The Treatment of a Chronic Lyme Disease Case
by Jo Daly CCH
Lyme’s disease is an emerging epidemic in this country with approximately 300,000 new cases being diagnosed each year. Additionally there are many more undiagnosed cases whose lives are made miserable by a multitude of disturbing symptoms that no one can explain. Chronic cases of Lyme disease come to homeopathy either because antibiotics have failed to cure and the disease has progressed to deeper destructive pathologies or because they have evasive but worrying symptoms that have never had a definite diagnosis but appear to be most similar to Lyme’s.
Lyme disease, or Lyme borreliosis is a disease caused by infection by three species of bacteria belonging to the genus Borrelia. The bacterial spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi that is most common in the U.S. is transmitted to humans by the bite of infected ticks , often found on deer. The ticks, being very small, may go undetected and this is the beginning of what is often described as an enigmatic mystery disease that appears apparently without cause and defies classification. Those of our clients who are familiar with homeopathy will know that the initial stage of acute Lyme’s can be nipped in the bud with the remedy Ledum palustre. Ledum is the remedy commonly given after a tick bite has first been noticed. Early symptoms may include fever, headache, fatigue, and a characteristic circular skin rash called erythema migrans or bull’s eye rash. Once the bull’s eye rash has appeared and a diagnosis of Lyme Disease seems likely, there is a fairly well established and effective protocol of acute treatment using Ledum, Hypericum and the nosode from Lyme (Borrelia). This treatment will in many cases prevent the symptoms from progressing deeper.
Most people will seek conventional medical aid at this point and start a course of antibiotics with or without homeopathy as well. Antibiotics in many cases will prevent the spirochete from wreaking further damage. These are the lucky ones. When antibiotics do not prevent the disease from progressing, the bacteria disseminates throughout the body and may cross the blood-brain barrier, making the infection more difficult to treat and a terrible array of symptoms both physical and emotional or mental can ensue. Chronic symptoms include joint pain, severe fatigue, headaches, visual disturbances, cognitive problems, heart and neurological symptoms. Polyneuropathy that involves shooting pains, numbness, and tingling in the hands or feet may develop. A neurologic syndrome called Lyme encephalopathy is associated with subtle cognitive problems, such as difficulties with concentration and short-term memory and profound fatigue. It is often mis-diagnosed as chronic fatigue syndrome. Chronic encephalomyelitis that may be progressive can involve cognitive impairment, weakness in the legs, awkward gait, facial palsy, bladder problems, vertigo, and back pain. In rare cases untreated Lyme disease may cause frank psychosis, which has been mis-diagnosed as schizophrenia or bipolar disorder. Panic attack and anxiety can occur, also delusional behavior sometimes accompanied by a depersonalization syndrome, where the patients begin to feel detached from themselves or from reality.
Why do some people progress to chronic stages while others recover with no more than minor disruption to their health? In homeopathy we understand this to be a matter of the underlying “soil” or constitution being susceptible to the energetic imprint of Lyme’s disease. Another way to explain this is that it is due to the miasmatic disposition or inheritance that precedes the infection by the Lyme tic and that is only suppressed to deeper expressions by the use of antibiotics. Homeopaths who treat chronic Lyme Disease have observed a resonance with the syphilitic miasm - another spirochetal infection that gravitates to the brain and causes neuropsychiatric disease. Additionally, both syphilis and Lyme have three clear consecutive stages with periods of latency in between. Some homeopaths have postulated that a ‘genus epidemicus’ for chronic Lyme’s may be found in the syphilitic remedy group, most notably Aurum arsenicosum.
This theory can only be borne out by clinical observations of cured cases. My own experience is that chronic Lyme is best treated using the individually chosen similar remedy – I have used many remedies with good results and none stand out yet as contenders for the genus epidemicus award. I am presenting a case of chronic Lyme’s here that has some interesting aspects to consider.
I was contacted by a woman who made an appointment for her son who had chronic Lyme Disease and was suffering considerably. The client was a 33 yr old financial consultant who arrived with his mother for the interview. There was tangible tension between them and she waited outside for him, after indicating to me that she had information that she also wanted to give me. He was not very forthcoming – answered questions minimally, not offering information about himself without prompting. I had a hard time finding out anything about how he feels. We shake hands and his handshake is clammy.
The following is a summary of what he says “I came down with Lyme Disease a year ago. I’ve been on antibiotics most of the time (Doxycycline, Seftin, Zythromax) with no improvement of symptoms. Now I have stomach symptoms from the antibiotics and am taking more medications for that. The main symptoms of the Lyme’s are:
Constant dull headache with pain over the eyes and behind the eyeballs
Photophobia and spots in the vision – have to wear sunglasses outside.
Blurred vision
Head feels ‘swollen’
Joint pains – these were the first symptoms to appear after the rash –aching pains in hips, knees, ankles and fingers with no definite modalities
Extreme exhaustion especially by the end of the day from 5pm onwards. Sometimes energy can pick up later in the evening. Needs a minimum of 7 hours sleep – a change from before.
Cognitive problems, difficulty with short term memory and inability to recall things.
‘Can’t think things through and that seriously affects my work. Had a brain scan done that showed some ‘abnormalities’. Extremely concerned about compromise to his work situation.
Rapid heartbeats with shortness of breath. An ECG showed an abnormality in the aortic valve that is bicuspid and may require surgery.
The Lyme Disease began with a ‘bullet rash’ after a tick bite followed by the joint pains.
