Archive for the ‘Uncategorized’ Category

The Hidden Truth About TBIs: IBS Treatment Center Article

https://www.ibstreatmentcenter.com/blogs/the-hidden-truth-about-tick-borne-illnesses

The Hidden Truth About Tick-Borne Illnesses

Dr Stephen Wangen
September 9, 2025

Today I want to talk with you about something that is often misunderstood and more common than most people realize: tick-borne illnesses.

When most people hear about tick-borne diseases, the first thing that comes to mind is Lyme disease—and usually only in the context of the northeastern United States. Maybe you’ve even heard about the “classic bullseye rash” that’s supposed to make Lyme easy to recognize. But the truth is much more complex—and more concerning.

Tick-Borne Illnesses Are Everywhere

One of the biggest misconceptions is that tick-borne diseases are only a problem in New England or a handful of rural areas. The reality is: ticks are found in every state in the U.S. They thrive in woodlands, grassy fields, parks, and even suburban backyards.

As our climate changes and animal populations shift, ticks are spreading into areas where they weren’t as common before. That means people all across the country—from the Pacific Northwest, to the Midwest, to the Southeast, and yes, the Southwest—are at risk of exposure.

More Than Just Lyme Disease

Yes, Lyme disease is the most well-known tick-borne illness. But ticks can and do carry and transmit many other infections, including:

• Babesiosis

• Anaplasmosis

• Ehrlichiosis

• Rocky Mountain spotted fever

• Bartonella

• And other infections

Each of these can cause significant health problems, and in many cases, people may not even realize that a tick bite was the original cause of their symptoms.

The Bullseye Rash Myth

Let’s talk about the rash. We’ve all heard about the “classic bullseye” rash that’s associated with Lyme disease. But here’s what most people don’t know:

• The majority of patients never develop a bullseye rash.

• Some might get a rash that looks nothing like the pictures online.

• Others may not have any noticeable skin reaction at all.

That means you can still have a tick-borne illness even if you’ve never seen a rash.  (See link for article)

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**Comment**

Good article except for the climate change bit.  I won’t pontificate but if you are unfamiliar with this, please read:

 

 

More COVID Treatment Vindication: The Published 17,000 HCQ Deaths That Never Happened

https://brownstone.org/articles/those-published-17000-hydroxychloroquine-deaths-never-happened/

Those Published “17,000 Hydroxychloroquine Deaths” Never Happened

Player Image

Brownstone Journal
Article Excerpts:

Early January of 2024, Americans learned about the publication of an article from Elsevier’s Journal of Biomedicine and Pharmacotherapy overseen by Dr. Danyelle Townsend, a professor at the University of South Carolina College of Pharmacy’s Department of Drug Discovery and Biomedical Sciences. As Editor-in-Chief, Dr. Townsend reviewed, approved, and published the article titled: “Deaths induced by compassionate use of hydroxychloroquine during the first COVID-19 wave: An estimate.”

The article was always a hypothesized estimate of people that might have died, but now even that estimate has been retracted.  The reason for the retraction was that the Belgian dataset that was one of the bases for the piece was found to be ‘unreliable’ (but in reality was fraudulent). The article also repeatedly referenced the New England Journal of Medicine’s 2020 RECOVERY Trial.  The Recovery trial is well known to be a deeply flawed study which, in addition to implementing late treatment in severely ill COVID patients, used extremely high doses of HCQ.

In addition to being a hypothesized estimate, the article also attacked the legendary safety of HCQ, contradicting centuries of the safety of quinolines as a class.

HCQ, chloroquine and quinine are structurally and pharmaceutically/mechanistically related, sharing the same quinoline structural group. The original iteration of quinine was a very fortunate discovery that dates back to the 1600s (at least) as a medicinal tipple used by Jesuit missionaries in South America. It is naturally found in the bark of the Cinchona tree (also called a “Quina-Quina” tree).

Quinine is still available today both as a prescription drug, for similar indications as HCQ including malaria…and as a Covid-19      treatment.

Quinine is so safe that it may be unique in that the FDA simultaneously permits its use without a prescription, as an ingredient in tonic waters. (See link for article)

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**Comment**

The truth always comes out.

The HCQ scandal is widespread, as is the ongoing ivermectin scandal, proven to be effective for COVID yet still denied by mainstream medicine.

Dr. Didlier Raoult stated the RECOVERY trial was “the Marx Brothers doing science.” The person in charge of the trial (Professor Landray from Oxford University) used the “usual” dosage for amoebic dysentery, but HCQ is not even the usual treatment for this. He does not understand anything about infectious diseases or anti-infection drugs but led an international trial anyway.

HCQ:

Ivermectin:

Easier to Obtain Medically Assisted Death Than Treatment for Chronic Lyme Disease

https://medicaldetective.substack.com/p/you-can-get-medically-assisted-dying-easier-than-treatment-for-chronic-lyme-disease?

