I will tell you a bit about myself. I am 48, married, female, contracted Lyme in Feb. of 2003. My profession is a wildlife biologist although I am not working at this time.

I don't know how many people in the Coastal Bend have Lyme disease, although I have heard at least from different sources, about 8-9 people. I am sure there are more.

This is my second post on this subject. I would be thrilled and happy to organize a support group here in the Corpus Christi area. I believe my church would allow me their facilities for us to meet.

I will be totally honest with you, I need the support as well. I used to work really hard, and loved my job. I was an endangered species biologist. Now you know where the little bugger got me. I was counting endangered plants in Starr County, Texas, near the Rio Grande.

I need to help others with this disease if I can, and if starting a support group helps me help you, than I would feel I have a purpose, because right now I am feeling pretty useless.

If you would please email me, and let me know if you are interested, I would really appreciate this kindness.

Protocol for the meeting you ask: Let's see what happens when we meet, and we can discuss it. I will get the materials from LDA or ILADs on support groups and we can discuss the protocol.

My family owns a house at Lake Corpus Christi that we can go to for outings just for the day or the weekend. It's cheap. We can talk Lyme or not. We can swim, barbeque, sing stupid songs, etc. I would not at all mind sponsoring this first group outing. I am sure my family will help. They are lovely wonderful Christian folk, who are a lot of fun.

Please allow me to do this for you and in turn you will be doing me a great favor, having purpose.
Loretta

LymeToo, Where's Alice in Texas?

Anywhere by Houston?

Would I pass by on the way to South Padre Island?( where a relative**not a super close relative, though** just bought a condo)

Passed some nice ranches on the way down

Loretta, I'll tell you their name in private email. They probably know your folks! They are full-blooded German like me.

Then you could make your pitch for starting a support group. And give contact info. My guess is that a local story might turn up more takers than lymenet. I would love to come but out of state as are many lymenetters. Isn't Charlie around there somewhere? Maybe he knows other lymies.

What I have noticed about support groups is that they tend to peter out after a while because the group leader burns out, or because they run out of things to do except moan and groan, and nobody wants to do that forever. Also, newbies come and get help and then disappear. My feeling is that maybe an informal network, where people stay in touch, and provide help for newbies, is as important as attending support group meetings every month.

Our local group disbanded before I came to town. Now there's no one to contact when we need political action. There are two other groups but involves a long drive, which my bad back precluded for a long time. And now I don't want to be driving after dark, because eyesight damage. These groups seem to mainly be interested in people who attend meetings, but not everyone can get to meetings. Need to keep the ties to others, even if they don't come to meetings, or only once in a while.

Thanks for all the geographical info, guys!!

King Ranch was pretty darn interesting--and I think that I was covered for exposure to TDB's with the ole' skin so soft flea and tick repellent, which also contained sunscreen

Alot of us with a german genotype with Lyme here on Lymenet?? Or is it just my imagination?

Padre Island was very nice