Lyme Disease Risk Higher Than You Think

Lyme disease is the most common tick-borne disease. It is one of the fastest-growing infectious diseases. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention admits to over 300,000 new cases per year! In reality, as we have seen in our office percentage-wise, we believe it’s much greater than that, and the risk is rising.

Since national surveillance began in 1982, the number of annual Lyme cases reported has increased nearly 25 fold. The disease is also spreading geographically. Between 1993 and 1997, 43 counties across the U.S. had a high incidence of Lyme disease.

By 2012, the number had skyrocketed to 182, as reported by TIME Magazine. According to the CDC, Lyme is not only rampant in the hotspots but is rapidly spreading across the country. IIn the northeast alone, Lyme has increased 320 percent. It is now appearing in many states where it had never been previously recorded.

Lyme disease is a unique disease with many diverse symptoms. It is caused by the infectious spirochetal germ Borrelia burgdorferi. Its cousin germs, Bartonella henselae, Babesia microti, and the Ehrlichia species’ bacteria cause related diseases. There are over 100 species of Borrelia and 100 species of Babesia.

These germs all have characteristics similar to the spirochete that causes syphilis, Treponema pallidum. Therefore, they are corkscrew-shaped, which enables them to burrow deep into the connective tissue. To add insult to injury, these bugs are pleomorphic, meaning they can change shape at will, go flat, and burrow deeper into the tissue, then go round.

They can also live intracellularly, which is why they evade antibiotics. They also bind to the heavy metals in your system and create an armored protective shell. Antibiotics cannot penetrate this shell.

Lyme is spread by ticks, mosquitoes, spiders, fleas, saliva, breast milk, and sexual activity, according to Richard Horowitz, MD, Hyde Park, New York, and DesBIO Homeopathics. It has recently been found to also be transmittable in other animals’ saliva, including pet dogs.

Interestingly, one of the reasons blood tests are so unreliable is that the spirochete can infect white blood cells. Since lab tests rely on these cells’ normal function to produce the antibodies they measure, they will not respond to an infection appropriately. The worse the infection, the less likely it will show up on a blood test.

The standard Elisa test is no better than 50/50, according to Richard Horowitz, M.D. Johns Hopkins says it misses 55% of Lyme-positive patients. The CDC and the New York State Department of Health say it missed 81% of the people that did not have a bullseye rash.

There are three phases in Lyme disease.

Bite Phase

The patient may have a classic bull’s eye rash only seen in 25% of cases. Arthritis symptoms are prevalent.

Initial Symptoms:

Unrelenting fatigue, recurring fever, headaches, migraines, achy muscles, and joints.

Latent Dormant Phase

Minimal symptoms and the rash and arthritis seem to improve.

Full-Blown Phase

The disease returns in its full-blown glory as it attacks the nervous system and the immune system with varied symptoms.

One of the most important aspects of developing a Lyme disease treatment protocol is strengthening and restoring the immune system. Lyme disease bacteria and associated neurotoxins are immunosuppressive. Since homeopathy stimulates the body’s response to the disease, it is basically able to “jumpstart” the immune system to engage in the fight against the infection.

It gets to the root of the issue, not by generically boosting the whole immune system. Instead, it specifically targets immune functions that relate exactly to the disease at hand. A combination of homeopathy, Chinese herbs, and glandular has proven successful for patients for the last nine years.

The word “homeopathy” is derived from two Greek words, “homoios,” which means “similar,” and “pathos,” which means “suffering.” Homeopathy’s basic premise is called the “principle of similars.” It refers to recurrent observation and experience that a medicinal substance will elicit a healing response for the specific syndrome of symptoms proven to cause when given in overdose to a healthy person.

The beauty of the principle of similars is that it initiates a healing response and encourages respect for the body’s wisdom. Because symptoms represent our body’s best efforts in its defenses against infection or stress, it makes sense to utilize a medicine that helps and mimics this defense rather than that inhibits it. The principle of similars may be one of nature’s laws that, when used well, can be one of our most sophisticated healing strategies.

Homeopathic medicine is so widely practiced by physicians in Europe that it is no longer considered “alternative medicine.” Approximately 30 % of French doctors and 20% of German doctors use homeopathic medicines regularly, according to Dana Ullman, MPH, British Homeopathy Institute.

Over 40% of British physicians refer patients to homeopathic doctors, and almost half of Dutch physicians consider homeopathic medicines effective (Fisher and Ward, 1994). The fact that the British Royal Family has used and supported homeopathy since the 1830s reflects its longstanding presence in Britain’s national health care system.

Homeopathic medicine also once had a major presence in American medical care and society. In 1900, there were 22 homeopathic Medical schools in the U.S., including Boston University, University of Michigan, New York Medical College, Hahnemann University, University of Minnesota, and even the University of Iowa.

Further, many of America’s cultural elite were homeopathy’s strongest advocates, including Mark Twain, William James, John D. Rockefeller, Susan B. Anthony, Louisa May Alcott, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Henry David Thoreau, and Harriet Beecher Stowe, among others.

