Global Lyme Alliance column
Since 2013, Jennifer has written a weekly column for Global Lyme Alliance (www.globallymealliance.org/blog), covering nearly every aspect of living with Lyme disease and other long-haul illnesses. Peruse all of her backlogged columns here, organized by topic.
Lyme 101
Things I Didn't Know About Lyme Disease Until I Got It
Five Reasons Why You Should Care About Lyme Disease
Top Ten Myths About Lyme Disease
I Just Got Diagnosed With Lyme Disease: What Should I Do?
The Importance of Digging Deep
Books and Resources That Have Helped Me On My Journey
What's In a Name? When Talking About Lyme Disease, It Matters
We Are the World: What I Learned About the Global Health Threat of Lyme Disease
Bursting the "Woods of New England" Bubble
Partisan Politics in Lyme Disease
Lyme Disease Prevention
Don't Forget It's Tick Season, Too!
End of Summer Doesn't Mean End of Tick Season
Enjoying the Summer While Living With Lyme
Managing Fear of Ticks During the Summer
Ticks Are a Year-Round Threat: Don't Let Lyme Become Your Holiday Surprise
Tips For Lyme Disease Prevention at Camp
Lyme Disease Diagnosis and Testing
I Just Got Diagnosed With Lyme Disease: What Should I Do?
Not All Lyme Rashes Are Created Equal
The Danger of "Waiting and Seeing" with Lyme Disease
Did You Pull a Tick Off of You? Here's Why You Should Keep It
Lyme: The Differential Diagnosis
When You Suspect You Have Lyme, But Your Test Comes Back Negative
RSV, COVID, or the flu? As a Lyme Patient, This Isn't My First Time With a Misdiagnosis
The Importance of Digging Deep
What's Luck Got To Do With Lyme Disease?
Victim Blaming and Lyme Disease
Lyme Disease Treatment
I Just Got Diagnosed With Lyme Disease: What Should I Do?
Risk-Benefit Analysis of Tick-Borne Disease Treatment
Intravenous Antibiotics for Lyme: Pros, Cons, and the Lived Experience
My Lyme Disease is in Remission. How Do I Keep it That Way?
The Importance of Being Vigilant
Natural Isn't Always Better: Getting Real About Pharmaceutical Medication
Seven Tips to Organize Your Medications
Physical Symptoms of Lyme Disease
Not All Lyme Rashes Are Created Equal
The Aches and Pains of Tick-Borne Illness
When Lyme Disease Takes Away Your Energy
Crashing After Activity with Lyme Disease
Gastrointestinal Issues with Lyme Disease
Excessive Thirst and Lyme Disease
Stop the Itching! Lyme and Hives
Not All Headaches Are Alike: What's Causing Yours?
Keep It Simple: You're Just Tired
Hot, Hot, Hot: What a Heat Wave Means for Lyme Patients
Neurological Symptoms of Lyme Disease
Lyme Brain: The Science and the Experience
Breaking Down Lyme Disease and the Blood-Brain Barrier
What Helps Improve Cognitive Function for Lyme Patients?
Lyme Symptom: Nervous System Inflammation
Lyme Disease and Sensory Overload
Where Am I? Disorientation and Lyme Disease
Rest: The Most Important Message of My Dreams
Not All Headaches Are Alike: What's Causing Yours?
You're Not Crazy--You Have Lyme
Short-Circuited By Lyme Disease
Other Tick-Borne Diseases
Is it Lyme or a Co-infection? Knowing the Difference Can Make a Difference
Have You Heard of the Tick-Borne Disease Babesiosis?
The Tick-Borne Disease Babesiosis Can Cause Neurological Symptoms
Differentiating Between Babesia and COVID-19 Air Hunger
Could You Be Co-infected With Bartonella?
Emotional Impact of Lyme and Long-Haul Illness
How Does Having Lyme Disease Affect Your Relationships?
