Patrick Collins has the life that he has always wanted: a loving family and supportive friends who help him in following his dreams. He has an accomplished baseball career and a unique passion to change the world. That is, until illness strikes. Plagued by fatigue, arthritis, chronic sinus infections, mood swings, and seizures, Patrick is left without a guide in his search for what is wrong with him. Doctor after doctor runs tests and comes up without a diagnosis. The family is told it is -all in Patrick's head, - and is offered antidepressants. Two years and tens of thousands of dollars later, a diagnosis is given: Lyme disease. Although Patrick's malady finally has a name, the extensive testing for, and treatment of, this enigmatic disease is not covered by insurance companies, leaving the family financially devastated. This memoir draws readers into the mind of this young sufferer of Lyme disease who had lost all hope of recovery, missing out on years of his childhood.
A comprehensive, natural approach to treating acute and chronic Lyme disease, from a leading naturopathic physician who has managed his symptoms for more than fifteen years. Lyme disease is one of the fastest-growing infectious diseases in the United States, and millions of people worldwide suffer from its shape-shifting symptoms. Now, in The Lyme Solution, Dr. Darin Ingels shares his revolutionary approach to treating and healing acute and chronic Lyme. Drawing on his experience as a naturopathic physician who has treated thousands of cases, and as a patient, Ingels reveals that Lyme is an autoimmune disease as much as it is an infection. Conventional treatments too often rely on toxic doses of antibiotics that weaken your body and worsen symptoms, instead of boosting your ability to fight for your health. Including the latest research about the diagnosis and treatment of Lyme, Ingels's uniquely holistic approach provides a path to wellness by fortifying the microbiome, enhancing the immune system, and strengthening the body's ability to heal from within. The Lyme Solution offers a simple, five-step plan, including: * the most effective early treatment and prevention measures to avoid contracting the disease or stop it in its tracks; * an Immune Boosting Diet and list of herbal supplements that will increase immunity and reduce inflammation; * guidelines for when and how to use antibiotics as an effective part of your treatment plan; * tools to identify and eliminate conditions that mimic Lyme disease or exacerbate your symptoms. Whether you are facing acute or chronic Lyme, or undiagnosed autoimmune symptoms, the natural, whole-body approach of The Lyme Solution will help you permanently recover your health, and reclaim your life.
NEW YORK TIMES EDITORS’ CHOICE • In this vulnerable, insightful memoir, the New York Times columnist tells the story of his five-year struggle with a disease that officially doesn’t exist, exploring the limits of modern medicine, the stories that we unexpectedly fall into, and the secrets that only suffering reveals. “A powerful memoir about our fragile hopes in the face of chronic illness.”—Kate Bowler, bestselling author of Everything Happens for a Reason In the summer of 2015, Ross Douthat was moving his family, with two young daughters and a pregnant wife, from Washington, D.C., to a sprawling farmhouse in a picturesque Connecticut town when he acquired a mysterious and devastating sickness. It left him sleepless, crippled, wracked with pain--a shell of himself. After months of seeing doctors and descending deeper into a physical inferno, he discovered that he had a disease which according to CDC definitions does not actually exist: the chronic form of Lyme disease, a hotly contested condition that devastates the lives of tens of thousands of people but has no official recognition--and no medically approved cure. From a rural dream house that now felt like a prison, Douthat's search for help takes him off the map of official medicine, into territory where cranks and conspiracies abound and patients are forced to take control of their own treatment and experiment on themselves. Slowly, against his instincts and assumptions, he realizes that many of the cranks and weirdos are right, that many supposed "hypochondriacs" are victims of an indifferent medical establishment, and that all kinds of unexpected experiences and revelations lurk beneath the surface of normal existence, in the places underneath. The Deep Places is a story about what happens when you are terribly sick and realize that even the doctors who are willing to treat you can only do so much. Along the way, Douthat describes his struggle back toward health with wit and candor, portraying sickness as the most terrible of gifts. It teaches you to appreciate the grace of ordinary life by taking that life away from you. It reveals the deep strangeness of the world, the possibility that the reasonable people might be wrong, and the necessity of figuring out things for yourself. And it proves, day by dreadful day, that you are stronger than you ever imagined, and that even in the depths there is always hope.
It's not often that deer ticks carrying Lyme disease receive credit for changing someone's life, but that's exactly what happened to author and Reiki master Dane Boggs. In Reiki Awakening, he shows how two tick bites and two different diagnoses led him on his path to spiritual awakening. Using personal anecdotes culled from his health journal and stories from others, Reiki Awakening focuses on the miracles Boggs experienced and the lessons he learned during his spiritual transformation. He narrates the story of his Reiki awakening, which occurred in September of 2007; meeting his spiritual teacher in May of 2008; and practicing a healing modality that led him to a path of greater enlightenment. Boggs shares the details of his experience to encourage others to tap into the healing energy of the universe to gain the opportunity for greater peace, comfort, and bliss in life--to become an enlightened soul.
