Lyme/alt. hypotheses re: illness

[Guest guest]

I wonder if there are multiple possible manifestations.... What you

describe and are hypothesizing is so different than my own

experience. I was fine, got an EM (didn't see a doc, hadn't heard of

LD, it was '89 and I was 25!), developed meningitis, positive ELISA/WB

on CSF. Got treated, got better. Relapsed 6 months later. Treated

longer, got better for longer. This pattern continues with years of

wellness followed by severe recurrence that is treated and wellness

ensues. Also, I test negative when I feel well and test positive when

I am sick.

My improvement with Abx (usually IV), the clear demarcation between

illness and wellness, and clear testing positive/negative seems quite

different than what is being described by many people. Other

experiences sound like more like a constant but fluctuating state of

illness that may or may not respond to Abx. Moreover, some people

relapse nearly immediately when Abx are stopped. I, on the other

hand, don't feel better on Abx, but begin to improve once they are

done. Improvement continues for about a year culmunating in relative

wellness.

I always assumed that I have this " relapsing/remitting " form because

between the time I was bit and got meningitis, was on steroids for

quite a while for a bad asthma flare-up. I assumed that with my

immune system squashed down, bugs got in places that they might not

have otherwise.

All this to say, I wonder if there are multiple " forms " of LD. One,

perhaps, that works much like and Penny (and Barb?) are

hypothesizing (indirect Bb as function of other bugs) and another that

works more in this on/off sort of way but that is CLEARLY a direct

function of the Bb. More expressions of it as well perhaps (e.g.,

diff forms of Euro/US neuro, arthritis vs. non-arthritis expression,

etc).

[Apologies for spelling errors and such. Too tired to deal with it

today.]

>

> writes:

> " But this doesnt rule

> out the fact that ones illness could cause a harmless Bb load to

> increase to a higher but still pretty harmless level, as most people

> seem to think is the case with EBV. "

>

> :

> That's close to the philosophy I have. I'll be happy if my immune

> system can keep Bb at a population where I'm asymptomatic (with just

> a little help from abx once in a while).

>

> Barb