The Immune System Connection

» Dantessa - Lyme + Immune System

Very interesting & informative article. I hadn't really thought about the correlation between Lyme & immune system difficulties, above and beyond the fact that Lyme certainly taxes even the healthiest person's immune system.

I contracted Lyme, doctors believe, when I was 6. My mother contracted it at the same time. Both of us went untreated for 7-8 years. My mother was symptomatic most of that time, but it was in a day and age when Lyme wasn't prevalent or diagnosed and treated much. Doctors told her it was in her head. She has struggled now for 15 years, symptomatic about 75% of that time. I, on the other hand, was not symptomatic when my diagnosis was confirmed at age 13, after 7 years.

I was having some upper GI trouble at the time, and went to several pediatric GI specialists. I had already been diagnosed borderline positive for Lyme, and once the doctor put me on antibiotics my symptoms came about full force. It remained, however, mostly GI & cerebral, with occasional musclular reaction. Long after my tests had come back negative for the dead Lyme bacteria, I continued to have stomach pains. The pediatric specialists finally ordered a pelvic ultrasound which revealed a softball-sized tumour in my right ovary.

I went into surgery for removal and biopsy of the tumour over Easter time when I was 14. Prior to this, and prior to the first "attack" of Lyme, I was never, ever ill. Aside from having the chicken pox at age 8 I was rarely ever home from school. Directly after the surgery, however, my immune system all but disappeared. I have always considered this a direct result of the fact that I had a huge tumour growing inside me which, according to biopsy results, my body was fighting with everything it had. Also, invasive surgery itself always takes a toll on the immune system. I considered that both things had finally just done my immune system in. I hadn't even thought that the prior flare up of Lyme would have contributed. Now I can see how the combination of all three things really served to break my body's defences down.

Nowadays my immune system is still in shambles, I am ill almost all the time, and I've had two very major Lyme relapses since then. At this point though the bacteria do not show up in tests whilst I have asymptomatic periods, my doctor (who is rather a specialist in Lyme) and I believe that the disease has been in my body so long that it is simply dormant, waiting for me to get run down enough again for it to relapse. I for one don't believe I will ever be rid of Lyme completely. Maybe if we'd caught it earlier, and I hadn't lived 7 years with it settling in...but not now.

I found it very interesting you mentioned the upper respiratory problems and linked them to poor immune system and Lyme disease--every year like clockwork I get a massive sinus infection that, in turn, produces Lyme-like reactions in my entire body (muscle aches, Lyme "fog") and elevates my liver enzymes. It's come back positive for mono every year but that's not quite possible unless it's recurring Epstein Barr's...but even then, there is no glandular involvement and the sinus infection just doesn't make sense. My doctor thinks it's a combination of seasonal allergies and the kind of sinus infection & influenza that is always prevalent in fall & early winter, but the liver reaction is still a mystery!

Anyway, just thought I'd share all that as I could probably be a case study in poor immune system & Lyme disease! I still believe that the tumour & surgery were most responsible for the demise of my once-strong immune system, but it certainly makes sense that Lyme set the stage. It may well be that the tumour taxing my immune system to begin with allowed Lyme to become active--albeit slightly--when my blood tests came back positive at age 13. I've had the gammaglobulin shot, I know the vitamins that are supposed to boost the immune system, and the various homeopathic therapies. I haven't had much luck. But thank you very much for the tips at the end of your article, they certainly reaffirm what I've known and give me some more ideas for treatment.

-- posted by Dantessa