Lyme Science Blog

After 37 years treating Lyme disease, I’ve learned that some of the most disabling symptoms patients experience don’t come from Lyme at all—they come from Bartonella, a coinfection that produces neuropsychiatric manifestations, burning pain, and vascular symptoms that standard Lyme treatment doesn’t address. Bartonella is transmitted by the same ticks that carry Lyme disease, and […]

After 37 years treating Lyme disease, I’ve learned that while Powassan virus is rare compared to other coinfections like Babesia or Bartonella, it’s the most dangerous. This tick-borne viral infection can cause severe neurologic disease including encephalitis, permanent brain damage, and death—and unlike bacterial infections, there’s no specific treatment once infection occurs. Powassan virus is

After 37 years treating Lyme disease, I’ve learned that the ticks carrying Borrelia burgdorferi transmit far more than just Lyme disease and the common coinfections like Babesia and Bartonella. A growing list of emerging and rare tick-borne infections—Borrelia miyamotoi, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, Bourbon Virus, Heartland Virus, Borrelia mayonii, and STARI—adds complexity to diagnosis and

Alpha-gal tick allergy, also known as Alpha-gal Syndrome, is a tick-induced allergic condition that causes delayed reactions to red meat and mammalian products. Unlike typical food allergies that occur within minutes, alpha-gal reactions develop 3-6 hours after eating beef, pork, lamb, or other mammalian meat. This delayed onset makes the connection between tick exposure, meat

“I wake up drenched every night.” “The sheets are soaked through.” “My doctor says it’s just menopause.” After 37 years treating Lyme disease, I’ve learned that night sweats are rarely “just” anything—and when they occur alongside tick-borne illness, they’re often the symptom that gets dismissed when it should be taken most seriously. Night sweats in

Autonomic dysfunction in Lyme disease causes rapid heart rate, dizziness, crashes after activity, and temperature dysregulation—symptoms often dismissed as anxiety or panic disorder. The autonomic nervous system controls unconscious functions like heart rate and blood pressure. When Lyme disease affects these pathways, patients experience genuine physiological dysfunction. Understanding the mechanisms can lead to proper diagnosis and treatment.

“Am I getting better, or am I just having a good day?” Patients ask this constantly—because Lyme disease recovery doesn’t announce itself with clear milestones. There’s no finish line, no lab test that confirms “you’re healed,” no doctor’s appointment where someone declares you’re officially better. Instead, recovery creeps in slowly. A week with slightly more

After 37 years treating Lyme disease, I’ve seen patients dragging themselves to work with active infection, barely functioning but terrified to stop. Financial survival versus physical survival. Supporting their family versus protecting their health. There was no good choice. Some pushed through and gradually improved. Others couldn’t—their bodies gave out, and they lost their jobs,

After 37 years treating Lyme disease, I’m often asked: has anyone survived Lyme disease? Yes—absolutely. Surviving Lyme disease is possible, and many people have gone on to live full, healthy lives after infection. Some recover quickly, especially when Lyme disease is identified and treated early. Others face a longer, more complicated journey. But in my