After returning to the US, I woke up with a porcupine in my throat. My head and lungs filled with gunk and I felt like I was glued to the bed. I had Covid.
I ran the 2020 Wellness journeys on my ampcoil designed to strengthen the body against Covid and in a couple days began to feel pretty normal until I noticed urinary burning.
During my battle with Chronic Lyme disease, I had constant urinary, bladder, and kidney infections. I went to doctor after doctor to figure out what was wrong and they’d all say the same thing, “There’s urine in your blood but there’s no bacteria growth.”
I didn’t know what the hell that meant and neither did they until finally a gynecologist suggested we test for ureaplasma. Ureaplasma is a mycoplasma that attacks the excretory system and genitalia. It’s not generally well known and it is not on the massive panel doctors test for when you have urinary pain.
Back in 2016, when I saw that gynecologist, I tested positive. The gynecologist considered ureaplasma a solely sexually transmitted disease. My partner and I took antibiotics, which eased the burning. Then I tested a few weeks later and it was negative.
Meanwhile, my partner and I split up and I got way too sick to be having any sex. Then suddenly, the ureaplasma came back.
“So, you had unprotected sex?” My gynecologist asked.
“I haven’t had any sex.” At that time, I looked like a skeleton with a layer of greenish skin and my girl parts were on fire. There was definitely no sex.
“That’s impossible,” she said.
“Well, I did some research and it turns out mycoplasma is co-infection of Lyme disease,” I said.
“I wouldn’t give the Lyme that much power,” the gynecologist said.
I remember feeling frustrated and angry that she didn’t believe me and infuriated that she dismissed the gravity of Lyme disease. How could so many doctors be so freakin’ unaware of this horrible disease and all the coinfections that came with it?
At that time, the majority of my hair had fallen out, my head felt like a bowling ball, I was having daily fevers, and my tongue looked like a white shag carpet.
So, a few weeks ago when I felt the same burning, I was terrified.
I ran the ampcoil for e-coli, which is the most common UTI causing bacteria. After a couple days, things did not improve, so I knew it was not a UTI. By then, my anxiety had skyrocketed. I kept thinking, “I can’t go back there.”
With the help of google, I discovered that mycoplasma can be a coinfection of Covid. Things started to make sense. Covid had triggered ureaplasma. Even though I was pretty sure I’d be dismissed, I decided to go to urgent care because I was going to need an antibiotic.
In the examination room, I told the doctor that I had a history of chronic Lyme disease and that ureaplasma had been a horrid coinfection for me.
“I just read that mycoplasma can be a Covid coinfection too. Will you please test me for ureaplasma?”
“Covid can kick up a lot of stuff,” the doctor said.
I felt a little hope. Maybe she’d get it.
“But we don’t usually test for that,” she said.
“I understand that it’s not on the usual panel, but I’m hoping you’ll ask the lab to test for it anyway,” I said with a fake smile plastered on my face.
“I can do that. There is blood in your urine, but we didn’t see any growth,” she said.
No shit. I know exactly what is happening here.
“Let’s start you on some Cipro,” she said.
Not Cipro. This is NOT a UTI.
“So, in the past, what cured me was two weeks of Doxycycline,” I said with that ridiculous smile still plastered on my face.
“Doxycycline? That’s an odd choice,” she said.
Not really. It’s a mycoplasma not a UTI.
“Two weeks knocked it right out,” I said.
“Two weeks? That’s too much, I’ll give you one.”
I took a deep breath and prayed for patience.
“I’d really love to get two weeks, to make sure it’s definitely gone.”
“I’ll give you one. If you need more, call me.”
I could tell I was not going to win with this woman.
“And you’ll ask the lab to test for ureaplasma?”
“Yes.”
“Thank you.” I got up and left.
Two days later, my urethra felt like it was streaming Tapatio 24/7. I called to get the lab results.
“No growth,” said the woman on the phone.
“No growth of what?”
“The panel shows no growth.”
“The doctor said she would ask the lab to test for ureaplasma.”
“There is a note that says to test for ureaplasma.”
“And what was the result?” I asked. I smiled as I spoke. An old trick from training people in call centers, because the person on the other end of the phone can actually hear a smile in your voice.
“It just says no growth.”
The little voice in my head said, “They didn’t even test.”
I hung up. Furious with the American healthcare system. Pissed that I just paid $300 for nothing.
I'd had enough of western medicine. I texted my psychic medium energy healer friend Dawn.
When Dawn and I met, she said, “I feel like there’s some duplicity around the test. Like they just placated you and didn’t actually test for what you asked for.”
“I knew it,” I said.
Dawn paused and then asked, “I know this isn’t a medium session, but if someone who’s crossed over wants to give you a message, do you want to hear it?”
“Yes,” I said.
“It’s Aunt Gloria,” she replied. (Dawn and I have no blood relation, but we do share an aunt.) “She’s flexing her muscles, saying, ‘We’re going to beat this.’ She says to take Olive Leaf and Lemon Balm. And also, you need sunshine and you need to have some fun.”
I looked around the dark apartment I’d been huddled in since contracting Covid. She wasn’t wrong.
That was a Friday. I walked to Whole Foods, bought Olive Leaf and Lemon Balm and started taking it that day. By Monday morning, the burning was gone. After a few more days, my anxiety had calmed and I was able to enjoy myself.
It’s no coincidence that I just started writing a memoir about my journey healing Chronic Lyme disease and symptoms popped up.
Thank God for Dawn and Aunt Gloria. I’m really thankful that I know who to call should something else arise.
