Lara's Lyme Disease/ PTSD Battle

So this is my story. It took me a while to write this because sitting down at a computer and writing is not one of the easiest tasks for me to do.

I have been very sick for the last 3 years. It was mid 2012 when i was bitten by a tick on the Northern Beaches of Sydney, NSW. As i would find out a year and a half later it was this bite that resulted in me contracting Lyme disease and co-infections Babesia, Ricketssia and Bartonella. 

Despite exhibiting the most common early stage Lyme disease symptoms- such as flu like symptoms, joint pain, headaches and the development of a bulls eye rash around the bite-my disease initially went undetected and I got misdiagnosed  several times.
 Doctors thought  i had a spider bite, the flu, anaemia, exercise induced asthma, depression, anxiety, joint and cartilage problems and chronic fatigue. 

For 6 months i tried various treatments that my medical practitioner recommended - i had various antibiotics and medications, asthma puffers, IV iron infusions,  MRI's on my joints, physiotherapy and cortisone injections.
Yet i was still getting worse. 
I was struggling to hold down my full time job as a physiotherapist and i was unable to continue my surfboat rowing and other physical and social pursuits. 

I finally found a GP who suspected Lyme disease. It seemed to make sense and i finally felt like i was getting somewhere with possibly getting a diagnose and more importantly treatment that would help me regain my life. He started me on  antibiotics and reffered me to an infectious disease specialist to confirm his diagnosis. 

Due to Lyme disease not being recognised in Australia it is extremely hard to get a diagnosis for Lyme disease, and it also makes it hard as often the bacteria is good at hiding and doesn't show up on tests very easily. 

The infectious disease specialist tested me for Lyme disease and -shock and horror- I got a positive test result from Royal North Shore Hospital. 

However - the Doctor failed to inform me of this positive test result.
Not only did he tell me my test result was negative, he also took me off the appropriate antibiotic treatment which my GP had started me on. 
Instead he diagnosed me with post viral syndrome and told me it was a matter of time before i recovered. 
He also failed to retest my blood as per the laboratories recommendations. 

However, i didn't find all this out until 10 months later. My health had severly deteriorated. I became extremely sick. I was blacking out all the time. It became increasingly  difficult  for me to complete everyday tasks.

The Lyme disease had progress from acute to chronic as the bacteria disseminated through my body systems and unfortunately into my brain as well.
(photo above - feeling poorly with ice pick headache afterone of many IV antibiotic infusions)

My symptoms had increased and by this stage i was suffering from mental confusion, breathing problems, hallucinations,migraines, neck pain, night sweats/chills, weight gain, chest pain, mood swings, anxiety, depression, personality changes, insomnia, OCD, forgetfulness, memory loss, difficulty thinking, putting words together, blurred vision, extreme sensitivity to the light, eye pain, loss of hearing, constant ringing in ears, sound sensitivity, joint pain(swelling/stiffness), muscle pain, spasms, loss of muscle tone, extreme muscle weakness, poor coordination, insomnia, constant burning/stabbing/electrical shocks throughout my body that would cause me to collapse to the floor unable to move for minutes to hours. I was unable to spell or write, i could barely hold a conversation and i thought my life was over. 

I knew within myself that these symptoms couldn't be accounted for by post viral syndrome alone and i kept going back to my GP with my concerns. 

He referred me for abdominal surgery in late 2013 to explore what could be causing the extreme pain i was experiencing which had led to me being hospitalised three times in the last few months. The surgery didn't detect anything at all. 

Finally at the end of 2013 this Dr managed to look up the infectious disease specialist and saw my postive test for Lyme Disease!!!! 10 months after that initial test and a year and a half after my bite i finally had my diagnosis!

I sent my blood off to labs in the U.S (Igenex) and also in Sydney (australian biologics) which cost $3000 to confirm these initial results which had been kept hidden from me. 
All my tests from both labs came back positive for Lyme disease, babesia, rickettsia and bartonella!

