Support Group

Yesterday I went to the Utah Lymes Disease support group at the Altaview Hospital. I have always been leery of support groups. A lot of times support groups can turn into a pity session. Don't get me wrong, I know that some people need that time to be able to vent about their frustrations, but that’s just not me. Thankfully this support group is the opposite, everything that I would hope a support group could be. We spent a lot of time introducing ourselves and our experience with Lymes, and then talked about the first annual awareness picnic. I am excited for that; it will be a lot of fun. I really enjoyed meeting all the wonderful people there. They were so kind, and had so many great ideas to help with the symptoms. I even got to meet the current reigning Mrs. Utah. She has Lymes, and has turned Lymes Awareness as her platform. What a great example and a great spokesperson for those that suffer with this debilitating disease. Overall I am really impressed with the group and look forward to becoming an active member of it.

One piece of disturbing news that I found out at the meeting: Congressman Jim Matheson is trying to push a bill that would eliminate long-term antibiotic treatment. Granted that the main reason is to help eliminate the growth of resistant bacteria, but if this bill is passed all people being treated for Lymes with antibiotics will be in trouble, along with any other disease that requires long term antibiotics. The bill either needs to be stopped or an amendment needs to be added to ensure that certain diseases can still be treated properly.

Had a scary moment last night when I was flushing my PICC line. Before pushing any saline through the line you are suppose to pull back the syringe till you see a little bit of blood in the line. When I tried to pull back I was met with a lot of resistance. I tried multiple times without any success, so I thought I would just push the saline through. Something told me to take a closer look at the extension on my line, and I discovered the entire tube was empty of saline. I almost pushed 14 inches of air into my heart! That would have been fatal. With the help of my mom we unhooked the extension and refilled it with saline and were able to get the line working again. I know that I have angels surrounding me, and I like to think that one of them is my Aunt Jeanne who passed away a couple of year ago. She lived with breast cancer for six years and endured many of the same things that I am enduring right now. She is one of my heros and I feel that I have drawn a lot closer to her through this ordeal.

Well tomorrow I start my treatments, and I am anxious to get started. I feel like another chapter of my life is closing and another one is beginning. I don't know what the near future will being, but I am ready to fight to get my life back.