Lee Marion Horowitz

Hello, everyone. It's my pleasure to start us off here. I’m a patient of Dr. Horowitz. I had a tough, health history in childhood and my young adult years. I had mono when I was 19 and Epstein-Barr virus in my 20s and 30s. and I had a whole host of symptoms migraines and digestive problems. I was always cold, tired, brain fog and then I had the great fortune of meeting Dr. Horowitz and marrying him. That was a good fortune, because shortly after we got married, a few years after I got bitten by a tick, I never saw the tick, but I had terrible symptoms two weeks later, and, knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that I had Lyme turned out I had Lyme, Babesia and Bartonella, all three and Mycoplasma and, Rich gave me his best treatments at the time. This was in 2001, and 2002, and I got better from the antibiotics. I would stop and then relapse and he would give me, again, new antibiotics, get better, stop, relapse, even the herbal protocols. I would get a little better and then relapse. it was a I think it was 2017. That Dr. Horowitz gave me the Dapsone for the first time. I took 50mg for, I believe it was a full year and, or six months, one of those. I was, well, stop the dapsone, relapsed.

Richard Horowitz, MD

What was important was that you were PCR positive in your blood. It still showed an active infection at six months with 50mg of Dapsone.

Lee Marion Horowitz

Yes. Thank you. Then I took 100mg of Dapsone for quite a while, six months to a year, and felt, well, got off, relapsed. Now at the time, one of which is one of Dr. Horowitz's patients accidentally took 200mg of Dapsone for a month or two, after he finished that protocol, he was completely well. I volunteered for that one, of course. After doing the 200-milligram treatment for one month, I was well. I have been in remission for five years, almost five years. It was extraordinary. During the treatment itself, I had some anemia. I had some shortness of breath upon exertion. But all of that cleared once I stopped the Dapsone, a couple of weeks afterward, that all resolved, and I'm well, I couldn't believe after a month, two months, six months, a year I needed no more treatment, that I didn't have to think about. What treatment am I going to do for my Lyme today? So, I am so grateful. I'm here to recommend this treatment from my own experience, having had almost every other treatment in the book, including alternative treatments like the Rif machine and Homoeopathy and herbs by far this treatment is the top. I've never been so well and I've never not needed treatment for this long. For all those reasons, I would recommend it without reservation. Maybe because I took the Dapsone for so long, for months and years before the 200mg dose, I didn't experience terrible symptoms. just the anemia and shortness of breath. I didn't even take the methylene blue at the time Dr. Horowitz wasn't giving it. So, yes, I would recommend doctors, to please give it to their patients. Patients, ask your doctors for this treatment. Let them learn it, let them do it. I think you're going to find a lot of positive results doing this treatment. Thank you.

Richard Horowitz, MD

That was great. I appreciate your coming and sharing your story. I can't get away with anything anymore because my brain is so clear. I can't even get away with anything. For those of you who are married, Dapsone combination therapy, be wary of the side effects. Your wife or your husband is going to be a lot clearer. Thank you, Lee. Appreciate it. Our next patient will be sharing their story. Is Ian. Hi, Ian. Good to see you. Thank you for coming today.

Ian Goodman

It's my pleasure. Nice to see you as well. I woke up on August 3rd, 2020, and my life had changed. I had a racing heart, motion sickness, waves of nausea, and constant sweating. I had no idea what happened to me. I never found a tick bite. I called my doctor, and he said, let's just wait and see. How are you feeling in a couple of days? A couple of weeks later, it just kept growing. I finally went to the emergency room at Southampton Hospital. I thought I was having a heart attack or stroke. they get every test under the sun. They get blood. I had a head CT and they said, I'm fine. they sent me home and told me I had vertigo. I knew something was wrong. Luckily my doctor got the blood results and he saw that I had an elevated white blood cell count and he put me on doxy. Within three weeks of the onset of my symptoms, I was on doxycycline, not knowing what I had. A couple of weeks later, I had a full blood workup again and it came back that I had Lyme and ehrlichiosis. I immediately went to see my doctor. He put me on doxycycline. I was on it for two months. He said, I'm on the standard protocol and you're going to start to feel better, which I did, but I knew I was I just was not. I thought it was going to be a simple two-month protocol of antibiotics and it just wasn't the case. I tried to find a Lyme specialist and, for the next nine months, my symptoms would ebb and flow from terrible to okay. I had weight gain, high blood pressure, pressure in my head, waves of nausea, pain behind my left eye, motion sickness, racing heart. My legs felt detached, with no strength in my body. Brain fog, high mercury, low adrenal. I could not find my words, which was one of the most upsetting parts of everything. I needed relief. I lost my life. What I had was gone. through the Lyme community, I got the names of doctors. The next year was filled with a lot of appointments. I saw four Lyme doctors, two neurologists, an ENT, an Orthologist, and a neuro-ophthalmologist. I had a lumbar puncture. I had two MRIs in my brain.

