Over the past several years our clinical practice has evolved so that we are treating a significant number of patients with Lyme disease. Over half of the new patients I treat now have a Lyme diagnosis. Part of our increased clinical focus on Lyme is that the number of people with the condition here in Vermont and nationally is increasing rapidly.
The Centers for Disease Control estimates that 300,000 people become infected each year. Where we practice here in Vermont has one of the highest rates of Lyme in the US. And with these significant number of Lyme diagnoses patient advocacy groups, including the International Lyme and Associated Disease Society, believe that these already elevated numbers are low by many magnitudes.
There are many symptoms associated with Lyme: skin redness with an initial tick bite, fever, joint and whole body pain, fatigue, digestive and gastro-intestinal issues, cognitive/thinking issues and neurological issues including dizziness, vertigo and general instability. While an initial course of antibiotics may work for some people for many patients it does not cure the condition and can worsen symptoms. Also, as noted by Bill Rawls, an MD who is well known for treating the condition, despite it being a common western approach to use them for months or years, there is no study that indicates that the long-term use of antibiotics is effective in treating Lyme disease.
The good news is that with the hundreds of people we’ve treated to date, we consistently see very good results treating Lyme and its many possible symptoms. This includes treating people with an initial tick through late-stage neurological Lyme and all stages in-between. There is a disease progression theory in Chinese medicine that describes how what can appear as many different symptoms is part of the development of the same condition. And with Chinese medicine’s understanding of the importance of treating the unique individual rather than focusing only on the diagnosis, it’s very possible for all Lyme symptoms to improve and in many cases to resolve completely.
For more information about a Chinese medicine understanding of Lyme, please click on the links below. There’s an article I wrote and a recent interview where I talks about the progression of the Lyme.
See related resources by clicking the links below:
Comments are closed.