Lyme and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
Lack of Respect for Those With Lyme Disease
Victim Blaming and Lyme Disease
What it Means for a Patient to be Heard
Mixed Messages: Finding Your Truth
Hugging It Out: How Physical Connection Helps Us Heal
When Nothing's Funny, Even Simulated Laughter Can Be Good Medicine
Dealing With Lyme-Related Fear
The Quiet Desperation of Chronic and Mental Illness
Laughter Really Can Be the Best Medicine
Living Well with Lyme and Other Long-Haul Illness
When Lyme Interrupts Your Life Path
The Most Helpful Thing in My Lyme Journey
How to Promote Healing from Lyme Disease
My Lyme Disease is in Remission. How Do I Keep it That Way?
The Value of Independence for the Chronically Ill
Tips for Time Management When Living with Chronic Illness
Saving Spoons: Not Just of Energy, But of Time
Sometimes the Memory is Better Than the Real Thing
Dreaming of the Past--and the Future
Staying the Course When the End is in Sight
The Holidays: Ways to Participate When You Can't Be There in Person
Lessons From Lyme: Lockdown Isn't Forever
Living With Lyme Disease: The Beauty of Adaptation
Living in the Present While Worrying About the Future
What Lyme Patients Can Teach Us About the New Normal
Cooling Off When Swimming Isn't an Option
The Role of Technology for Lyme Disease Patients
Keeping the Big Picture in Mind: Don't Overlook Your Other Health Issues
The Difficulty--and Importance--of Asking For Help
Rest: The Most Important Message of My Dreams
Traveling with Tick-Borne Illness
The Time Warp of Tick-Borne Illness
Treating Instead of Denying Yourself
Starting Small in the New Year
Avoiding Reminders Until You're Ready
Holidays: Relishing the In-Between Times
What Can the Red Sox Teach Us About Surviving Tick-Borne Illnesses?
Enjoying the Summer While Living With Lyme
Honoring the Past, Embracing the Future
Adding Joy and Pleasure to Life, No Matter When
Learning to Love Lyme: A Lesson in Self-Understanding
Making the Holidays Work For You
"And, Not But": Taking Power Back With One Simple Word
Post Traumatic Growth: Reframing the Trauma of Chronic Illness
Taking Lyme One Day-Minute-Second At a Time
Getting Involved: When Your Intention Says Yes, But Your Body Says No
Keep It Simple: You're Just Tired
Ground Hog Day: Casting a Shadow On Lyme Disease
The Double-Edged Sword of Being Bored
Looking Back, Looking Ahead, Giving Thanks
Locking Up the Obstacle of Guilt
Spreading the Light of Gratitude
Halloween: No Costume Necessary
Searching For Home When You're Stuck in Lyme Land
Tick, Tick, Tick: The Race Against Time
Has Lyme Sidelined Your Summer?
Lyme and the Olympics Part Two: Of Dashed Dreams and New Lives
Lyme and the Olympics Part One
Valentine's Day: A Celebration of Self-Love
Reclaiming My Identity: Part Two
Reclaiming My Identity: Part One
Self-Advocacy and Physician Communication
What it Means for a Patient to be Heard
Medical Gaslighting and Lyme Disease
How To Be An Advocate With Your Non-Lyme Doctor
On Disclosure: When and How Much to Tell
Why Agency is Important For Lyme Warriors
To Be Blunt: How Chronic Illness Made Me More Direct
Getting Involved: When Your Intention Says Yes, But Your Body Says No
COVID-19 and Other Co-Morbidities
I Have Lyme Disease. Should I Get the COVID-19 Vaccine?
Lyme and Covid-19 Panel: Follow up Q and A
Corona With a Twist of Lyme: Part 4
Corona With a Twist of Lyme: Part 3
Corona With a Twist of Lyme Part 2
Long Haul COVID-19 Brings Attention to Persistent Lyme
Reactivated Infections: A Possible Piece of the Chronic Illness Puzzle
RSV, COVID, or the flu? As a Lyme Patient, This Isn't My First Time With a Misdiagnosis
Differentiating Between Babesia and COVID-19 Air Hunger
Lessons From Lyme: Lockdown Isn't Forever
What Lyme Patients Can Teach Us About the New Normal
We're Not Out of the Woods Yet
Speaking Up for the Immunocompromised
What a Difference a Year Makes
Are Mold and Mycotoxins Compromising Your Recovery?