Richard Horowitz, MD

Everything came back negative.

Ian Goodman

Nobody could try to help me. I tried a holistic approach as well as standard antibiotics. I did oregano oil and natural vitamins. I did ozone IV, I did glutathione IV, I did colloidal silver IV, and had weekly vitamin IV cocktails. I was on Doxy, Minocycline, azithromycin, and steroids. One doctor wanted to sting me with bees. Nobody was able to get me to feel like myself again. Unfortunately, in October 2021, everything took a turn for the worse. I couldn't get out of bed. The world started to spin. I was bedridden for four or five weeks, and, I thought I would be stuck like this for the rest of my life. The next few months ebbed and flowed. I was introduced to Dr. Horowitz. I spent six hours, the first meeting with Dr. Horowitz in his office, and it was the first time that I felt there was hope. Every other doctor felt like a collaboration was one in my input. What should I take? What should I try? Not Dr. Horowitz. He had a protocol and he said this was going to help me. I left that room that day, finally feeling like there was hope that I was going to be able to get my life back. I spent the next month preparing for the double Dapsone protocol. I had my Excel spreadsheet ready to check off the 40 to 50 pills I had to take twice a day. It was not easy. The first three weeks passed and he was very encouraging. I had bloodwork every two weeks. We spoke a lot. We emailed a lot. after the third week, it started to get difficult. I had anemia, shortness of breath, and my Lyme symptoms retrieved, but it just felt different. It was very difficult. But I knew that this was going to be the answer and I muddled through. The last week was the most difficult week I've ever had as far as taking medicine. It was hard to get the pills down, but miraculously, after eight weeks I felt like a new person. There was a month of protocol to get my blood back to a normal level, and I felt like a new person. I had my strength back. I looked forward to being able to spend time with my family and not just worrying about whether I was going to be able to get out of bed. It saved my life. Most days I'm 95%. I still have some vestibular issues, but it was an amazing journey. It's been a year and a half and I feel great. I want to thank Dr. Horowitz for his wisdom and encouragement because, without both, I never would have been able to get through the protocol. and I'm happy to say that there are answers to chronic Lyme, and Dr. Horowitz has found them. Thank you very much.

Richard Horowitz, MD

Thank you so much. That was very kind. Thank you. That was a great story. our next person who's going to be sharing is Aly. Aly, can you please come on screen and share your story with everyone? Hi, Aly. Good to see you.

Aly

Good to see you, Dr. H. My name is Aly and I have had Lyme for about nine years. and when I say I am, I guess I'm using it as a catch-all term for tick-borne disease, because I also have Babesia, Bartonella, and Ehrlichia. I feel like I'm probably forgetting some infections, but if you have it, I probably have it too. It took me two years to receive an accurate diagnosis of Lyme and tick-borne disease. By the time that I finally found out what I had, it just had seeped into every muscle tissue, spot in my body. I was essentially bedridden. I have probably tried every treatment under the sun if you name it. I have probably done it and I also have POTS. I have a specific antibody deficiency. I have adrenal dysfunction. A good cocktail of things that resulted in exhaustion, severe brain fog, word loss, and word block, pain all over my body and my muscles and joints, tremors, sleeplessness, restlessness, and mood swings. I experienced a lot of different, typical Lyme symptoms, but also neuro Lyme and tick-borne disease symptoms. I found Dr. Horowitz about two years ago and have been doing Dapsone therapy. Both regular Dapsone double episodes and quad Dapsone over the last year. While I will say it's a tough protocol, I always like to tell patients that it's not the hardest thing that I've ever done. not even close. Don't let the fear of not feeling well scare you because, number one, I don't think that it's as bad as you think it is. Number two, I like to say that I think it's worth it to get your life back in the end. I also like to tell people that I feel that Dapsone has helped me more in the last year than any therapy I have done in the last eight to nine years combined. Dapsone was the first therapy for me where I feel like it's had a lasting impact where I can complete the therapy, Wait and see the results, and then not have this massive backslide as I used to where I would complete therapy and then ultimately, within a month or two, be and well, again, and it's helped all of my symptoms across the board. When I first started seeing Dr. H, I would say I was operating at about 50% capacity, which was not good. Now, I would say I'm closer to 80 to 85%, which is a massive leap. and I have seen improvements in pretty much every symptom across the board. Now, most days I can get through the day pretty successfully and be a pretty high-functioning individual. So that is my story. I cannot recommend Dapsone therapy enough. I recommend that everyone try it and ask their practitioner about it. I am always here to be a resource for anyone who has questions, so thanks, Dr. H.