I was so excited that i finally knew why i was so sick but i don't think at that stage i realised what a ride i was in for and just how much worse life could get. 

I started antibiotic and IV therapy the beginning of 2014 however i was declining rapidly. I was so sick i couldn't tolerate the treatments. It felt like i was dying every day.

(photo above - some of the tablets i take each day)

In a wheelchair and suffering severe cognitive and physical impairments we made the decision to go to Germany and undergo hospitalisation and intensive treatment. This cost roughly $40,000.  It involved undergoing hyperthermia treatment to kill the bacteria and intense IV antibiotic therapy along with ozone therapy, IV vitamins, colonic therapy, oxygen therapy and supplementations. The treatment was somewhat successful and i improved quite a lot initally.

(photo above - in wheelchair ready to fly to Germany- i need oxygen for the flight to get me there and back!)

I was out of my wheelchair and lucikly my hallucinations had stopped. Unfortunately a few months after this treatment I declined again rapidly. 
The co-infections Babesia and Bartonella did not respond fully to the treatment In Germany and the bacteria/ parasites were taking over my body once more. 

To make matters worse when i got back from Germany i got diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).  Now i thought dealing with the hallucinations and extreme pain of my illness, - confronting death and somehow surviving each day even though you feel you were dying - i thought that was hard- but PTSD is not kind.

The flash backs, the intrusive thoughts, the nightmares, the intense distress when i remember how sick i was and what i've been through. Every where i'd look i'd see people dying. It was extremely horrific and morbid. 

I have been attending a clinical psychologist to help treat my PTSD. I do EMDR, cognitive behavioural theray, medications and exposure therapy. 

Having PTSD - and also Lyme disease - takes a heavy toll on my loved ones and family. They are so supportive, they are patient and understanding (well most of the time!). They try and anticipate any PTSD triggers and help me cope with the effects this illness has had on my life. My life was completely put on hold. Survival became my main focus.  I am pleased to say that my medical team can notice improvements, and so can I. 
I am gradually getting my life back. 

I have had to recommence my daily IV antibiotic therapy which is extremely expensive as none of the treatments for Lyme disease in Australia are covered by medicare.

(Photo above - on my 30th birthday in May this year. Celebrating with the nurses at my second home the IV clinic.)

Unfortunately the expense of the treatments i am needing is really adding up and i may not be able to continue getting the necessary treatments. I have been unable to work for the past 2 years and the cost of medical bills is huge. 

I woiuld love some finanical support to assist with my medical bills and aid my recovery:

-IV therapy costs thousands and thousand of dollars- none of the antibitiocs are subsidised-
-A trip to my doctor for a review costs $450 which i have to go to monthly. 
-The oral medication and supplements i need to help kill the bacteria and keep my body functioning - which is hundred of dollars per week. 
-I need to go to the clinical psychologist twice per week which costs upwards of $200 per session.
-I attend art therapy classes which is $60 per week.
- In addition i will soon be ready to commence rehabilitative physiotherapy which will be $120 per session. 
Next week i am due to start on another round of daily IV antibiotic therapy.

As you can see the costs very quickly start to add up and i haven't even mentioned general living costs! 

I had to move in with my parents two years ago as i was unable to continue working and needed full time care due to the severity of my illness.  They have been extremely generous financially  and emotionally however i need to find other ways now to continue my treatment as we have basically run out of money for it! 
I would love your help as this is all proving to be much more expensive then we expected and we are very much struggling to pay for these things now. 

Treating chronic lyme disease is not easy. It takes time. In my case it could be many years. And treatment is not covered. Our medical system likes to believe that lyme disease does not always exist. So I need to pay out of my own pocket to get the treatment I need. Treatment is not cheap.  I ask you for your help. Any amount you can donate would help me to get better. I wont stop fighting. I will continue to fight so I can get my life back and enjoy these precious moments we have. 

Please donate if you are able too - every little bit will help to make a big difference in my life and my recovery!

Thank you so much for your generosity.