Lyme disease has become the fastest-growing infectious disease transmitted by ticks (or other vectors) in the United States, but still remains a condition that is frequently misunderstood, overlooked, and misdiagnosed. Written by a leading practitioner of Lyme-aware medicine, this comprehensive guide will reveal to you the facts about this very serious disease - symptoms of which can mimic cardiac, neurological, and rheumatoid conditions - and will tell you what you need to know about the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of Lyme disease.
From the star of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills comes an emotional and eye opening behind-the-scenes look at her descent into uncovering the mystery of chronic Lyme disease. In early 2011, Yolanda was struck by mysterious symptoms including brain fog, severe exhaustion, migraines and more. Over the months and years that followed, she went from being an outspoken, multi-tasking, hands-on mother of three, reality TV star, and social butterfly, to a woman who spent most of her time in bed. Yolanda was turned inside out by some of the country’s top hospitals and doctors, but due to the lack of definitive diagnostic testing, she landed in a dark maze of conflicting medical opinions, where many were quick to treat her symptoms but could never provide clear answers to their possible causes. In this moving, behind the scenes memoir, Yolanda Hadid opens up in a way she has never been able to in the media before. Suffering from late stage Lyme, a disease that is an undeniable epidemic and more debilitating than anyone realizes, Yolanda had to fight with everything she had to hold onto her life. While her struggle was lived publicly, it impacted her privately in every aspect of her existence, affecting her family, friends and professional prospects. Her perfect marriage became strained and led to divorce. It was the strong bond with her children, Gigi, Bella and Anwar, that provided her greatest motivation to fight through the darkest days of her life. Hers is an emotional narrative and all-important read for anyone unseated by an unexpected catastrophe. With candor, authenticity and an unwavering inner strength, Yolanda reveals intimate details of her journey crisscrossing the world to find answers for herself and two of her children who suffer from Lyme and shares her tireless research into eastern and western medicine. Believe Me is an inspiring lesson in the importance of having courage and hope, even in those moments when you think you can’t go on.
Jack Bristow is a writer who's life has been altered dramatically ever since having contracted Lyme disease twelve years ago. After several failed attempts at getting better--antibiotics, herbals, anti-malarials--Mr. Bristow concluded there had to be something else. Enter detox. This book contains many different herbs and methods Mr. Bristow uses daily to become more functional and "feel human" again. Characters and incidents in said book have been exaggerated for comedic effect. But the detox methods the author lays out are one hundred percent authentic. Wildly funny, informative and surprisingly poignant "The Art of the Detox" is the work of a tenacious man who refuses to let his disease define him in his quest to help himself and others.
After fighting a seven-year battle with Lyme disease, Aimee Goodwin has written of her struggles with the disease and with the medical community to receive a diagnosis and treatment. She writes of the dark moments of sickness and of her eventual triumph over Lyme disease. Passionate in the cause of Lyme awareness, she desires her book to be a message of hope for all of those who may be on a similar path, and to help others have a better understanding of those close to them that may be fighting this silent monster.
The groundbreaking, award-winning investigation into Lyme disease—the science, history, medical politics, and patient experience—now with a brand new chapter. When Pamela Weintraub, a science journalist, learned that her oldest son tested positive for Lyme disease, she thought she had found an answer to the symptoms that had been plaguing her family for years—but her nightmare had just begun. Almost everything about Lyme disease turned out to be deeply controversial, from the microbe causing the infection, to the length and type of treatment and the kind of practitioner needed. On one side of the fight, the scientists who first studied Lyme describe a disease transmitted by a deer tick that is hard to catch but easy to cure no matter how advanced the case. On the other side, rebel doctors insist that Lyme and a soup of "co-infections" cause a complicated spectrum of illness often dramatically different – and far more difficult to treat – than the original researchers claim. Instead of just swollen knees and a rash, patients can experience exhaustion, disabling pain, and a "Lyme fog" that leaves them dazed and confused. As patients struggle for answers, once-treatable infections become chronic. In this nuanced picture of the intense controversy and crippling uncertainty surrounding Lyme disease, Pamela Weintraub sheds light on one of the angriest medical disputes raging today. The most comprehensive book ever written about the past, present and future of Lyme disease, Cure Unknown exposes the ticking clock of a raging epidemic and the vulnerability we all share.
