posted
I received my alumni magazine from Middlebury College, a small liberal arts college in VT that has a strong national reputation and reach...so this is good exposure.
The cover story is about an alum who almost made it to the Olymics for cross-country skiing. I started to read it to see what obstacles she had faced (the crux of the article) and got chills when I read the part that I have posted below about her battle with Lyme.
It is in many ways a brief part of the article--but the article is interesting and inspiring-- but I was so pleased that it was an accurate portryal of Lyme.
I will cut and paste the parts that were relevant and I will also post the link for the whole article.
"A month after reconstructive surgery, the madness began.
The pain started in her forearms and knees, a searing, electric pain that soon radiated throughout her body. She visited eight doctors in search of a diagnosis, each time coming up empty; most thought she was suffering from tendonitis. Soon, she began walking backwards down stairs to relieve the strain on her joints.
A doting, intelligent parent, Tara would forget the names of her children and where she lived; her hair started falling out in clumps. Then one day while attempting to give her three-year-old son a piggyback ride, Tara's body went limp, and she crumpled to the floor of her garage. With her children shrieking in fear, Tara lay prone on the cold, salty concrete, unable to move, as still as a corpse. A grim reality set in: She knew she was dying.
The family moved from Vermont (where they had settled) to Colorado, so Tara could be closer to her parents, and Casey quietly started to wonder what he would do if he lost his wife. Still desperately in search of answers and clinging to a thread of hope, Tara finally got the diagnosis that had been missing for so many months: she had Lyme disease.
Her recovery took more than three years--the tick that introduced the Lyme disease had also transferred a malaria-like parasite that ravaged her red blood cells--yet just when she began to feel better, a routine exam exposed another horrifying condition: a tumor the size of a grapefruit had grown on Tara's ovary."
and at the end of the article...
"As word of her story has circulated within the nation's Lyme community, Tara has become something of a legend, a mythical figure who not only beat the deadly disease, but flourished physically in spite of it. Every month or two, she receives a letter in the mail from a Lyme sufferer. She doesn't know how they find her, but their words move her. They tell her she is a hero, that she gives them hope. She talks to others on the phone, lending optimism and strength to patients of all ages, from California to Boston. ``People kind of amaze me,'' is how she describes the conversations."
posted
I sent a letter to the editor of my college alumni magazine (Middlebury College in VT) the day after I read their piece I posted about in my first message, thanking them for their accurate portrayal of Lyme Disease.
I just got the next quarterly alumni magazine and my letter was in it! It was the first one, so I am hoping many people see it and that it raises veen more awareness about Lyme. Here is what I wrote:
Though I realize that Tara McMenamy Sheahan's battle with Lyme Disease was by no means the sole focus of your article about her courage and strength, I was most touched by it and want to thank you for addressing Lyme Disease with such accuracy. Though it is a growing health crisis, it is still greatly misunderstood and, as a result, is too often un- & misdiagnosed and under-treated. Like Ms. Sheahan, I saw several doctors and suffered myriad neurological, cardiac, reproductive, joint and psychiatric problems before being diagnosed with disseminated/chronic Lyme Disease. I have been on antibiotics for over two years now and am grateful that I too am able to once again do most things that I have always enjoyed (though on a much smaller scale than hers!). Your accurate and poignant portrayal of the ramifications of Lyme Disease in a magazine that has such a national reach is tremendous and will, I feel certain, have significant positive consequences. Thank you,
Posts: 307 | From Byfield, MA | Registered: Jan 2004
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posted
Wow!!!!! Great job, Julie!! That was an awesome letter! I'm so glad you're doing better too!
-------------------- --Lymetutu-- Opinions, not medical advice! Posts: 96222 | From Texas | Registered: Feb 2001
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Ann-OH
Frequent Contributor (5K+ posts)
Member # 2020
posted
I am splitting this up so everyone will read it. {beat you to it Betty! ) It should not be missed because it is a literate and well-written letter. Brava!
Ann - OH
[quote] I sent a letter to the editor of my college alumni magazine (Middlebury College in VT) the day after I read their piece I posted about in my first message, thanking them for their accurate portrayal of Lyme Disease.
I just got the next quarterly alumni magazine and my letter was in it! It was the first one, so I am hoping many people see it and that it raises veen more awareness about Lyme. Here is what I wrote:
Though I realize that Tara McMenamy Sheahan's battle with Lyme Disease was by no means the sole focus of your article about her courage and strength, I was most touched by it and want to thank you for addressing Lyme Disease with such accuracy.
Though it is a growing health crisis, it is still greatly misunderstood and, as a result, is too often un- & misdiagnosed and under-treated.
Like Ms. Sheahan, I saw several doctors and suffered myriad neurological, cardiac, reproductive, joint and psychiatric problems before being diagnosed with disseminated/chronic Lyme Disease.
I have been on antibiotics for over two years now and am grateful that I too am able to once again do most things that I have always enjoyed (though on a much smaller scale than hers!).
Your accurate and poignant portrayal of the ramifications of Lyme Disease in a magazine that has such a national reach is tremendous and will, I feel certain, have significant positive consequences.
trails
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 1620
posted
Fantastic!
That is so great that you took the time to write this great piece and that they published it!
[ 26. April 2006, 10:23 AM: Message edited by: trails ]
Posts: 1950 | From New Mexico | Registered: Sep 2001
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bettyg
Unregistered
posted
Thanks for posting this wonderful story and great photos of her!
Julie, well-done! You got the point across so succinctly; short & to the point. Now you'll be the next HERO that college has! Is your mailbox large enough for all the mail you'll get? LOL
Ann, thank you; it was an exceptional letter as you stated!
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posted
Thank you, LymeToo, Ann, Trails, and Betty, for your nice responses to my letter!! I can't tell you how much it means to me and how buoyed I feel by what you said. Thank you!!
I am so pleased that they published my letter. Also, they indicated in a sidebar that they had received a lot of feedback on the original article, and it sounds as if it was mostly about Lyme. Good exposure!
Posts: 307 | From Byfield, MA | Registered: Jan 2004
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