lyme disease help

The symptom you describe is consistent with Babesia.  Many Lyme patients have Babesia from the same tick that gave them Lyme. 

Yes, thanks, being tested for babesia this week, aswell as bartonella and rickettsia.

Rebecca, do you know if is possible to be infected with babesia but not have lyme ? (had 2 negative tests for lyme ELISA/Western Blot)(and these were carried out months after illness apparently reducing likelyhood of false negative ?).

Yes it's possible. Babesia is a serious disease in it's own right and it can come by itself or with Lyme disease or any other insect born illness. I have Lyme, Babesia and bartonella but Babesia is my "main infection" - it's the one that gives me most of my symptoms so doctors are treating it first and will then tackle Lyme. I couldn't get a positive Bart test but my doctors knew enough to clinically diagnose me.  Did you know that none of these tests are yet perfect? A negative doesn't mean you don't have it. (Recent law was passed in Virginia making it a medical requirement to declare this on all negative tests and doctors MUST inform patients)  Lyme is primarily a clinical diagnosis. There other tests that help doctors put the jigsaw together - CD57 test (indicator of Lyme, tb or aids so narrows it down) or they can drug trial you to test for herx reaction.  So testing is only part of the picture.  Look up Buruscanno symptoms list and Horowitz 16 point differential diagnostic - these two symptom lists can help you figure out what you've got based on symptoms.    To go back to your original question, Babesia can exist without Lyme but many more patients have both

Thanks Rebecca, sorry to hear you have these infections. Time will tell if i do too. I'm presently 2 days into a 5 week course of doxycycline 400mg/day. I know that will not treat Babesia but it will surely let me know if i have lyme or something else.Have you seen the new KS3 lyme panel from spirostat ? What do you thinkof that ? $250 looks like great value considering what they test for. I'm potentially going to go for a test with the Melissa Foundation.

I've never heard if that lab you mention, but worth me having a closer look. Australian patients are using labs in California and Germany - both seen as leaders in this field.  I like PCR testing of urine, this picks up DNA of dead bacteria which are being expelled via patients urine, but I'm only aware of one lab doing this - a local lab here in Sydney.  Sometimes patients have to try a number of methods through different labs before they turn up a positive - just a pity that no test is yet 100% guaranteed. I'd say start with the cheaper tests first!   As for doxycycline I'm not sure if it creates a herx? Some other patient might know for sure, but a herx would be a good way to help you figure this out. (If the doc started you on full dose then he wasn't expecting a herx) 

Just check with the lab - for some tests you need to be abx free

Yeah I'm gonna treat them all.  Showing symptoms of bartonella and Lyme not sure about babseia. I'm off to see a homeopath tomorrow who has treat Lyme before so will see im also pulsing metronidazole too but looking at switching soon because it's not doing much.