Lyme Aid fund-raisers continue as Kincardine man continues treatments in Florida

While Dave Underwood of Kincardine continues his treatments in Florida for Lyme Disease, family, friends and the community continue to fund-raise to help cover the cost of these treatments.

A Thrift Extravaganza, held last month at the Lighthouse Fellowship Baptist Church in Kincardine, raised more than $7,000.

The event was so well-received, that another one is slated for Saturday, June 4, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., at The Harbour Church, Kincardine. This time, the sales will focus on clothes and accessories for women, men, teens and children. Donations of items for the sale will be accepted at The Harbour Church, Tuesday to Friday, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Another great fund-raiser is a Kincardine Youth Music Concert, featuring the talents of local children, ages eight to 13, at The Harbour Church, Saturday, May 28, beginning at 7 p.m., with donations accepted at the door.

The performers are students who are taught by local music teachers and in local music studios. They will be playing piano, guitar and fiddle, and singing solos and duets. The Elgin Market intermediate girls choir will perform, and the Kincardine Community Concert Band will perform for 20 minutes before the concert begins.

Meanwhile, Underwood's wife, Katie, continues to update the community on his treatments and how things are coming along.

Her latest update was May 7 when she said Underwood had just finished his first “kill” protocol of antibiotics followed by a week of detox to push out all the toxins that the antibiotics have mobilized in his bloodstream.

"He has had a rough couple of weeks of intensified symptoms as a result of the antibiotics, which we are trying to take as encouragement that the protocol is working. Another result of the antibiotics has been an increase in stress on Dave’s liver, indicated by high numbers on his weekly bloodwork, which the nurses have been watching carefully. An increase in these liver numbers is fairly common under such an intensive treatment protocol, but it still was not good news. Because of this, for a few days this week, Dave was able to receive only an IV detox drip rather than the two other compounds he usually receives with it that serve to push toxins out of tissues and the brain.
 

"After repeated testing, his numbers still haven’t gone down, but thankfully after a meeting on Thursday with his plan-of-care nurse, Gary, who reviewed Dave's tests, he felt it was safe to continue with the full protocol despite the high numbers. It was quite discouraging this week to feel like Dave was having to slow down his treatment and miss out on those two compounds that actually give him some relief and make his brain feel better and clearer.

"At $3,000 (U/S.) per week whether he’s doing just detox or more, we’re determined to get every last drop out of every last IV bag they’re willing to give us! But, at the same time, the last thing we want to do is push his body too hard and cause a problem that would mean he has to stop treatment altogether until his liver got back on track, which would delay treatment even longer. So for now, all we can do is press on, and continue to keep an eye on his liver numbers as we go.
 

Underwood is having stomach trouble which has worsened since beginning this new treatment, said Katie.
 

"He’s hardly digesting any of his food, so I’ve been making lots of soups and we’ve started juicing as well, hoping to help his body get the nutrients it needs without having to work so hard to process them. Dave hasn’t been able to break down many of his supplements either, so we’re crushing them up or dissolving them in water wherever we can. This regression of the digestive system is fairly common during treatment too, as all the toxins that are being pushed out of his tissues and organs all end up in his stomach and get dragged through his digestive tract before they can get out, so it makes sense that things would be aggravated for a while, but it has been causing a lot of malnutrition and discomfort for Dave."

In addition, he is dealing with parasites in his body, through a "kill" protocol which seems to be helping, said Katie.
 

"Despite these few issues, some of Dave’s other tests continue to show that he’s progressing well in his treatment; his system is getting stronger, his immune system has been boosted and is successfully breaking down biofilm, and the toxins being released are being effectively removed through the IV detox drips. We can’t wait for the day that we’re confident is coming soon, when all this progress will translate into physical relief from his symptoms for him!
 

"Lately, Dave has been talking about what he’d like to do when he’s able to go back to work! It’s so exciting to be able to start thinking about our future and the family that we would like to start together, and to wonder if those things might be able to happen soon."

She thanked the Lyme Aid for Dave team that has been working tirelessly, and to everyone who has donated and helped with fund-raisers to bring the total to more than $60,000.

 

"May just happens to be Lyme Disease Awareness Month! Take this opportunity to get more educated about an illness that is affecting thousands of Canadians who are unable to receive a proper diagnosis and are being denied effective treatment. Check out www.canlyme.com for more information on Lyme Disease.

In her update from April 23, Katie explained how Lyme tries to survive in the human body.

"One of the techniques that Lyme uses to survive, hide, and protect itself against the body’s natural immune response is biofilm, a thick mucous that it begins to spin as soon as it enters the body. This mucous surrounding becomes a bubble in which the Lyme bacteria, and many other nasty co-infections, toxins, and protomozoa, can hide.

"Dave’s earlier course of IV antibiotics would have only served to kill the free-floating bacteria in his bloodstream, not any of the ones hiding in this biofilm or deep in his tissues, which is why Dave remained symptomatic. We’re so thankful to be here at Sponaugle where the doctor sees the big picture of Lyme treatment. He spent the first few weeks here giving Dave detox drips so that Dave’s immune system would wake up and begin breaking apart this biofilm on its own so that we could eventually clean up whatever was inside; without tackling biofilm, Dave would never be able to fully clear the Lyme infection.

"Well, as you can see from the photos (above) of one drop of Dave’s blood, the treatment protocol is working wonders!  In the top left image, you can see all the thick, black biofilm along the outside; the edges are not spotty but very smooth and solid, indicating that it has been there for a long time. Inside, you can see many little bright spots and other larger spots, which are the bacteria and other organisms living inside the biofilm.

"In the bottom left picture, taken after just 4 weeks of treatment here, you can see how the biofilm is now significantly more broken up and spread out! This means that the bacteria, toxins, as well as chunks of the biofilm, are being released into Dave’s bloodstream.

"As you can see from the bottom right picture, which is a drop of blood under even greater magnification, a veritable 'river' of biofilm is running through the image, as well as many free-floating specs of bacteria and other nasty organisms.

"The release of all of these things from the biofilm can make patients feel even worse and cause symptoms to increase. Thankfully, other tests show that the clinic has been doing a great job of keeping up with the toxin load using the detox infusions being given to Dave daily.
 

"We’ve also learned more about the results of Dave’s genetic testing, some of which I talked about in a previous update, and we’ve come to understand how some of what was found will have a greater impact on the way we live life after our time here at Sponaugle than we first realized. We came here for Dave’s Lyme treatment, but we had no idea that his mold exposure was actually the bigger problem, and a huge factor in what has helped the Lyme persist for so long.

"Because Dave’s genetics make it so that his body can detox neither the Lyme bacteria nor the mold toxins on its own, Dave is going to have to be diligent in making sure his immune function doesn’t get so suppressed by these toxins again. Getting rid of the mold currently in his system, as well as ensuring he has no further exposure to mold toxins when we come home, is going to be what makes or breaks the success of this treatment and Dave’s future health."
 

For more information about the Lyme Aid for Dave events, check out the Facebook event page at: https://www.facebook.com/events/901060506679333/

To read more about Underwood's story, check the website at: www.youcaring.com/dave-underwood-368979