You Can Get Medically Assisted Dying Easier Than Treatment for Chronic Lyme Disease

There are certain aspects of medicine and specifically medical politics that make my blood boil. All of my calm abiding meditation goes out the window when I see the Canadian broadcasting system continuing their biased attack on Lyme disease patients in Canada, especially when it is easier to get medically assisted dying in a country than it is to get treated for a chronic illness. This is what was in the news media this week, once again:

Lyme disease is littered with misinformation. Celebrities are part of the problem, experts say. Chronic Lyme isn’t medically recognized. It’s a controversial term that some say fuels a dubious industry.

[A number of celebrities including Bella Hadid, Justin Bieber and Justin Timberlake claim to have Lyme disease, but some doctors worry this could mislead people into thinking they too could have the disease. (Vittorio Zunino Celotto, Patrick Smith, Manny Carabel/Getty Images)https://www.cbc.ca/news/investigates/celebrity-chronic-lyme-industry-9.7056234]

This news article from a Canadian broadcasting system, casting doubt on whether chronic Lyme disease and persistent infection is real, was released the same week that this article was highlighted by LymeDisease.org on January 27th:

Does anyone in the news media actually do a medical search (or know how to do one) before reporting news and purporting to know the truth? The article on the persistence of Lyme disease came out several days before the Canadian broadcasting system released their news feed. This is the second article I saw on the subject of chronic Lyme being a ‘non-disease’ coming out of Canada in the past few weeks, where the best they can do is to slam medical clinics trying to help patients. See the last Medical Detective Substack I did on sleuthing the ‘mysterious brain disease in Canada’ which likely involves some patients having chronic tick-borne illness mixed with mold and other environmental toxins:

(See link for article)
_______________
**Comment**
Important excerpt:
The newer guidelines by the IDSA do not incorporate any of the recent science on biofilms and persisters, and the Canadian healthcare system has chosen to adopt IDSA guidelines instead of giving doctors a choice, as we have here in the US to follow ILADS guidelines.
As Dr. Horowitz points out, his findings on persistence were published SEVEN years ago yet were never mentioned in the Canadian news story. But studies showing persistence were found even far before that:
I already did a summary of the horrifically biased Canadian piece here, where I summarize and point out the myriad of errors; however, I highly recommend reading Dr. Horowitz’s piece as he takes a deep, deep dive into the subject and the fact that some with potentially treatable illness are applying for medical assistance in dying.  The blatant denial of chronic, persistent Lyme/MSIDS will only further this practice.
I will end with a potent quote:

You Can Die from Lyme Disease. We Don’t Need More Help Getting There ~ Dr. Richard Horowitz

For more:

A Blind Spot on Autism

https://www.lymedisease.org/autism-infectious%E2%80%91disease-lens/

Looking at autism through an infectious‑disease lens

The following excerpt comes from A Blind Spot on Autism. The book is co‑authored by Debbie Kimberg, a mother and advocate whose writing for LymeDisease.org has chronicled her son’s improvement after treatment for vector‑borne infections including Borrelia, Bartonella, and Babesia. She partners with Dr. Ed Breitschwerdt, one of the world’s leading Bartonella researchers. Together, they blend lived experience and scientific expertise to explore biological patterns they believe have been overlooked in autism research.

By Debbie Kimberg and Dr. Ed Breitschwerdt

Article Excerpts:

From the moment we step into a doctor’s office, we’re taught to think of health problems as separate boxes. A child’s learning issues go to a specialist for educational testing. A sibling’s anxiety is treated by a mental health professional. A parent’s autoimmune disease is managed by a rheumatologist. A grandparent’s memory loss goes to neurology.

Medicine is organized this way.

This book brings together two perspectives rarely combined: the lived experience of navigating these patterns as a parent and patient advocate, and the decades of research from one of the world’s leading infectious disease experts. Our goal is not to dismiss the work already done on autism, but to attempt to connect the dots between existing research that has remained scattered across a thousand scientific papers, often among different fields of study. When viewed together, these studies point toward a hypothesis that could explain both the near-exponential rise in autism cases and the convoluted web of health problems in so many families.

This is not the first time medicine has been blindsided by an invisible infectious cause. History is full of examples where an infectious trigger hid in plain sight for decades before science caught up. Syphilis was once thought to be a mysterious neurological illness, ulcers were blamed on stress, and HIV was first recognized only by its complications. Each time, the truth emerged slowly, in pieces, and often against the resistance of the medical establishment.

….Bartonella species may represent one of the most stealth and dangerous pathogens seen in generations, pathogens that have been allowed to spread silently, reshaping the health of millions without recognition.  (See link for article & ordering info)

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**Comment**

Sadly, autism is only one such illness with an infectious connection.  In this study, it was found that 92% of pediatric bip0lar disorder had tick-borne infections exposure.  PANS is connected with Lyme and mycoplasma.

For more:

 

Cellular Healing Bootcamp Tonight

https://pages.vitalplan.com/bootcamp/?  Go here for video & to sign up

 Free from Lyme and Chronic Illness

Kickoff event: Thursday Jan. 8

Bootcamp: Jan 13-Feb 2

The Cellular Healing Bootcamp includes 21 days of education and encouragement, featuring:

Who is this Bootcamp for?

