Looking at Lyme

In this episode, we speak with Blake Corbin. Blake grew up in the Ottawa Valley and became an avid hunter and outdoorsman. He’s been very involved with local fish and game clubs and other organizations that mostly focus on youth initiatives, wildlife and habitat restoration. Blake volunteers his time to educate fellow outdoors enthusiasts about avoiding ticks and how best to prevent getting bitten.

Dr. Tim Cook is an Internal Medicine Specialist who has spent decades helping patients with complex illnesses. He worked abroad with the Canadian Armed Forces and he has been the physician for multiple officials at Rideau Hall. 

In today’s episode, we hear how medicine is evolving to handle Lyme Disease, and learn more about an upcoming conference for medical professionals all about tick-borne diseases.

Resources

In this episode, we speak with Dr. Kendall Soucie and Marissa Rakus. Dr. Kendall Soucie is an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Windsor, in Ontario Canada. She studies women’s health, particularly the social and institutional impacts of living with chronic health conditions.

Marissa Rakus is a PhD candidate in the Applied Social Psychology program at the University of Windsor. Her research examines gender-based violence and women's interactions with formal support systems.

Together they are researching medical gaslighting. They’ve been gathering information from...

In this podcast, we talk with Dr. Sarah Keating. As an anatomic pathologist for more than 35 years, Sarah worked on staff at a number of hospitals in Ontario as well as at Ontario Forensic Pathology Services. She is recently retired but is passionate about learning as much as possible about tick borne diseases in order to help improve the access to care for suffering patients. She maintains her affiliation with the University of Toronto as an Associate Professor Emeritus in the Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology. Sarah has been a member of the CanLyme board since 2022 and she...

In this podcast, we talk with Dr. Eleanor Stein. Dr. Stein is a medical doctor and psychiatrist. The course of her career in academic medicine took a sudden turn when she developed myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia and environmental sensitivities in 1989 during her psychiatry residency. She experienced the same lack of informed care that so many face and as a result made the decision to focus her practice on chronic complex diseases. Since then, she has devoted her career to learning about these conditions and has worked closely with thousands of patients integrating conventional and integrative approaches to...

In this episode, we talk with Lilian Dart, a PhD student at the University of Toronto. Lilian is an environmental geographer who researches the complex relationship between humans and their environment, focusing on how this relationship shapes behaviour, participation, and environmental decision-making in Canada, with particular attention to issues of environmental justice and equity. With a strong academic foundation spanning both the sciences and social sciences, her previous work has explored community-based conservation, community health, and housing policy. 

www.lookingatlyme.ca

In this episode, we talk with Dr. Nicoletta Faraone, a chemical ecologist and natural product chemist Dr. Faraone is an associate professor in the chemistry department at Acadia University where she teaches biochemistry and natural product chemistry. Her research focuses on how ticks detect odours from hosts and how they respond to repellants. She designs and develops novel essential oil based tick repellant products using nanotechnology. Since 2019, Dr. Faraone has supervised more than 50 students, technicians, research students, postdocs, and has received more than two million dollars CAD to support her research. Further reading:

Hello, and welcome to season six of Looking at Lyme! We’re thrilled to be kicking off this season talking with contributors of an important new research report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine, which studied current gaps in research and treatments for Lyme Infection-Associated Chronic Illnesses.

Dr. Kent Kester is board certified in both internal medicine and infectious diseases, is the chair of the publication committee, and is the vice chair of the National Academy of Medicine Forum on Microbial Threats. During his 24-year career in the U.S. Army, Kent led multiple re...

We’re excited to announce season six of the Looking at Lyme podcast! New conversations with scientists, advocates, experts, and others will bring you interesting and fresh perspectives from across Canada and around the world.

The more we learn, the better equipped we’ll be to create positive change. Building Lyme literacy that places the patient first is what our podcast is about in so many ways. To better understand where we’re at in diagnosing, and treating Lyme, and other tick-borne diseases and exploring possible solutions.

Wherever we go, we...

We hope you enjoyed season 5 of Looking at Lyme. We're very grateful to Catherine Kinsella for leading the many interesting conversations with scientists, advocates, experts, and more. Thank you, Catherine. We're excited to announce that season 6 of Looking at Lyme will be coming in the new year. We would also like to welcome Kim Cairns, who will be hosting the new season. We're really looking forward to getting season 6 started. 

Clinician-researcher Dr. Jack Lambert shares his experience working on emerging infectious diseases and his approach to treating Lyme disease. In this episode we speak with Dr. Jack Lambert, an infectious disease consultant at the Mater Misericordiae University Hospital in Dublin, Ireland, and professor at the University College Dublin School of Medicine. Originally from Scotland, Dr. Lambert completed his medical training in the US and has specialty certifications in adult and pediatric infectious diseases, general medicine, and sexual health. He’s founder of the Lyme Resource Centre and serves as an advisory board member to Invisible International. We spoke with Dr...

In this episode, we speak with Nova Scotia Lyme disease advocate Donna Lugar. She currently runs the Nova Scotia Lyme Support Group, the Nova Scotia Lyme Advocacy Group, and is working to develop the Nova Scotia Lyme and Tick-Borne Diseases Association. She also writes a Lyme disease blog, Shining the Lyme Light. We spoke with Donna about her experience as an advocate, including her work educating the public and working to improve Lyme disease policy in Nova Scotia and the rest of Canada.

Read more:

In this podcast, we speak with Dr. Nevena Zubcevik, a Harvard trained and board certified physical medicine and rehabilitation physician, and Chief Medical Officer of Invisible International. Dr. Zubcevik talks about some of the challenges that doctors and Lyme patients face within the medical system, including time constraints and the “syndromizing” of symptoms rather than addressing their cause. 

