The Way, The Truth, & The Lyme

When I say Lyme Disease, what is the first thing you think of? Ticks, no doubt.

Want to know what I think of? The inability to walk. The feeling of cement in my legs. Being completely unable to move my neck. Inflammation within and behind my eyes that makes it too painful to even see. Spine shattering, gut damaging, life changing chronic illness.

That’s what I think of.

My Story

My name is Jessica Johnson. I was born and raised in Jacksonville, Florida, a place of beaches, campgrounds, military, and shrimping. Where small town living meets the big city.

The youngest of four, I came from a very close-knit family. Though my parents weren’t perfect, their 40 year marriage was as devoted to each other as it was to us. They did the best they could in guiding us in the right direction of faith and compassion for our community. More than likely, their example is what gave me the heart I have for people still today.

While my high school years are better off forgotten, getting into tech school was a whole new beginning for me. I couldn’t wait to be making my own money and starting my own life.

And that life became even more exciting as I began an internship with my first pharmaceutical job.

I cant say today that I am proud of who I was then. In all truth, I’m lucky to be alive. This new life with a new job and new friends quickly and drastically stripped me away from the church life I had once known. I began going out every weekend,  getting drunk, and living a very dangerous lifestyle with people who I know couldn’t have possibly been real friends.

And here is where my life suddenly took a turn for the worst. Isn’t it funny how God works?

One day at work, I noticed a strange bump on the inside of my leg that had become very swollen. Being without insurance, I handled things as best as I could by going to the ER. I was diagnosed with cellulitis (a bacterial skin infection). Since staph was suspected, I was given an antibiotic to help fight the bacteria.

My body’s response? I threw up in the grass outside of work. However, eventually the skin issue was resolved.

But as the years went by, my symptoms began to progress. My neck was always in so much pain, too much to even be able to turn it. My knees and joints were constantly aching as well. I had suspicions that being on my feet at work or even my weight was causing this pain, but nothing was helping.

The Search for Answers

In August of 2017, I was at work when my right eye began to hurt as if something was inside of it, though no amount of rinsing could bring relief. Thankfully, I was able to see an optometrist pretty quickly who diagnosed me with optic neuritis (inflammation of the optic nerve). He advised me to go to the ER for an MRI to rule out MS.

After following his instructions yet never finding any new results, I decided to take my research to the internet. Here, I was able to find a group of people with optic neuritis where it was suggested that I see a neuro-ophthalmologist.

Thankfully, I had insurance by this time and was able to seek the help I needed. But it was at this appointment, that the ophthalmologist noticed that not only was my optic nerve inflamed to the point of being purple, but the sclera was inflamed as well, introducing a new diagnosis of scleritis.

Interestingly, his next decision was to test for both syphilis and Lyme Disease. I knew syphilis was out of the question, but Lyme didn’t seem any more believable. Sure, I had spent my share in the woods. This was Jacksonville after all. But at no point do I ever recall being bitten by a tick.

When the test results came back, they not only revealed that I was suffering from Lyme Disease but that I had actually been suffering from it for quite some time. I was officially diagnosed with Chronic Lyme Disease. And I was in denial.

Things would be far from easy from here on out. Lyme doctors are rare. In fact, many doctors don’t even believe that Lyme can be chronic at all. But through God’s grace, I was eventually led to the perfect one.

The Battle

Unfortunately, when it comes to Lyme, things get worse before they get better, often through a reaction called “herxing”.

During the fight of killing off the Lyme bacteria with antibiotics, your body tends to become completely overwhelmed and introduces a whole new realm of symptoms.

And as it turns out, the same antibiotic I had taken for the cellulitis is actually the first antibiotic that is usually given for Lyme Disease. This is probably why I had thrown up after starting it before.

Thankfully, by this time, I had begun using various Plexus products which protected my gut from any damage the antibiotics tried to bring. God had prepared me without me even knowing.

He knew what was coming.

For the next eight months, I was on a constant regimen of antibiotics, anti-fungals, and supplements with symptoms still remaining.

By July of 2018, I had lost all ability to walk. No matter how hard I tried to tell my legs to move, they would not budge. It was at this time that my doctor admitted me for extensive testing. I had gone too far downhill in far too short of time.

During this testing, it was detected that I had developed stenosis within my brain. A lumbar puncture was ordered which revealed an opening pressure of 34, far above the normal range.

I became officially diagnosed with Intracranial Hypertension, a condition where spinal fluid increases around the brain for no reason whatsoever.