So I had Lyme from late Aug 2007 - early November 2007 and then I was positive that it was gone because I felt 100% better. I believe that God healed me because my back pain all ended after going to special prayer services....anyway...
The past few months my right eyelid has been droopy. Now it is obviously droopy, and is always sagged shut so my eye is half the size of my other one. Sometimes it twitches and other times it tears a lot.
I thought that the eyelid was just because I switched to a new brand of contacts, Acuvue Oaysis, in my right eye, because my prescription got stronger back when I was sick with Lyme, but only in my right eye. I have Acuvue 2, my old prescription, in my left eye because it never got worse when I was sick. But my aunt, who has chronic lyme, said that it looks like Bell's Palsy. I don't know if this could be a side effect of Lyme, a separate issue, or what. I don't know if I should see an eye doctor, or my Lyme specialist, or someone else, but my mom is unemployed and we're COMPLETELY broke so I can't go to the doctor unless it's EXTREMELY important.
I'm 19 years old, by the way.
Any advice would be extremely helpful!
Posted by daise (Member # 13622) on :
Hi Pepper
I'm glad you are asking about this. You're speaking-up for yourself. Yes--this is urgent! Your aunt said it looks like you have Bell's palsy.
I had Bell's palsy and it's no fun. I'm sorry you're ill. Bell's palsy is a neurological disorder, caused much of the time by Lyme germs.
Bell's palsy is a sign of Lyme. It's serious. I know you haven't much money, but you MUST find a way. Get a picture of your face with your eye sagging downward.
You MUST get to an LLMD (Lyme-literate MD) who is also an ILADS doctor. You can post for LLMD names near you in the "Seeking A Doctor" forum (click "forum home," above.)
DO NOT SEE AN INFECTIOUS DISEASE DOCTOR as they do not take Lyme seriously.
The ELISA (Lyme titers test) is a bogus test used by insurance companies and doctors to refuse treatment, as almost no one tests positive.
The western blot test sample must be sent to IgeneX in Palo Alto. A doctor may need to order it for you--you can get a free kit online and bring it to your regular doc, if necessary, while you are waiting for an LLMD appt.
Or you can wait for the LLMD appt. Just google IgeneX.
Most with Lyme do not test positive, even by this western blot. That's why Lyme disease remains a clinical diagnosis. It is a serious disease and is disabling.
I know money is tight. If you have no medical insurance try state Medicaid to see if you qualify. Here is a link to Prescription Hope, offering a way to get Lyme meds for only $7.00 per month, per med, if you qualify:
At the top of any page here, on the left, is a leafy menu. Click "Support Groups" and please contact a group close to you with ideas on how you will get treated, with money being tight.
YOU are more important than money concerns. OK?
The longer you wait, the longer it will take to get better and the more it will cost. Many with Lyme are disabled--using canes and wheelchairs. You are young and I especially don't want that to happen to you.
Most conventional doctors do not take Lyme seriously.
Essential: www.ILADS.org; go to left menu and click "Treatment Guidelines." Click Dr. B's 33 pages of tips for 2005. PRINT!
Print also the ILADS Guidelines, above that.
It's important that you act quickly. I wish for you the best.
daise Posted by adamm (Member # 11910) on :
Sure hope it isn't Lyme--but it could be, and it
is thus imperative that you get to an LLMD asap.
4 months isn't that long to treat Lyme for, and you may
have been infected with other pathogenic species
as well.
Wishing you the best,
Adam
Posted by adamm (Member # 11910) on :
If you enable PM's, btw, I'd be able to give you
the contact info of a WI LLMD who takes insurance--
just in case it would somehow be possible for you to consult
with him and have him work with a local doc (not that I think
it'll come to that, with you living in Connecticut and all.)
Posted by kitkat32 (Member # 9682) on :
Hi Pepper,
Sorry your going through this.
I had a similiar problem. Mine ended up NOT being Bells Palsy. I had a left eyelid droop. It had been like that for years. I contracted lyme in 1996.
When I began my treatment 2 years ago it drooped even further. You can get a droopy lid from Lyme. Neuro optho and LLMD did not believe it was Bells Palsy though.
I ended up having to have corrective surgery because it was impeding my vision.
This is something not to mess around with. Please see doctor ASAP. Whether it is a true Bells Palsy or not it needs to be looked at.
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