I’ve been watching HH on and off for the last couple of months. Started watching cause your Gogo is so hot—however, I think your combination of intellect, insubordination, and experience, of the “system” is a bulleye. Frankly, I’m perplexed you get away with it—a big kudo to you.

I saw you jump that barstool–DUDE, very impressive–be careful I’ll tell ya—I’m Marine jet driver, been through a lot, never got hurt, and first pulled a hamsting around your age of 35, I guess.

I searched as to why you were off HH. I saw you lookin not so well on HH–thought you had a series of rough nights and maybe needed to get away from the booze or worse.

I’m dismayed that an active guy like you is saddled with that damn tick disease. I hope you get well soon.

For remedial action–when in the woods carry a mix of 50/50 water and avon skin so soft. don’t worry about smellin like a chick. Spray it at your ankles–waist band–neck and wrists. I never got a single tick at places like Camp Lejuene, while I have seen friends with hundreds.

Best of luck to you

I ditto Theresa’s comments (July 8ty 2008 at 2:10am)which are right on target. The book “Cure Unknown” is dynamite and the documentary will show just how lucky you are to have been treated so promptly and especially with IV! See copy of Theresa’s comments just below my signature.
Jill

“I am so glad for you that the disease was diagnosed early. Like others have said, you are one of the lucky ones! So hang in there with the Bell’s Palsy, it will clear with the IV. And, it sounds like you are in good hands.

There are 2 exciting things that have happened in the last few months. One is the release of a documentary on the disease called “Under Our Skin” It is fantastic. It was featured at the Tribeca Film Festival a few months ago, and was voted by the audieces as No 8 out of more than a hundred films.

The other exciting release is of a book by a scientific journalist called “Cure Unknown”. It’s written by Pamela Weintraub, and can be ordered on Amazon. It chronicles the history, science, and politics of the disease. Very, very interesting and educational. Fear not re: the title of the book. I believe the author is referring to the chronic version of the disease. In your case, since caught early, you will hopefully have a full recovery to normal health.”

I wish you a speedy recovery. I don’t know much about the disease except being warned of ticks when camping in N. California. After doing a bit of wiki-ing, it doesn’t seem like a fun time off. Enjoy the company and hope you recover in full. Take care of yourself. If there is an address we can send you a “get well card”, you should post it on your blog. Alex Kazmarck

Re the issue of use of tax dollars for this disease, actually we do have two bills in Congress now, to authorize 100 million over five years’ time for testing, treating, reporting and education regarding Lyme disease and co-infections. What better way to use your experience with Lyme than to advocate for getting those bills to a hearing, which is the next necessary step. HR741 is currently in the House Health Subcommitee under the chairmanship of Rep. Frank Pallone (NJ). S1708 is currently in the Energy and Commerce Committee, chaired by Sen. Edward Kennedy. Both of these reps need to be lobbied to move the two Lyme bills up for a hearing so this country can get the help it needs for this raging epidemic that shows no signs of quitting at this point unless we all work together to figure out how to stop it. Thanks for your attention and I hope you get the treatment you need.

When dying from an illness that is as political, controversial, and money driven as Lyme Disease, you can’t really minimize the plight of those suffering terribly when they beg Congress to do something (It was implied), especially considering the private sector has proven itself incapable of ethically choosing the publics safety over the financial interests with this specific disease. in 2006 there was an anti-trust case brought against the Infectious Disease Society Of America. Attorney General Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut found multiple conflicts of interest financially over the societies creation of the treatment guidelines for Lyme Disease. The problem is simple. The society claims Lyme Disease is hard to catch, easy to cure — while another group of doctors say Lyme Disease is easy to catch, and often hard to cure.

You don’t think the government should get involved when a society as large is the IDSA is restricting consumer choice over having access to “all” the available science on Lyme Disease, a society who is producing guidelines that literally dismiss the studies implicating the infection as being persistent and requiring long term antibiotics?

Unfortunately for those sick, having access to the best and brightest doctors in the medical community, just like President Bush, you’ll probably consult doctors who are members of ILADS (International Lyme and Associated Disease Society) and who use long term antibiotics, you’ll get well, and then you’ll abandon the facts I’ve presented, and you’ll go back to your comfy life and ignore the reality that there is an epidemic going on that is killing people and or crippling people, while the majority of the medical community deny that fact.

You’re in a position where people can tell you these things, and can warn you of the consequences of holding the belief you do. There are hundreds of studies indicating that this infection is persistent, and that once it reaches the central nervous system, it can take up residence, sequestering itself in areas of the body, such as collagen rich spaces, where antibiotics can’t permeate. Yet, with all these studies, the medical community is literally split over whether Chronic Lyme Disease exist? Are you kidding me?