In this episode, we speak with Canadian naturopathic doctor, Dr. Marie Mathieson. Dr. Matheson is one of a growing number of Canadian clinicians who are helping Lyme patients find solutions and gaining valuable expertise in the process. She's co-founder of BioHeal Ottawa and creator and facilitator of the Lyme Bright Collective and Tick Bite Ready. She completed the ILADS Physicians Training Program with the late Dr. Charles Ray Jones. She also serves on the advisory board for the Forum of Integrative Medicine. Welcome to the podcast, Dr. Matheson.

In this podcast we speak with Sarah Quillen, executive director of the International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society, and ILADS sister organization, The International Lyme and Associated Disease Education Foundation. Sarah received her Masters in Public Affairs from University of North Carolina and is a Certified Fundraising Executive. With over 25 years of experience in the healthcare arena, including fundraising, public relations and program development, Sarah is building on the important work that ILADS has done over the years to support researchers, clinicians and their patients.

Sarah was raised in upstate New York, and grew up with ticks...

In this podcast we speak with Mario Levesque, Associate Professor of Canadian Politics and Public Policy in the Department of Politics and International Relations at Mount Allison University. His teaching and research focus on Canadian politics and public policy, with interests in Atlantic Canadian politics and Lyme disease policy in Canada. He recently co-authored a paper with colleague Marilyn Cox called Small Wins for Those with Lyme Disease in Canada, Patients in an Embodied Health Movement. www.lookingatlyme.ca

Mario talks about his entry into policy work, navigating policy between the private sector and government. This early...

In this episode of the Looking at Lyme podcast we welcome Dorothy and Rachel Leland, a dynamic mother and daughter duo who are changing the way we understand Lyme disease through their writing and their drive to convey important information to help Lyme patients and those around them. Rachel and Dorothy are co-authors of the book Finding Resilience: A Teen's Journey Through Lyme Disease. In the book, Rachel recounts her difficult journey through Lyme disease and co-infections. She is now a speech language pathology assistant. Dorothy is president of Lymedisease.org, an internationally renowned organization and platform for Lyme...

In this podcast, we're excited to speak with Dr. Monica Embers, associate professor in the division of immunology, director of vector borne disease research, and director of the education and training program at the Tulane Primate Research Center. Dr. Embers’ research is focused on the detection of persistent Lyme disease in human autopsy tissues, identifying treatments to eradicate Borrelia infection and immunodiagnosis of Borrelia burgdorferi infection and cure. Her team is also developing research models for Bartonella infection.

Janet Sperling is an entomologist, researcher and president of the Canadian Lyme Disease Foundation. During her early years studying entomology, she recalls that at that time, Lyme disease seemed very simple. When living in the US, Janet interacted with several people that had a much broader understanding of the disease. When her son contracted Lyme disease years later, it became evident how complicated the disease could be. She points out that not only is it very complicated, it can be very different from one person to the next. 

Welcome to Season 5 of the Looking at Lyme podcast! As we move forward with Season 5, we’d like to thank Sarah Cormode for the incredible work she’s done over the past several years, leading the way with the podcast and several other CanLyme educational initiatives. 

Sarah carried the podcast from our first episode of Season 1 to the end of Season 4. In Season 5 we welcome Sofia Osborne, podcast host and science journalist, along with Catherine Kinsella, who has been working behind the scenes on the podcast for the past four seasons. 

We have an exciting lineup...

In this podcast we catch up with Dr. Leona Gilbert to take an inside look at the Lyme bacteria, Borrelia, and find out how it interacts with our cells and how it can evade our immune system. Dr. Gilbert has a doctorate in biotechnology with an extensive background in bio-innovation and bio-business. We’ll also find out more about her research and the impact it is having on how we understand Lyme disease and associated infections. Dr. Gilbert is originally from Canada and is now based in Finland. Learn more at www.lookingatlyme.ca.

In this podcast, Sarah is joined by Dr.Diane Mueller, a naturopathic physician from Colorado who specializes in treating Lyme disease, mold illness and hormonal imbalances. She is also an educator and speaker, and author of the book It's Not In Your Mind: Solutions and Strategies for Lyme Disease, Mold Illness, and Chronic Infections. She joins us from Colorado.

Read our full show notes on www.lookingatlyme.ca: episode 57.

In this episode of Looking at Lyme, we explore how Lyme disease and other infections can appear dramatically different in children. Sometimes strep and other infections can even cause a sudden onset of neurological and behavioral changes in children. We welcome a world leader in this field to the podcast, Dr. Nancy O’Hara. Read the full show notes at www.lookingatlyme.ca.

Are your employees at risk of a tick encounter in their workplace? There are several ways to reduce the risk of tick bites and Lyme disease. Education is paramount and includes learning how to avoid ticks, what to do when bitten, and knowing the early signs of Lyme disease. Safe and timely tick removal can also reduce the risk of infection with Lyme disease and other tick-borne illnesses. CanLyme is offering a significant price reduction for bulk orders for our Tick Removal Kit. CANLYME’S TICK REMOVAL KIT has everything you need to properly remove and store a tick fo...

Thank you to all of our guests for sharing your time and expertise with us! We launched season four with several back-to-back episodes that were all about the brain and limbic system, including different approaches to address these issues. We then looked to the outdoors and explored prevention strategies, including ways to address tick encounters in school grounds and workplaces. We wrapped up season four with an important discussion (our 55th podcast!) with Dr. Brian Fallon about Lyme disease and mental health. AND…we launched our new podcast survey.

Read more about season four.

In this podcast, Sarah talks with Dr. Brian Fallon about the cognitive and mental health manifestations of Lyme disease, and about some of his past and future research collaborations. Dr. Fallon is a physician, researcher, author, and Director of the Lyme and Tick-borne Diseases (TBD) Research Center and the Lyme and TBD Clinical Trials Coordinating Center at the Columbia University Irving Medical Center in New York City. His work is focussed on the neuropsychiatric and persistent symptoms related to Lyme disease. 

We are approaching the end of Season 4, and Looking at Lyme is looking for your feedback in our new podcast survey! We have interviewed so many interesting guests over the past few years: it’s hard to believe that we are finishing up our 4th Season with our 55th podcast!

