Lyme Disease Symptoms Atlanta, A True Story
My Lyme Disease Symptoms Atlanta Ga Story – ” I Could Not Walk…..and Now I Can Run”
written by Alane Wincek, ND, CNC
Yes, I believe there are many people with chronic Lyme Disease symptoms Atlanta, and it is all over the USA.
Too many people are suffering from Lyme Disease Symptoms Atlanta Ga.
There are many infections within Lyme Disease in Atlanta and without comprehensive testing the person may not get better.
Without clear answers, people with Lyme Disease Atlanta, are spinning their wheels and unfortunately wasting time, money and energy. That is NOT ok!
I have battled Lyme Disease in Atlanta, Ga and in the Northeast for over three decades. I have good days and Lymie days, but for the most part, I am grateful that I have had comprehensive testing and precise protocols so I could have my life back.
I hope you will read my story and if you need help with Lyme Disease symptoms Atlanta, you will make an appointment at my wellness clinic so I can help you feel better. I have dedicated my life to helping others with Lyme recover and live the life they have always dreamed of.
My story starts in 1982 in a small town in upstate New York called Oswego. I was attending college and studying to be a Graphic Artist. I spent my mornings and early afternoons in classes and late afternoons and early evenings; I enjoyed walking along the lake. Nights were about partying and having fun. Life was good.
I enjoyed Oswego, NY, so much that I stayed there for the first summer and took classes. I lived off-campus in a house with four other girls. That summer was sweltering for upstate New York.
One day, I believe it was around July 4th, the neighbor’s dog came over to play. I played with him for a bit and then went out on the town with my housemate Amy. The dog stayed in our house and slept in my bed most of the day. We got home around 2 in the morning, and I climbed into bed. Two hours later, I woke up screaming for help. My legs felt like they were on fire! Amy came running into my room and yelled for me to get out of bed as flees, and tics were everywhere. We tossed the sheets out the window, and then I jumped into the shower. We went back to sleep and thought all was well……
The following weekend I went to a race at the Oswego Speedway. I had an ugly rash on my right leg that I did not want anyone to see. So in 101 degrees heat, I wore jeans and a tee-shirt, and off I went.
The fall semester started in August, and I felt tired. Plus, my stomach was acting weird. I put up with the symptoms and did not think much of it. Over the next year, the fatigue and stomach pains got worse, and odd neurological symptoms started.
One night while working at the student union candy store, I was scooping out some gummy bears for a student. I noticed my legs felt weak, and I was having trouble standing. Later that evening, as I was sweeping the floor, my legs gave up, and I fell. Then I started getting very cold, and my feet and legs seemed to lose circulation. I had to warm my feet frequently in a bucket of hot water, and I started to wear wool socks 24/7 to keep them warm.
I Felt Like Something Had Gotten into My Body That Did Not Belong There and it Was Creating Havoc.
I went to a local medical doctor and tried to explain what was happening to my feet and legs. He said it was some “algia,” which meant “pain,” and he said to take pain
medication. I left feeling concerned and confused.
One semester I flew home for the holidays and Mom took me to an orthopedic surgeon. He ran labs, looked at my feet, and said he did not know what was wrong but noticed my high sedimentation rate.
Somehow I knew I had to continue with school and I would try my best to finish up, even though I was struggling with some odd symptoms that no one seemed to understand.
The last day of school was in December 1985. I overslept and rushed to get to my painting class final. My legs hurt so much that I crawled through the art building and up the stairs. One of my professors saw me, picked me up, and carried me to class. It was the art final portfolio exam, and I could not miss it. He held me and placed me on a stool. One of my classmates, Theresa, came over and told me she would pray for me. I was never one for religion, so I just smiled and thought it could only help.
After graduation, I could barely walk. My feet always hurt, and if anyone touched me, I would feel radiating pain throughout my legs and feet. I would take a few steps while holding onto the walls or chairs to get where I needed and then sit down for the rest of the time. I visited several doctors. Still, no one could identify the baffling ailment that was robbing me of my life, and I was starting to lose hope.
