My Fight Againist Lyme

My name is Chandra Fogal-Yohe. For the past 15 years I have been in and out of hospitals with no relief from pain. After 17 surgeries I finally had my jaw joints replaced in 2012 due to a deformity in my right jaw joint which after years of wear and tear left me 80% on my mandiable bone. We fought with insurance but they would not cover the cost fighting that since they were moving my jaw they were considering it cosmetic eventhough I would soon be deformed. A loan was taken out for $23000 and still has not been recovered from insurance. Shortly after surgery I became extremely sick for months before they finally diagnosed me with a megatoxic level of c-diff which put me in the hospital for over 6mths. We thought finally I was on the mend however I still fought migraines 3-4 days a week. My muscles locked up randomly. I passed out regularly. My chest hurt like I was having a heart attack. I suddenly was diagnosed with severe asthma. I lost all fitness in matter of 2 mths. I had lost my good office job in 2006 to a fight over my medical leave between my jaw surgeon and my rheumatoid Dr claiming I had severe fibromyalgia. So I did what I could and Winsome Farm left me come in and give lessons/train horses as my body would allow. The flexible scheduling left me work when my body allowed and rest when my body insisted I needed to. I pushed as much as I could but in May of 2014 my body said no more as my heart raced at rest and my lungs closed up with a 40ft walk. I collapsed randomly more than ever. The migraines were almost daily. I was tested 13 times in last 15 years for Lyme Disease and always tested negative. Even with red rashes an antibiotic was never prescribed since it was protocol in those years that if you tested negative they didnt prescribe antibiotics. I was without hope and exhausted until my Mom found a Lyme Specialist who could test for up to 300 strains of Lyme Disease. Sure enough I tested positive for Lyme and co-infection of babesia. We spent our savings on this testing because the CDC doesnt recoginize this testing to be covered by insurance so again evrything came out of pocket. We started oral antibiotics but i was unresponsive so in went the picc line and every week I inject daily doses of iv antibiotics and hooked up to iv fluids to flush my organs of the endotoxins that are released when the lyme sphiroretes are killed off. A portion of this is covered by insurance but every month over $550 goes to my meds. At this time we are living off my husband's income and fighting for disability. In the meantime he works every hour he can. I still spend several days a week in a wheelchair as my joints lock and am unable to walk. On days i can he takes me to my parents and my Mom saddles my horse so I can feel free again. The treatment I am doing right now has become ineffective as my case is more advanced than my local Dr so we are now forced to go onto a new Dr. further away and more expensive but I need this if I am ever to recover. Blood markers show I have had the disease for over 15 years. I want to recover so I can spread the word about this mysterious Lyme disease and raise money for other families in need. I do not like fund raising for myself but if I am ever to recover I need a leg up to help others. Please feel free to share my story and thank you in advance for any help you can give.