We want to hear from you. We want to know what content you are enjoying and ideas about who we might interview in future episodes. Please fill out the survey and let us know!

Take our survey: www.canlyme.com/survey/

A growing concern for industries and employees across the country is the risk of a tick encounter in the workplace. Both employers and employees can take important steps to raise awareness and reduce the risk of tick bites and tick-borne illnesses.

Sarah addresses safety in the workplace in these podcasts with Jordan Tesluk and Tim Tchida. Providing employees with a CanLyme Tick Removal Kit helps to ensure safe and timely tick removal, and testing ticks for pathogens can provide important information regarding potential exposure to those pathogens.

Show notes.

A growing concern for many outdoor workers across the country is the risk of a tick encounter in their workplace. Fortunately there are steps that employers and employees can take to reduce the risk of tick bites and tick-borne illnesses. Increased awareness is an important first step, and creating and implementing policies in the workplace helps keep employees safe and businesses running efficiently. In this podcast, Sarah is joined by Jordan Tesluk, a Forestry Safety Advocate for silviculture and consultant forestry in British Columbia.

Ticks can be found in our backyards, parks and school grounds, and for thousands of Canadians, they can also be found in their workplace. Foresters, linesmen, landscapers, and tree planters are among the many outdoor workers who are at risk of encountering ticks in their day-to-day work. Even people who work indoors such as veterinarians and pet groomers are potentially exposed to this occupational hazard. In this podcast, we connect again with Tim Tchida, a business operator in the reforestation industry. He has been an industry leader in raising awareness about tick borne illnesses.

Read the full...

When it comes to Lyme disease and other tick-borne illnesses, prevention is paramount! There are some basic steps you can take to protect yourself and your family, including applying insect repellent before going outdoors. Keeping a supply of insect spray near the door, in your pack and in your car makes that important step even easier.

Read the show notes.

In this podcast, Sarah is joined by two Canadian women who have joined forces to create, research, and sell tick repellants made without harsh chemicals. Lisa Learning is an Indigenous entrepreneur and founder of AtlanTick repellent products. She joins us from Blockhouse, Nova Scotia. Nancy Thompson is her business partner and research collaborator. She joins us from Squamish, British Columbia. 

...

What can employers do to protect staff who work in the outdoors? In this flashback podcast, Sarah explores some answers to that question with Tim Tchida, Owner and CEO of Summit Reforestation in Smithers BC. When Tim first heard about Lyme disease, he never imagined getting the disease himself. Tim recalls first learning he had Lyme disease after receiving a positive Canadian Lyme test (western blot) following mild symptoms of the disease. As time went on, he realized how fortunate he was to receive a diagnosis in light of so many others who have found it very challenging to...

This flashback episode is from season two! Sarah announces an Educator Resource for Lyme disease, and speaks with the lead resource developer, Lauren Hudson. Lauren is an educator and parent with a passion for science, life and for going into nature with her students and her family. She took a deep dive into the world of Lyme disease to help develop an educator resource to help other teachers both learn and teach about ticks and tick-borne illnesses. Lauren recalls her own journey of learning about tick-borne illnesses from members of the Lyme Education Awareness and Prevention (LEAP) team.

This interview with Dr. Ralph Hawkins is from season one! Dr. Hawkins has been treating Lyme patients in Canada for many years, gaining a wealth of knowledge about the disease. He recounts his introduction to the shortcomings of Lyme disease testing in Canada while treating a patient with a history of multiple previous tick bites, many common symptoms of Lyme disease, but a negative Canadian Lyme test. Dr. Hawkins had the patient’s blood tested at a University Lab in New York, revealing test band patterns consistent with Lyme disease. He referred this patient to Infectious Diseases colleagues for tr...

In this flash back episode, Sarah explores the latest research on astrocytes, gut bacteria and neuroinflammation with scientist and medical researcher Dr. Francisco Quintana. Dr. Quintana is a Professor of Neurology at Harvard Medical School and an Associate Scientist at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts. He describes some of the causes of neuroinflammation including infection, tumours and auto-immune disease. So what does all of that have to do with astrocytes?  

Astrocytes are a type of glial cell found in the central nervous system. These cells were first described over 100 years ago and were given the...

As Dr. Maloney says, “Research is our way out of this.” This is our kind of expert leading the way in the field. In today’s podcast, Sarah explores a comprehensive (and free!) online education program designed for healthcare professionals, which was founded by Lyme disease expert, Dr. Betty Maloney. Listen to this flashback interview with Dr. Maloney who became interested in Lyme disease when she realized that what she was seeing in her medical practice did not align with her medical training and scientific education. This led her to apply her clinical skills, listen carefully to her patients, and ev...

Dr. Rebecca Trout Fryxell is a medical and veterinary entomologist, researcher and associate professor at the University of Tennessee and joins us from Knoxville, Tennessee. In this podcast, Dr. Trout Fryxell talks about tick biology, tick populations in the southeastern US, and strategies to keep ticks away from people in our backyards and school yards. 

Dr. Trout Fryxell became interested in Veterinary entomology when she learned that even a very small organism, such as a caterpillar, could have a very big impact on something many times its size such as a horse. That sparked her in...

Dr. Neil Nathan is a physician and author, and has practiced medicine for over 50 years in the areas of family medicine and pain management. In part 2 of our podcast with Dr. Nathan, he talks about Bartonella, helpful strategies for treating tick-borne illnesses, resources for a deeper dive into the diagnosis and treatment mold, Lyme disease and multiple chemical sensitivities. We’ll also get a sneak peak into his new book that addresses causes and solutions for the growing problem of increased sensitivity.

Dr. Nathan explains that, although Bartonella is often overlooked, it is the nastiest and hardest ti...

