Engaging In Community Awareness
Author: Paula Jackson Jones
Orig Published: 08/11/2017
As
a nonprofit whose mission is to raise awareness, foster education, advocate for
change and provide local support to Maine’s Lyme community, we truly enjoy engaging
with the communities and hosting or participating in events that help further
along knowledge of tick-borne disease. Plain and simple: We enjoy helping people get better!
Tick-borne
disease can be confusing to diagnose and even more difficult to treat. With a
mindset that a tick bite causes only Lyme Disease, we are conditioned to look
for the bulls-eye rash and if/when it does not present, we are left wondering
why we feel so horrible. With testing that is unreliable, many continue to walk
around infected and don’t even know it. Many have a different tick-borne
disease all together or co-infections that were never addressed. It’s during these
community times that we get one-on-one connection with people, sharing our
experiences, listening to their stories and concerns and giving resources and
direction. People want real answers, tangible results and they want restored
hope that they can get better. Having been down that road and now in complete
remission for over 3 years, this is as real as it gets.
We
engage locally with people as much as possible because you can’t just go to the
internet and get the answers. If anything, you come away feeling more confused
and baffled by the variances among medical providers. Some go by a clinical
examination, others strictly by testing, some follow outdated guidelines and
treatment protocols while others stay up-to-date with the current protocols and
treatment options. Some medical providers say you’re cured after 14days of
antibiotics, while others understand the complexities of tick-borne diseases
including delayed diagnosis and the potential need for longer treatment and
supportive measure to rebuild. Part of
being out in the community and raising awareness and sharing information is
educating people, empowering them to the options that are available to them and
giving them control over their own health issues.
There
are lots of avenues one can travel when ill, choosing from mainstream western
medicine to alternative eastern medicine. The introduction of integrative medicine,
using the best of both worlds, gives the patient the best possible outcome, from
deciding which protocol to use to kill off an infection to implementing
supportive medicines that help rebuild and strengthening. It’s allowed and
accepted with other diseases ~ tick-borne disease should be no different. We are fortunate to be networked with over
100 medical providers in Maine that are highly educated in tick-borne disease
and that use a variety of treatment modalities. We like to say that seeing a provider
that has a large tool box is your best bet as a patient to get better because
there is no one size fits all approach to treating tick-borne disease and no
two patients present alike. Symptoms and medical histories vary as well as
genetics. Treating a patient with a tick-borne disease needs to be
individualized and no one understands this better than MLDSE.
LOOK FOR US!!
August
19-26, we will be at the Union Fair in the Exhibition Hall every day from
10a-4p.
In
September, we’ll be at Tractor Supply in Brunswick (2nd) and at Applefest in
Nobleboro (30th)
In
October, find us at Autumnfest in Bath (7th) and in Augusta at the
weekend long Snowmobile Trade Show at the Civic Center (20th-22th).
For medical providers who want to learn more about tick-borne
disease, ILADS 2017 conference is in Boston, MA! visit ILADS.org for more
information
As
always, you can visit our website www.mldse.org for information
about tick-borne disease, referrals to medical providers, and other support
resources such as meetings and financial assistance. It’s our pleasure to engage one-on-one with
our local communities, addressing their needs and providing free resources.
It’s what MLDSE is all about!
~ Paula
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