October 16,1997

I am writing this story as an addition to Bianca's Lyme Disease Page to give a different point of view to lyme disease sufferers. My point of view is that of any family member who watches this disease take its toll on a loved one.

My name is Bill Wahlers. I am an Ironworker from New York City with three beautiful children and a lovely wife (Bianca). When Bianca and I married we decided (at my request) to move to southern New Jersey for what I felt would be a cleaner and safer environment to raise our family, but in May of 1996 Bianca contracted Lyme Disease while raking leaves in our backyard. If you have already read Bianca's Story then you know the details and I won't get into that again, but I would like to say that when she started to complain that she wasn't feeling well I asked her "Would you like to go to the doctor?"and she refused. I could see over the next several weeks that she was getting worse and whenever she would complain about her aching joints and headaches I would ask her "Would you like to see the doctor?"and she refused. Now just to put things into perspective for you (The reader),Bianca and I have a wonderful relationship, we never fight (knock on wood) and I couldn't imagine anyone being happier together than we are. So when I returned from work one day and Bianca told me she was leaving me and going to her mothers I FREAKED and then I finally convinced her (by begging) that before she left she should see a doctor. The next day she went to the doctor who at first thought she was crazy, after all who could possibly have all of these things wrong with them at once? But thankfully he made the connection between these symptoms and lyme disease and immediately put her on antibiotics till the test results came back.

In the meantime we went home and started doing research on lyme and were horrified by what we learned. There is NO CURE for lyme disease, although the symptoms might go into remission it is always there and can come back at any time. Lyme disease can attack your heart, kidneys, central nervous system or other organs in which case it can cause arthritis, kidney failure or heart failure, this was the scariest because it was just a matter of crossing your fingers and hoping for the best.

The test results came back negative but during our research we found that in many cases these tests were inaccurate, so when the doctor suggested that she "Stop taking the antibiotics and see how you feel in a few weeks"we felt it was best to see a specialist. Bianca found an infectious disease specialist who treated lyme patients which by the way is not easy to find these days due to the fact that if any doctor diagnoses to many lyme disease cases his license to practice is suspended pending a hearing. PLEASE don't think I am some conspiracy nut! I know it sounds crazy but it's true .I have also heard of insurance companies that drop peoples health coverage when they are diagnosed with lyme.

Bianca's new doctor put her on oral antibiotics and treated her in the most professional manner I have ever seen from a doctor. She could call him with any questions or problems she had and he would happily assist in any way possible. This gave us both a great deal of comfort that all that could be done medically was being done, but there was still a lot more to deal with.

I never knew what to expect when I came home from work each day, Would she be in a bright and cheery mood? Would she have moderate symptoms? Or Would she be lying on the couch in a semi-conscious state with a massive headache and severe joint pain?. I sometimes dreaded coming home to see her in such a state, yet she still managed to keep house, care for the kids and be civil towards us. The hardest thing for me to deal with was the fact that this was something I couldn't fix. When anything in the house breaks I can fix it ,the car ,washer ,dryer I can even kiss boo boos and make them better, But I can't help my wife! And it's the one thing in life I want to do more than anything.

Then one day I came home from work and Bianca greeted me at the door. She was happy and healthy feeling and it seemed that as soon as it came it was gone just as quickly. For many weeks she was in great health and spirits, and the worst was behind us, but when her aunt grew ill with cancer the stress took its toll and I could see Bianca slipping back. The doctor had warned us about stress and it didn't take long until she was back at the beginning of her battle. She was in very bad shape for several weeks following but eventually came around and was feeling good again. Since then I try to take as much of the stress off of her that I can and if I see someone putting her into a stressful situation they deal with The Wrath of Bill.

Bianca and I started this web page to show people what it is like to have and deal with lyme disease, it's more serious than the average person thinks and Bianca is mostly worried about children, who rely on their parents for protection from such things.

I remember about two years ago when my son broke his leg, we were sitting in the emergency room and there was a family there with their son who was about nine years old. The mother was making quite a commotion yelling that her son had lyme disease and needed treatment immediately. No one paid her any attention and when we left after our long ordeal with our son in a cast that family was still waiting in the emergency room unattended. To my regret I remember saying to myself "What's the big deal, why is she making such a racket?". I apologize for my ignorance at that time , but if my response is any indication of the public awareness of lyme disease than the world has a lot to learn. I don't recall ever seeing warnings about lyme disease on TV or in the papers, yet we are bombarded by messages about Aids and Hepatitis. We see aids rallies ,pro life and pro choice but where are the lyme rallies? On TV? In the papers? Do they exist? If not maybe it is time for lyme disease sufferers to make some noise and get some attention drawn to their cause. If you know of such a rally Please notify us! Bianca and I will be there.

To all of the lyme sufferers out there you have my utmost respect and support.

To my wife, Bianca

Your strength, perseverance and goodwill towards others even in the worst of times amazes me and makes me more and more proud of you every day.

Your love shines through the darkest of nights, and god has blessed me with your love. You have been through many battles with lyme disease and you may have more to come, but I know in my heart that someday you will win your Silent War on Lyme Disease