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The Lyme Times
Celebrities Increase Awareness of Millions
Sharing their personal Lyme stories informs and inspires
By Dorothy Kupcha Leland
Avril Lavigne
When
People
magazine featured Canadian superstar Avril
Lavigne on the front cover of its April 13 issue, there was no
mention of Lyme disease. Instead, the headlines read:
Avril Lavigne. Her secret health crisis. ‘I thought I was dying.’ The
singer finally opens up about the devastating disease that kept her
bedridden for months — and how she’s fighting to recover.
No matter. Long before any of the weekly’s 3.5 million copies
actually landed in readers’ hands, the news was out.
People
’s scoop
about the 30-year-old pop star’s year-long battle with Lyme disease
was widely trumpeted on
Good Morning America
, the
Today Show
,
and other major news outlets, along with Facebook, Instagram
and Twitter. Coverage came from such far-flung places as India,
Australia, and Africa.
People’
s story rippled throughout the media world for weeks,
prompting spin-off articles about Lyme disease in publications as
diverse as
Women’s Health Magazine
and
Venture Capital Post
.
Then, on June 29, ABC News aired Lavigne’s first on-camera
interview about Lyme on both
Good Morning America
and
Nightline
. Lavigne tearfully told reporter Jesse Palmer that trying
to figure out why her health had collapsed was “the worst time of
my life.”
The star said after becoming bedridden with a mysterious
ailment, she saw many doctors who failed to solve the puzzle.
“They would pull up their computer and be like, ‘Chronic
fatigue syndrome.’ Or, ‘Why don't you try to get out of bed, Avril,
and just go play the piano?’ It's like, ‘Are you depressed?’”
Lavigne says she's "80 percent" recovered now. She credits
antibiotics and a healthier diet. She now eats organic and avoids
sugar, dairy products and gluten. She juices three times a day, does
yoga and meditates.
Reviving her musical career after a months-long break, Lavigne
also says she wants to help raise awareness of Lyme disease. Telling
her story to
People
and
Good Morning America
is an excellent start.
Costco Connection
Costco Connection
magazine may not have the razzle-dazzle of
People
. But it has more than double its circulation in the United
States. The nation’s largest-circulation print monthly,
Costco
Connection
is sent free to 8.6 million subscribers.
The May 2015 issue includes an informative article about Lyme
disease. It quotes two ILADS doctors, Raphael Stricker, MD, and
Steven Phillips, MD, as well as Andrea Caesar, author of the book
A Twist of Lyme: Battling a disease that “doesn’t exist.”
The Canadian edition of
Costco Connection
had a similar article
by a different writer in its May/June issue. It quoted Jim Wilson
of the Canadian Lyme Disease Foundation, as well as Calgary
microbiologist Marianne Middelveen, a Lyme disease researcher
who has personal experience with the illness. The publication is
sent to 2.7 million Costco subscribers in Canada.
Ashley Olsen
Another celebrity made a big Lyme-related splash in online
celebrity gossip columns. Websites
Inquisitr
and
Radar Online
reported that actress Ashley Olsen has been struggling with Lyme
disease. Ashley, along with her twin Mary Kate, starred in the
long-running TV sitcom
Full House
. These websites attribute the
information to unnamed sources, and their stories were widely
circulated via social media. As of this writing, however, the
29-year-old Olsen has not confirmed those reports.
Yolanda Foster
Yolanda Foster, actress on the television series
Real Housewives
of Beverly Hills
, continues to use social media to share her search
for a Lyme cure. She posts regular updates of her Lyme experience
Avril Levigne broke down during an interview on ABC’s Good
Morning America June 29, 2015 when speaking about doctors telling
her she was crazy when she was looking for a diagnosis.
Yolonda Foster has used all of her social media accounts to share her
journey with the Lyme community and her other followers.