Dr. Neil Nathan is a physician and author, and is a Founding Diplomate of the American Board of Integrative Holistic Medicine, and the International Society for Environmentally Acquired Illness (ISEAI). He has practiced medicine for over 50 years including 30 years treating patients with chronic complex illnesses, and 20 years treating patients with Lyme disease. He has written several several books about chronic illness, mold toxicity and other environmental illnesses, Lyme and energetic diagnosis. He joins us from Northern California to explore the foundations of mold toxicity, Lyme disease and other infections, and the impact they have on our cells and our...

In this episode from Season 3, Sarah explores how the brain functions with Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor. Dr. Jill was working as a neuroanatomist, teaching and conducting research at the Harvard School of Medicine when she experienced a severe hemorrhagic stroke. After recovering from that stroke, Dr. Jill wrote about her experience and has travelled the world giving inspirational talks, including one of the first TED talks to go viral! She describes that fascinating experience in her first book “My Stroke of Insight” and joins us today to talk about what she refers to as “Whole Brain Living”, which is also the...

Posttraumatic growth is not only the topic of this podcast from Season 2, it is also the process that birthed the Looking at Lyme podcast. Sarah explores posttraumatic growth with Dr. Richard Tedeschi, Professor Emeritus of Psychology at the University of North Carolina, faculty member of the Posttraumatic Research Group and distinguished chair of the Boulder Crest Institute for Posttraumatic Growth.

Dr. Tedeschi and his colleague, Dr. Lawrence Calhoun, have been working in this area since the 1980s and have developed the academic theory of posttraumatic growth. As psychologists, the pair were interested in finding out what makes...

Dr. Cornish is an integrative functional physician working at the Amen Clinics. She was introduced to chronic Lyme disease when working with a patient who was not cured by a short course of antibiotics. The patient, a landscaper who presented with a bullseye rash followed by ongoing Lyme symptoms, had been labeled as a “drug seeking” patient. This caused Dr. Cornish to ask the question, “Who in the world drug-seeks antibiotics?” After joining a medical practice in a Lyme endemic area, Dr. Cornish learned about the International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society (ILADS), and eventually became a Board member.

Duration: 00:34:42

Today we're flashing back to an interview on outdoor education. In this podcast, Sarah reaches Mike Horembala in the Foothills of Alberta. Mike, known to his students as “Mr. H’, is a Vice Principal and teacher with a passion for the outdoors. He developed a program within the Foothills School District called “Go Wild,” where students can learn about the outdoors while earning credits. Students participate in day trips and multi-day expeditions...hiking, canoeing, kayaking, backcountry skiing and snowshoeing amongst many other outdoor activities. They’ve even gone on an eco-tourism adventure to Belize! We’d have to agree with Mike wh...

Interest in meditation has grown by leaps and bounds in recent years and is now practiced by millions of people worldwide. In this podcast, we find out how meditation can help people throughout their health challenges and beyond. Nicholas Arsenault is an outdoor educator who discovered the healing power of meditation through his own journey with Lyme disease, and is now drawing on what he has learned to help others.

Nicholas turned to meditation in order to address the mental health component of Lyme disease. He wanted to be able to direct his own...

When we sense danger, our limbic system causes us to react in order to stay safe. This system can become impaired, causing a reaction even when we are no longer in danger. In this podcast, Annie Hopper explains limbic system impairment and shows us that the limbic system can be retrained, moving us into a state of rest and repair.

Annie Hopper is a limbic system rehabilitation specialist and founder of the Dynamic Neural Retraining System (DNRS). She is also author of the book Wired for Healing: Remapping the Brain to Recover from Chronic and Mysterious...

Summer camps are in full swing and fall education programs are on their way! CanLyme’s Educator’s Resource is the perfect companion for all educators, including parents, who want to learn how to prevent Lyme disease and keep children (and themselves!) safe in the outdoors.

The Educator’s Resource is free to download on the Looking at Lyme website, and is full of activities and projects to help kids learn about ticks, and how to prevent and recognize Lyme disease. It’s all about learning, having fun and staying safe in the outdoors!

Also che...

Fasten your seatbelts! In this podcast, Dr. Patrick Porter takes us on a journey into our brains, and shares with us his cutting edge technology aimed at improving our lives through brainwave technology. Dr. Porter is a researcher, educator, author and creator of technologies that use light, sound and other strategies to improve brain function and performance. He has written several books including Awaken the Genius: Mind Technology for the 21st Century.

Our fourth season of the Looking at Lyme podcast is on its way! We’re gearing up to start exploring some new avenues and opportunities for learning and healing. When it comes to healing, science is showing us that our minds and bodies operate as one system and need to be studied and treated that way. Our physical and mental health are directly impacted by what is going on in our brain and nervous system. Neuroscience is proving that the opposite is also true, and this is good news indeed! Techniques that improve the function of our brain and ne...

That’s a wrap for season three of our podcast!

As we prepare for some time off from production, we’ve started accepting applications for our education funding. 

If you’re a healthcare practitioner that is looking to advance your education and have a better understanding of Lyme disease diagnosis and treatment, please take a look at our education granting process.

If you know a healthcare practitioner that might benefit from an upgrade, please share our education funding opportunities with them. 

Tha...

CanLyme is currently offering education grants for Canadian healthcare providers caring for patients with vector-borne illnesses. ILADS educational opportunities enable clinicians to better understand the fundamentals of treating Lyme and associated diseases and many of the more complex issues associated with these diseases. If you are a healthcare provider or know of one who would like to learn more about vector-borne illnesses, grant application and information can be found at lookingatlyme.ca.

Read more!

Sarah explores the latest advances in Lyme disease treatment with Dr. Kim Lewis, a researcher, author, University Distinguished Professor and director of Antimicrobial Discovery Center at Northeastern University in Boston. He specializes in molecular science and is currently researching persister cells that lead to tolerance to antibiotics, uncultured bacteria of the environment and the microbiome and the search for new drugs. We’ll find out what role nature plays in all of this important work.

Dr. Lewis became interested in studying Borrelia burgdorferi, the pathogen responsible for Lyme disease, when he realized that some people who had be...

