Help Lance Kick Lyme!

It’s time for your annual eye exam, so you get your glasses fitted, pick them up in a couple weeks, and are good to go. Six years ago, our son Lance did this same thing, except he couldn’t see clearly with his new glasses. Dozens of exams were given, with new prescriptions each time over the next six years, and no one could figure out why Lance was experiencing debilitating eye pain (difficulty tracking and navigating public spaces, blurry vision, double vision, eye spasms that make reading next to impossible), panic attacks, tremors, balance issues, brain fog, and nausea. The culprit—chronic Lyme disease.

Symptoms worsened, so much that Lance has been unable to work his full-time computer programming job at Renaissance Learning for over two years and has been off completely since Oct 2021, earning no salary. Two long-term disability claims have been denied.

Last year an eye specialist in Fond du Lac encouraged Lance to get retested for Lyme (he had been tested twice previously), and in Aug 2021 he was diagnosed with chronic Lyme (borrelia), along with coinfections rickettsia, bartonella and babesia. These infections may have been ongoing and undiagnosed for more than 15 years. Lance now sees Dr. Samuel Shor of the Tick-Borne Illness Center of Excellence in Woodruff, WI. These virtual visits, as Dr. Shor is based in Virginia, occur every six weeks. Lance is on a medical regimen of antibiotics and supplements that vary according to progress made. The first round had no effect.

This Lyme treatment, begun last fall, took its toll on Lance’s already taxed GI system. He had multiple procedures/consultations at GI Associates, Surgical Associates, and Froedtert Hospital, with the consensus being Lance may be a good candidate for reflux surgery in the future, but not until he is more stabilized.

Lance is now in the middle of his second cycle of Lyme treatment and has yet to see any improvement. However, he went to Guilford, CT last week to meet with the nation’s top Lyme vision specialist, Dr. William Padula of the Padula Institute of Vision. He had several high-tech tests done that confirmed the presence of neurological Lyme. Dr. Padula has put Lance on a daily therapy schedule with two sets of new glasses (~waiting for those to arrive) that will help Lance to consciously widen his spatial gaze, instead of over-focusing. Virtual therapy visits with Dr. Padula every three weeks will monitor his progress. Lance will return to CT in 4-6 months.

The medical field, along with insurance and disability claims companies, rarely supports a chronic Lyme diagnosis. Lance and his wife, Morgan, have had to pay out of pocket for almost every office visit, most medicines, all glasses, adding up to tens of thousands of dollars.

We are asking for your support for the next six months:

It has been a very long journey, but we are hopeful that, finally, Lance’s health will improve, and he can get back to enjoying life. Thank you so much for your love and support!

Troy and Deb Aeby, Lance’s parents

For Lance and Morgan Aeby