By Nicole O’Donnell

Before I ever had a name for what was happening, I knew one thing: my body no longer felt like my own. I was living with symptoms I couldn’t explain, and each day felt like a quiet battle just to get through.

I was finally diagnosed with Lyme disease in 2015, after months of strange and unsettling symptoms that no one seemed able to explain. It wasn’t until a doctor finally ran a Western Blot test that the truth came out.

I remember feeling relieved at first, because finally there was an answer. What I didn’t know then was how long and winding the road ahead would be.

In those early years, my main symptoms were severe fatigue and numbness and tingling in my legs.

Between 2015 and 2020, I did my best to live a normal life, even though I experienced what I called “episodes.” Whenever they hit, I went to my doctor, was put on antibiotics, and eventually bounced back. Looking back now, I wish I hadn’t taken so many rounds of antibiotics– my gut would later pay the price.

Then it all got worse

Then came March 2020. I caught the first strain of COVID, and everything changed. My body spiraled downward in a way I never could have imagined. The Lyme had never truly gone away, and COVID was simply too much for my system.

The symptoms were endless: breathing issues, crushing fatigue, intense anxiety, heart palpitations, severe brain fog, and the terrifying feeling that my body was shutting down. There were days I lay in bed listening to my own heartbeat, wondering if my body knew how to keep going. I could no longer be the mom or the wife I wanted so desperately to be.

That spiral set me on a journey far beyond anything I ever expected. It took me from my home in Staten Island, New York, down to South Carolina, and eventually across the world to Switzerland for treatment along with countless other protocols along the way. I saw over 25 doctors in my search for answers, support, and hope.

I have been sick since 2015, but from 2020 through early 2024, the suffering was at its worst–so horrific at times that I questioned whether I would ever make it through.

And yet, here I am. Today, I am much better than I was, even if I can’t say I’m completely symptom-free. Healing has come in layers, slowly and steadily.

Being 51 adds its own challenges hormones, age, and everything that comes along with this chapter of life can complicate things but the improvement is real, and I’m deeply grateful.

Resilient Hope

From my journey and from meeting so many others walking this same difficult road, I felt called to share our stories. That’s what inspired me to write a memoir called Resilient Hope, featuring my story along with nine other powerful stories of warriors who refuse to give up.

It’s a celebration of strength, truth, and the unbreakable spirit that chronic illness can’t take away.

If this disease has taught me anything, it’s that we are far stronger than we ever imagined. Lyme forces us to discover courage, resilience, and determination we never knew we had.

If you’re reading this while questioning your body, your doctors, or your own strength, please know this: you are not broken, and you are not alone. Healing may not be fast or linear, but hope is still possible.

Click here to order Resilient Hope: A Memoir of Life with Chronic Illness. Follow Nicole O’Donnell on Instagram: @nickyo713