Julie Yakunich is a 40-year-old Integrative Health Practitioner and Certified Health Coach specializing in Lyme disease from Chicago, Illinois. She has her own private practice, Get Well with Julie, and sees Lyme and chronic illness patients at Case Integrative Health.

Ms. Yakunich’s battle with Lyme began when she was 29 years old after living a very active and high functioning life while working, attending graduate school at night, and traveling around the world in her free time. Her first symptoms were random fainting spells that started to become more frequent.

As time went on, Ms. Yakunich’s symptoms progressed and included constant severe headaches, air hunger, brain fog, fatigue, pain, tremors, blurry vision, and more. She visited 26 doctors over 5 years and none of them properly diagnosed her with Lyme disease.

Many doctors misdiagnosed Ms. Yakunich with brain tumors, cysts, Multiple Sclerosis (MS), migraines, food allergies, asthma, hypothyroidism, and more. Eventually, she found a Naturopathic Doctor (ND) in Portland, Oregon, who diagnosed her with Lyme disease through an IGeneX blood test.

Ms. Yakunich was treated using a combination of oral antibiotics for 20 months. She also used a wide variety of immunotherapies, herbs, ozone therapy, IV glutathione, and more to aid in her healing.

After regaining her health, Ms. Yakunich climbed Mount St Helens with her siblings and friends and raised money for the LivLyme Foundation during this event.

If you would like to learn more about how Ms. Yakunich went from being completely homebound and bedridden for almost 2 years to climbing a mountain and now helping others heal from chronic Lyme disease, then tune in now!

Elected officials from around the United States joined leading Lyme disease advocates to celebrate the one-year anniversary of Advocacy Express which flipped over 40 representatives to now support Lyme legislation!

Tune in to listen to Brookhaven Town Councilwoman Jane Bonner (Long Island, New York), Brookhaven Town Councilman Kevin LaValle (Long Island, New York), New York State Assemblyman Steve Englebright, and Michigan State Representative Karen Whitsett

These elected officials share their personal Lyme experiences, what they’ve done to help the Lyme community, and how you can personally advocate for Lyme disease to your elected representatives

This discussion is followed up with a question-and-answer session from members of the Lyme community before concluding with a patient advocate discussion with Matt Sabatello and Rich Johannesen from Tick Boot Camp, Ali Moresco, Jenny Buttaccio, and Jennifer Hoffmann.

Advocacy Express is a platform that enables you to magnify your voice to your representatives. Ali Moresco founded Advocacy Express to automate Lyme disease advocacy by systematically mailing letters written by policy experts to your elected officials for the cost of a stamp.

If you would like to hear from elected officials who have personally been impacted by tick-borne illness and learn a variety of ways you can advocate for the Lyme community, then tune in now!

Amanda Rojas is a 31-year-old medical collections supervisor. She is planning on continuing her college education soon and wants to help others navigate through the craziness of Lyme disease.

Ms. Rojas’ battle with Lyme began at Christmas time when she was 25 years old. She visited over 30 doctors, specialists, urgent care facilities, and hospitals, but none of them could discover the root cause of her problems.

Many doctors misdiagnosed Ms. Rojas with psychological disorders and other conditions like Fibromyalgia and Epstein Barr Virus (EBV). Eventually, she found a Naturopathic Doctor (ND) who diagnosed her with Lyme disease through a Vibrant Labs test.

Ms. Rojas started treating using the kill, bind, and sweat treatment method which kickstarted her healing. She continued her treatment journey by visiting LymeStop. Most recently, she has started Vital Side Brain retraining to heal her limbic system.

If you would like to learn more about how a driven young woman located her Lyme disease diagnosis and treatment by never giving up and continuing to take action, then tune in now!

Julie Comble is a 23-year-old student and online tutor from Paris, France. She is studying English and Modern Literature at Sorbonne University, Paris.

Ms. Comble’s Lyme disease journey began with severe fatigue in her early teens. Three months after her parents terminated an unstable and often volatile relationship, she suffered a rapid acceleration of symptoms. She lost 17 pounds, suffered severe fatigue, neurological deficits, heart symptoms, and back, leg, arm, and foot pain.

Unfortunately, the proximity of the chronic symptoms to her parents’ divorce caused her doctors to misdiagnose her with mental health disorders related to her family’s trauma. After treating with scores of doctors over several years, she was diagnosed with Lyme disease by a French Lyme Literate Medical Doctor (LLMD).

Her doctors treated her with “many treatments” both traditional and natural, including antibiotics, anti-parasitics, probiotics, amino acids, herbs, and the “game changing” cycling of Rocephin and Malarone.

If you would like to learn more about how a young woman overcame systemic French Lyme disease denialism and diagnostic flaws before securing life altering medical treatment, then tune in now!

Hana-li Pendery is a 33-year-old entertainer, public speaker, business owner and entrepreneur. Her artistic parents named her in homage to the Peter, Paul & Mary classic song Puff the Magic Dragon.

Ms. Pendery’s battle with the Lyme dragon began when she was “about 16 years old." She managed her symptoms for over a decade until she lost the ability to sleep. Eventually her sleep disorder was diagnosed by a doctor who tested her for Lyme disease.

Knowing there was an answer to her health challenges, Ms. Pendery visited with almost every natural doctor in Florida to first diagnose and then treat her illness. Her treatment journey was guided by listening to her body’s signals that led her to utilize muscle testing, herbal supplements, ozone saunas, and ozone and UV light therapy.

If you would like to learn more about how an artist located her Lyme disease diagnosis and treatment by following her body’s signals, then tune in now!

