First off HI! I'm new here! And I am so glad I have found this website.
So, there is NO WAY, NO HOW that I would EVER be able to afford to see an LLMD anytime soon. So my question is this, how on earth can I get my primary care doctor to take me seriously? Every one of the doctors I have seen just tells me that I am a hypochondriac and that there is NO way that I have lyme. I haven't even been tested. They all say there is no reason to test when he knows I don't have lyme. I am absolutely positiely sure that lyme is what I have.
2007 I had Bell's Palsy, and now this may I was diagnosed with atrial fibrillation. After I was was diagnosed with the a-fib, i was convinced it was because of Lyme. The MD basically said, lyme doesn't cause heart problems. I wanted to smack him! But i restrained...
So what do I do at this point? I am very lost and just fed up. Any advice/input would be greatly appreciated.
Posted by tamaleigh (Member # 27563) on :
And I forgot to add that I am 22, so there is no way a-fib would be normal for me. also I have had just about every other symptom imaginable.
Posted by kidsgotlyme (Member # 23691) on :
My first thought was that we wouldn't be able to afford a LLMD for my daughter. It was just out of the question.
But I made the appointment anyway. It can take take several months to get into one. Sometimes the impossible is possible after all.
We managed, with great people in our lives, to come up with the money.
Posted by lululymemom (Member # 26405) on :
I know first hand that Lyme can cause Cardiac issues. Somehow you need to get a test done ASAP!Try and get it done through Igenex as they are one of the best.
This will add some validity to your claim and there are doctors that will take you seriously enough to get you started on antibiotics even if it's just long enough till you get in to see an LLMD.
Posted by lymednva (Member # 9098) on :
With that rash pic you don't need a test. The rash is diagnostic all by itself!
I think many of us don't think we can afford LLMD's in the beginning, but then we find ways to do it. I hope you can also.
Posted by littlebit27 (Member # 24477) on :
I didn't think I could afford an LLMD or the tests from Igenex but I did. There are time I struggle financially when it comes to this mess but I have to figure it out.
I am way to scared and under educated in the medical field to be treating myself. I've heard of people treating themselves but that is too risky for me.
I guess for now you could try an herbal protocol, like Stephen Buhner's book "Healing Lyme."
Good Luck
Posted by Tammy N. (Member # 26835) on :
Believe it or not, some LLMDs do take insurance (not many though). Go to the Doctor Referral section on lymediseaseassociation.org. Call all the doctors that come up in your area. If no luck, I would still switch doctors and try to find someone more open-minded (then loan them the film Under Our Skin, and give them a copy of Dr. Burrascano's 16th edition on Diagnostic Hints and Treatment Guidelines.). In the meantime, take good care of yourself.
Posted by mojo (Member # 9309) on :
My first thought was you can't afford not to go to a LLMD - then I read the post about slapping your MD (LOL)
We have a friend that was wheel chair bound and bedridden who did not have insurance or money to go to a LLMD. She bought a DT EMEM (Rife Machine) and started out with that.
She is still sick but now has quality of life - no wheel chair - and has come a long way. She did find a way to see a dr. and is miles away from where she started.
I hope you stay with us and find a way to get treatment.
I happen to have a Physician that treats Lyme and takes insurance - I am SO blessed. He is now even in my plan so I pay $25.00 to see him.
Posted by BackinStOlaf (Member # 23725) on :
you find ways to pay- even if it is using a credit card and paying it off slowly. What good is your money if your life in is jeopardy?
Posted by 17hens (Member # 23747) on :
A poster here on lymenet started with 3 symptoms, air hunger, brain fog and heart arrhythmia.
I heard about her after her 3rd trip to the ER where she coded on the table.
She is now seeing an LLMD and just got received a high positive on a lyme test (not Igenex).
Of course, this is very rare, but I'm just saying this is definitely a symptom of lyme&co and you need to find a doctor who takes you seriously and knows how to take care of you.
I understand about not being able to afford an LLMD. That's the way I felt too. Then I realized I couldn't afford not to see an LLMD.
Sell something. Sell your car. Ride the bus. You must find a way.
Posted by LightAtTheEnd (Member # 24065) on :
I couldn't afford an LLMD either, but I quickly learned that NOT getting treated would be MUCH more expensive in the long run, if I lost my job and insurance and/or needed IV treatment.
