As some of you may know, I was beginning to get very overwhelmed by the treatment options out there for this disease. Most of us Lyme patients are at the same point, because we've lived in such misery for so long, and are so desperate for normalcy, that we would do almost anything. I mean, if someone told me that eating bugs everyday would heal me, I would probably try it. Everywhere you look, there are treatment options, products galore, and doctors calling out for our money, guaranting relief. Unfortunately, it seems as though a lot of people are taking advantage of us sickies with scam after scam. It's put me in an interesting position - I'm desperate to try anything, but I've also become skeptical of everything.
A week ago, my mom reminded me of this place in Idaho that a few of her friends have had success with. I decided to buckle down and do some research on it. In the meantime, I found out a friend of mine also knows someone who will also be going to see this doctor. I'm sure we would all agree that things are more believable when you know someone that has tried it.
The first time I had looked at the details, I was skeptical. After all, the doctor uses magnets for healing. I think this is why I didn't give the treatment a second thought originally - because how hoaky does that sound??! But this time, the more I read, the more it made sense.
The goal of the treatment is to guide your own immune system to find the bacteria and eliminate it naturally. I've known for a while that my problems lie within my immune system, and the inflammation that goes with it, so fixing it is key to healing. As a side note, I recently discovered that not everyone who gets bit by a Lyme carrier will actually be affected - that it all depends on the strength or weakness of your immune system. Isn't that crazy! So thanks a lot, immune system.
The Lyme bacteria are stealthy and smart buggers. They can move to any part of your body - some that are unreachable by long-term antibiotic treatment. They can also change, like a chameleon, to hide from treatment. Additionally, they create a biofilm, which is a protective coating around the spirochete that helps in resisting antibiotics and other therapies. I've read that the magnetic fields in this particular treatment are able to effectively penetrate the biofilms. True or not, I think it's worth a try.
Every treatment that I have read about up until now has had mixed reviews. Some people saying it worked, and just as many saying it didn't - that it was a waste of time and money. I'm pretty sure all chronic Lyme patients have felt that way at least once, if not many, many times like I have. Sometimes you have to wonder how much of the "success stories" are really just a placebo effect. I have a different feeling with this treatment, though. I cannot find a single bad review from Dr. Smith's patients.
I've now joined a Facebook group built specifically for said patients, and the success stories are amazing. What gets me the most excited, is reading pain testimonies. Because a lot of forums online talk about the neurological issues people deal with - which, yes, I have those too - but there haven't been many I could relate to in regards to my pain. Knowing that people are finding relief from their pain with this treatment makes me very hopeful that I may be able to get to a point in my life where I'm not hurting all the freakin' time.
I'm still aware that the doctor doesn't guarantee success for everyone, and it's possible I could be in that small percentile. Unfortunately, I have a Gene called MTHFR which will complicate treatment. In short, it significantly decreases the body's ability to eliminate toxins and increases symptoms of increased inflammation and/or toxicity within the body. This accounts for my fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue, IBS, peripheral neuropathy and more. Pretty sure I got this one one from you mom - don't some of those sound familiar? :( No offense to my parents, because they obviously can't control it either, but Genes sure can be a bitch sometimes.
So anyway, my treatments are scheduled for October 15th-21st. It seems worlds away, but I'm excited to have something to look forward to. It will be a hard road. The first 6 weeks after treatment is the detox period, where I will be feeling quite horrible. It typically takes up to 3 months to start feeling better, and even longer depending on how intricate and complicated the disease has become in my body.
But I am hopeful. This comes at a perfect time, when I was seriously beginning to lose all hope that I would ever get better. Of course, the treatment is not covered at all by insurance (shocker!). As you can imagine, our funds have become quite depleted over the course of the last 8 years. I've gotten bills for several thousand dollars at a time. There have been weeks where I would get a medical bill every single day. I've even been sent to collections because I just didn't have the funds to pay.
This time around, I've decided to start a fundraising website to help out. I knew I had wonderful support from friends and family, but I have been astounded with the amount of giving. In just two days, I reached almost half my goal! There are some amazing people out there - some of who I don't even know, friends of my family members and friends of my friends. And anonymous givers with hearts of gold that don't even feel the need to take credit for helping out.
I have a hard time not feeling guilty about this. We really do need the financial help, but I also keep thinking about people in the world who have it even worse off than I do. What have I done to deserve such grace? Most people say I shouldn't feel that way, but it's hard not to.
I'm so very grateful for the donations, but even more than that, I feel so blessed to know that there are that many people who want to help me get better, to get back to my normal self. I have to admit that this does add a little pressure. If this treatment doesn't work, I will be devastated. But I also feel like I will be letting a lot of people down. You hear that, body? You better not disappoint this time!!
Thank you again to everyone who has supported me, though donations and through your encouraging words. I cannot express enough how grateful I am! If you want to learn more about my fundraiser, here is the link:
http://gfwd.at/1N8xhj4
For any Lyme patients who are reading this, and want more information on Dr. Smith, please feel free to message me. If you are thinking about heading up your own fundraiser for treatment, I would highly suggest Go Forward. I did a lot of research comparing this platform to those like Go Fund Me, and the reviews were astoundingly better. So far, the customer service has been great and building the site was easy. I will be providing updates from my treatment in October through this blog and also on my fundraising site. Hopefully by this time next year I will be writing one of those amazing testimonies!
