By Fred Diamond

When chronic Lyme disease takes hold, the path to healing can feel uncertain, overwhelming, and lonely.

On this episode of the Love, Hope, Lyme podcast, Dr. Myriah Hinchey brings clarity and empowerment with her comprehensive roadmap for recovery—her 10 B’s.

Rooted in individualized care and immune system restoration, her protocol offers a science-based, holistic approach to reclaiming your life from chronic illness.

“There’s no combination of antibiotics that will bring the infection to zero,” Dr. Hinchey says. “Only a fully functioning immune system can do that.”

Her method moves away from the all-too-common kill-first strategy. Instead, it builds the body’s resilience, restores balance, and prepares patients for sustainable recovery.

The 10 B’s

Dr. Hinchey developed what she calls the “10 B’s”—ten foundational areas that must be addressed to treat vector-borne illness effectively. “We need to stop focusing so much on protocols and start focusing on people,” she says. “Every patient is different.”

1.Background Check

“You’ve got to figure out what’s in the patient’s bucket—nutrient deficiencies, stress, toxins, poor diet, mold, and more,” she explains.

“If the body doesn’t have what it needs, or if it’s overwhelmed by things it shouldn’t have, the immune system can’t function.” The first step is a full-body, functional medicine review to understand where things have gone off track.

2. Band-Aids

Though she specializes in root-cause medicine, Dr. Hinchey acknowledges the importance of relief. “Some people are in such rough shape that they can’t even work a treatment plan,” she says.

Band-aids—targeted symptom support—might include help for sleep, pain, or psychiatric distress. “We stabilize them so they can heal.”

3. Block Inflammation

Chronic inflammation is at the root of most Lyme symptoms. “This infection thrives in inflammation,” she says. To block it, she targets three key elements:

• Galectin-3, which fuels autoimmune responses and forms part of the biofilm fortress
• Inflammatory cytokines, the “chemical messengers of chaos”
• Tissue-destroying enzymes, which help Lyme burrow into connective tissue

“We use herbs like Japanese knotweed, Chinese skullcap, and ashwagandha to block those inflammatory pathways and keep the immune system from going haywire.”

4. Buffer the Stress

“When your nervous system is stuck in fight-or-flight, you simply cannot heal,” Dr. Hinchey says. “This is often the missing link for people who’ve tried everything else.”

She works with patients on breathwork, meditation, vagus nerve stimulation, and other techniques to restore calm and re-engage the parasympathetic nervous system. “This is near the top of my list for a reason—it’s that important.”

5. Balance the Immune System

Dr. Hinchey explains that the immune system is not just about fighting infections and that it must be balanced.

“Lyme throws the immune system into the wrong type of response, often into autoimmunity,” she says. “You need to know whether you’re in Th1, Th2, or Th17 dominance—and correct accordingly.” Her favorite tools here include ashwagandha, cat’s claw, and echinacea.

6. Build the Gut

“Everything starts in the gut,” she emphasizes. “If your digestion is broken, you can’t absorb nutrients. If your microbiome is wrecked, your immune system can’t function.”

Years of antibiotics leave many Lyme survivors with leaky gut, candida overgrowth, and microbiome damage. “We have to rebuild the gut lining, restore digestive function, and get the good bugs back in.”

7. Break Down Biofilms

Lyme bacteria often hide behind biofilms—protective shields that block both the immune system and treatments. “If you’re not breaking down the biofilms, nothing you take is getting to the bugs,” she explains.

Her arsenal includes modified citrus pectin, enzymes like serrapeptase, and herbs like grapefruit seed extract and berberine.

“I love using herbs that do double or triple duty—break down biofilms, kill bugs, support detox. That’s smart medicine.”

8. Bolster Detoxification

Herxheimer reactions, or “herxing,” occur when toxins from dying pathogens overwhelm the body. Dr. Hinchey aims to prevent this entirely.

“If you’re herxing, you’re pushing too hard,” she says. “We don’t want healing to feel like suffering.” Her approach ensures that liver, lymph, gut, kidneys, and lungs are all working to flush toxins gently and continuously.

“Healing should feel like progress, not punishment. Detox isn’t just cellular—it’s about pooping, peeing, sweating, and breathing.”

9. Bind the Toxins

“Die-off releases toxins like LPS that wreak havoc on the body,” she explains. Her binders of choice include gentle, long-term options like chlorella and modified citrus pectin.

“I don’t like harsh binders like activated charcoal for chronic use,” she notes. “We want to support the body, not strip it.”

10. Blast the Bugs

Only after the first nine steps are in place does Dr. Hinchey go after the pathogens. “This is the last step for a reason,” she says. “If you skip the others, killing bugs will just make you sicker.” She uses antimicrobial herbs like cryptolepis and Sweet Annie, which are both antibacterial and antiparasitic.

“Again, I love tools that support multiple layers of healing.”

A strategic approach to herbal treatment

Dr. Hinchey doesn’t rely on protocols—she teaches patients how to choose herbs based on six checkpoints:

1. How the infection causes immune dysfunction
2. The cytokines it elevates
3. Which organs it targets
4. What nutrients it steals
5. How it evades the immune system
6. Whether elimination routes are open

“If you understand how an organism works, you can pick exactly the right herbs to undo the damage,” she says. “It’s not about throwing things at the wall. It’s about thinking.”

Learn More

To learn more about Dr. Myriah Hinchey’s work visit drhinchey.com. Her practice, TAO Vitality, is located in Hebron, Connecticut

Click here to listen to all episodes of the Love, Hope, Lyme Podcast or on YouTube.

Fred Diamond is based in Fairfax, Virginia and can be contacted via Facebook. His popular book, “Love, Hope, Lyme: What Family Members, Partners, and Friends Who Love a Chronic Lyme Survivor Need to Know” is available on Amazon. The e-version of the book is always free to Lyme survivors. PM Fred on Facebook or LinkedIn for your copy.