1st Functional Medicine Doctor

My first functional medicine doctor was the one who found the Lyme disease…or should I say chronic Lyme disease at this point. She also tested for co-infections like Ehrlichia, Rickettsia, Mycoplasma, Babesia, etc. - which thankfully all came back negative, and she ran a more comprehensive deep-dive of lab work for other markers.

That testing uncovered a lot more underneath the surface. She found my C-Reactive Protein (CRP) was off the charts, which is a cardiac marker pointing to inflammation around the heart and a serious risk for a cardiovascular event. I had high LDL cholesterol (the bad one), high white blood cells (which indicates your immune system is responding to an infection, inflammation, tissue damage etc), and had Selective IgA deficiency (which is what helps keep bad things out at the mucous membrane level in places like the lungs, gut, bladder, tissues, throat, and nose). She found the MTHFR mutation which affects the body’s ability to process folate and break down homocysteine, and signs that my body was not detoxifying well, which at that time was pointing to an acute or chronic toxic exposure to heavy metals.

Considering how sick I was, my body could not handle antibiotics like someone else would be able to, and all it would have done was lead to further harm on my system like a worsening leaky gut and brain, worsening systemic inflammation, neuroinflammation, immune system suppression, and potential antibiotic resistance. 

So we focused on starting with a Modified Cowden protocol, which was a 6-9 month herbal protocol designed to treat chronic Lyme disease. It acts as an antimicrobial, detoxifier, and biofilm inhibitor. I also started taking a ton of other supplements for immune support, and worked on an autoimmune protocol (AIP) diet. I did food sensitivity tests too, which showed I was reactive to a lot of foods at the time which made sense, because my gut was in such bad shape and these foods were breaking down, passing through the gut lining, and going into my bloodstream wreaking further havoc. 

During my time with this functional medicine doctor, I did Major Autohemotherapy/intravenous ozone with ultraviolet blood irradiation treatment, where your blood is removed, travels through a tube, is mixed with medical ozone to target/kill bacteria and viruses, and then returned back into your vein to help boost immunity and improve oxygenation.

I stayed with that doctor until August 2021. Although we were actively trying different approaches, I still wasn’t getting better, so she ultimately recommended that I see someone even more experienced in Lyme disease - a doctor she described as “Lyme-literate.” I am forever grateful to her for believing me, finding the Lyme disease, and doing all the things we did. But I guess it was time for the next-level Lyme doc!