Help Vicky beat Lyme Disease
This is Vicky's story.
Prior to 2016 I was fit, healthy, very active and worked long hours in a career I loved. I ran the London Marathon and cycled from London to Paris. In 2016 I had an amazing year away travelling - I climbed Machu Picchu, swam in the Mekong Delta, rode a motorbike the length of Laos and slept in the Cambodian jungle. I fell ill in India and got myself checked out at a clinic in Delhi. I was given some medication and returned home. I was in an extremely exciting phase of my life - I had a new job, a new flat and was looking forward to a fresh start. I started to get infection after infection - toe, ear, throat and came down with what I thought was bad flu and was bedridden for 2 weeks in December 2016.
This was when my life completely changed, my body crashed and I began to get issues with every part of my body. I have been housebound since and after multiple hospital admissions, more appointments than I can count and seeing close to 20 Dr's I was finally diagnosed in March 2020 with Chronic Lyme Disease and 4 Co-infections.
I am currently juggling my way through various treatment protocols. There is not a one size fits all approach with Chronic/Late Stage Lyme Disease and it is a lot of trial and error with different medications and treatment. I have been told I have a good chance of getting to 80%-90% remission but it will most likely take years due to the fact it has gone undiagnosed for so long and caused long lasting damage to my body.
Detecting Lyme Disease early is key as it means you have the best chance of a full recovery. But for me and so many others who have a delayed diagnosis the the consequences can be devastating. Lyme is globally misunderstood and underfunded and treatment options are scarce and not provided on the NHS or covered by medical insurance. Unless you are diagnosed with Lyme Disease straight away unfortunately no treatment is offered on the NHS, so I am having to fund treatment myself.
I have been unable to work since January 2017 and I have spent all my savings £22,000 just in the last year to 18 months. I have used a huge amount of my mum's savings too. I had 5 weeks of IV treatment last August, which unfortunately didn't have the desired outcome, and this alone cost us £9,000. That was excluding accommodation in London and taxis every day. Many treatments are in London, Europe or the USA, unfortunately there is nothing local. Ozone therapy and other supporting treatments are all in a similar price bracket although there are more affordable options which I also hope to try when I can manage. These include things like BioResonance, Infrared Sauna, Lymphatic Drainage etc which can help the body holistically and have helped many other Lyme patients. My daily medication and appointments are also expensive and I have often spent £1,000 in one go just on a consultation and prescriptions.
As you can imagine this disease takes a huge toll on us not only physically but also emotionally and financially.
Any support would be so gratefully received.
Thank you.
Vicky xx
For more information and awareness of Lyme’s disease, please take a look at Caudwell LymeCo Charity http://caudwelllyme.com/