenny and her family. May God wrap His loving arms around them and bring them healing.

Renee

Lisa D's Update

Remember Lisa D? Recently I reconnected with Lisa to find out how things were going.

Aside from Lyme Disease, Lisa's mother in law was re-diagnosed with a brain tumor. She spent most of the year with her. She took a turn for the worse and at the end of October she passed away. Please keep Lisa in your thoughts and prayers during this time.

At the end of 2009, Lisa and her husband saw their Lyme doctor. Her husband is doing much better. Lisa has also improved, but they are both still on their Lyme medications for at least another 6 months. Lisa has now been on them for a year straight. Lisa's doctor believes there is something else going on, but will test for that later.

Lisa wants everyone to know that she is praying for everyone that has Lyme, especially the young children that have been denied their childhood. She prays that God will make this a better year for all. In our healing and in our sickness, she says, "We need for the world to stop and look around, see those in pain and suffering and think of them."

It was my hope when I started this blog that we could reach out to others with Lyme Disease to show an outpouring of love and prayer. Please continue to pray for Lisa and her family.

Johnny Update

Remember Johnny?

I recently reconnected with him to find out how he's been doing. Johnny no longer feels as if he's dying all the time. His dizziness has also improved. He has had so many things that have cleared up, but he is no where near like he was prior to getting Lyme Disease.

John's sleeping patterns are still not normal. He still has neurological damage which includes muscle twitching, spasms and vibrations. These things aren't near as severe as they were a year ago, but they are still there. Something that is extremely frustrating for John is that his brain function is horrible. He has difficulty completing sentences and spelling without mistakes.

Overall, he experiences functionality and is able to walk without pain. Currently, John is on a 5 week drug holiday. He is hoping for the best with no relapse. He desires your prayers for improvement. He believes a positive attitude is key to recovery, but that is easier said than done.

If you would like to submit a prayer for John, please leave a comment for him to read.