Advice from an Ayurvedic Practitioner

Lyme Disease: Mary’s Invader Insight!

Mary Sullivan (daretoselfcare.com) worked for over 20 years in the chemical industry as a chemist, engineer, manager, and director. During that time she found her own path of change and learning, immersing herself in the study and practice of Yoga, Yoga Therapy and Ayurveda. Ironically it was around 12 years after Mary began her odyssey that she discovered she had been carrying an extremely undesirable passenger.

Mary initially noticed difficulty balancing, but things got worse. Eventually she began suffering from hair loss and emotional instability. When inflammation in Mary’s body had progressed to such an extent she couldn’t hold her own telephone, a conversation with her meditation teacher led her to ask for a Lyme Disease test. What she didn’t realize was that the standard test given by the medical profession the Elisa test was extremely ineffective as a diagnostic tool, giving a huge percentage of false negatives, so when she  tested negative for Lyme Disease Mary was then forced to pay for the gold standard Western Blot test. The result was positive, the invader detected, and the battle commenced.

What to do if you see a tick on your body

• If the tick has not pierced your skin; simply kill it to ensure neither you, nor anyone else, is at risk
• If the tick has pierced your skin; remove it with tweezers and either a) bag it for testing or b) dispose of it as above; assume you have been infected and seek help regarding treatment

What to do if you have Lyme Disease

Phase One: The Acute Phase

If you catch Lyme disease at this point great, it is the optimal time for treatment.

If you haven’t seen a tick on your body previously the first indication you have an  infection might be a Bullseye rash.The rash has a central red spot surrounded by clear skin which  is then ringed by an expanding red rash. The rash doesn’t always appear and in some cases it may missed. Mary was treated for cellulitis but the underlying cause was overlooked.

The main organism (invader) likely to have been transmitted is Borrelia Burgdorferi but there may be others. Now is the time to plan an immediate counter attack. These organisms are travelling in your bloodstream but if action isn’t taken at this stage they will go deeper.

Your choice of weapons are:

• Antibiotics
• Herbs
• A combination of the two.

Phase Two

If Lyme Disease is not picked up within approximately 6 months it’s likely that the condition will progress to Phase Two at which time typical symptoms include:

• Joint pain
• Heart palpitations
• Fatigue
• Brain fog

Joint pain arises because of the organisms hunger for protein. If left unchecked these organisms will literally lunch on your collagen! If Lyme Disease has progressed to this stage the treatment options are as before but at this stage it’s really vitally important to include rigorous self care.

Phase Three

If Lymes disease progresses for longer than a year it usually enters Phase Three; this is the stage Mary found herself at when diagnosed.

There is no doubt about it. If Lyme Disease has progressed  to this stage you have a battle on your hands. At this point the organisms have hidden deep within the tissues and may be manifesting as problems within specific organs. Mary’s eyes were affected. In addition, the immune system has become so taxed that the disease is in effect an autoimmune condition.

At this point antibiotics are unlikely to be of much benefit and treatment has to take a systemic approach.

Inflammation Control with Lyme Disease

If you disrupt inflammation cycles you deprive organisms of the protection they are trying to create.

Useful techniques include:

• Daily routines and practises of self care
• Adequate  sleep,
• Meditation

Work on repairing digestive tract.  

Long periods taking antibiotics may well have taken their toll on the digestive tract at this stage and it makes sense to try and replace some of the good bacteria lost during treatment. Mary couldn’t tolerate fermented foods in the early days and although she has now reintroduced these to her diet in the early days she took probiotics. Mary follows a  low inflammatory diet with no wheat, little rice, no legumes and no nuts seeds or nightshades: and auto immune paleo diet.

As a former vegan Mary had to let go of many sincerely held beliefs and focus on what she felt would assist her in her recovery. Her naturopath convinced her that her body had been stripped of protein and it needed to be replaced by good quality amino acids; hence the inclusion of bone broth in Mary’s diet.

Infection Control with Lyme Disease

At this stage the organisms are deep within the tissues.They can be flushed to into the bloodstream, but if not eliminated they will retreat and hide. This is why pulsation treatment with substances like silver can help.

System + Symptom Support with Lyme Disease

Support the systems that need it. Mary suggests that if you are taking years to recover you need to backfill. An extremely well planned campaign of herbal medication and ayurvedic practices of self care designed to support specific organs may be required and could include

• Ginger and cinnamon for circulation
• Tulsi,  ginger, turmeric, triphala and  ashwaganda for baseline support
• Zanthin for eyes
• Basti to detox the liver
• Ginger, turmeric, and arnica for pain
• Compression and ice for pain

Mary was diagnosed at Phase Three and has devoted herself to her battle with her invader. Three years on her symptoms are much more manageable. She has high hopes that within two years her condition will be managed with low key herbal regime and she leaves fellow battlers with thought that:

• “Things get clear when we are at a razor’s edge”

• “We get the lessons we need at the volume we need them.”

• “(Lyme Disease) makes it easy to prioritise what it is important”

Self-Care Ayurveda for Lyme Disease

Daily detoxing with

• saunas
• self massage
• gentle exercise
• an anti inflammatory diet with specific focus on gut healing and liver support

Holistic Resources for Lyme Disease:

• ilads.org: A list of Lyme Disease knowledgeable physicians and health care practitioners.

• Use local Lymes support groups to identify Lyme knowledgeable herbal practitioners

Books:

• Susan Bloom: The Immune System Recovery Plan
• Lissa Rankin: The Fear Cure

Highlights

• 4.30 People who knew me at that time (diagnosis) thought I would never be a functional person again
• 6.30 The earlier the diagnosis the better your chances of successfully nipping it in the bud.
• 15.30 (Phase 2) At this point it is really eating your collagen for lunch.
• 17.15 At that stage (3) they are camping out on your back porch having a beer and eating your collagen
• 24.25. I had to start to evaluate food in terms of its effects on my body and listen to my body
• 29.15 I am on a substantial regime that has developed my discipline muscle
• 30.00 I believe life gives us the lessons we need and we get them at the volume we need them
• 37.00 I think that the learning opportunities in Lyme are endless
• 37.40 I came through a tunnel and it feels so much better on the other side. I don’t know if I would have gotten there any other way