The principle is to regulate antibody production, upregulate immune response, re-pattern the body’s energy pathways, minimize clearing reaction, get better effects with multiple potencies, and reverse dilutions, enforced by ultra-high potency follow-up support. One can expect positive outcomes for both chronic and acute infections. This is one of the most powerful homeopathic approaches to infection available.

The first step to determining an individualized protocol is determining what co-infections are also present. As most Lyme patients already know, Borrelia never seems to come alone. Tick bites can transmit numerous other bacteria and viruses, like Bartonella, Babesia, Mycoplasma, Coxsackie, Nanobacterium, Parvovirus, Rocky Mountain Spotted Valley Fever.

Also, one’s system may harbor Brucella, Candida, C. Difficile, Cytomegalovirus, Epstein Barr Virus, H.Pylori, SIBO, Hepatitis, Herpes Simplex, Herpes Zoster, Streptococcus, Toxoplasma Gondii, Chlamydia, Condylomata (HPV).

Initial testing via acupuncture points takes about an hour until the satisfactory balance is achieved with Chinese herbs and homeopathic remedies. Depending on the illness’s length and the number of co-infections, treatment generally takes six to eight months for a full recovery.

Lyme Disease Symptoms

Many Lyme symptoms, such as fatigue, cognitive impairment, joint pain, poor sleep, mood problems, muscle pain, and neurological presentations also occur in other diseases. Hence, Lyme disease symptoms significantly overlap those of chronic fatigue, fibromyalgia, rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, ALS, depression, and Alzheimer’s disease. Many Lyme patients report being misdiagnosed with a different condition before being properly diagnosed with Lyme disease.

HEAD, FACE, & NECK

Headache, facial paralysis like Bell’s palsy, tingling of the nose, cheek, face, stiff neck, sore throat, swollen glands, heightened allergic sensitivities, twitching of facial/other muscles, jaw pain, stiffness (like TMJ), changes in smell, and taste.

DIGESTIVE & EXCRETORY SYSTEM

Upset stomach (nausea, vomiting), irritable bladder, unexplained weight loss or gain. Loss of appetite, anorexia.

RESPIRATORY & CIRCULATORY SYSTEMS

Difficulty breathing, night sweats or unexplained chills, heart palpitations, diminished exercise tolerance, heart block, murmur, atrial fibrillation, Chest pain, or rib soreness.

PSYCHIATRIC SYMPTOMS

Mood swings, irritability, agitation, depression, anxiety, personality changes, ADD, ADHD, malaise, aggressive behavior, impulsiveness, suicidal thoughts, overemotional reactions, crying easily, disturbed sleep (too much, too little, difficulty falling or staying asleep), suspiciousness, paranoia, hallucinations, feeling as though you are losing your mind, obsessive-compulsive behavior, bipolar disorder, manic, behavior, or a schizophrenic like state, including hallucinations.

COGNITIVE SYMPTOMS

Dementia, forgetfulness, memory loss (short or long-term), poor school or work performance, attention deficit problems, distractibility, confusion, difficulty thinking, difficulty with concentration, reading, spelling, disorientation, getting or feeling lost, reproduction, and sexuality.

FEMALES

Unexplained menstrual pain, irregularity, reproduction problems, miscarriage, premature birth, extreme PMS symptoms.

MALES

Testicular or pelvic pain, erectile dysfunction.

VISION

Double or blurry vision, vision changes, wandering or lazy eye, conjunctivitis, pink eye, oversensitivity to light, eye pain or swelling around the eyes, floaters, spots in the line of sight, red eyes.

HEARING

Decreased hearing, ringing or buzzing in ears, sound sensitivity, pain in the ears.

MUSCULOSKELETAL SYSTEM

Joint pain, swelling, stiffness, shifting joint pains, muscle pain or cramps, poor muscle coordination, loss of reflexes, loss of muscle tone, muscle weakness.

NEUROLOGIC SYSTEM

Numbness in body, tingling, pinpricks, burning, stabbing sensations in the body, burning in feet, weakness or paralysis of limbs, tremors or unexplained shaking, seizures, stroke, poor balance, dizziness, difficulty walking, Increased motion sickness, wooziness, lightheadedness, fainting, encephalopathy (cognitive impairment from brain involvement), encephalitis (inflammation of the brain), meningitis (inflammation of the protective membrane around the brain), encephalomyelitis (inflammation of the brain and spinal cord), academic or vocational decline, difficulty with multitasking, Difficulty with organization, planning, auditory processing problems, word-finding problems, slow speed of processing.

SKIN PROBLEMS

Benign tumor-like nodules, Erythema Migrans (rash)

GENERAL WELL-BEING

Decreased interest in play (children), extreme fatigue, tiredness, exhaustion, unexplained fevers (high or low grade), flu-like symptoms (early in the illness), symptoms seem to change, come and go.

If you would like more information, you may attend one of our monthly free classes on Lyme disease at our facility.

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