Glad to meet you all. This forum and website has some great info and support.
Quick background: In 2000, severe gall bladder problem, very ill, had it removed. Never got back to normal. DX w/CFIDS, tried many therapies, mostly naturopathic, and acupuncture, massage, Reiki, did yoga and qigong. Periods of improvement, but never lasted, never normal, unable to work.
2003: DX w/breast cancer. Got on total healthy diet.
2005: Started treatment in March at Fibromyalgia and Fatigue Centers, after much research, and DX w/FM also. Found many underlying issues such as hormone dysfunction, thyroid low, mycolplasma, echovirus, candida, low NK cells and more.
No improvement, got worse. In October got the Igenex Western Blot, and tested positive for Lyme...shocker to me!
Now, just starting treatment, and glad to know that I can visit here with all of you. It takes a village to treat Lyme Disease!
Best wishes to all, Hopeful4
Posted by MADDOG (Member # 18) on :
Hi Hopeful4,welcome here ,I hope this web sight can be a comfort,and a soarce of info.
And no I can't spell, HE HE
I am shure others will respond to your post.
I must now go chase a frisbee.
MADDOG
Posted by hopeful4 (Member # 8486) on :
Thanks for the welcome, MADDOG. If you are member #18, does that mean you've been around for a long time? Hope you're doing much better than when you started.
Posted by Michelle M (Member # 7200) on :
Hi Hopeful. A good name!
So many of us, too, have the underlying junk that Lyme has caused... for me, early menopause at 44, hypothyroidism... Alarming degree of bradycardia - I always make the monitors go off when heartbeat goes into the 40's!
However, once you know you have Lyme disease, then it begins to make sense, whereas if you DIDN'T know, you might drive yourself crazy trying to figure it out.
Either that, or keep a lot of ducks in business!
Do post often and let us know how your treatment goes. And welcome to LymeNet!
Michelle
Posted by bettyg (Member # 6147) on :
Hopeful,
Your story sounded so much like the rest of us except for your breast cancer dx too. Hope all is going well there, and keep a close eye on things there. My sister was redx 6.5 yrs. after she was cancer-free.
Be sure to print off:
TREEPATROL'S newbie links, check off as you read most important things first as there are months of reading there and Tree constantly updates as he/others come up with good info.
Print Dr. B's 2005 lyme guidelines, now 40 pages. This you will read over & over.
Welcome to our large lyme online support group.
Posted by hopeful4 (Member # 8486) on :
Thank you Michelle M and bettyg for your warm welcomes!
I agree, Michelle, that finally having the Lyme diagnosis is what's going to turn this whole thing around.
Bettyg, thanks for pointing me to the newbie link, there's a wealth of info there, and for the b.c. support. To that I say, so far, so good! How is your sister doing now, I hope that she is well.
Wishing you well, Hopeful
Posted by bettyg (Member # 6147) on :
Hopeful,
I was hesitant yesterday, and didn't write the rest of my sister's story. We lost her 2 yrs. 1 month after her 2nd dx when the cancer went to her liver. She tried chemo, radiation, & many other alternatives. She had just turned 41. Her daughter was 11 and son 14 when she passed.
Her 1st b.c. dx was 5 months after we lost Mom to colon/liver cancer...quite a shock with no b.c. in the family.
She had extreme pain in right side, and put up with it instead of checking it out right away; the cancer advanced quickly.
Glad you found the newbie section with my help. Treepatrol/others have really worked hard on putting this together for the benefit of us all...newbies & oldies.
The search engine has been redone too, so we all can find things quicker to see if there have been past subjects posted & answers from all. It's quick now. Enjoy getting the help we all need.
bettyg, Iowa
Posted by HEATHERKISS (Member # 6789) on :
Hi Hopeful,
You are very welcome here. Thank goodness for this site and all the wonderful helpful people.
I have been sick for 8 years now. 1 of those years on antibiotics.
Just one year has made a world of difference. I have been feeling much better. Sometimes I get sicker ("herxing"). But........
I have been slowly getting better and better.
Good name!
Posted by hopeful4 (Member # 8486) on :
bettyg:
I'm so sorry for the loss of your mother and sister...and how much more difficult to bear, since they passed on so close in time. Your sister was so young, and with young children to care for as well. So sorry for your losses.
Thanks again for your support of my ``newbie'' status here.
Heatherkiss:
Thank you for your warm welcome. It encourages me to know that one year of ABX has made a positive difference in your health. I just got started about 10 days ago. I'll try to keep that picture in the fore-front of my vision: health, wellness, improvement, feeling better.
![[Smile]](smile.gif)
Good name!