This week on What the Morgs?, host Britt Girvan sits down with Dr. Raphael Stricker, a physician at Union Square Medical Associates in San Francisco and longtime advocate for patients with Lyme disease and tick-borne illness. Dr. Stricker is a past President of the International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society (ILADS), serves on the board of LymeDisease.org and the Lyme Disease Advisory Committee, and has authored more than 200 medical publications.
In this episode, Britt and Dr. Stricker discuss the challenges surrounding Lyme disease diagnosis and treatment, chronic Lyme symptoms, current vaccine research, tick-borne co-infections, Morgellons disease, and the barriers many patients face when searching for answers and appropriate care.
Topics Discussed:
-Lyme disease diagnosis, chronic symptoms, and common misconceptions
Dr. Stricker discusses the limitations he sees in current Lyme disease testing, what can make diagnosis difficult, how chronic symptoms are defined, and why patients with persistent symptoms may struggle to receive appropriate care. He also shares his perspective on the current Lyme disease vaccine landscape.
-The connection between Lyme disease and Morgellons disease Britt and Dr. Stricker explore Morgellons disease, the physical symptoms patients experience, research examining Morgellons fibers and skin lesions, and the history of patients being dismissed or characterized as delusional. They also discuss the importance of clinicians taking patients’ experiences seriously and continuing to investigate the condition.
-Co-infections, treatment approaches, and neurological symptoms Dr. Stricker discusses current research into tick-borne co-infections such as Babesiosis, his use of combination antibiotic therapy, and approaches used in his practice for patients experiencing neurological symptoms such as brain fog and cognitive difficulties. He also explains why treatment can vary significantly from one patient to another.
About What The Morgs? Podcast: What The Morgs? is a podcast for people navigating Lyme and Morgellons disease. Hosted by Britt Girvan, the show is built on a mission to support, educate, and empower those affected—turning personal struggle into shared strength and purpose. What The Morgs? Website: https://whatthemorgs.com/
For more:
- https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2017/07/01/pbs-lyme-vaccine/ In the comment section after the article Dr. Stricker states:
Another Lyme OspA Vaccine Whitewash
The meta-analysis by Zhao and colleagues comes to the conclusion that “the OspA vaccine against Lyme disease is safe and its immunogenicity and efficacy have been verified.” The authors arrive at this sunny conclusion by excluding 99.6% of published articles that demonstrate potential problems with the OspA vaccine. Furthermore, the authors ignore peer-reviewed studies, FDA regulatory meetings and legal proceedings that point to major problems with OspA vaccine safety (1-3). This whitewash bodes ill for future Lyme vaccine candidates because it fosters disregard for vaccine safety among Lyme vaccine manufacturers and mistrust among potential Lyme vaccinees.
- https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2026/04/20/pfizer-reboots-lyme-vaccine-linked-to-lyme-disease-like-autoimmune-arthritis-and-class-action-lawsuits/
- https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2017/06/19/stricker-johnson-rebuttal-to-article-in-mmwr/
- https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2017/05/17/dr-stricker-at-mylymedata-conference/
- https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2015/11/11/lyme-research-project/
Madison Area Lyme Support Group 