Here, I’ll post just a few abstracts:

1: Ann Med. 1999 Jun;31(3):225-32.Links Borrelia burgdorferi detected by culture and PCR in clinical relapse of disseminated Lyme borreliosis. Oksi J, Marjamäki M, Nikoskelainen J, Viljanen MK.

Department of Medicine, Turku University Central Hospital, Finland. jarmo.oksi@utu.fi

A total of 165 patients with disseminated Lyme borreliosis (diagnosed in 1990-94, all seropositive except one culture-positive patient) were followed after antibiotic treatment. We conclude that the treatment of Lyme borreliosis with appropriate antibiotics for even more than 3 months may not always eradicate the spirochete. By using PCR, it is possible to avoid unnecessary retreatment of patients with ‘post-Lyme syndrome’ and those with ’serological scars’ remaining detectable for months or years after infection.

2: Rheumatol Int. 1996;16(3):125-32.Links Intracellular persistence of Borrelia burgdorferi in human synovial cells. Girschick HJ, Huppertz HI, Rüssmann H, Krenn V, Karch H.

Children’s Hospital, University of Würzburg, Germany.

To investigate if Borrelia burgdorferi can persist in resident joint cells. Treatment with ceftriaxone eradicated extracellular Borrelia burgdorferi, but spirochetes were reisolated after lysis of the synovial cells. Borrelia burgdorferi persisted inside synovial cells for at least 8 weeks. These data suggested that Borrelia burgdorferi might be able to persist within resident joint cells in vivo.

3: Logigian EL, Kaplan RF, Steere AC. Department of Neurology, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, MA 02111.

BACKGROUND AND METHODS. Lyme disease, caused by the tick-borne spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi, is associated with a wide variety of neurologic manifestations. To define further the chronic neurologic abnormalities of Lyme disease, we studied 27 patients (age range, 25 to 72 years) with previous signs of Lyme disease, current evidence of immunity to B. burgdorferi, and chronic neurologic symptoms with no other identifiable cause. Eight of the patients had been followed prospectively for 8 to 12 years after the onset of infection. RESULTS. Of the 27 patients, 24 (89 percent) had a mild encephalopathy that began 1 month to 14 years after the onset of the disease and was characterized by memory loss, mood changes, or sleep disturbance. Of the 24 patients, 14 had memory impairment on neuropsychological tests, and 18 had increased cerebrospinal fluid protein levels, evidence of intrathecal production of antibody to B. burgdorferi, or both. Nineteen of the 27 patients (70 percent) had polyneuropathy with radicular pain or distal paresthesias; all but two of these patients also had encephalopathy. In 16 patients electrophysiologic testing showed an axonal polyneuropathy. One patient had leukoencephalitis with asymmetric spastic diplegia, periventricular white-matter lesions, and intrathecal production of antibody to B. burgdorferi. Among the 27 patients, associated symptoms included fatigue (74 percent), headache (48 percent), arthritis (37 percent), and hearing loss (15 percent). At the time of examination, chronic neurologic abnormalities had been present from 3 months to 14 years, usually with little progression. Six months after a two-week course of intravenous ceftriaxone (2 g daily), 17 patients (63 percent) had improvement, 6 (22 percent) had improvement but then relapsed, and 4 (15 percent) had no change in their condition. CONCLUSIONS. Months to years after the initial infection with B. burgdorferi, patients with Lyme disease may have chronic encephalopathy, polyneuropathy, or less commonly, leukoencephalitis. These chronic neurologic abnormalities usually improve with antibiotic therapy.

I could go on, I have hundreds more….

The documentary “Under Our Skin” has been in the news a lot lately, I would see it if I was you. Get familiar with this illness, because remember, Lyme Disease isn’t the only thing that ticks can transmit when they bite you. Babesia? Bartonella? Mycoplasma, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, Anaplasmosis, Ehrlichiosis. There are more, but I suggest you do your homework and understand the complexity of your situation.

You’re not out of the woods just because you’ve been told so by someone wearing a white coat.

Regarding your quip about Michael J. Fox, let’s get one thing straight: You are not Michael J. Fox. Tons of people have never heard of you before, so let’s not get the horse before the cart. Focus on trying to get well. I hope you are successful.

I had it and I would suggest you do some acupunture in your area that is affected. You will get better. Best wishes.

Well my heart goes out to you, that’s downright uncanny about the getting on TV and then having Bells Palsy after all the injuries during your sports escapades. Kinda does make you wonder, doesn’t it? Well, your tone is great and yes, you are indeed very lucky to have the Bells Palsy!

Cause if you hadn’t of caught this the way you did…well, there are no words for what it potentially does to people. I speak from unfortunate experience.

But it’s great you’re on it and I hope the prompt treatment with the IV antibiotics nips it in the bud for you and you’re back on TV in no time flat.

Maybe your last sentence was an attempt at humor or flippancy just to get through this unexpected side track, but really, this thing for some people can become debilitating and life threatening. Research really does need to be done!