Richard Horowitz, MD

Thank you, Aly. That was a great story. I appreciate you sharing it with everybody. Thank you again. The next person is going to be sharing their story. will be Austin.

Austin Hutcherson

Hey, guys. It's good to see everyone. My story is unique. I'm only 25 and I've had Lyme since I was a little kid; my mom has it, and my brother has it as well. and they all went to Dr. H. My symptoms, luckily enough, weren't as bad as those of my mom or some of the people I've heard about on this call. You guys are inspirations, for sure. But everyone's story is relative. For me, I played basketball. I played Division One and Pro. For me, being sick and having symptoms don't go hand in hand with playing a sport at a high level. Growing up and playing basketball, my main symptoms were just immune deficiency things, so I would get sick a lot. I had stomach issues, and I just thought it was more. I'm allergic to foods, any white flour, sugar, or anything other than whole-natural foods. I couldn't eat without getting pretty bad stomach pains and fatigue. I was always tired of things like that. It just didn't go hand in hand with basketball, and just being a young kid, all my friends would be out partying or having fun hanging out, and I couldn't go because I couldn't stay up late. After all, it would mess me up the next day. My mom was much worse than me. I mean, I saw her; she had headaches and things like that. I didn't ever want it to get to that point. Luckily enough, she found Dr. H and some other doctors when we were living in New Jersey, and I did the whole thing. Antibiotics, vitamins, IVs, and all those, and through a lot of research and things like that, I got my symptoms under control. They were manageable. I never had any stories of where I couldn't function fully or couldn't play basketball, but I wasn't operating at 100%. For where I wanted to get to, basketball-wise, I had to, so, funny enough, my brother did the double-dose Dapsone protocol before me when we were both in college. He doesn't play sports or anything like that, but I watched it for him, and he did the two-month protocol, and he was completely fine. He had the same symptoms as me, like when he was a little bit younger. He also had headaches and some other tough things that I can't remember off the top of my head, but I just know it was rough, the double dose Dapsone protocol. He was in complete remission afterward. He doesn't take vitamins or pills anymore, and he's completely fine. I did the same thing. I got home, and I broke my back playing basketball. My symptoms were under control for a while, and that stress, I think, brought back my Lyme symptoms. Rather than doing the whole antibiotic vitamin thing, I saw what he did, talked to Dr. H, and tried the double-dose Dapsone protocol. As for me, I would say the symptoms I had were more fatigue. I was doing rehab and full basketball workouts for a while on the double Dapsone. which I found out from Dr. H probably wasn't the best idea, but, luckily enough, I didn't have any herx or bad symptoms. I would say the biggest thing was just fatigue and shortness of breath while I was working out and stuff, but I mean, I recommend it to anyone who's sick, no matter what level of symptoms or difficulty you're having. Like mine, my symptoms weren't nearly as bad as some of the other people I've spoken to already, but I'm in remission now. I have no Lyme symptoms. I would say I'm 100% better. I recommend the protocol. Dr. H has changed my life, so thank you.

Richard Horowitz, MD

Thank you, Austin, for sharing. You're a couple of years in remission now. You and I haven't spoken in quite a while.

Austin Hutcherson

Yes. Sorry, I forgot that. I went on a Dapsone protocol, I want to say 20. I would say either the end of 2020 or the beginning of 21. Yes, it's been about three and a half years.

Richard Horowitz, MD

That's great. Yes. Good. Thank you. It's great. It's great seeing you, and I'm glad you're doing so much better.

Austin Hutcherson

Yes. Thank you, Dr. H.

Richard Horowitz, MD

Thank you. Our next speaker will be Kristi. Kristi, come on and tell your story, please.