Anyone living with complex chronic illness (whether or not you have a formal diagnosis), including: Chronic Lyme & co-infections, Fibromyalgia, ME/CFS, Mold toxicity, MCAS, Chronic pain or fatigue, Long COVID & Persistent post-infection symptoms. If you’ve struggled to improve with conventional approaches, this Bootcamp is an excellent place to begin.

Questions we get about our Bootcamp:

“The Bootcamp helped me “re-boot” my efforts and belief that healing is possible.  The information was informative and inspiring.  I’m so grateful!”  – Deb C. 2025 Bootcamp Attendee  

Short daily lessons
Approachable videos + simple action steps from Bill Rawls, MD and the Vital Plan Team

“Every day with the Vital Plan group is helpful!
Very supportive, informative, and encouraging!” – Shelley G.  

About Dr. Bill Rawls

Our Cellular Healing Bootcamp is a free, 21-day, expert-led community experience designed to support true healing by calming the nervous system, supporting detoxification, and restoring health at the cellular level.

Sign Up »

Dr. Bill Rawls
MEDICAL DIRECTOR
Vital Plan & RawlsMD

Beth Lambert
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Documenting Hope

Matt & Rich
FOUNDERS 
Tick Boot Camp

Belinda Macri
HEALTH COACH
Vital Plan

Tim Yarborough
CUSTOMER SUCCESS
Vital Plan

• Chronic Lyme & co-infections

• Fibromyalgia

• ME/CFS

• Post-viral syndromes

• Mold toxicity

This bootcamp is virtual, free to join, and is ideal for anyone navigating complex or infection-associated chronic illness, including:

• MCAS, dysautonomia, chronic pain, and fatigue

• Long COVID

• Persistent, unexplained symptoms that haven’t responded to traditional approaches

Herbal support & lifestyle shifts

Our expertise in the therapeutic use of adaptogenic and antimicrobial herbs helps participants understand how herbal therapy, environment, diet, movement, and daily habits work together to shift the healing terrain.

When cellular stress accumulates, low-virulence microbes can become active again, triggering symptoms commonly seen in chronic Lyme and other complex chronic conditions. 

This bootcamp is grounded in the science-based framework developed by Dr. Bill Rawls and offers a holistic, time-tested path toward healing.

True recovery starts by removing the stressors that impair cellular function. The program is built around three essential pillars:

1. CALM
Regulate your nervous system and reduce cellular stress

2. DETOXIFY
Lighten your toxic load and support gut & immune balance

3. RESTORE
Build cellular resilience through herbs, diet, and lifestyle

Community accelerates healing

Doing this work in a supportive community helps reduce isolation, increase confidence, and sustain momentum.

Learn more about the Vital Plan Network.

Live expert events + replays
With guests including Beth Lambert, Tick Boot Camp, and the Vital Plan health coaches

Reflection time & check-ins
Daily prompts, shared insights, gentle accountability, and space for connection.

A dedicated bootcamp space
Inside the Vital Plan Network, accessible on desktop or our mobile app.

Downloadable
Guide
To help you keep focused on core concepts as you progress through the bootcamp.

Kick-off & celebration event
Meet the team, learn how the Bootcamp works, and close the experience with clarity and momentum.

Paulette Biancucci
HEALTH COACH
Vital Plan

Liza Blas
COMMUNITY MANAGER
Vital Plan Network

Where does the Bootcamp take place?

Entirely inside the Vital Plan Network—our private community platform where you can watch lessons, share reflections, and connect with others. Accessible via browser or our mobile app.

What is the Cellular Healing Bootcamp?

A free, 21-day community-based healing program designed to introduce you experientially to the core principles that support recovery from Lyme and other chronic illnesses: calming the nervous system, detoxifying the body, and restoring cellular resilience and freedom from reactivated microbes.

Do I need to attend live events?

Attending live is recommended but not required as much of the bootcamp will take place asynchronously. Replays for live events will be available, including for the Kickoff, expert webinars, and the final celebration.

What if I can’t keep up with daily lessons?

No problem! The content is intentionally short and paced with integration days. You can move at your own rhythm, catch up or skip if you need to.

Do I need any special supplements or tools?

No, just access to the Vital Plan Network via the web or our app.

Is this appropriate for beginners?

Absolutely. The Bootcamp is designed to meet you wherever you are in your recovery.

Can I join if I did last year’s Bootcamp?

Yes! This is our second annual Bootcamp and it includes new content, new lessons, and deeper community integration.

Hosted in the Vital Plan Network

The entire bootcamp takes place inside our private community platform—created by Dr. Rawls and purpose-built for people recovering from chronic illness.

In the Vital Plan Network you’ll find:

  • A dedicated bootcamp space
  • A supportive environment
  • Mentors and health coaches
  • Direct guidance from Dr. Rawls and the VP team
  • Courses, resources, and tools to continue your healing path

We recommend downloading the Vital Plan Network app for the best experience.

Emily Grimes
HEALTH COACH
Vital Plan

Hosted in
The Vital Plan Network

Kickoff Event:

Thursday Jan. 8th

Bootcamp:

Jan. 13th – Feb. 2nd