In today’s podcast, Sarah speaks with Victoria Sanderson about her exciting new research into Lyme disease testing at the University of Guelph. Sanderson is a current medical student and previously completed her Master’s degree at the University of Guelph and became interested in Lyme disease after seeing how much the disease impacted her mother’s life and the lives of so many others. Having an acute interest in biology, she started to study Lyme disease and quickly became fascinated with its complex microbiology and pathology. She connected with the G. Magnotta Lab at the University of Guelph where...

In today’s podcast, Sarah speaks with Maddie Gravelle about her research into the consequences of illness uncertainty for Lyme disease patients. Maddie is a student and researcher at Queen’s University in Kingston. She shifted her research focus from cancer to Lyme disease after witnessing the challenges her mother faced in dealing with both of these diseases. Her mother noticed that some aspects of Lyme disease were more challenging when compared to similar aspects of dealing with cancer. When Maddie discovered that there was very little research regarding the psychological effects of Lyme disease, she decided to make that...

In today’s podcast Sarah explores Lyme carditis with Dr. Adrian Baranchuk, a cardiologist from Kingston, Ontario. Lyme carditis is inflammation of the heart and can cause lightheadedness, palpitations, fainting, chest pain and shortness of breath. In severe cases, it can be fatal. Dr. Baranchuk tells Sarah he has now seen 16 patients with Lyme carditis. He met his first patient when a physician in a nearby hospital requested transfer of a young 14 year old patient with something called AV block, a disruption of the electrical pathway that stimulates the heart to contract. 

The young pat...

In this episode of Looking at Lyme, we go to Augsburg, Germany to learn about diagnostic testing with Dr. Armin Schwarzbach, MD, PhD. 

Dr. Schwarzbach is a specialist in laboratory medicine and infectious diseases, having worked in the field for over 20 years. He recalls one of his patients who was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis and tested positive for a test that was then called a lymphocyte transformation test for Borrelia burgdorferi even though she subsequently tested negative for antibodies to the bacteria. The patient had not responded to previous treatment for her MS (with steroids) but recovered a...

Join Sarah in today’s podcast as she explores everything ILADS (International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society) with Dr. Amy Offutt. Dr. Offutt is the medical director and co-owner of Heart & Soul Integrative Medicine in Marble Falls, Texas, and is also an ILADS board member. 

Dr. Offutt made the shift into integrative medicine in order to better understand and care for patients that were experiencing chronic inflammation, often caused by underlying infections. This path led her to ILADS, where she found an abundance of educational resources along with experienced practitioners to help further her kno...

Welcome back to the Looking at Lyme Podcast... here we are in Season 3! In this episode, Sarah explores how the brain functions with Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor. Dr. Jill was working as a neuroanatomist, teaching and conducting research at the Harvard School of Medicine when she experienced a severe hemorrhagic stroke. After recovering from that stroke, Dr. Jill wrote about her experience and has travelled the world giving inspirational talks, including one of the first TED talks to go viral! She describes that fascinating experience in her first book “My Stroke of Insight” and joins us today to talk abou...

On season three of Looking at Lyme we'll meet a cardiologist who has developed a new protocol for diagnosing and treating Lyme, we're going all the way to Germany to learn about blood testing for Lyme disease, and don't miss out on our interview with a world renown brain scientist who had a massive stroke then studied her recovery. Welcome back!

Thank you so much everyone for joining us for season two. We had the privilege of speaking so many amazing people this season, including Dr. Vet Lloyd, Dr. Betty Maloney, and Dr. Theoharides, and with outdoor educators like Mike Horembala and Lauren Hudson.

If you haven't checked it out already, please check out our Educators' Resource. Our Second Edition is finished and available for download.

We love hearing from our listeners. Please send us your ideas and questions! 

We’re on a break but we are getting ready for season three and we wan...

This week Sarah is joined by Dr. Shelley Ball, an evolutionary ecologist, fellow of the Royal Canadian Geographical Society, and Founder and President of Biosphere Environmental Education, a social enterprise focused on connecting people with nature. She was also a founding member of the inaugural Homeward Bound Women In Science Leadership Expedition to Antarctica. In this episode, Sarah and Dr. Ball discuss her newly-published book: Lyme Disease, Ticks and You: A Guide To Navigating Tick Bites, Lyme Disease And Other Tick-borne Infections.

Dr. Ball became involved with Lyme disease as a person suffering from Lyme and other...

We are excited to give away ten free tick removal kits, courtesy of CanLyme! Pack this in your backpack or in your first aid kit and take it on adventures with you. All you need to do is tag us in a photo on Instagram having fun and saying safe in the outdoors. Our Instagram handle is @canlyme_canada. #StaySafeInTheOutdoors

Episode show notes.

This week Sarah is joined by Gina Valles, a fitness coach with a degree in exercise science who founded Gina’s Total Fitness in Connecticut. In 2018, Gina was diagnosed with Lyme disease, which changed her life and outlook on fitness. Through her Instagram account, which has almost 180,000 followers, Gina shares her journey, workouts, and inspiration.

Gina explains that she lived with undiagnosed Lyme disease for a year in 2017 before being diagnosed. She knew nothing about the disease then, but has educated herself and learned how to adjust her exercise routine and manage on a day-to-day basis. Gina wa...

We have a book giveaway! In episode 31 we interviewed Dr. Kenneth Bock about his integrative approach to medicine. You can enter to win Dr. Bock’s recent book, Brain Inflamed, by following us on Twitter: @Lookingatlyme_

Many patients with Lyme disease and co-infections such as Bartonella experience the effects of inflammation in the brain and central nervous system. One of the chapters of Dr. Bock’s latest book, Brain Inflamed, is dedicated to the effect of Lyme disease and co-infections in the brain. He explains that infections, stress, toxicants and brain trauma can all caus...

In this episode, Sarah speaks with Rossana Magnotta, who established the G. Magnotta Foundation in honour of her late husband, Gabe, who passed away after a courageous battle with Lyme disease. The G. Magnotta Foundation leads scientific research into Lyme disease at the University of Guelph in Ontario.