Kristi Hellenbrand

Hi. Good morning. It's so good to finally get to meet you. I am not one of your patients, but a lucky girl down in Georgia found a doctor who follows the current research. My story began in 2020. I had the summer flu in August, and of course, it was COVID. so, I didn't think anything of it. I live on a farm. I've had tick bites, at least three over the years. My kids have all had tick bites and we don't have Lyme in Georgia. Dr. Horowitz so, what happened though, after that summer flu within 60 days I lost the ability to walk. I needed a cane and on bad days, I needed a walker. I could not work. I was have I was passing out working, with my patients. I'm a healthcare provider and reluctantly wound up at the ER at Emory in Atlanta in October. I spent five days there in their neurology ward, and, they rolled out all the big scary stuff. They rolled out tumors and all other forms of cancer. They rolled out EMFs. my migraines at that point were about an eight out of ten, lumbar puncture. I had all of it. after five days they said, here's some migraine medication and a prescription for a wheelchair and released me with no answers. I'm fortunate enough because I'm in the healthcare world down here. I knew a functional medicine doctor, so I reached out to her and I said, nobody knows. Nobody knows what's going on. She goes, Kristi, we do have Lyme in Georgia. Don't let anyone tell you we don't. I think you have neurological Lyme. She gave me a clinical diagnosis of Neuroborreliosis and gave me 60 days of doxycycline to give it a go. Within 60 days I was walking. The migraines, we went after those next. I did two weeks of IV-Rocephin and the migraines were better. Satisfied for a little bit with that. By April, everything had returned. I was back with the walker. I was back with the migraines, and I started having tremors. My head would tremor, my hands would tremor. I got lost two miles from home, with the brain fog being as severe as it had gotten at this point. I had lost my practice and I was spending hours and hours in bed. I was probably out of bed for two hours a day. I reached back out to her and she said, this is why we have to go after this. We're going to throw the kitchen sink at it. I want you to read the study. she forwarded me your October 2020 double dose Dapsone protocol, and it looked scary as hell, to be honest with you. I said, let's do it. I got to save my life. We're going to save my life. what I loved about your protocol was that not only was it all of these medications and pills, but it also supported my system while I was going through there. When you get cancer treatment, they don't give you all the vitamins to help your body stay strong during the process you did with your protocol. Between the leucovorin and the methylene blue and the three strains of probiotics, not one. My life is on my glutathione. It helped my body process it all. I will admit it, the three-and-a-half week mark of the double dose Dapsone protocol. I begged my husband to let me quit. I begged my doctor to let me quit. I didn't think I could do it. It was very hard. I had a lot of herx and they wouldn't let me quit. I was halfway there, they said. Fast forward, I finished. I did wind up with a lot of methylene blue, and I had an oxygen tank for two weeks. but I am in remission, so that was all. May and June of 2021. I am in remission. I am working again. I'm riding my horses again. I wrote a book about my story and your treatment. Because I went through a period where there was no hope. I want the world. I want the state of Georgia, and all the doctors here to know that we do have Lyme and that we can treat it. That's my story. I'm sticking to it. I'm so I feel so blessed to finally meet you and talk with you today because you saved my life. Thank you.

Richard Horowitz, MD

Kristi, what's beautiful for me is that my life has somehow affected someone I have never met and changed their life. It's the most marvelous thing for me to hear. Like, as a doctor, you can save people's lives you've never even met by simply working on these protocols. It touches me, and I want to thank you for telling your story to everyone. It's a great story.

Kristi Hellenbrand

Thank you. I want these doctors listening to this to know that my doctor had to be very brave and had to be smart. She was following that research. Please, I beg all of these doctors at this, summit with you. Do the research, be brave, and you will save lives. Thank you so much for today.

Richard Horowitz, MD

Thank you. Kristi, that was great. Our next speaker will be Logan. Logan can please come on and tell people your story?

Logan Lindberg

How are you doing, Doctor Horowitz?

Richard Horowitz, MD

Great. It's great to see you. We haven't seen each other in quite a while.

