Lisa's thoughts about Love, Life, Lyme, and Liver disease

What do these strong and beautiful women have in common?  Lyme disease.   Their stories are honest, heart breaking, and real and their voices have brought additional awareness to Lyme disease.   Debbie Gibson and Avril Lavigne shared their stories in People magazine.  Recently Yolanda Foster and her husband, David Foster, shared a photo of themselves biting a lime and challenging their friends and fellow Bravo stars to #TakeABiteOutOfLyme. The Lyme Disease Challenge raises awareness, but it’s also a great way to raise money for ILADS, the International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society.   It's simple to participate: Take a photo of yourself biting into a lime. Share one fact about Lyme disease. Share your  photo and fact on social media and challenge three friends.  #LymeDiseaseChallenge.  I can't think of a better way to utilize social media.  Together we can bring awareness to this awful disease...

Lassie is taking a bite out of Lyme for Heather

The Beatles sang it best and it applies to so many dear friends and my loving family.  I am thankful to everyone that is helping Heather during her journey.   When she was released from the hospital, with the PICC line, I was able to be at her apartment with her for her first visiting nurse appointment.  It was overwhelming to watch the nurse explain the procedures required to care for the PICC line (having a sterile environment, flushing the line, injecting antibiotics, changing the dressing, protecting it when showering).   I wished at that moment that I could have stayed with her longer and help her adjust to this "thing" attached to her body.   This is when the script says, "Cue the friends."  Heather's amazing friends were there for her.  They sat with her, they cooked for her, they laughed with her, they let her cry, they went to the store for her, and they helped with every day chores.   Heather is a v...

When Heather was 32 years old, she was admitted to the hospital and diagnosed with Lyme in December 2014.   As I sat bedside, it was impossible to not reflect on other hospitalizations when she was 7 days old and then again at 15 months.  During these times Heather had surgeries to correct an intestinal obstruction and each surgery required a two week hospital stay.   They didn't give her pain meds since they claimed she didn't feel pain, but I watched her furrowed brow as she slept.    Fast forward to her Lyme diagnosis and this time Heather is able to tell the doctors how awful the nerve pain is.  Her pain management in the hospital was a mix of Lyrica and morphine.  They had to ease her onto the Lyrica, so they temporarily supplemented it with morphine. Even with two strong medicines, I could still see her grimace in her sleep and grab her calves where the pain was most intense.  I felt so helpless, but I was so g...

Anyone who knows me well, is aware that I didn't use social media.  I am an old school girl that prefers to talk on the phone, write a letter, or visit in person.  Sure I have a Linkedin account, but that was for my career and business networking.   In the last few months a few celebrities shared their Lyme journey.  Their stories were poignant and rather hard to read - some of their Lyme experiences mimicked what Heather was dealing with.   It was then that I realized how necessary it was for anyone affected by this terrible disease to share their experience. Each journey is different, but if my blog helps one person, than I feel that I have been successful.   I have shared my blog on Linkedin, and Heather has shared it on her Facebook page.  In the 24 hours that my blog has been live, it has been read by people in the United Sates, Ireland, United Kingdom, Vietnam, Australia, Russia, India, Canada, Hungary and Israel.   I...

In December 2014, my 32 year old daughter was diagnosed with Lyme disease.  Before her diagnosis, I never knew how terribly debilitating this disease could be. I will share her Lyme journey on this blog -but for now I wanted to share the “Take a Bite Out of Lyme Disease” Challenge that kicked off March 1st, 2015.  The purpose of the Lyme Disease Challenge is to raise awareness and funding for improved Lyme Disease diagnosis and treatment.   Here are the instructions from the website - http://lymediseasechallenge.org/   Lyme Facts Studies show that up to half of all patients with Lyme Disease received false negative results. This delayed diagnosis means they don’t receive needed treatment in a timely manner. Fewer than half of patients with Lyme disease recall a tick bite. Likewise, fewer than half of patients with Lyme disease recall any rash. Although the bulls-eye red rash is considered a classic sign. Infection with Lyme disease bacter...

If you had asked me last year about Lyme disease, I would have told you that a tick bites you, you see a bulls-eye rash, you feel achy, then you take a two week course of antibiotic pills and you are healed.   Sadly, that is not the case for everyone.  Studies show that 1/2 of those bitten by the tick never see the tick or the rash.    Heather was that person - she never saw the tick, she never had a rash.   It is still unclear when she was bitten.  Was it during her summer beach trip to the Outer Banks, a trip home in August and September, or one of her many trips to Long Beach?  She will never know. Looking back, she started to express concerns about fatigue in Fall of 2014, but this seemed somewhat normal considering her 60+ hour work week.  From late October until Thanksgiving, Heather was diagnosed and treated for the flu and several kidney infections.    It was Thanksgivi...