‘I’ve always loved travelling... I never imagined it would be for medical treatment’

By Rebekah O'Reilly

Athlone woman Shirley Moran Breslin was first diagnosed with Lyme Disease after being bitten by a mosquito while on holidays in Spain in 2010.

The Garnafailagh native has since become a strong advocate for improvements to be made in diagnosing and treating Lyme Disease in Ireland.

“As a rule people associate Lyme Disease with ticks, but any blood-sucking insect can carry the bacteria and ultimately infect its host,” she explained.

“Not knowing what it was at the time, I went to a chemist and then a GP. Neither recognised the rash or the significance of its pattern and told me it was a normal skin reaction to a bite.

“This 'normal reaction' I had was a textbook 'bullseye' rash which is associated with Lyme Disease. Chances are, if I received even one month of antibiotics then, I would not have the problems I have today. That can be hard to take at times, seeing that my world has been turned upside down and not in a good way.”

Since her diagnosis, she had travelled to doctors in Ireland, Czech Republic and Cyprus for treatment, but still struggles everyday with the chronic pain of the disease.

"I’ve always loved travelling abroad I just never imagined it would be going along the by roads of other countries to get access to medical treatment over the last few years," Shirley said.

"I contracted a disease from a tiny insect who happened to stop me in my tracks. This little creature has sent me to many doctors across the world."

Shirley underwent treatment in Cyprus in 2018 for five weeks, and returned for her final round of intensive treatment in 2019 for four weeks, an experience which she describes as "quite grueling".

"The treatments in Cyprus were very intensive, as they were in the Czech Republic. The days were quite long and could often be quite gruelling. The patients in this clinic travelled from many other far-off countries such as USA, Australia, Holland, UK, Ireland and even Taiwan."

Her morning began with bright and early, with a bucket of melted ice poured overhead which she said would "awaken anyone's soul".

What followed was a packed schedule of physiotherapy, functional medicine, infrared saunas, ozone therapies (not dissimilar to a form of dialysis), intravenous nutrients/vitamins, colonics, enemas, gut treatments, detoxing, pain therapy, scans, and magnetic therapies.

Shirley learned about the importance of eating the correct foods, and the functions of the body.

"The treatment is recognised as a very slow process and the protocols are strict so it doesn't always suit everyone. I’ve also been sick for a long time so a lot of damage has been done over the years. You have to give your body time to heal.

"In Cyprus they taught me that in order to repair the body has to rest. Even though I had a lot of work to do at home, I still had to give time for change and allow time to heal. Their motto was rest, rest, rest.

The clinic gave me a plan going home, and I kept in regular contact with them as I had before. I had to work on my diet over the coming months. Exercise was still a distant wish."

She noted that the kindness of the people in Cyprus was a huge help in her journey to recovery.

"The Cypriot people are very like the Irish, they are never short of a reassuring wave and a smile. On both occasions I rented a little cottage in a rural village from a local lady called Carol and her lovely daughter Charlotte. They would check on me everyday to make sure I was doing ok.

"My husband Enda would keep himself busy by helping Carol out with some odd jobs around her house and would walk the dogs.

Even the generosity of a gentleman called Nicos, who rented me a car for the trips, made sure I wasn’t inconvenienced in any way shape or form.

He even called to visit me when as he knew I wasn’t well. All these small acts of kindness meant so much and they were shown to me at times of need."

Shirley had plans to return to Cyprus for another round of treatment in 2020, but unfortunately these plans were brought to a halt when the world stopped for the Covid-19 pandemic.

"Just like the Whitesnake song ‘Here I go again’... it was like a fever dream. I had three years done in Czech, I was making progress, and the clinic closed. I was making progress in Cyprus, and then a global pandemic hits. What are the chances!"

Shirley admitted that the last few years since the pandemic have been "extremely hard", but she is slowly regaining "some quality of life".

"Life is nothing like I’d imagined it to be. I still have lots of ongoing issues such as chronic fatigue and musculoskeletal problems, but I see it as par for the course with the condition. Chronic pain is part of ever day life."

In March of this year, Shirley's GP referred her to a programme called the Exwell Programme, a medically supervised, community-based exercise rehabilitation initiative designed for people living with chronic illnesses and older adults.

"The people in it are great. I go to one class a week, and for me that’s a great achievement. The people there are so supportive and helpful," she said.

Shirley has also sought out holistic therapies, keeps herself up to date with the latest treatments, and keeps in contact with other patients about their progress.

Further afield, Shirely noted that federal funding in the USA has "increased dramatically" for Lyme Disease and other tick-borne illnesses.

"This can only be a step in the right direction due to the huge spread of infections both across the country and globally. It’s one of the fastest growing diseases in the world," she said.

When it comes to Lyme Disease in Ireland, Shirley said while awareness has increased thanks to individuals who have lived experience of the disease, health services are still lagging behind.

"I am hopeful this will change because people are more aware, people are talking about it more, and it doesn’t seem to be a taboo subject anymore.

"Unfortunately for people like myself with Chronic Lyme Disease nothing has changed. We are still asking for our health services to be improved for patient diagnosis, for accurate testing and for adequate treatment for an appropriate amount of time.

"As another patient advocate Ann Maher said to me many years ago, only for patients helping patients, each individual Lyme Disease sufferer would be lost."

She noted local authorities are becoming more aware, with signage erected in local parks and public spaces warning of the risk of insect bites.

She credited Athlone Moate Municipal District for lighting up the Mary O’Rourke Bridge green in support of Light Up for Lyme Worldwide Campaign.

"They have been very supportive again this year. 'Light Up for Lyme' is a global campaign where monuments and civic amenities are lit up in green all over the world in May for Lyme Disease Awareness month. I’ve no doubt Athlone Moate Municipal District will do it again in 2027.

They have always been very supportive to the local Lyme Disease community and we are appreciative of that."