Logan Lindberg

Yes, it's been a while. Feeling good? My story. I've had Lyme since I can remember since I was a kid. I grew up on a ranch in California. Naturally, I love animals. I have been around horses, cats, dogs, cows—all of it. and, when I fell asleep as a kid on dog beds and land horses, I just ended up getting so many ticks. In hindsight, it probably wasn't a great idea, but I got a lot of tick bites, and so, about my sophomore year of high school, I had all my symptoms, which had just kept piling up since fifth grade. That we traced back. I couldn't even run the mile. In fifth grade, a physical fitness test for PE class. It was so hard for me. My joints hurt. I had brain fog. In high school, I felt like I couldn't keep up with my peers, both physically and academically. I was on the football team, and I couldn't give my all, and it upset me so much. Finally, about sophomore year, when COVID hit, a sophomore in high school, and I just started getting such bad headaches for about a month. and they were like migraines; I couldn't stand them. Could not bear them and just did everything we could. Finally, I felt so blessed to have my mom and dad, who fought for me. We went to several physicians and years of questions piled up from fifth grade to my sophomore year. We had no idea. We went to all sorts of doctors, and they'd tell me, It’s this. Then somebody else would tell me, they're wrong. There was this, and it was just such a hard time. I think, in that time, I found God and just comfort and prayer. After that, I recognized how blessed I was. Then that's when I found Dr. Horowitz. He encouraged me so much, and I immediately knew after meeting him that he could help me. So, like I said, I just had all these health problems. I had POTS, low adrenals, Babesia, Bartonella, and Lyme disease, food sensitivities, just so much trouble sleeping, extreme nausea, and joint pain. There was a time when I could hardly walk up the stairs at our house, and it was rough. I was a kid. I should be able to walk up a set of stairs, and I couldn't even do that. It was so demoralizing and just tough for me to accept. When I started the treatment, it was a tough time, and I wanted to quit so badly. While I was doing it, I didn't understand it fully. Yes, I just wanted to quit so bad. Luckily, I had the support of my parents, who pushed me so hard. Dr. Horowitz encouraged me with all of his wisdom and knowledge on this and all the support he gave me with the double Dapsone. So now. Yes, I would just encourage and recommend anybody suffering from Lyme or any of these tick-borne illnesses. Dr. Horowitz has such great wisdom and understanding for all these illnesses. So I thank you, Dr. Horowitz, for everything you've done for me. I appreciate just being here.

Richard Horowitz, MD

Logan. It was great seeing you. We haven't seen each other in a while. I'm glad you're in remission. You're doing so well, going on to college, and just living your life so well. Please give my best to your family.

Logan Lindberg

Absolutely.

Richard Horowitz, MD

So we're just going to take a 32nd break here. I just want to thank everybody who has tuned in for the healing from Lyme Summit. Please know that if you're listening to this talk today, you're getting some of the greatest information, I believe, that's available for chronic Lyme. You're hearing directly from patients at this point what their experience has been with Dapsone. So if you are someone who's already subscribed to the summit, that's wonderful. Just stay tuned. We're going to keep going with the summit. We've got many more speakers, but if you're someone who is not subscribed to the full summit, please go to the side of your computer or the bottom. Just click on the links, and you can find out how to get more information. We're going to go on now to our next speaker. Pam, could you please come on and tell people your great story?

Pamela Creamer

Hi, doc.

Richard Horowitz, MD

Hey there. Good to see you.

Pamela Creamer

I got sick, probably about 15 years ago. It started with a bad knee. I have some brain issues. I have some brain lesions from having Babesia, Bartonella, Q fever, tularemia, and heavy metals. a good case of mold. So my words are difficult to retrieve, but I'm working on it. I came to Doc very ill in a wheelchair, pretty much at the end of the line, but through a lot of treatment, I did IV antibiotics. We tried a lot of things, but the double-dose Dapsone was a game-changer. I started with the initial dose of a low dose. We built it up. I would say my last treatment with methylene blue has brought so much back to me. I can function, I can walk, and I still have some brain issues, but working on that is a wealth of knowledge and compassion. I have nothing but kindness to say for him. He has brought me back, for sure.

Richard Horowitz, MD

Well, thank you, Pam. Pam, tell people how much medicine you were taking for your pain, regarding how bad your pain was with morphine when you first started to see me, and whether you're taking narcotics now.

Pamela Creamer

Nope. Totally off pain medication. I'm proud to say I was on full-time pain medication. I had heart palpitations, I couldn't walk, and I had no word retrieval, on a wheelchair. I truly thought I was at the end of the line. Then I found the Doc. He sat down with me. My first meeting was probably four hours, and I never tested positive for a long time. Then, once I started getting healthy again, it all came out positive again with all the tick-borne illnesses.