“I thought it was Lyme but had trouble getting a diagnosis because the blood tests were not clear. My appetite is ok. I tend to have a sandwich for lunch and a large dinner. I like meat and potatoes. I get hungry but when I start eating I get full quickly especially since being on the antibiotics. Gas starts building up and I soon have diarrhea. I also get a pain in my chest that rises up into my throat. I am thirsty for cold drinks and I drink coffee. (This all in response to questions)
Around age 9 I developed Tourette’s syndrome. It started with little twitches and tics and I did not know what was going on. I just remember having twitches and blurting things out. Kids pick on you. I thought I was going crazy. I took Haldol for about 4 years and the symptoms died down.
I was very shy as a child. I had many anxieties and fears – of separation from my mother, of robbers and of flying especially. I had a hard time in school – I was shy and I didn’t fit in. Before the Tourette’s started my grandmother passed away and I had been very close to her.
My father is laid back and easier to relate to. My mother gets stressed out easily. He does a lot for me but she gets carried away. I have one sister who suffered from depression. We didn’t get on as kids but its better now. I used to have bad allergies in the spring time and as a teenager had allergy shots and now it is less. My work is stressful. I am in financial consulting and when I started it was unfamiliar and I was very stressed. The most stress was giving presentations or getting behind in projects. Also – I am single and would like to find a partner and get married. I live alone. I never remember any dreams. I used to like running but cannot do it now because of the exhaustion.”
His mother says she had been treating him homeopathically herself. She had given him Ledum 1M and then Lycopodium 1M and now he was taking Gelsemium 30C. She said there was some other information about her son that I should know and that he would not have told me. I asked the client if he minded me speaking further with his mother over the phone and he shrugged as if it was an inevitability that he had no control over. I spoke to his mother on the phone afterwards and she said:
As an infant he had an enlarged thymus gland treated with radiation. His Tourette’s started age 3 with rapid eye blinking.
When he was 4 he witnessed violence to his mother by an intruder in the house – he has never mentioned this and she has not spoken about it to him as an adult.
At age 6 he developed uncontrollable jerking of the arms and legs
At age 9 his grandmother, to whom he was very attached, died and after that the vocalizations started. At first it was grunting and non verbal noises and then it progressed to echoing speech and repeating words or what other people said. He was put on medication because he was teased so much that he did not want to go to school any more. Once he was chased by some kids and hit over the head. The medication relieved the symptoms but it had a depressing effect on him. He told his mother about a dream of people banging their heads until they split open so he was taken off the medication and he gradually improved.
As a child his skin was rough and red and his lips were red as if he had allergies. He had frequent earaches, swollen glands and had his tonsils removed. He had a chronic dry cough through childhood. He had stomach aches throughout childhood that would get worse if he had to go to school or somewhere without his family. His sister was depressed and suicidal (She was cured with homeopathy)
I observed that his case had syphilitic intimations including the suicidal nature of his sister. I repertorized the case using the following symptoms –both past and present :
Mind: Timidity
Mind: Clinging, child clings to the mother
Mind: Delusions, laughed at and mocked, being
Mind: Dullness, thinking, long, unable to think
Head: Pain, forehead, eyes behind
Head: Swollen feeling
Vision: Blurred
Chest: palpitation, night
Extremities: twitching
Stomach, Fullness, eating after, ever so little
The main remedies were: Sepia, Nux-v, Bar-c, Lyc, Sulph, Nat-m, Arg-nit.
He seemed pretty clearly to need a remedy from the mineral kingdom since his main concern was his ability to function at his high level job. Of these remedies, only Baryta carb and possibly Arg-nit caught my interest. His extreme shyness as a child combined with a history of glandular issues pointed to Baryta carb. His fears, swollen sensation and abdominal gas could indicate Argentum nitricum. However for me the strangest aspect of this case was the fact that this 33 year old financial advisor came to the homeopath with his mother. His attitude to his mother was both attachment and rejection –‘I need you but I don’t want you.’ His physical symptoms were fairly characteristic for Lyme and therefore not so useful. However the suppressed Tourette’s syndrome from childhood provided the clue to another Baryta salt that matched his state even better. The syphilitic metal Barium from Row 6, when combined with the chlorine element from Row 3 gives Baryta muriaticum. Baryta mur has symptoms of chorea and twitching of the limbs. It also fits him well according to the ideas of both Scholten and Sankaran:
Barium – I have to take responsibility but I need support
Muriaticum – wanting to break free from the identity given him. Issues with the mother.
From Materia medica:
Confused, unable to concentrate
Timid and cowardly nature
Need protection to face the challenges of life
Violent chorea with jerking of arms and legs
Twitching of face and speech is unintelligible
Extreme lassitude with compelling need to lie down
Weakness of the legs with muscular stiffness
Tachycardia from excitement with increased pulse
Effects the glands with swelling of cervical and parotid glands and nasal speech
The similarity to his childhood state seemed remarkable so I chose to try this remedy for his present state also.
The client received several doses over the next year of 30C then 200c and 1M
Interestingly the healing response took about six weeks to start after the first 30C. I doubted my remedy choice and was in the process of re prescribing when he called to say that everything was going away! There was a complete cure of all Lyme’s symptoms combined with improvement of clients’ general state, social life and work status.
During the healing process, the client experienced a return of mild Tourette’s symptoms that had been suppressed in childhood. These subsided after some time.
I believe that the underlying susceptibility of this case first showed itself in the Tourette’s symptoms, and these being suppressed, infection by Lyme’s gave the organism another opportunity to express its underlying imbalance.
This is just one example of many cures of chronic Lyme’s that I have seen using the well indicated remedy –plant, animal and mineral.
Jo Daly CCH
The Center for Homeopathy
Bay Area California and New York City.