Rossana tells Sarah that Gabe was an avid outdoorsman who spent much of his life camping, hunting, and fishing. When he developed symptoms including balance issues, eye problems, and memory loss, he was tested for everything from Alzheimer’s to ALS, before finally being tested for Lyme disease. However, th...

CanLyme is excited to kick off May which is Lyme Awareness Month! In this episode, we introduce a Canadian tick map designed by Justin Wood. Justin is the CEO and founder of Geneticks laboratory in Ontario, where he tests ticks from across Canada for many tick-borne pathogens.

For the past several years, Justin has been planning and developing a platform to share his tick data from across Canada. By removing identifying information and applying a degree of randomization to his data, he is able to add information to the map including tick species, lifestage, pathogens detected, location...

In this episode, Sarah is joined by Dr. Joseph Jemsek, an infectious disease physician who runs the Jemsek Specialty Clinic in Washington, DC. Dr. Jemsek has been on the leading edge of both the HIV and Lyme disease epidemics. He became intrigued by reports of a small cluster of patients with outbreaks of Kaposi Sarcoma and Pneumocystis pneumonia in New York and San Francisco. He intuitively felt that this was an indication of something much bigger.

He recalls diagnosing the first HIV patient in North Carolina in 1983, before the disease was even called HIV. In the years...

In today’s podcast, Sarah is joined by Jim Wilson, founder and President of CanLyme — the Canadian Lyme Disease Foundation. After contracting Lyme disease 30 years ago in Nova Scotia, Canada, Jim dedicated his time and energy to improving the lives of Lyme patients and their families, helping to bring a balanced perspective of Lyme disease to the forefront. Jim began to question the understanding of Lyme disease when his daughter and several others were diagnosed with Lyme disease in British Columbia, despite the perception that Lyme disease was only prevalent in the eastern United States. He notes that even now...

Sarah explores an integrative approach to medicine with Dr. Kenneth Bock from the Hudson Valley, in New York. Dr. Bock’s natural curiosity, investigative approach, along with his appreciation for complex medical cases set the foundation for his integrative practice. His first Lyme patient in 1985 initially came in with a swollen toe that didn’t seem to have a medical cause. After a thorough investigation which included researching Lyme disease, he discovered that the patient had travelled to Block Island, an area known to be endemic for Lyme. The patient was subsequently diagnosed with Lyme disease and was successfully trea...

Posttraumatic growth is not only the topic of today’s podcast, it is also the process that birthed the Looking at Lyme podcast. Sarah explores posttraumatic growth with Dr. Richard Tedeschi, Professor Emeritus of Psychology at the University of North Carolina, faculty member of the Posttraumatic Research Group and distinguished chair of the Boulder Crest Institute for Posttraumatic Growth. 

Dr. Tedeschi and his colleague, Dr. Lawrence Calhoun, have been working in this area since the 1980s and have developed the academic theory of posttraumatic growth. As psychologists, the pair were interested in finding out what makes people wis...

Sarah discusses the use of neural therapy for pain management with Dr. Kumar Biswas, a Canadian naturopathic doctor on Vancouver Island. Developed in the early 1900’s in Germany, neural therapy is now practiced across Europe and North America. Dr. Biswas explains that biological medicine, which is practiced throughout Europe, integrates alternative medicine and modern medicine. While modern medicine is based on diagnosis, biological medicine is based on functional physiology, and aims to understand and correct imbalances in the body. He further explains that functional medicine has developed in the US in recent years as a marriage of the art an...

In today’s podcast, Sarah explores Lyme disease from a nursing perspective with Nurse Practitioner Dr. Ginger Savely. Dr. Savely has specialized in the treatment of patients with tick-borne illnesses for the past two decades, and has authored and co-authored many articles in nursing and medical journals. Now living in Washington, DC, she first started researching Lyme while living in Texas, when her 16 year old daughter became very ill with the disease. Dr. Savely later became quite ill with the disease, eventually leading her to make it the focus of her own practice. She notes that many healthcare providers re...

Today we explore one of the many ways the CanLyme Educators’ Resource can be put into action. In this podcast, Sarah reaches Mike Horembala in the Foothills of Alberta. Mike, known to his students as “Mr. H’, is a Vice Principal and teacher with a passion for the outdoors. He developed a program within the Foothills School District called “Go Wild,” where students can learn about the outdoors while earning credits. Students participate in day trips and multi-day expeditions... hiking, canoeing, kayaking, backcountry skiing and snowshoeing amongst many other outdoor activities.

Mike describes outdoor education programs as an antidot...

We turn our gaze northward to Thunder Bay, Ontario to chat with entomologist Dr. Ken Deacon. While working on a contract with the Thunder Bay District Health Unit, he saw the first wood tick in the Thunder Bay area in 2003. He then saw the first black-legged tick in 2005 and has continued to follow the progression of their habitat expansion.

He points out that ticks can now be found in northern areas where they never existed in the past, and sees this as a clear indicator of climate change. Not only are the ticks living further north, they...

In the words of Optometrist Dr. Cameron McCrodan, “you don’t see with your eyes, you see with your brain.” What is the relationship between the eyes, the brain and some symptoms of Lyme disease? Dr. McCrodan explains that our brains are not only tasked with receiving visual stimuli, they also influence how the information is interpreted and how our eyes function. Although these topics were touched upon during his optometry education, his engineering mindset drew him to further explore this relationship between the eyes and the brain. As his knowledge expanded, he found that some of the symptoms his ow...

Sarah explores the latest research on astrocytes, gut bacteria and neuroinflammation with scientist and medical researcher Dr. Francisco Quintana. Dr. Quintana is a Professor of Neurology at Harvard Medical School and an Associate Scientist at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts. He describes some of the causes of neuroinflammation including infection, tumours and auto-immune disease. So what does all of that have to do with astrocytes? 