This former high-energy college grad was now spending most of her days in bed sleeping or watching television. I couldn’t work, couldn’t walk, couldn’t cook, couldn’t clean – couldn’t do much of anything. I was always troubled with stomach aches, upper respiratory infections, fatigue, pains, and yeast infections. My energy was low, and my pain was severe. My friends and family comforted me the best they could. I seemed to be in a never-ending downward spiral, a repetitive cycle that needed to be broken.
First Wrong Diagnosis: RSD? Reflex Sympathy Dystrophy
One doctor I had gone to for a while diagnosed me with RSD (reflex sympathy dystrophy). He said he had never seen a case that was “bilateral” though. He put me on muscle relaxants, blood thinners, and anti-inflammatory medications. They worked to a point. I also had two chemical blocks in my back to see if they
would reduce the pain in my legs and feet and bring the warmth and circulation back. They seemed to work but temporarily.
In a small town in New Jersey, I met a young neurologist at physical therapy, and he asked for my story. I shared my symptoms. He said he did not feel it was RSD but something else, but he would need to see me in his office for an appointment to figure it out.
I was tired, did not want to see anyone else, and did not trust anyone anymore. I was scheduled to have surgery the following week, which I was determined to have. It is called an abdominal, bilateral sympathectomy. They would cut the sympathetic nerve that seemed to be causing all the pain symptoms. The neurologist asked me to reconsider, but I said, “No.”
I went ahead with the sympathectomy, and when I awoke, I had a strong feeling that I had made a colossal mistake. It took me a long time to recover from the surgery. I was getting more tired, and now depression was creeping in. The surgery was my last hope, and it did not work. I felt worse. I honestly was ready to end things. The pain was debilitating, and no one knew what was causing it.
I had never been one for religion, but at this point, I couldn’t see any harm in speaking to God. My good friend, Maria seemed to know God, so I thought He had to be out there. Plus, my friend Theresa from college said she would pray for me, so I guess she also believed in God.
So in June 1988, I pulled myself up on the kitchen counter and cried out to God.
I asked Him to send me help and guide me on a healing path. I told Him I would do anything He asked me to do to get better, and I would never forget it for the rest of my life.
I asked Him to please give me back a life of joy and be the person I was created to be.
What Happened Next I Will Never Forget
About two weeks later, I was in the same I had been going to the physical therapy clinic in Denville, New Jersey, for the last year. One of the physical therapists ‘Donna”, asked me to please see the orthopedic surgeon that owned the facility. She said, “I just know he will be able to figure this out.”
They, too, felt that the correct diagnosis had yet to be found.
When I thought about Donna, I remembered she wore a beautiful gold cross around her neck. Maybe she knew God, I thought.
I agreed to see their orthopedic surgeon. I liked him. He asked many questions and listened to my story. He said he knew what was wrong with me but needed to prove it. He ran testing for MS, connective tissue disease did an EMG that was quite painful, and did some blood tests.
Around July 4th, maybe ten days after the appointment, he called me home and said, “Congratulations, you have Lyme Disease Symptoms.”! The reason for all your pain and symptoms was a tick. He was the only doctor ever to ask me if I had a rash on my legs at any time in my life or had a weird rash similar to a bull’s eye rash.
YES! I remember the dog from Oswego, NY, and the rash on my legs after he came to play. I excitedly told him about the fleas and ticks in my bed. He said the antibody test indicates it happened around five years ago, precisely when I had seen the rash on my leg.
Emotionally I was feeling all different things at the same time. I felt angry at the doctors I had
seen who never found Lyme Disease. I felt mad at myself for not trusting the young neurologist in Hackettstown, NJ. And I was so grateful to the
doctor that finally diagnosed me correctly. I had been suffering from Lyme Disease symptoms all these years, which was awful.
What happened next was odd.
The orthopedic surgeon said it was too late to cure me; I may never walk again. But deep down, I felt so happy that I found a drive within me that I would do whatever it took to make it happen. I wanted to turn my life around.
He sent me to an infectious disease doctor in New Jersey for further help. He ran a Western Blot test on me, which he said was better than just an antibody test, which the orthopedic surgeon has run and diagnosed with me.
