One year ago today I was tearfully and bravely writing out a blog post about a brand new coinfection diagnosis I had received right when I had hoped I was approaching remission from Lyme and all my other coinfections.
In February 2021, Bartonella was officially added to my list of tick borne illnesses I was going to beat.
If you missed that post, Part 1 of my Beating Bartonella series can be found here: https://adelecole.com/blog/22655/just-diagnosed-with-bartonella---part-1
I thought that after treating for a full year it was time for another update!
Make sure you catch up on my previous posts about this journey too (found here: Part 2 & Part 3), but here’s a quick summary:
I did NOT have very obvious Bart symptoms. I only had some foot burning and mood stuff/rage, BUT those were well-managed through my overall Lyme treatment and lifestyle changes or seemed explainable by my circumstances. But untreated Bart can really hold up healing in general, particularly from Lyme disease, and it could explain why I had stalled out a bit in my Lyme healing process.
Well, in trying to navigate my next phase of healing my LLMD and I agreed to revisit the possibility of Bart actually sabotaging my healing to a degree.
Turns out, it had been doing just that.
Since last year, I’ve been treating mainly with herbals on top of my other tick borne illness protocols, immune support, gut healing regimens, detoxing, lifestyle changes, and many other healthy practices. I mention this because healing ISN'T ever linear. There's never a "magic bullet" and rarely ever even ONE "root cause" for symptoms or dis-ease. Healing is layers. It's multifaceted. It's a journey that's unique to each of us. And it's more than just a protocol or a dietary change. Just remember that!
Ok back to the update! ;) So for those wondering, the herbals we chose for me were: A-Bart tincture, CryptoPlus tincture, Japanese Knotweed, Artemisinin, Andrographis, and Cat’s Claw. You’ll note that many of those cross-cover by tackling Lyme and other coinfections too, so bonus there! I worked up to the protocol my LLMD recommended for me, and have remained on it for 12mo.
My 2 main symptoms of foot burning and rage-y mood swings are MUCH improved. All I notice remaining right now actually is some mild off-and-on foot burning. My mood has been pretty darn great, thank goodness! (That Bart rage & mood swings are INSANEEEEE, by the way!)
I know I’ll be treating this a while longer, and always keeping an eye on it for my whole life, BUT I also know I’m headed in the right direction and that all of this effort to ‘beat’ Bartonella will actually have a larger impact on my overall wellness, as true healing does.
We may choose to test again in Spring 2022 just to see on paper what kind of progress I may have made, although as we all know, testing is pricey and not always accurate. (For those curious, my personal BEST Bart testing has been through Galaxy labs.)
So stay tuned! I'll update again as I have info to share.
Tell me, who else is working on navigating Bartonella healing?
Oh! And in case you didn’t know, I share even more about my journey AND have created the space for others to share their own journeys too in the holistic healing community, Lyme-y & Crunchy. It’s totally free and we would LOVE to have you there!
**Disclaimer: I am not a medical professional here to diagnose, treat, cure, or otherwise influence your medical journey outside of the guidance of a medical professional. I am simply sharing my own journey and what I have learned along the way. Please find a doctor you trust and discuss any medical concerns or treatments with them.
