IS it?

[HannaHavoc]

Im 36 weeks pregnant, and when I was around 20 weeks I wnet into the woods with my boyfriend. This is so embarassing, but he got his semen in my eye and my eye got inflamed. I do however remember having a rash on my butt after that. I went to the opthamalogist and they said I had pink eye. Then I started seeing floaters, I went to a retinal specialist who said it was pregnancy. Then I started seeing after images, then visual snow, then when I closed my eyes I saw little designs, in the morning when I wake up sometimes my vision is all like staticky and moves around, there are times when I dont even want to wear my glasses because they dont help. But when I get a cold or sinus issues, my vision itself clears up, not the symptoms. Also I have had numbness in my face, and tingling sensations all around my hands and legs and feet, and even at the top of my head. I do remember that when I would try to fall asleep I would just pass out and not remember at all, but right now when im having a cold, i dont. Im really scared, and really want my vision to be back to normal for when my babys born (which could be anytime now) everyone thinks im crazy and that its all related to pregnancy, but I really doubt it. My OB ran a blood test for the western blot thingy, so hopefully that will tell me something.. I need help knowing what to do and coping. Im only 17.

[JackieCalifornia]

Hanna, here is a quote from an LLMD, part of a long article posted on ILADS [dot] org.  It advises against breastfeeding if you have Lyme, but if you don't know if you actually have Lyme, that makes it a difficult decision, perhaps.

from ILADS [dot] org, 'About Lyme' tab, Burrascano's Diagnostic Hints and Treatment Guidelines, page ~22:
=========================================
LYME DISEASE AND PREGNANCY

"It is well known that B. burgdorferi [the Lyme bacteria] can cross the placenta and infect the fetus. In addition, breast milk from infected mothers has been shown to harbor spirochetes that can be detected by PCR and grown in culture.

"The Lyme Disease Foundation in Hartford, CT had kept a pregnancy registry for eleven years beginning in the late 1980s. They found that if patients were maintained on adequate doses of antibiotic therapy during gestation, then no babies were born with Lyme. My own experience over the last twenty years agrees with this.

"The options for treating the mother include oral, intramuscular, and intravenous therapy as outlined above. It is vital that peak and trough antibiotic levels be measured if possible at the start of gestation and at least once more during treatment.

"During pregnancy, symptoms generally are mild as the hormonal changes seem to mask many symptoms.  However, post-partum, mothers have a rough time, with a sudden return of all their Lyme symptoms including profound fatigue. Post partum depression can be particularly severe. I always advise help in the home for at
least the first month, so adequate rest and time for needed treatments are assured.

"I also advise against breast feeding for obvious reasons as mentioned above."

Burrascano, MANAGING LYME DISEASE, 16h edition, October, 2008
==============================================

All you can do is your best, and it sounds like you are working very hard to do that.  

Best wishes to you both --

[JackieCalifornia]

Hanna

Having a baby is pretty much the biggest event in life, so you're entitled to be up in the air.

That you are concerned about doing the right thing means your motherly instincts are operating, and that's how it should be.  

Sending you all good wishes!  You hang in there, okay?

[HannaHavoc]

thank you. Im going to call a number and see. I just hope everything goes back to normal soon. Thank you for your help. :)

[JackieCalifornia]

Hanna, we're not doctors or nurses here, and can't give you medical advice or assurance about a particular course of action.

I wish we could give you assurance that everything is all right and don't worry about it, but we're not in a position to do that for a whole lot of reasons.

I hope and pray you and your baby are fine.  

If you can get your parents to read a bit about Lyme, you might have an open discussion with them about your concerns.  

Ask your doctor about whether you should or should not breast feed, because there is some opinion in the medical community about transmission of Lyme bacteria through breast milk.  You can also read more about the issue on the internet.

         ***We are not medically trained here and cannot give you medical advice***

Best wishes --

[HannaHavoc]

I dont know where to go to find out if I have it though. My doctor said the blood test came out negative. Everyone thinks I'm just blowing things out of proportion. Im not though. Another month or so won't do any more damage right? I'm literally about to give birth any day now..

[JackieCalifornia]

Hanna

There are no rules about when symptoms become permanent damage, and Lyme is especially difficult to nail down time-wise.  The important thing is to look after problems as soon as they arise to have the best chance of avoiding more problems.

[HannaHavoc]

If I don't see them in time, its been 5 months, are these damages permanent?

[ree4tu1]

Lyme Disease does affect your eyes. You are very smart for getting tested and get treated EARLY.  See an LLMD though as OBGYNs are limited.

[JackieCalifornia]

These websites may have referral services:

ilads [dot] org
lymediseaseassociation [dot] org
truthaboutlymedisease [dot] com
lymenet [dot] org
chroniclymedisease [dot] com
lymedisease [dot] org (California Lyme Disease Assn -- CALDA)

From the ILADS [dot] org website:

"It is well known that B. burgdorferi [the bacteria that cause Lyme disease] can cross the placenta and infect the fetus. In addition, breast milk from infected mothers has been shown to harbor spirochetes that can be detected by PCR and grown in culture.

"The Lyme Disease Foundation in Hartford, CT had kept a pregnancy registry for eleven years beginning in the late 1980s. They found that if patients were maintained on adequate doses of antibiotic therapy during gestation, then no babies were born with Lyme. ...

"The options for treating the mother include oral, intramuscular, and intravenous therapy as outlined above. It is vital that peak and trough antibiotic levels be measured if possible at the start of gestation and at least once more during treatment."

Not all doctors agree with this approach.  I would hope your parents would talk with your doctor when the tests come back, but the tests aren't always a clear indicator of infection.  Best wishes to you and your baby --

[HannaHavoc]

I dont know where to find one. And my mom thinks its a load of bull and is like teasing me about it. But I doubt all this is related to pregnancy. I want it to be stopped, I want to see correctly. I don't know what to do. When I tell people I think it's lyme, they think im being rediculous. But they don't know what this is like. The whole first half of my pregnancy was perfectly fine, then after the woods incident, everything gradually changed. and within a few months it was horrible.

[JackieCalifornia]

Hanna,

Is your OB concerned about your symptoms being something other than Lyme, that is, pregnancy-related?

If not, then focussing on Lyme is reasonable in my NON-medically trained point of view.

I would suggest you find a Lyme specialist as soon as possible, tho I appreciate you are about to have that baby.  There is some concern in things I read that the baby can be born with Lyme, and the sooner that is addressed, the better.  I know someone that happened to, and the baby is just fine, but finding out is the first thing to do.

Your OB is doing the right thing to test you, but unless the OB is very experienced and broadminded about Lyme, s/he may not take the openminded view that a Lyme specialist would.  

In your situation, I would find a Lyme specialist as soon as possible -- it can take a while to get an appointment, so the sooner the call, the sooner you'll see him/her after the baby arrives.

Best wishes --