This article is a disservice to those dealing with Lyme.

I have Lyme disease and I could barely read about those suffering without feeling contempt, disdain and skepticism.

There are so very many things wrong with the writing of this article, the first being NY mag assigning or allowing someone with no personal experience to write about it.

Two things: You have to have a medical license to prescribe antibiotics (MD or ND in some states). A chiropractor cannot. An acupuncturist cannot. And I believe there is some built in training and requirements to obtaining a medical license. When MF states “The only prerequisites for (being a LLMD is)…the ability to prescribe antibiotics” it is because one of the prerequisites is to already be a doctor. Secondly, this should lead her to properly conclude that there is a horrible, humongous, systemic problem for those suffering and dying (yes, people die – I almost did) from Lyme that the only people who are “trained” to help do not receive the option for training or studying in medical school but are essentially VOLUNTEERING to see and treat patients.

And that many doctors choose not to because there is NO standard protocol that works for all Lyme patients. An MD or ND can get harassed and lose their license in the process of patients and doctors being forced to try out protocols that have not received proper funding or attention – because that is the sad state of Lyme treatment, not because anyone involved prefers it that way.

The comparison is really this: You’ve been diagnosed with cancer. You’ve heard some people have gotten better with chemotherapy. You can’t/don’t know if it will work for you. There are only two doctors in your state who treat it. You are bedridden but need to travel to them and also, btw: INSURANCE DOESN’T PAY FOR IT ANYWAY.

By the time a Lyme patient is properly diagnosed the disease has triggered multiple health consequences: autoimmune disease which beget other autoimmune disease, medically diagnosable but not easily treatable digestive diseases, infertility, and permanent physical deterioration from being house/wheelchair bound for years (or you could die of a heart attack and skip that stuff). The complexity of the disease can only be understood by those suffering deeply from it or those treating it. Please NY Mag – I’ve been a subscriber for at least a decade – do not write about Lyme anymore. You have proven repeatedly you don’t know how to do it without sensationalizing the wrong things.

The real issue is: WHY DO I HAVE TO SEE FIFTEEN DOCTORS BEFORE I CAN GET A DIAGNOSIS AND TREATMENT, DECADES AFTER INITIAL INFECTION, AND WHY AM I NOT GOING TO GET COMPLETELY BETTER UNLESS I CAN THROW MY RETIREMENT AT IT, MY INHERITANCE, SELL (OR LOSE MY HOUSE BEFORE I GET A CHANCE), AND CONTINUALLY BEG FRIENDS AND FAMILY FOR MONEY?

Lyme disease nearly took me away from my child. You don’t know the suffering involved NY Mag and MF, so stay out of it.

Thank you Jordan for your response to the article and for creating a space to share and educate.

You – as a neutral physician – “bemoan the lack of strong, quality studies in the realm of chronic Lyme.”

I wonder: Is it people like you, who remain neutral while people die of a disease, who will ultimately contribute to the existence and funding of strong, quality studies?

Or is it those of us sharing our “skewed anecdotal (did you mean first person?) portrayals” – despite invasion of privacy and loss of precious personal time – who will ultimately convince scientific institutions to use funding to create those studies that everyone with Lyme and those treating Lyme would like to see done? And done before we lose another decade of our lives and productivity to this disease?

If MF’s article is the skewed anecdotal portrayal you are referring to, I cannot abide your tactic of dismissing “chronic Lyme” without suggesting what it might be instead. A different disease? Lyme causes many mental health issues, not the other way around. I urge you, as a physician, to also advocate for quality research, rather than assigning that monumental task to someone who is simply trying to get out of bed that day.

Laura… MIC DROP! “True journalism presents as much unbaised fact from different angles as possible and in the end allows readers to draw their own conclusions. This piece masquerades as unbiased but has an intention all along.” EXACTLY. This is exactly why one of my best friends who read the article before I did didn’t notice it was complete slander until taking a deeper look — it is a deeply manipulated masquerade of non-bias, but those of us who are informed on Lyme disease know better. It’s disgusting, slanderous, criminal. Thank you — I couldn’t agree more. <3

True journalism presents as much unbaised fact from different angles as possible and in the end allows readers to draw their own conclusions. This piece masquerades as unbiased but has an intention all along. To discredit and shame those who suffer and those who treat the sufferers. It starts at the very beginning when she convincingly describes the hardship of Polly Murray whose family has “real” Lyme disease, then immediately contrasts it with “fake” chronic Lyme. She doesn’t set out to tell the story of chronic Lyme from the perspective of its sufferers. She sets out to present it as a fallacy.

I’m currently going through a relapse after believing I was in permanent remission. The first time around I reworked my diet and self-care and thought I had a different perspective going forward. This time around, I’m having more of a spiritual journey as I really come to terms with what this disease means in my life, and pursuing more alternative treatment options.

Eventually mainstream scientific understanding will catch up and the world will understand how misinformed everyone was about tick borne diseases. Keep using your platform to spread awareness and positivity. It’s what we can do right now.

Thank you so much for this. I couldn’t appreciate you more. And I agree — connection is the true joy of life, and I am blessed to have so many connections and so much love in this lifetime. Including with YOU, so thank you for being here and for the love.

I love you Jil. In this together, my healing high vibrational soul sister. <3