Richard Horowitz, MD

I think what's amazing about you, Pam, is the history that you had with Bartonella—that it was only the last time you did the six-day pulse. It was that last six-day pulse that was the first time you did it for Bart. That's when you saw the amazing response with the higher dose. Methylene blue. Correct?

Pamela Creamer

Correct. The methylene blue and the quad Dapsone, we've been together a long time. It changed everything. Yes, it gave me hope. I want to spread that hope to the world that you can get better. You might have some fallout from being ill for so long, but life is great.

Richard Horowitz, MD

Great. Well, thank you, Pam, for sharing your story. I know everyone's going to have a lot of hope because you were extremely ill and just such a lovely person with a need. It is so great to see you better and have your life back. Thank you for telling your story.

Pamela Creamer

Thank you, doctor.

Richard Horowitz, MD

Our next person who is going to be sharing their story is Ben. Ben, can you come on and tell people your history?

Ben Dickstein

Hey, there.

Richard Horowitz, MD

It's good to see you.

Ben Dickstein

It's good to see you, too. I think I'd like to start by saying that it's a hard thing to relive your story over and over again, and it's something I'm grateful for because I don't have to live through it as much anymore. But what's interesting about stories like this is that you tend not to know the real story until you're actually in it. For me, I think the first time I realized that there was something larger was when I went on a post-graduation trip after graduating from college with some friends to Southeast Asia, everyone on that trip got sick, and we were all throwing up and having stomach issues. But when I got home, I started having some pretty terrible symptoms. It started with fatigue and pain, as well as some cognitive symptoms and some psychological issues that were quite distressing. At the time, we went to some doctors, and they assumed that I had gotten the parasite. While I was away in Southeast Asia, we did some parasite tests, none of which came back positive. but it was interesting. For some reason, we decided to do blood work and found that there was Babesia, there was Bartonella, and there was Borrelia as well. That was coming back, some more abnormal than others. But the point was that that was the issue. I think at that point I realized that actually what was going on was a much longer and more subtle infection that came on over the years. It was actually during my senior year that I started to remember and look back on some strange symptoms. I worked out six days a week, and I was a very ambitious student. I went to the University of Pennsylvania and was looking forward to starting my full-time job in New York City. At the time, I think the first thing I remembered was walking down the street in Philadelphia and imagining to myself how bad these construction workers were for not leveling the sidewalk correctly because I felt like I was falling over every time I walked down the street. Of course, that wasn't the case. There were a lot of vestibular issues going on, but I went to the university doctors, I went to the university health care system, and no one had any understanding of what could have been going on. Throughout that senior year, it did affect me, but I still went to class. I was still social and I was doing my work, but the symptoms got worse over time. Then, of course, going on this trip, I already wasn't feeling great. Then coming back, things just went haywire. At that point, I think I lost my hearing in my left ear, about in September 2017. This was after I had been semi-diagnosed or it was before I had done the parasite test, but not diagnosed yet with Lyme. The doctor I went to assumed I had an acoustical aroma. away, so at 21 years old, telling my new girlfriend that I had a brain tumor wasn't necessarily the best flirting strategy, but it ended up being that the MRI came back negative, which was great, but at the time I took steroids, of course, to deal with the supposed inflammation that was causing that. After a week of steroids, everything got worse. I had been working full-time for a month at that point. I started having increased joint pain. I couldn't walk up the stairs anymore. I started having cognitive issues. I had arthritis-like symptoms. I went from reading a book every two weeks to throwing up after reading a paragraph. I lost 50 pounds in three months. I started having heart palpitations. to the point where I would wake up in the middle of the night and think I was having a heart attack and have to go to the hospital. At that point, I was seeing doctors who were Lyme literate, and I was put on Doxycycline and several other antibiotics as well as vitamins and minerals and doing IVs. I took antibiotics for about a year and a half, on and off, and different types. I took anti-malarial drugs. I took anti-parasitic drugs. At the point about a few months into starting all of those treatments, I had to go on medical leave for my job. This was in the beginning of 2018 at this point. I think what was interesting is that you go in waves; some days were a little bit better than others, but ultimately I was a 22-year-old university graduate who was working, had been working in real estate finance, and then all of a sudden was bedridden. I couldn't have conversations with my colleagues because I couldn't think about what I was going to say and also listen to what they were saying at the same time. so that was pretty depressing. It was pretty horrible to live through. I never knew if I'd ever get to a place where I'd have my life back. That being said, it got worse before I got better. I was then diagnosed with arrhythmia. I was told in my echo that I had some liquid that didn't necessarily look good at the moment near my heart. I was diagnosed with acid. I was diagnosed with POTS. I did IV for about a year and a half, which did help, but it wasn't the thing that got me better. I got my tooth taken out. I got my molars cleaned out because, due to the infection, I did everything I thought possible. I think I calculated it; it was 30,000 pills, 2500 shots, and, like, 2000 hours of IVs. over, over about four years.

