Living with Lyme disease and my fight to get treatment.
Hi my name is Sonia and i am 36 years old and i'm married with a 7 year old daughter.On the evening of the 5th March 2010 my life suddenly changed forever....Since that day i have been mis diagnosed and fobbed of and bumped from pillar to post within the NHS,fighting with them every step of the way to get a diagnosis and appropriate treatment for what i now know is Lyme disease(borreliosis)I also have epstein barr virus and co infections(babesiosis,bartonella and posssible others) You can read more about my story and about the condition itself on the following pages but first id like to tell you a bit about why i have written this website............
I am fighting this debilitating disease every day but i'm losing....there are too many bugs in my body and my immune system cant cope and i need help and medication to kill these parasites that are living in my blood. I desperately need treatment for this disease ,as the longer it goes on the more permanant damage is done to my body and mind.but that is not easy....the NHS are not treating me and i am currently one week into a 3 week course of doxycycline and have been told that this will cure me......i am still fighting to get them to give me the IV antibiotics i need,but even if they agree to this the NHS guidelines for treatment state that only 3 weeks IV is required and while this may be the case in early Lyme disease(borreliosis)if the condition is left untreated due to a doctors ignorance in not recognising the rash i had 5 years ago,as in my case and it has progressed to late stage when it crosses the blood borne barrier and invades your major organs including your heart and brain,then a much longer and more aggressive treatment plan is needed. The latest thinking from Lyme literate doctors is to treat for up to 3 tears using an IV that is inserted into your heart and to pump in the antibiotics with a hope of them going directly into the brain. There are only a few doctors in the world that treat this way and who have the correct knowledge of this disease and they are in America.This is obviously costly but is my only hope for watching my daughter grow up...and to get the treatment proven to give you a chance of a normal life....I need to raise £30,000 to get me well enough to consider getting to America for this life saving treatment and all in all it will cost around £80,000.In the meantime i cannot function on a daily basis without oral antibiotics...to try and keep the symptoms at bay,which are not as expensive but i am now living on disability allowance and my husband has had to give up his job/creer to care for me and so we cannot afford these.......i have managed to find a private doctor in England who will treat me but seeing her is expensive and the NHS just wont help.!!!!! LOVE SONIA XXX
So im begging you....if you could please help me and my family by donating even a £1 you can click on the paypal button below.....to read more details of my story click on... My story so far at the top of the page and to join the facebook group and see videos of some of what i have to go through daily follow this link http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=134675306560444 or if you would like to send a cheque please make payable to The Sonia Smith appeal fund 35 Green street Ryde Isle of WIGHT Hampshire Isle of wight England