MS and Lyme shape my life as a patient, a support person and a family member. My Mom died of complications of Multiple Sclerosis. She was in a special study group, because the onset and symptoms were a little unusual. My husband’s mom also passed after years of pain and struggle with MS. His brother has been diagnosed with this disease.
Mutiple Sclerosis and Lyme Symptoms Overlap
None of these people I love were ever tested to rule out Lyme disease. All of them were put on immuno-suppressive therapy, which is not the way to go to battle an active borellia infection. Data shows that misdiagnosed Lyme patients treated with steroids or other immuno-suppressive therapies feel much worse after treatment. In retrospect do we wonder if they had Lyme? You bet we do.
Chronic illnesses Shape And Change Priorities
My life and my husband’s life have been shaped by Lyme disease. We both were diagnosed in 2012, me after years of symptoms and after a maybe Lupus, or MS diagnosis. The doctors weren’t sure. Him after getting tested to be thorough after my positive test results.
Our plan is to build our health stay as well as possible, never manifest the most serious symptoms of chronic Lyme induced autoimmunity. We will do our best, to weaken the connection between autoimmunity and Lyme disease. Self care is so important. Do you have a plan to live well with your Lyme?
Could We Have Been Born With Lyme
I never thought too much about the fact that we both could have been born with the infection and battled it for most of our lives. Many of the symptoms flying under the radar. My symptom load exploded during the stress of peri- menopause. I swear my husbands symptoms blew up from the stress of dealing with how sick I got.
We ask did we get bit independently we both love the outdoors? Or did one of us give it to the other? Maybe we both got it from our mom’s.
But countries are now recognizing the ability of a mom to pass the infection on in utero. In addition, according to Lyme disease.org, based on a survey of 4000 participants, between 10 and 20 percent of chronic Lyme suffers are misdiagnosed with MS. So between these two factors it is distinctly possible, we both carried this infection a long time.
Does This Matter
In a way, sure it does. It might have mattered for my mom. It might matter for my niece. For the first few years after my infection, I blamed myself for being careless or weak enough to get knocked over by tick born infections. I am way beyond blame know, but if I had this since I was a kid, I have to think about it as part of the basic design I was given for learning. It matters for for the generations to come.
With Lyme Disease Information is Power. Get Informed, Get Tested, Get Treated, Get Better. Share on XThere is no question in my mind that chronic illness is an amazing teacher. I have been motivated to take much better care of myself as a result of dealing with this illness. My body now gives me feedback and demands that I include it in how I run my life. Overall I think that this is for the good.
If you have symptoms that could be either MS or Lyme, talk to your doctor. Get Tested and receive accurate treatment.
