Anyone here have Lyme disease, PANDAS, etc.?

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I am coming to realize more and more that much of the problems in my life are due not JUST to being on the autism spectrum, but to having chronic health issues as well. And critically, a certain type of chronic health issues, a kind that's "invisible" as far as the general public is concerned.

When I was in high school, one summer I developed constant flulike symptoms. Together with the fact that I'd gotten a mysterious (without any overt injury) swollen knee several times in middle school, this eventually led to a diagnosis of Lyme disease. I know there are some doctors who like to blame "everything" on Lyme, but in my case I definitely had it. The infectious disease doctor I was sent to by my pediatrician did a test that showed positive for every possible antibody for Lyme that could be present.

Those of you who have never had Lyme (be glad-you're lucky!) may not know there's a huge controversy around chronic Lyme disease. What everyone knows is there are commonly residual symptoms that remain after treating Lyme, but the controversy is whether this means the Lyme is still there or whether there's some kind of autoimmune issue. I think (for reasons I won't elaborate on right now) that a good part of it is disrupted gut flora from the antibiotics for Lyme, and some if it is probably some immune problem.

All I know is I have EXTREME food sensitivities (I can only eat maybe 10 things, that I have to cook at home a certain way), greatly increased tendency toward rages, very weird headaches, peripheral nerve issues, and a few other things. Most aspies at my level of function don't have these issues. They eat out at restaurants/in cafeterias like it's nothing, many are quite emotionally stable, they have few bodily symptoms at all, etc.

Many of these kind of issues are shared generally with the syndrome of PANDAS/PANS, the former of which is an autoimmune reaction to strep, and the latter of which is an immune dysfunction brought about by anything (including Lyme). It's been recognized that in children PANS is much more common in autism--to the point where some parents think it CAUSES autism! I know there's a difference, because I still had the cognitive profile of Asperger's even when I had no physical illness at all, but I believe there's a correlation. However, I've never seen it talked about either here on WP or in autism groups I've joined through Meetup or whatever. Conversely, almost none of the adults I have met through online support groups for Lyme and/or PANS have Asperger's.

It's as though all these kids who have both (who are well recognized among people who study both) somehow all wind up in institutions by their 18th birthday and I can't find them anywhere! I REALLY wish I could meet others in this position, ESPECIALLY girls! I feel we are a "unique breed" that people with autism and without Lyme, or vice versa, just can't get.

I recently posted an essay on a group I've started for people with chronic illness--I may also cross-post it here--where I propose the term "twice weird" to describe us. It was inspired by the term "twice exceptional" for gifted people who also have a learning disability. The point is that those with a chronic illness but a normal social brain often manage to socialize and achieve milestones like marriage, motherhood, etc. relatively on schedule, even if they struggle "to make ends meet" due to their illness. Similarly, people on the spectrum, if they're not TOO low functioning, can reach maturity milestones at a relatively normal rate. Some even have their first boy/girlfriends before they're 25. But those of us with BOTH issues, the "twice-weirds", can become so alienated from others that even in our 30s we are relationship-wise and emotional-maturity-wise where others are when they're in their teens.

Is anyone else here a "twice-weird"?