Richard Horowitz, MD

This is before seeing me and doing Dapsone.

Ben Dickstein

This was before I saw you and it.

Richard Horowitz, MD

Yes. how and when you did do the double dose, and how long now were you in remission? Because you and I don't speak regularly, How are you feeling now? Well. Well, you got your life back.

Ben Dickstein

I got to you in 2021. early 2021. So I finished Dapsone, in the summer of 2021. It's now 2024. I've been in remission for two and a half years. Wow. It's pretty cool. Following remission, I went back to school. I have two master's degrees, one in bioengineering and one in business. I'm now working for a startup in Paris. That's using AI for drug development, specifically immunology. No, I didn't study biology as an undergrad, but my illness was a trial by fire pushing me towards this path, and to me, it was what I needed. I took advantage of the opportunity once, and following our treatment, I was able to. I feel lucky to have found you. That being said, I will be honest. Double dose two absent was not; it's not a walk in the park. I think the first time I met you, you said to me, You've got to do it, but it's going to be like chemotherapy, and at that point, I didn't have any other decision to make. Either I live the rest of my life in bed or get up and do something about it. It was, and it was, and it was pretty brutal. The first month was, but in the second month, it's nausea every day. I had anemia, met hemoglobin, and methylene blue helped, but my blood oxygen went down to, I think, 80% one day. we were like, let's take a that's not take the second dose today and wait until tomorrow. But it worked out. I was able to push through and get it done. and in the end, it probably took another three months. After finishing Dapsone for my body to actually calibrate and come back and feel better, psychologically, you think. After you're done with the treatment, it's got to be good, and you're completely better. But when you've been sick for so many years and with so many different illnesses, you have to give yourself and your body time to heal and get back to normal.

Richard Horowitz, MD

But it's great now, Ben, that you're three years from remission. You're living in Paris. You got a new job. I mean, life is great. I'm so happy that you got your life back with this protocol.

Ben Dickstein

Thank you very much.

Richard Horowitz, MD

Yes, yes. Thank you for sharing your story. The next person who's going to be coming on and telling your story will be Francis. Can you please come on? Thank you.

Francis Brenner

Thank you, Dr. Horowitz. Yes. So, with the benefit of hindsight, I had Lyme symptoms at least as early as the 1990s. 54 years old. I grew up in Lyme Country. Country. It ticks on me all the time. I never had a bullseye, so I never had any inkling that I had had Lyme disease. and I had all these unusual symptoms that went on for decades. The common denominator was that any time I went on antibiotics for a sinus infection or something, I always felt a little better. But it was, and it was very hard to try to explain that to a doctor. One went as far as to suggest that maybe I was psychologically addicted to antibiotics. I guess it was the first recreational antibiotic user, but everything just lingered along for a long time until I got COVID. I got COVID twice, and for the first time I had it, I had many unusual symptoms pop up. The second time I got COVID, they all came back and were much more severe. I had things like sinus pressure, dry mouth, weakness, and fatigue. I had ulcers in my mouth. I had ulcers in my small intestine that were spotted with a spill, pill can, brain fog, dry eye, and an overactive bladder. Sometimes I couldn't sleep. Sometimes I slept 11 hours a day, and I saw about ten different specialty areas of medicine, probably 20 doctors total, over about 18 months. One or two things would happen either; they would say, I'm a gastroenterologist. I'm seeing these ulcers in your small intestine. Therefore, you have Crohn's disease. Or they would say, you've got these dozen seemingly unrelated symptoms. This is psychological. This is a patient that needs to be seen by someone who can help them over the years. In any event, I got diagnosed with many conditions and treated for many conditions, none of which helped. Finally, less than a year ago., in the Spring of 2023, I came to see Dr. Horowitz. We had our six-hour appointment. We went through all the history, and at the end, he said, Here's your test. You're going to get tested for 100 different things. I said, Well, that's great, and I don't expect you to diagnose me today without any testing, but, like, what do you think is happening? You've done this for a long time. He said, Well, almost certainly you have Lyme, but you might have other things as well. As it turned out, the Lyme and the Babesia, and in hindsight, I'm almost sure I had that for decades. We did the Dapsone treatment. I did that in the fall of 2023. Like others, I won't kid you. It was very difficult. I think, like many people, the first month on the lower dosage wasn't too bad. In the second month, I was very fatigued. I could not have worked anywhere near full-time. It was tough, but in the context of my life, I had been taken away with severe fatigue to the point to the point where I could barely function. That was an easy trade-off. It was a no-brainer for me to try it. I think for anybody whose life has been taken over by one of these illnesses, you have to go after it. Now, as far as my result, I'm probably 60% better. My situation is somewhat clouded by the fact that I also have a busy schedule. We just found out that my baby has come back, and so I'm treating for that again. There's some fogginess between how much of my symptoms are caused by Lyme and how much. Probably easier. So I'm a little bit of work in progress, but I'm much better.

