San Mateo County, CA
Infected: 2007
Diagnosed: 2008
Current Health: Cured as of 2010
My mom says she remembers the day my personality came back… -Louis S.
Louis’s family brought home a brand-new puppy in December, 2007.
They were overjoyed–but the pup was a tick magnet. Louis loved to roll in the leaves and play in with the puppy in his San Mateo County backyard. He soon noticed a “bar-shaped” rash on his skin, and by February was struggling with constant exhaustion, lack of focus and joint pain.
His mother insisted that Louis be tested for Lyme disease. Their doctor firmly believed Louis’s illness was adenoidal. His mother found a physician willing to test for Lyme, and it came back positive. The numbers were so startling, in fact, that his results were reported back to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (the CDC).
Treatment was difficult. Louis often felt that his medications “were making it worse, not better.” Louis hates needles, and having his blood drawn twice weekly took a heavy emotional and psychological toll.
Louis fought bravely, and a year and a half after diagnosis was virtually symptom-free. Soon after, Louis qualified for the State Finals of the Geography Bee, and felt certain that his “mind was going to be okay.”
For more, you can read Louis’s story in his own words.
This is great and gives me hope for my daughter who is currently in treatment.
That is so sad. My brother was going through Lyme disease.