Vitamins and Diet
Gastrointestinal Issues with Lyme Disease
Treating Instead of Denying Yourself
Stabilizing Blood Sugar During a Season of Sweets
Adjunct Therapies
Adjunct Therapies That Have Helped With My Tick-Borne Illness
Are Mold and Mycotoxins Compromising Your Recovery?
Costs and Insurance
Managing School and Work
School-Related Difficulties With Lyme Disease
On Disclosure: When and How Much to Tell
Scheduling Life With Lyme Disease
Tackling To-Do Lists When You're Too Tired To Do So
Gender and Lyme
For Friends and Family
Wondering What to Say to a Lyme Patient? Try These Conversation Starters
The Difficulty--and Importance--of Asking For Help
Why Agency is Important For Lyme Warriors
Books and Resources That Have Helped Me On My Journey
Saluting the Caretakers of Lyme Patients
The Pressure of Platitudes: Patients Are Only Human
Care Versus Overcare: A Fine Line
FAQs
Lyme Warrior Q and A (31) (Transmission time, babesiosis air hunger, book publication)
Lyme Warrior Q and A (30)--bonus--with video! (Diagnosis, testing, and bloodwork)
Lyme Warrior Q and A (29) (Tick bites and co-infections)
Lyme Warrior Q and A (28) (Self-image, memory loss)
Lyme Warrior Q and A (27) (Lyme and mood swings, EBV, body aches)
Lyme Warrior Q and A (26) (Lyme treatment and dormant spirochetes)
Lyme Warrior Q and A (25) (Dental issues and Lyme, concussions and Lyme, pursuing dreams)
Lyme Warrior Q and A (24) (Pulsing antibiotics, rashes and hives, insomnia)
Lyme Warrior Q and A (23) (Anti-inflammatory diet, GLA's Peer Mentorship program)
Lyme Warrior Q and A (20) (Remission, Lyme and Alzheimer's)
Lyme Warrior Q and A (19) (Lyme and vaccines, remission, EBV)
Lyme Warrior Q and A (18) (Tick bites, being bedridden, migraine treatment)
Lyme Warrior Q and A (17) (Reframing future and finding work with chronic illness)
Lyme Warrior Q and A (16) (Antibiotics, memory loss, remission)
Lyme Warrior Q and A (15) (Herxheimer reactions, moving to tick-endemic areas)
Lyme Warrior Q and A (14) (Anxiety, chronic symptoms)
Lyme Warrior Q and A (13) (Migratory pain, chronic Lyme, treatment)
Lyme Warrior Q and A (12) (Mental health, antibiotics)
Lyme Warrior Q and A (11) (Memory loss, traveling with Lyme)
Lyme Warrior Q and A (10) (Herxheimer reactions, Lyme depression)
Lyme Warrior Q and A (9) (Lyme diet, working with Lyme)
Lyme Warrior Q and A (8) (Waxing and waning symptoms, Lyme neuropathy)
Lyme Warrior Q and A (7) (Finding balance, brain health, co-infections)
Lyme Warrior Q and A (6) (MRIs, SPECT scans, Herxheimer reactions)
Lyme Warrior Q and A (4) (Bullseye rashes, brain fog, IV antibiotics)
Lyme Warrior Q and A (3) (Diagnosis, blood tests, hypoglycemia)
Lyme Warrior Q and A (2) (Relapsing, testing, muscle and nerve damage)
Lyme Warrior Q and A (1) (Herxheimer reactions, fatigue, natural remedies)
GLA and Other Research and Advocacy Highlights
Review of "I'm Not Crazy, I'm Sick"
2022: Another Milestone Year for GLA
What Avril Lavigne's Virtual #FightLyme Concert Taught Me
We Are the World: What I Learned About the Global Health Threat of Lyme Disease
Highlights From ILADS Boston 2017