Episode 273: Lyme Warrior - an interview with Lauren Lovejoy

Lauren Lovejoy is the charismatic entrepreneurial founder of the Lyme service organization Lyme Warrior. She grew up and lives in rural Virginia. Ms. Lovejoy was living a life of a normal 20 something, working in a law office by day and attending graduate school studying Analytics at night. She filled her remaining time participating in social activities and training at a CrossFit gym. One weekend, when she took an 8-hour road trip, she suffered a panic attack, shaking, and an out of body experience. After returning to school, she began to suffer from disorientation and vision loss. Her symptoms continued to build to the point that she had to acknowledge she “could not continue her job or her education.” Her illness remained undiagnosed, despite visiting “piles of primary care doctors, every category of specialists (twice), and functional medicine” professionals. One renowned neurologist told her “there was nothing he or any doctor could do for [her]” and she had to accept her “life as being home bound.” Her diagnosis arrived as a gift from a nurse at a holistic clinic that rejected her as a patient. He told her “based on your symptoms, you sound like you have Lyme disease” and encouraged her to attend a specialized Lyme clinic. During her time studying Lyme disease, she discovered her story was not uncommon. She learned that the well documented disease was “still denied by [her] government, and most doctors.” This information inspired her to create the Lyme Warrior non-profit from her couch. If you would like to learn more about how Lyme Warrior Lauren Lovejoy discovered that it was her job to try to prevent her Lyme disease story “from happening to as many people as possible,” then tune in now!