By Ali Moresco

I was 22 years old when my life was completely derailed. Overnight, I went from a driven, high-functioning publicist in the entertainment industry to someone who could barely get out of bed.

Initially, I presented with classic acute Lyme disease symptoms: cold and flu-like symptoms, a fever, and muscle and joint pain—not to mention the rickettsia rash that I developed from my head to my toes. Doctors explained it away as a “summer flu” or “stress.”

Over a two-year period, memory loss, searing nerve pain, and overwhelming fatigue became my new normal. For years, I searched for answers with some of the top specialists in the Midwest. Each time, I was dismissed, misdiagnosed, or simply told it was “in my head.”

Eventually, I was diagnosed with babesiosis, bartonellosis, Lyme disease, rickettsia and erlichiosis. When I stopped responding to treatment, we discovered I also had dysautonomia and specific antibody deficiency.

Lyme Disease Awareness Month brings up a spectrum of emotions for me: pride, grief, gratitude, and a deep sense of responsibility. Because while healing is never linear, it can be transformational, not just physically, but emotionally, spiritually, and professionally.

What I’ve learned is that resilience isn’t about bouncing back to who you once were. It’s about becoming someone entirely new, on your own terms.

That’s what Lyme demanded of me—a complete reinvention.

The girl who once worked red carpets in stilettos became the woman who could barely walk to the mailbox. But she was also the woman who would eventually establish her own healthcare communications firm, lobby for healthcare reform and share her story, loudly and proudly.

I began to advocate, not just for myself, but for the millions who remain undiagnosed, misdiagnosed, or silenced. I channeled my pain into purpose, helping others feel seen and heard in a system that often overlooks them.

Strength and resilience

Battling Lyme disease demands a level of resilience that most people will never understand. It calls for a quiet, unrelenting strength, the kind forged in hospital rooms, in moments of isolation, in the spaces between doctor appointments and diagnoses.

It’s a resilience that keeps you pushing forward every time a treatment fails or your blood work doesn’t come back as you had hoped. It’s the courage to get up and keep going when no one can tell you when or if you’ll get better. It’s the radical act of believing your body again after it has betrayed you.

But perhaps most importantly, Lyme teaches you that even in illness, you are still worthy of taking up space in the world.

You don’t have to be fully healed to have a voice. You don’t need permission to exist fully and unapologetically. You are not defined by your diagnosis, and you don’t owe anyone a perfect healing journey or recovery timeline. You simply have to show up, just as you are.

Healing from Lyme disease required every ounce of strength I had, and then some. But it also gave me a front-row seat to what truly matters. The importance of community. The need for advocacy. The power of telling your story, even when your voice shakes.

That’s why Lyme disease deserves the spotlight 365 days a year, not just in May.

Giving a face to millions

Raising awareness isn’t just about stats or tick prevention, though those are vital. It’s about giving a face to the millions who quietly live with chronic tick-borne disease. It’s about pushing for research, resources, and real answers.

It’s about making space for the nuance and complexity of healing, because there is no one-size-fits-all protocol when it comes to Lyme disease. It often takes herbal therapy and/or antibiotics, lifestyle changes, and the right clinician who’s willing to truly listen.

If you’re newly diagnosed, still searching for answers, or deep in the trenches, I see you. You’re not alone.

And if you’re someone who’s come out the other side with clarity, wisdom, and hard-won strength, you now have the opportunity to share your story. You have the privilege to speak out when others can’t, and to help advocate for change.

Because that’s how we transform personal upheaval into lasting impact. How we turn resilience into reinvention. And how we move from surviving, into leading.

If there’s one thing this journey has taught me, it’s this: you are allowed to take up space, even in the midst of uncertainty. Your story matters. Your voice matters. And together, by speaking up and standing tall, even on the days it feels impossible, we create change that ripples far beyond ourselves.

Ali Moresco is a national Lyme disease advocate, healthcare communications strategist, and founder of Moresco PR + Communications. She also serves as Board Chair of Project Lyme. She was recently featured on the Love, Hope, Lyme podcast here.”