Help Deborah Olsen beat Lyme Disease

On August 4th, my sister-in-law Deborah was found unresponsive & lifeless on her bathroom floor. When she came to, her body went into violent convulsions and seizures. In the ambulance on the way to the hospital the seizures continued, she wasn’t able to speak much, showed cognitive confusion, & stopped breathing. We thought we were going to lose her. We found out while she was in the hospital that she had been on her bathroom floor for hours suffering repeated convulsions and seizures but was unable to call for help.

She was released from the hospital later that night but was only home for over 24 hours before the convulsions and seizures returned resulting in another ambulance ride and more days in the hospital & a couple of weeks recovering before she could return home.

It’s been a scary couple of weeks, but this all actually started in February of 2016 when she was bit by a tick in Southern Ca. & unknowingly contracted a serious bacterial infection, Lyme Disease. She contracted Lyme Disease right after just having her last baby which ended in a massive placental abruption which also nearly cost her her life. Before this, she had barely completed her second surgery, and then radiation for thyroid cancer before she discovered the unexpected pregnancy. It’s like she just can’t catch a break!

Deborah and her family have been dealing with the complications, fatigue, and constant pain of Lyme Disease for over 7 years now. Because of this, her husband Phillip, who is self-employed so he can stay close by her, often has to play the part of both mom and dad to their 6 kids., and now even caregiver. Deborah missed a lot of the important and special mom moments, lost her ability to work her health coaching business, and many other everyday life events over all these years as a result of this illness.

Lyme Disease is widely misunderstood and treatments are rarely if ever covered by insurance. Phillip estimates medical expenses have cost the family around $25,000 per year nearly all out of pocket. He said, “Conventional doctors won’t treat Deborah for any ongoing problems once they find out how long she has been dealing with the disease.”

During her Emergency Room visits, Deborah underwent many tests and was misdiagnosed and given medicines that did not correct the problem. Her doctor, who is an infectious disease specialist she has seen in the past, was contacted. She was able to pinpoint what happened just in time. She said the medicine dosage they put her on (in the ER) could have put her in a coma (as she was misdiagnosed). The Lyme created a brain toxicity problem relating to the thyroid that caused the issue, which these doctors were not well versed with.

We now know that Deborah is suffering from a rare condition called Acute Hashimoto's Encephalitis. Lyme Disease can infect and deregulate every system in the body. In this case, this rare toxicity in the brain, stemming from the thyroid, resulted from this complicated bacterial infection. Lyme is incredibly difficult to target, and this extra complication of the disease nearly proved to be fatal. (Click here to learn more about the specifics of the condition) https://www.verywellhealth.com/hashimotos-encephalopathy-overview-3231700

(Click here to learn more on Lyme Disease).

https://www.webmd.com/rheumatoid-arthritis/arthritis-lyme-disease

We feel so very blessed and view it as nothing short of a miracle that Deborah's doctors could effectively diagnose what was happening in time to save her life and get her on the correct medications and treatments. These measures slowed and eventually stopped the seizures and she is now home with her family. But Deborah is still facing ongoing Lyme disease complications and has a long road to recovery from this ordeal.

Deborah has been fighting the effects of Lyme Disease for years. Both Lyme Disease, Acute Hashimoto's Encephalitis, (& all of the other complications) are incredibly expensive to treat and will require ongoing follow-ups with several caregivers & doctors, as well as treatments to help her rebuild her body through IV and many other therapies and supplements including Glutathione, Detox, & high dose vitamins. The more often she receives treatment, the more impact it can have on her overall quality of life. Not to mention IV Antibiotics which should but aren’t typically covered by insurance because of her ongoing issues. Other treatments that have been suggested include ketamine infusions, ozone IVs and removing and repairing root canals infected by the bacteria.

We - her family and loved ones - are asking for help with ongoing medical costs for those who are in a position to help donate. Big or small, every little bit helps.