I hate it when people explain away my individual symptoms with other probable causes.
I tell them, yes it is possible, but all of this started after a bulls-eye rash.
They still don't get it.
Posted by granniela (Member # 17134) on :
That's why the saying "If they don't have it, they don't get it" seems to fit Lyme so well.
Sorry you're having to deal with ignorance when some understanding would be appreciated.
If it helps, I understand you can have a wide range of varied symptoms that fluctuate resulting from Lyme and associated disorders even if you didn't have a known tick bite or bullseye rash.
Posted by LightAtTheEnd (Member # 24065) on :
The worst one is when I try to explain the fatigue, which has been the most debilitating symptom for me.
People always say, "Oh yes, I was really tired when I got home from work last night, too."
Not the same thing. One is where you had energy and you used it up, and now you are tired. Lyme fatigue is where energy was not produced properly in the first place, so it just isn't there.
I have to guard against saying I'm "tired" when I have Lyme fatigue because nobody construes that as "sick."
People also just forget that I have Lyme.
Lyme has given me a painful stiff neck almost every day since I got sick. One day it was especially bad, and I told my dad, "My neck is killing me today." He said, "Oh? What did you do to your neck?" I said, "I got Lyme disease a year ago."
They really don't know, and they don't understand that the fluctuating symptoms are stronger confirmation that is IS Lyme. They think when a symptom goes away, you are better, or it was not caused by Lyme.
Posted by jkmom (Member # 14004) on :
It's not just Lyme. I have this happen with my gluten intolerance.
If I eat some accidental gluten in a restaurant and feel like I am drunk, it is due to the high fat and salt content of the food. It doesn't matter that I eat plenty of fat and salt at home.
Posted by Keebler (Member # 12673) on :
- With gluten, people can't seen to grasp the fact that even a mere trace will set off full attack - or that it can affect the brain and not the stomach for some people. -