Full Moon

Tonight is another full moon and I go into this one fully aware - armed and ready. People with Lyme are very often affected by the full moon, which sets off all kinds of havoc in a Lyme infected body. There is very little information available as to WHY this is such a phenomenon, but it is a reality for so many of us.

"So what do we humans know about this subject matter?  Well, we know that a full moon occurs every 29.53 days.  We also know that the reproductive cycle of Borrelia Burgdorferi is roughly every 28-30 days.  What has been observed, but not understood or proven why, is that these two events seem to coincide; they happen at the same time continuously.  Based on these facts, one may be inclined to reason that the uncanny and mysterious affect of a full moon acts as reminder or alarm clock, if you will, for borrelia burgdorferi to reproduce.  Possibly, but many people experience an increase in symptoms in not just a full moon, but a new moon as well.  Without definitive, certain or conclusive evidence, one can only assume there is a mysterious correlation between lunar activity as a whole and Lyme Disease. " -http://www.tiredoflyme.com/full-moons-and-lyme-disease.html#.UojdmWRgb64

We do know that a day or two before the full moon our symptoms begin to worsen and on the actual night of the full moon, we can count on complete insomnia, no matter how many sleep helpers we have - I have 7 powerful pills a night for sleep to change my "sleep architecture", as Dr, J calls it, in order to turn my clock back around so I sleep at night and not all day. But this is not the case during the full moon. 

I have been having complications with Lyme/Babesia acting up in my spinal fluid and it has gotten worse in the past couple of days. I have spent a lot of time under an electric blanket with a heating pad on high on my back. It's rough to say the least. 

So what are my worsened symptoms during the full moon? Swollen joints, increase in muscular-skeletal pain, confusion, exhaustion with inability to sleep, nausea, and etc.  Sound like fun? 

Yesterday Mom and I took Mini to see her first movie in a movie theater. It was great fun to watch her watch the movie. She was very excited and I am glad we did it. In order to get anywhere from our town, we have to drive 40 minutes. On the way home, I began to feel light-headed and very out of it, Yes, I overdid it. When we got home, I have no recollection of dropping my coat on the floor and getting right in my bed, falling asleep immediately. I woke up at 5:30 when Mini woke me to say she had eaten and my mom was going to leave. She played with her iPad while I slept on. 

Mini, having skipped her nap that day, asked if she could go to sleep at 6p.m. I helped her get into bed, put the dogs to bed and immediately fell asleep again. It is apparent to me that 4 hour excursions are not something I am ready for yet. If I can't pull it off on an antibiotic-free holiday, then I am just plain not ready. 

I don't let this get me down, because it is too easy to do that. A quote from the wonderful Kris Carr echoes in my head, "When we accept ourselves, our body opens up and can start healing."