Blu: I've got a script for (I think) eight blood tests, Lyme is among them. I've never been tested for it but the doctor I'm dealing with is a sharp cookie. I had the vaccine but who the hell knows.
And I'm with you. I "don't believe" in autoimmune disease, not as a diagnosis. I consider it a syndrome of symptom complexes that manifest similarly but anything that "conventional" medicine says "has no known cause" has to be caused by crap that Western medicine doesn't recognize (i.e., toxins, low grade intolerance, environmental issues, etc.)
Chris: You're a Western trained physician with a conventional mindset. Your opinions are useless to me *shrug* Unfortunate. As I understand it, you're a D.O. Used to be good (read, useful) guys. I've lost all trust in conventional medicine, viewing the industry (with the exception of trauma treatment) as a shill for the Pharmaceutical Industry (i.e., treat the symptoms, screw fixing -- never mind finding -- the causes).
Unless a doctor is willing to say to me "Environmental toxins are a genuine health concern, at least for some individuals" I really have no time to waste with their opinions. The doctor I'm seeing now is a D.O. who has been practicing 23 years and is double board certified (family AND sports medicine) will say those things to me, as well as discussing nutritional, lifestyle and alternative treatment modalities.