The LLMD nearest where I live (still a 9-hour drive each way) turned out to be less expensive than some. I struggled for a few months to pay for all the meds and travel, and finally asked my relatives for help and they came through for me.
I am still (just) functional enough to continue working (though I have had to give up some freelance work that I used to do to make extra money). It is VERY frustrating to find myself begging for charity when I have a good job and good insurance that I have worked hard to achieve.
But if I don't get the right treatment now and get better, I will lose my job and then I would be a complete burden on my family. So I decided it was better to ask them for help now and accept it than to definitely need a lot MORE help from them later.
The good part is that I am very slowly improving, which means I will eventually be well, and I am unlikely to get sicker and lose my job (unless I have a future relapse after I am well).
Posted by sixgoofykids (Member # 11141) on :
Buy Stephen Buhner's "Healing Lyme" and start there with herbal protocols. Hopefully, that will help you enough, if not, then you can find out a way to afford an LLMD later.
Posted by Lymetoo (Member # 743) on :
I'm sending you some information I think you'll like.
PS.. I have A-fib too. Most likely from Lyme.
Posted by SmurfyMom (Member # 13688) on :
You have to just do what you can and not worry about all the details. I know that sounds impossible, but it's really not. Go ahead and make the dr appts and fill the prescriptions. Don't worry about being able to afford it or not. Likely you'll need to charge stuff a bunch. You may have some other bills that have to go unpaid for awhile.
The important thing is to trust God to take care of you and keep you from starving. We've had to let other bills go and do without some things, but we've never been without the absolute essentials like food, water, and toilet paper!
Posted by TS96 (Member # 14048) on :
When my dh was unemployed for over a year and we had no insurance it was amazing how God worked things out.
Samples, discounts, reduction in appt prices, free meds from people who had reactions or didn't need them and they donated them to the LLMD office.
YOu can ask if you can do a payment plan without interest.
Some drug manufactures have free meds.
PScard has big discounts.
I understand. I never ever want to be in debt. It's just how we grew up. We've learned to do without alot of things people think they need, and we're still not well off by any means but we never have gone hungry.
Pray all works out for you and you get the help you need.
Posted by rosiegeorge (Member # 27518) on :
Check with your insurance plan regarding out of network benefits. Often this will help alleviate a lot
Posted by Keebler (Member # 12673) on :
Topic: "Healing Lyme" book -
Posted by onbam (Member # 23758) on :
there is a coverup, but its architects themselves proved that it is chronic.
lymecryme.com has many of these studies, lymeinfo.net has some good ones (particularly on how useless testing is) underourskin.com is good
check out the lda's website for educational materials as well.
Posted by psr1 (Member # 22957) on :
I had paroxysmal afib for 7 years: had the ablation and then learned a year later I had Lyme. Now dealing with sinus tachycardia and Pacs: lots of fun. My cardiologist also said that the only heart issue Lyme caused was bradycardia: hah! You may have to get treatment for the afib (once you have it it tends to permanently remodel your heart's electrical wiring) but Lyme treatment will certainly help.
Posted by migs (Member # 16496) on :
First off I'd order some meds online to get you through til you can find a doctor that is not outrageously priced, as the LLMDs in SF area seem to be.
Try and find a Lyme literate but normal doctor, who won't want to sell you a small fortune in herbs and detox stuff.
You firstly need antibiotics if you have Lyme Disease. Go to drugdelivery.ca or drive to Mexico and get a load of cheap meds like Amoxicillin and Flagyl or Doxy and Flagyl. To decide dosages and such, read treatment guidelines from Burascanno, LymeMD, posters here, etc...
With your remaining pennies, buy lots and lots of Acidophilus. Whatever a doctor tells you to take, double it.
Posted by Lemon-Lyme (Member # 19229) on :
Agree with others regarding finding a new doc. Assuming you have health insurance, look for an ILADS doc who takes insurance. They may be rare, but they exist.
Alternatively, simply change doctors. A decent PCP should at least test for Lyme, even if using the crummy non-Igenex sorts of tests. My old PCP who admitted she didn't know much about Lyme was willing to test me for WB + coinfections using local labs, and had no problem with it. I switched to an ILADs doc after initial testing, but she did at least turn up one co-infection.
I wouldn't do the self-treatment thing without seeing a doctor first and getting some tests done. You'll need your liver tested regularly, for instance, if you start antibiotics.
Posted by Keebler (Member # 12673) on :