Focus – Opinions and Features

By Fred Diamond Pennsylvania has quietly become one of the epicenters of the Lyme disease epidemic in the United States. For more than a decade, the state has reported some of the highest numbers of diagnosed cases in the country. Behind those statistics are thousands of families... Read More »

By Christina Kantzavelos Dr. Alexander R. Shikhman saved my life. That is not something I say lightly, and I know many others who had the privilege of being his patient could say the same. For those of us living with complex chronic illness, the journey to healing is often marked... Read More »

Melinda Bergeron, a member of the family that founded the Northeast Lyme and Associated Diseases Resource Foundation (NELAD.org), wrote this on the first anniversary of her father’s death. 365 days around the sun since you’ve been earthbound. I remember the long drive to... Read More »

By Fred Diamond The emotions that a parent must go through when their child has Lyme can be wide-ranging because pediatric Lyme disease doesn’t just disrupt a body. It can fracture childhood, destabilize a family, and test the limits of hope. This week’s episode of the Love,... Read More »

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... Read More »

By Fred Diamond One of the most common questions I hear from Lyme survivors is simple but deeply loaded: “Why did this happen to me? Why did I get Lyme when others didn’t?” If you’ve ever asked yourself, “Why me?” know that you’re not alone. Thousands of Lyme survivors have... Read More »

By Pegi Deitz Shea In 2022, I’d been humming along, only having short flare-ups of Lyme symptoms once or twice a year. Since my six-month delayed diagnosis of Lyme disease in 1998, the flare-ups had gradually become less severe as well. Usually within two months, I could begin... Read More »

By Terri McCormick As tick‑borne diseases continue to rise, scientists are working to create better diagnostic tools. The idea behind this work is simple: doctors can’t treat an infection if they can’t reliably detect it. And to detect these microbes, researchers first need to... Read More »

By Fred Diamond When you break an ankle, you don’t need someone to coach you through the treatment process, financial issues, and medicinal requirements that come along with healing. However, for people living with chronic Lyme disease and other tick-borne infections, the illness... Read More »