There's a review of it in today's NY Times. READ IT HERE
I responded to it, but it was taken down, so here it is.
Had
I seen this movie before my daughter was bitten by a tick here in
Southern California seven terrible years ago and subsequently
misdiagnosed by 20+ doctors, her life would be much different than it
is today. She would be in college. She would not live in pain 24/7.
The job of a parent is to see to our children's safety. So we use seatbelts in the car. We don't vote on it every time we get in the car, we do it because we have been educated on the threats inherent if we don't: there are accidents, and some kids will be injured or die. It's just common sense now, though it wasn't always.
So it is with tick-borne illness. Except that we parents are NOT educated about the threat that Lyme poses. We think we know something about it, and it's not a big deal, but the little we know is mainly wrong... old doctor's tales that have not been put to rest. Hmm, why is that? Watch Under Our Skin and you'll begin to see how and why the very people who we THINK are looking out for us and our children, and in whom we place our trust, have an agenda very different than that of public benefit and safety.
Lyme is an epidemic. It's in your state, no matter what the doctor says. Your kids can be bitten and you won't know it. Your kids may have symptoms and no bulls-eye rash. Your kids may have symptoms all over the map: in fact, so many that they get labeled as whiners, hypochondriacs, attention-seekers, liars, slackers, etc. by the very people you pay to help them. And misdiagnosis and under-treatment is the norm unless parents persist in getting a diagnosis that speaks to ALL of the symptoms, (eg., fibromyalgia, arthritis, migraines, nausea, fatigue, etc), and not just some of them.
The government has fallen down on the job. I confronted a CDC official at a public event and said to her, "I know you know how bad Lyme Disease really is." And she said, "Yes, we do." "Then what is it going to take for you people who are supposed to be looking out for us and our children to get the word out about Lyme and educate the public?" And here is an instance of a government official actually speaking truth. She said, "It's going to take a lot more people getting sick."
So there it is. Disgusting.
In my family, two out of three of us have been a part of that experiment. We have "given." Would anyone reading this like to also volunteer, so that the government will proactively provide parents the known information you need to protect your children? (Well, sorry, NOT yours, because they'll be chronically ill. But other people's children, somewhere down the line, maybe.)
Of course not. Unless you want to believe the Infectious Diseases Society's spin that Lyme is "hard to get, and easy to cure," when precisely the opposite is true.
The IDSA wants and expects your faith in them. Don't give it so easily: they have not earned it, and you will see that in Under Our Skin. You as a parent want unbiased knowledge. You want uncompromised scientific evidence. You don't want a panel overseeing treatment guidelines that includes members that have patents on Lyme-related products. It's not likely to be in your best self-interest. Duh.
On July 30th, in Washington, DC, there will be a quasi-public hearing (they won't let you in, but it will be live on the internet) about changing the guidelines governing Lyme treatment, brought about by the CT Attorney General's Office. The IDSA is treating it as a pesky PR problem. Too bad for them, they have to listen to wacky Lyme patients and their equally misguided treating doctors for a few hours. But they're confident that there will be little public notice. And they may be right. They've got a huge financial war chest and Lyme patients are sick and broke from being denied long term treatment by their doctors and insurers.
Do let them get away with it! Educate yourself about how to protect your children. Go to www.lymedisease.org, or http://health.groups.yahoo.com... or www.lymepolicywonk.org for the political angle.
Bev Feldman
www.lymesucks.org
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