Astrocytes are a type of glial cell found in the central nervous system. These cells were first described over 100 years ago and were given their celestial name because they are...

Join us for a candid conversation with Ironman athlete, Angela Naeth. Angela contracted Lyme disease in 2018, the same year she completed the Ironman race in Kona, Hawaii. Born in Prince George BC, and now living in Massachusetts, Angela has had to continually adapt and evolve in order to optimize both her own health and her performance as an athlete. She describes the learning curve that many Lyme patients are faced with in trying to navigate this complicated disease. After seeing many doctors and finally receiving a Lyme diagnosis, she had to research various treatments and be her own advocate...

Sarah is excited to announce a new Educator Resource for Lyme disease, and speak with the lead resource developer, Lauren Hudson. Lauren is an educator and parent with a passion for science, life and for going into nature with her students and her family. She took a deep dive into the world of Lyme disease to help develop an educator resource to help other teachers both learn and teach about ticks and tick-borne illnesses. Lauren recalls her own journey of learning about tick-borne illnesses from members of the Lyme Education Awareness and Prevention (LEAP) team, through her own research...

What can employers do to protect staff who work in the outdoors? In today’s podcast, Sarah explores some answers to that question with Tim Tchida, Owner and CEO of Summit Reforestation in Smithers BC. When Tim first heard about Lyme disease, he never imagined getting the disease himself. Tim recalls first learning he had Lyme disease after receiving a positive Canadian Lyme test (western blot) following mild symptoms of the disease. As time went on, he realized how fortunate he was to receive a diagnosis in light of so many others who have found it very challenging to re...

This week, we are very excited to speak with one of Canada’s foremost tick and Lyme disease researchers, Dr. Vett Lloyd, who heads up a dynamic research team at Mount Allison University in Sackvillle, New Brunswick. Her curiosity, passion for community and collaboration and sense of humour have endeared her to her colleagues and her community.

Dr. Lloyd recalls her initiation into the world of Lyme disease when she removed a black legged tick from her shoulder after doing some gardening. She contacted her local public health department and was informed that there were no ticks in...

As Dr. Maloney says, “Research is our way out of this.” This is our kind of expert leading the way in the field. In today’s podcast, Sarah explores a comprehensive (and free!) online education program designed for healthcare professionals, which was founded by Lyme disease expert, Dr. Betty Maloney. 

Dr. Maloney became interested in Lyme disease when she realized that what she was seeing in her medical practice did not align with her medical training and scientific education. This led her to apply her clinical skills, listen carefully to her patients, and eventually help ed...

Welcome back to Season 2 of the Looking at Lyme podcast. Buckle your seatbelts, because we are going on a science adventure with Dr. Theoharis Theoharides, Professor of Immunology at Tufts University School of Medicine in Boston. Dr. Theoharides has been on the leading edge of mast cell research and recounts the fascinating history and physiology of mast cells. Mast cells have existed for over a hundred million years in many different animals and organisms and are found in all body tissues, including the brain. Mast cells are found in worms, fish, lizards; however, these species do not get allergic...

Well that was fun! And did we ever learn a lot from season one. We feel very fortunate to have interviewed so many incredible doctors, scientists, journalists, and educators. It was a really interesting year to deepen our understanding about tick-borne illnesses. We're at the end of season one, and we'll be back with season two in 2021. 

We've just released the first draft of a teacher resource. Please share it with any educators or guides that you might know. 

Thank you for your support. Stay safe in the outdoors!

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In today’s podcast, Sarah talks about ticks, Lyme disease and climate change with investigative reporter Mary Beth Pfeiffer. She lives in New York State, an area of the US which is highly endemic for Lyme disease, and has been investigating this disease for the past 8 years. Her search for answers revealed that there was not only a denial from the US CDC and Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) regarding what patients were telling them about Lyme disease but also a disdain for this patient population. Mary Beth describes how her own book, Lyme: the First Epidemic of Cl...

In today’s podcast, Sarah examines the importance of adequate training in wilderness first aid skills. She speaks with expert Michael Crawford, an instructor at Slipstream Wilderness First Aid in Victoria, BC. Michael points out some of the differences between regular first aid and wilderness first aid. Anyone performing first aid on a patient in a wilderness setting will likely need to care for them for a longer period of time than in a city situation. It is also important to know and differentiate between which health issues need to be addressed immediately and those that can wait.

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In this podcast, Sarah speaks with Steve Smith, an expert in outdoor risk management. Steve has worked for many years teaching, leading, planning, and consulting about ways to manage risk in the outdoors. Steve recently presented at the 2020 NOLS Wilderness Risk Management Conference.

Steve begins by explaining the difference between safety and risk management, and why this distinction is necessary when it comes to taking people into the wilderness. Every day we take risks and some degree of risk is not only unavoidable, it’s a necessary part of being human. Sarah and Steve discuss many of th...

In this episode Sarah talks with Canadian researcher Dr.Leona Gilbert, originally from Thunder Bay, and currently living in Finland. Dr. Gilbert tells us about an interaction with a patient that led her to focus on testing for Lyme disease. She points to research showing that patients who suffer from long term effects of Lyme disease often test positive for multiple microbes. 

Tickplex is a diagnostic kit that tests for six different forms of borrelia, ten other forms of microbes as well as antibodies which correlate to three different disease stages - all in one test! Dr. G...

In this episode Sarah talks research, Canadian research that is, with Dr. Melanie Wills. She is the Director of the G. Magnotta Lab at the University of Guelph, conducting research and studying the diagnosis, prognosis and treatment of Lyme disease. She became interested in researching Lyme disease while working on her PhD, when her own health history intersected with her research interests. When a doctor suggested she may have symptoms of Lyme disease, Dr. Wills agreed that her symptoms were similar, but she had been tested, and Lyme disease had been ruled out. At the doctor’s recommendation, she ex...