Liz Walcott is a 36-year-old MBA/ CPA and serial entrepreneur residing in New York City, New York.

Ms. Walcott’s Lyme disease journey began in 2012 when she was “burning the candle at both ends” while working at a top US accounting firm In New York City. For several years she excelled in a demanding corporate culture with a code of conduct that required spin/workout classes before breakfast, long office hours, and mandatory after-hours social obligations.

Shortly after returning from a Hamptons share house summer retreat, she began to feel “heavy cold sweats, heart racing” and fear. She was “otherwise in great shape… so [she] knew something was wrong.” Her symptoms worsened to include neurological deficits, shortness of breath, tingling, and light sensitivity eventually rendering unable to work.

After visiting 15 doctors over 3 years, she was diagnosed with Lyme disease by an infectious disease doctor. After her diagnosis she utilized antibiotic therapy prescribed by one of the top LLMDs in the US, EBO2 ozone therapy, stem cell therapy and biomagnetism for pain management.

If you would like to learn more about how Liz Wolcott utilized “body confidence” and “modeling people who were successful” to regain her health, become a parent, and start a new business venture, then tune in now!

Dr. Timothy Haystead is a UK-educated Doctor of Biochemistry, University Professor, entrepreneur, and world-renowned scientific researcher.

Dr. Haystead graduated with a Bachelor of Science (BSc) in Biochemistry from Cardiff University (United Kingdom) and a PhD in Biochemistry from the University of Dundee (United Kingdom).

He and his wife (a medical doctor) immigrated to the US to “seek adventure” in a new country. Dr. Haystead’s career in academia commenced in Seattle, traveled through the University of Virginia, and drew to a stop at the prestigious Duke University. During his adventures in academia, he trained under and worked with four Nobel Laureate scientists.

Dr. Haystead’s entrepreneurial efforts developed a drug discovery platform to take guesswork or “luck” out of the process of identifying disease diagnostic and treatment tools. He founded two companies to develop and commercialize his drug discovery platform. He sold his first company, named Serenex, to Pfizer. He is working to build a new company that he started out of a “garage” in close proximity to Duke University.

After meeting and working with the famous Duke University Lyme disease researcher, Dr. Neil Spector, he was inspired to use his drug discovery platform to pioneer diagnostic and treatment tools for Lyme disease. Dr. Haystead’s Lyme research has earned the recognition and support of grants from the National Institute of Health (NIH), Centers for Disease Control (CDC), US Department of Defense, Cohen Foundation, and the Bay Area Lyme Foundation. The grant-funded research is being conducted in collaboration with researchers from Duke, Tulane, and NC State University.

If you would like to learn more about how Dr. Haystead is working to pioneer tools to detect and eliminate Lyme bacteria by destroying its DNA, then tune in now!

Brianna Marie is a 39-year-old Holistic Doctor, athlete, and mother. She is the creator of the Holistically Fit Protocol and the @HolisticallyFitMomma and @HolisticallyFitBabe social platforms.

Dr. Brianna Marie grew up in a tick endemic community and suffered from classic Lyme symptoms since early childhood. Despite growing up the child of a medical doctor and treating with “dozens” of “allopathic doctors,” she was not diagnosed with Lyme disease until she was 32 years old.

The failures of the allopathic medical community inspired Dr. Brianna Marie to study and utilize holistic therapies including stem cells, yoga, IV Glutathione, CBD, probiotics, and infrared light therapy on her healing journey.

If you would like to learn more about how a Holistic Doctor rebuilt her health and converted her experience into a healing framework, then tune in now!

Russ Bell is a married father of two minor children. His MIT educated wife Nicole describes him as the most intelligent man she had ever met.

Mr. Bell grew up in the American South where he enjoyed outdoor sporting activities such as hiking and shooting. He understood that ticks and tick bites were part and parcel of a sportsman’s outdoor experience.

Toward the end of his professional career, Russ Bell fell in love with and married a brilliant young colleague. The couple’s 20-year age gap presented an opportunity to engineer an idyllic life: Russ would begin a new chapter in life as a caretaker for their young children and Nicole would continue to build her blossoming career.

The seemingly perfect family planning came to a sudden halt when the Lyme spirochetes and co-infections lurking in Russ’ brain caused him to suffer cognitive decline from Alzheimer’s disease, rendering him unable to care for his children and eventually himself.

During the family’s painful journey, Nicole Bell heard a call to describe her family’s experience with the raw reality of Lyme and converted her journal into a critically acclaimed memoir: What Lurks in the Woods.

If you would like to learn more about the Bell family’s “mistakes and successes” and the book that author Kris Newby described as a “must read for caregivers,” then tune in now!

Patricia Cosulich is a 26-year-old multi-talented artist, entrepreneur and social innovator. She is the playwright and producer of The Great Imitator, a Lyme disease play designed to “change the way we view healing, build community, mobilize policy change and fundraise through storytelling.”

Ms. Cosulich was a gifted child that enjoyed the exploration of her talents until she suffered the tragic loss of her father. The stress of the loss overwhelmed her immune defenses and unleashed Lyme disease.

For years, doctors dismissed classic Lyme symptoms “as grief and trauma” until she tested positive by an IGeneX blood test. Securing a diagnosis permitted her to treat with “an out of state” Lyme literature doctor that utilized modalities such as a “rotation of antibiotics, herbs, immune support and nervous system retraining.”

Although “not 100% [healed] yet,” her healing journey has allowed Ms. Cosulich to rediscover her “essential self” and at the same time feel “completely transformed - sort of like Patricia 2.0.”

If you would like to learn more about how Lyme disease helped a young woman find her purpose while on a journey of rediscovery and transformation, then tune in now!