Parent Mentor Statement
Sharon from CT
I first became aware of the Lyme-autism connection in 2003 when I realized what Kyle had gone through. I was so completely amazed to witness the academic, behavioral, emotional, and physical dramatic changes following 5 months of aggressive intravenous antibiotic Lyme treatment at the end of 5th grade that I was inspired to write a 20-page story chronicling Kyle’s history over those past 4 years. In early 2003, I shared this story with two key Lyme (ILADS) doctors, two DAN! doctors and a naturopath who all shared in some part of Kyle’s healing. You see, Kyle had progressed from a child who required a full-time aide by his side throughout his elementary school years (for cognitive and behavioral reasons) to a child who moved to the public middle school, dropped all aide support within his first month, was fully mainstreamed, and achieved the honor and effort rolls. His standardized test scores were no longer scattered with deficits; instead, they showed consistent promise. Kyle began to play the clarinet in the band and wind ensembles, became a double black-diamond skier, and became an accomplished golfer. The Lyme treatment caused me to reassess the PDD diagnosis that Kyle had maintained since he was 3 years old.
Over the years, I helped supervise speech therapy, sensory-motor integration therapy, gluten-free/casein-free diets, NAET treatments, naturopathic DAN! supplements, secretin shots, anti-fungal treatment, IVIG infusions, and Lyme treatments. For Kyle, many of these therapies made a significant difference. But without a doubt, the most dramatic improvement was directly correlated to his aggressive antibiotic Lyme treatment.
Lyme disease touched my life directly as well. Seven years ago I became severely ill from Lyme and several co-infections. I suddenly changed from an athletic, accomplished woman to an overwhelmed, fatigued and crippled woman who could barely walk to the mailbox. After many doctor visits, tests, and months of no answers, I finally took myself to a Lyme specialist and began treatment, using many different combinations of oral antibiotics over the years. I have been diagnosed with and treated for Lyme, Bartonella, babesia, mycoplasma fermentans, and mercury and lead toxicity. I am also a recent thyroid cancer survivor, and believe that the cancer was directly linked to mycoplasma since my tumor tissue tested positive for this bacterial infection. I am now well without antibiotics, for which I remain eternally grateful to my present Lyme doctor. Collectively, Kyle and I have experience with 4 different, highly experienced ILADS doctors. I have volunteered for an LDA-affiliated organization for the past seven years and I try to remain well-versed in new developments in the Lyme community. I would be honored and pleased to help mentor any struggling parents, particularly those on the East coast, who have discovered a similar connection of Lyme and autism in their own child, or of Lyme in other family members. Neither autism nor Lyme leads down an easy path; I would like to help provide encouragement and support along your journey. Please e-mail me at: Sharon@liafoundation.org
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