In this episode, Sarah hears from Alexis Chesney, a naturopathic physician in Vermont who specializes in Lyme disease and other tick-borne illnesses. She is also author of the book “Preventing Lyme and Other Tick-Borne Diseases”. Alexis became interested in Lyme disease when a previously healthy friend and colleague developed many mysterious symptoms which turned out to be caused by Lyme disease.

Dr. Chesney describes some of the treatments she has found effective over the years including antibiotics and herbal medicines. She also explains a Herxheimer reaction, a worsening of symptoms, which is caused by toxins that are rele...

In this week’s podcast, Sarah speaks with Dr. Thomas Moorcroft, a physician from Connecticut who specializes in Lyme disease and Lyme-related infections. He explains what co-infections are and differentiates between infections that are contracted from a tick bite, and concurrent infections that people with Lyme disease may experience. During the 2020 International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society (ILADS) conference, he presented several cases of known tick bites in which individuals tested positive for 3-5 different pathogens. He explains the implications of having more than one infection on disease expression and test accuracy. 

Dr. Moorcroft talks about Bartonella, a c...

In this episode Sarah talks about the effects of Lyme disease on the brain with Dr. Shea, a senior staff psychologist, professor and President of Neuropsychological Evaluation and Treatment Services in New York City and Boston. Dr. Shea starts off by explaining many of the effects that Lyme disease has on the brain including the ability to process information, changes in memory, multitasking and high level reasoning. He also explains the importance of understanding the effects on the brain and mental health in terms of what is going on physically to cause these changes. He uses neuropsychological evaluation to...

In this episode, Sarah speaks with another champion for Canadians living with Lyme, Green MP Elizabeth May. She describes how she first learned about the severity of Lyme disease when speaking to a woman from Pictou, Nova Scotia who required a wheelchair for mobility. After moving to British Columbia, Elizabeth met others who were experiencing life-altering illness due to the tick-borne diseases. She was frustrated to learn that these patients were dismissed and told there was no Lyme disease where they lived. Elizabeth was determined to develop a Private Member’s Bill to address Lyme disease in Canada after me...

In today’s episode, Sarah speaks with veterinarian Dr. Joe Bloom to find out more about Lyme disease and other tick-borne illnesses, and how they could affect our pets. Dr. Bloom works in an endemic area of the United States and sees many dogs with Lyme disease in his practice, explaining signs and symptoms that dogs might experience. He also describes the different kinds of tests he uses to diagnose Lyme and other tick-borne diseases in dogs. 

Did you know that some dogs can have Lyme disease but not show symptoms? Dr. Bloom explains how further testing can...

In this episode of Looking at Lyme, Sarah speaks with Internal Medicine Specialist and Canadian Lyme expert, Dr. Ralph Hawkins. Dr. Hawkins has been treating Lyme patients in Canada for many years, gaining a wealth of knowledge about the disease. He recounts his introduction to the shortcomings of Lyme disease testing in Canada while treating a patient with a history of multiple previous tick bites, many common symptoms of Lyme disease, but a negative Canadian Lyme test. Dr. Hawkins had the patient’s blood tested at a University Lab in New York, revealing test band patterns consistent with Lyme di...

In this episode, Sarah interviews an Infectious Disease Physician who has treated Lyme patients in the US state where Lyme disease was first identified - Connecticut. Dr. Sam Donta has gained a wealth of knowledge and expertise treating Lyme patients for almost 40 years. As a result of his expertise, he was appointed as one of 14 members of the Tick-Borne Disease Working Group, established by the US Congress in 2016. 

Dr. Sam Donta emphasizes the importance of early treatment for Lyme disease, noting that as time passes, the disease becomes much more difficult to treat. He discusses some of t...

In today’s podcast, we start to explore Lyme disease in children. Sarah welcomes her father, Dr. Ted Cormode, to the podcast. He understands Lyme disease both as a pediatrician and as a parent supporting and advocating for his child. Dr. Cormode talks about his experience as a parent when Sarah first became ill. In medical school, he did not learn about Lyme disease so he spent the next years digging deeper into medical research.

Dr. Cormode walks us through some of the unique challenges of understanding Lyme disease in children. He describes an interesting case study of...

In this episode, Sarah speaks with Dr. Bruce Hoffman, a Functional Medicine physician from Calgary. Dr. Hoffman describes Functional Medicine and explains how numerous factors influence a patient’s health. He highlights the importance of taking an in-depth patient history to understand and document symptoms. This helps determine whether a patient might have other underlying health concerns that may need to be addressed. 

Dr. Hoffman explains that there are several approaches to treating Lyme disease. He gives us insight into why there is such a variety of symptoms amongst patients with Lyme disease and describes how symptoms oft...

In this episode, Sarah speaks with Canadian entomologist Janet Sperling, who specializes in tick microbiomes. Sarah sets the stage with a quick history of Lyme disease, including how it got its name and how long it’s been around. We’ll find out why it’s important to know the different kinds of ticks found in Canada and what habitats they need to survive. 

Janet Sperling explains how ticks are able to stay attached for days and how they transmit pathogens to us. Did you know ticks can travel thousands of miles on birds? That’s one of the re...

In this episode, Justin Wood takes us deep into the world of ticks. We will find out what makes ticks tick, including their feeding patterns and life stages. We learn about the different kinds of ticks found in Canada, as well as valuable information about how to identify ticks and know which ones can transmit pathogens to humans. 

Did you know that many people don’t feel anything when a tick bites? Justin fills us in about how ticks are able to attach and feed undetected, even after several days! We learn about some of the pathogens tha...

In this episode, we meet host Sarah Cormode and explore Lyme disease through the perspective of a Canadian family physician during her interview with Dr. Liz Zubek.  

Sarah draws upon her expertise in education, research and outdoor adventure to explore all things Lyme. She reflects back on her own experience with Lyme disease after being bitten by a tick in her backyard in 2012, then ventures out to speak with a wide variety of experts to better understand this disease. Guided by her own experience with Lyme disease, Sarah reveals a distinctly Canadian perspective of Lyme disease.