My New Excuse
This has been quite a weekend. In addition to fighting the cold/flu, I had a visit with the Lyme doctor. Last month, when we took Kara there, he suggested that I allow myself to be tested for Lyme as well. While the current conventional wisdom is that Lyme can't be transmitted from person to person, there is increasing evidence that it in fact can.
Borrelia burgdorferi, the Lyme bacteria, is a spirochete - as is Syphilis. Draw your own conclusions.
So on Friday I got my test results and, as suspected, my test came back positive. But not the "kinda sorta if-you-read-it-this-way" positive that Kara's test had. This was a "you've-had-this-for-a-long-time slam-dunk" positive.
Which actually makes some sense if you think about it, and really answers a few questions.
Before my family moved to Hawaii, we lived in Nebraska. I distinctly remember being bitten by a tick. This would have been in the late '70's, and Lyme disease was just beginning to show up in the public consciousness. Some experts say it hadn't spread to Nebraska that early, but that is the most likely explanation for my very positive test results.
I never really had symptoms, so we never suspected anything was wrong.
For the moment, these test results really don't change much. I will probably want to get this treated, but being asymptomatic at the moment I have a little flexibility. We still need to focus on getting Kara well.
One thing these test results do give us is another piece of Kara's puzzle. Most likely she got Lyme from me. Her test results can (and have been) interpreted many different ways. But she has all of the symptoms of Lyme, and the fact that I have had Lyme for so long, coupled with an increasing body of evidence implying Lyme can be spread through intimate contact, removes a certain amount of doubt.
But as for me, all I really have is a good new excuse.
You see, since Lyme disease can cause cognitive dysfunction, I now have built in justification for every lapse of judgment that occurred in the last thirty years. "Yeah, that was pretty stupid. But I was suffering from undiagnosed Lyme disease at the time..."
Borrelia burgdorferi, the Lyme bacteria, is a spirochete - as is Syphilis. Draw your own conclusions.So on Friday I got my test results and, as suspected, my test came back positive. But not the "kinda sorta if-you-read-it-this-way" positive that Kara's test had. This was a "you've-had-this-for-a-long-time slam-dunk" positive.
Which actually makes some sense if you think about it, and really answers a few questions.
Before my family moved to Hawaii, we lived in Nebraska. I distinctly remember being bitten by a tick. This would have been in the late '70's, and Lyme disease was just beginning to show up in the public consciousness. Some experts say it hadn't spread to Nebraska that early, but that is the most likely explanation for my very positive test results.
I never really had symptoms, so we never suspected anything was wrong.
For the moment, these test results really don't change much. I will probably want to get this treated, but being asymptomatic at the moment I have a little flexibility. We still need to focus on getting Kara well.
One thing these test results do give us is another piece of Kara's puzzle. Most likely she got Lyme from me. Her test results can (and have been) interpreted many different ways. But she has all of the symptoms of Lyme, and the fact that I have had Lyme for so long, coupled with an increasing body of evidence implying Lyme can be spread through intimate contact, removes a certain amount of doubt.
But as for me, all I really have is a good new excuse.
You see, since Lyme disease can cause cognitive dysfunction, I now have built in justification for every lapse of judgment that occurred in the last thirty years. "Yeah, that was pretty stupid. But I was suffering from undiagnosed Lyme disease at the time..."
Comments
And to make matters worse for you- being weepy last week over your defeats...this can only add to it by finding out that Kara is sick because of a stupid tick that bit you years ago. Oh, Don. I am so saddened. I think you are such an awesome guy and Dad...I really pray you can still be strong and your body will continue to be so you can be the support your girls and Kara needs. My heart just aches, just aches right now. Prayers from me will be uttered continually on your behalf.
May the Lord pour his blessings on you and yours at this time.
But it's still a lot to digest, I admit.
my prayers are with you as well!
Keep up the good work....I hope your body doesn't suffer as Kara's has. You've been very blessed.
My husband is an iridologist and health nut, and he wonders if Kara has been tested for parasites?