He said the rule of thumb is you need five positives to be diagnosed with Lyme; I had four positives on the test. He said, “I cannot diagnose you, but here is some doxycycline for a few weeks to help you.” It seemed confusing that the first doctor diagnosed me with Lyme Disease symptoms, but this doctor said he could not because I only had 4 of something and not 5. But he smiled and gave me antibiotics to treat it.
Please Don’t Mess With My Food!
I was still so excited to have a diagnosis or at least know what happened to me. I went on my first vacation in years to celebrate. In the Poconos, in PA, I met a couple that told me about their cousin Andy, a chiropractor. Interesting coincidence, Andy’s office was only 10 minutes from my home in New Jersey.
I had never been to a chiropractor before. He started adjusting my spine, and within a few adjustments, I began to feel my feet again, but without the burning pain, and move my body more efficiently.
He tried hard to talk to me about my diet. Still, I wanted to keep my
milkshakes, fruity pebbles cereal, hamburger helper, canned fruit, pop-tarts, soda, and frozen yogurt. I had no clue that my diet was preventing me from getting better. But Dr. Andy and the vitamin store he kept sending me to got me to trust them, and I opened my mind up to change what I was eating. I was not happy about it, though.
Over time I became fascinated with food and how what I ate was helping reduce the Lyme Disease symptoms or make them worse.
My legs and feet started feeling better, so I began to work in a vitamin store in Parsippany, NJ.
After a while, I moved to the south to a warmer climate. I immensely liked NJ, but the cold weather still hurt my
feet.
Life in Atlanta Ga Started With Remembering My Promise to God.
I found a few fantastic vitamin stores in the Atlanta, Ga, area and met some wonderful people. I told them my story of Lyme Disease Symptoms. One owner strongly suggested I return to school and get a holistic nutrition and naturopathy degree. I told the owner of one store about my talking with God, and she said he heard my prayers and directed my days.
She took me to church with her, and my third time there, I turned my life over to Jesus. I had nothing but gratitude in my heart for God healing my legs and helping me know how to get better. I would remember my promise to Him and work hard to help others as they helped me.
I happily finished a holistic nutrition and naturopathy certification program a few years later. I learned about the nervous system, autoimmunity, blood chemistry, hormones, toxins, mold thyroid function, Lyme, vitamin testing, food intolerance, gluten, and more. I have also taken many certified classes through Bridgeport, CT.
I have also taken many ILADS classes for Lyme Disease symptoms and am an ILADS-trained naturopath.
I work hard to get to the root causes of my patient’s symptoms. This may include dietary adjustments, labs for vitamin deficiency, food intolerance, toxins, etc. Then I guide them to the best health-supportive protocol so they can get their lives back too. My work is so rewarding, and I love what I do.
A Western Blot test will show fewer positive Lyme bands the longer you have the disease. And the Western Blot does not help identify many people’s co-infections or viruses.
But here is when forgiveness comes in. If the initial doctor I had gone to had understood Lyme disease symptoms and treated it, I would never have had all of these awful Lyme disease symptoms in Atlanta.
But I forgive them and understand they did not know about the Lyme Disease symptoms or how it affected the nervous system in the 1980s, even though it happened in New York state.
I am grateful to those who have helped me over the years and incredibly thankful that my prayers were answered. My faith in God is firm as I know He directed my path to health and healing, and now I spend time during my days helping others regain their life and health, naturally.
I enjoy outside activities like mountain biking, walking, and swimming on the beaches as much as possible.
I finished school in 1999 and started a holistic health and wellness practice in the Atlanta, Georgia, area called Nutritionally Yours. I have the privilege and joy of helping people with all sorts of health challenges, including Lyme disease in Atlanta, get their lives back.
I hope you found this story encouraging and are ready to return to good health. It has been more than 30 years since I was diagnosed with Lyme Disease Symptoms. My days now are primarily pain-free and active. From time to time, it tries to come back, but I don’t let it!”
Sincerely , Alane Wincek, Lyme Survivor, helping people recover from Lyme Disease symptoms Atlanta
Nutritionallyyours.net
Lyme Disease Symptoms Atlanta
