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Lyme Disease- Introduction and History

Lyme disease alert

Lyme disease, by definition, is a bacterial infection that humans contract when they are bitten by an infected deer tick. It’s caused by a spirochete whose scientific name is Borrelia burgdorferi. In Europe, the disease may also be due to another bactreia, the Borrelia afzelli. The disease has in most cases been branded the “Great Imitator” due to the fact that its symptoms often confuse with those of several other diseases. An individual with the disease may be affected in the joints, heart, skin and the nervous system. Lyme disease is not contagious from one infected individual to a non-infected person as the infection is spread through infected deer ticks.

The infection develops in two phases. The first phase often identifies as a red spot that appears to be expanding at the spot where the bite occurred. The spot is often noticeable for between three and thirty (3-30) days. In some cases, flu-like symptoms for example, headaches, tiredness, joints and muscles pain are experienced.

If the infection goes untreated after the first phase, it may develop into a more serious and chronic type, months or years later. The chronic type, every so often described as chronic Lyme disease, may trigger symptoms identical to those of chronic fatigue syndrome or fibromyalgia.

Lyme disease surfaced in 1982 from a research done in Lyme, Connecticut, where the infection was first identified in some children as rheumatoid arthritis. With time, it was revealed that deer ticks are the carriers of the Lyme bacterium that caused the disease. The ticks acts as vectors which transmit the disease whenever they bite humans. In discussing Lyme disease and addiction, we will try to identify the connection between these two conditions and see how Lyme disease has a possibility of driving one into addiction.

As you already understand that Lyme disease is a bacterial infection, its link to addiction probably comes in how the disease is treated through administration of antibiotics. It’s now evident through research that antibiotics overdose or abuse may lead into addiction. But first, let’s discuss the symptoms of Lyme disease and its treatment.

Symptoms of Lyme disease And the Connection to a Possible Addiction

Lyme disease affects different body parts as it develops. First, the bacteria enters the skin and body at the point where the tick bite occurred. This point becomes reddish with time, and as the bacteria moves away from the bite, it leaves an expanding reddish rush which resembles “flu-like” symptoms.

The disease is medically assessed and described in three identified phases:

Early localized disease with skin inflammation
Early disseminated disease with heart & nervous system involvement, and sometimes incudes palsies and meningitis
Late disease which features motor and sensory nerve damage, brain inflammation as well as arthritis.

Early in the first phases of the illness, say after days to weeks of the bite, a rush develops on the skin around the area of the bite. Sometimes and in a few victims, a special ring called the erythema migrans, develops and resembles a bull’s eye in a dart board. In some, the rash goes unidentified. As the skin becomes red, there may be accompanying symptoms like muscle and joint stiffness, generalized fatigue, swollen lymph nodes and a headache, all of which may be confused to a viral infection.

The redness may disappear in about a month even without any treatment and the effects of the bacteria spreads in the body, causing abnormalities in the nervous system, heart and joints.

In the later stages, severe symptoms are witnessed and may include:

Inflammation of the heart muscle leading to abnormal heart rhythms and heart failure
Nervous system develops facial muscle paralysis (Bell’s palsy)
Abnormal sensation due to disease of peripheral nerves (peripheral neuropathy)
Meningitis
Confusion
Arthritis, or inflammation in the joints

Researchers have realized that anxiety and depression are also common with people experiencing increased rate of Lyme disease. This makes this condition a possible addiction source as these two conditions are similar to those of withdrawals.

The link between Lyme disease treatment and addiction

The treatment of Lyme disease demands the use of antibiotics to fight the bacterial infection. Also, some of the symptoms of Lyme disease sometimes include swollen glands of lymph nodes which are very painful. As such, administration of pain relievers might be necessary. With the fact that narcotic pain relievers are the best, their use will be encouraged in such situations. Most of these drugs are addictive.

As Lyme disease mimics several other diseases’ symptoms, it’s commonly misdiagnosed in its chronic state for other diseases and as a result, wrong antibiotics given. The effect of this is that wrong antibiotics are introduced into the body which creates antibodies for the antibiotics. As a result, there is a possibility of resistance to antibiotics developing. Another factor in this perspective is the fact that most antibiotics are administered to treat infections that are rather viral than bacterial.

In treating Lyme disease, the administration of antibiotics depends on the level or stage of the infection. If strong antibiotics are used in the early stages where any mild antibiotic would get rid of the infections, the possibility of resistance to antibiotics increases.

Whenever there is resistance to antibiotics, there is a likelihood of overuse or abuse (excess drug intake) to treat the condition as the effect of the drug diminishes. The body begins to tolerate the effects and thus demands for more or stronger pills (which is one way in which addiction develops).

Finally….

Addiction is a serious condition that threatens life if left untreated. As such any condition that may force one into the path of addiction, irrespective of the form of addiction, is fatal and should be minimized in all ways possible. As such and with the fact that Lyme disease is likely to be confused with other diseases, there is a pressing need to consult only trained and well experienced professional doctors, like Dr. Dalal Akoury of Awaremed. With her vast experience in the medical practice, she has the right mix of skills, knowledge and experience to offer the right treatment for Lyme disease and addiction.

Be it that you’re a physician or a patient in need of a life transforming addiction treatment, Dr. Dalal Akoury provides training and treatment in all aspects of addiction- the genetics and epigenetics of addiction. She’s an expert in all addiction treatments, including NAD and NADH treatment for addiction. Get in touch for her life-changing treatments and training.