Richard Horowitz, MD

Thank you, Francis. That's great. It's a great story. Your story of seeing all these doctors and going through this for years is classic. I'm glad you're 60% better. We'll get you there. Babesia is one of those parasites. It takes a while with rotations to go after it. But thank you for hanging in there, because you're getting your life back and it's inspiring. Thank you again.

Francis Brenner

Thank you very much.

Richard Horowitz, MD

Our next patient who is going to share their story is Kathleen. Can you please come on and tell people your story?

Kathleen Gariepy

Very well.

Richard Horowitz, MD

Hi.

Kathleen Gariepy

Hi. How are you, Dr. Horowitz?

Richard Horowitz, MD

Good. It's good to see you.

Kathleen Gariepy

Hello, everyone. Well, I'm Kathleen, and my story starts in 1994. I live in the Berkshires in Massachusetts, and I had gone on a trip to the Cape. came back about three weeks later. All my joints were swollen. I could hardly walk; I couldn't think. I was working at a local hospital as a Data Communications and Network Specialist. I wasn't understanding things or comprehending what I was doing. I went to my Rheumatologist, and he thought it was Lyme. He tested, and it was positive—not for Lyme but for Western blot. He treated me with doxy, but it had been like three months before I started treatment. In the beginning, I think it was May of 96. I was so sick that he had a pick of Lyme put in, and I was on IVs for seven or six weeks. After that, I just started feeling better. I was back to work, and then my husband got transferred to Florida. Now we go to Florida. I think I'm fine. Nice start. It was probably about four months, and no. Yes. Four years into it, I started feeling like it all came back. Neurologically, I could. I was just a mess. I had brain fog, cognitive neuropathy, joint swelling, and all that stuff. I started researching because the doctors in Florida don't know anything, and they wouldn't treat me for Lyme. I got online and found Dr. Sam Donta from Boston Medical, and he had a part-time practice in Falmouth. I went to him, and he saved me. He started me on by IX for Bartonella. But I had all kinds of cognitive, low adrenals, Epstein-Barr, and I had just. As I sit here and I'm trying to tell the story, it's so hard. Anyway, so I was with Sam for five years, and then he retired, and he gave me a lot of Biaxin and I got through that. Still having problems in 2000 and 2010. They came back with a vengeance. I couldn't walk, I couldn't get a bed, and I couldn't work. I ended up going on. I had to quit work and go on disability. When I was 62 years old, I was on Social Security disability. I couldn't read a book. I couldn't; I couldn't cook; I couldn't read a recipe; I couldn't research stocks; I couldn't do any of that. Sam's now retired, so now I have to find another doctor. I started researching again, and I found Dr. Horowitz. But he wasn't taking any patients; he was putting on a three-day seminar at Cappello in Lenox, Mass. I flew myself up here. I got into the seminar, and I met Dr. Horowitz, his wife, and his staff. We learned all about Lyme co-infections, everything about Lyme, what isn't being done, and why people aren't getting treated. I eventually got in with Dr. Horowitz at 20. I think it was 2016. He and John Fallon have saved my life. In 2016, we started with different antibiotics. I tested positive for Babesia, Bartonella, Lyme, Borrelia, low adrenals, POTS, and everything. In 2020, we started the Dapsone, but it wasn't a double dose. I don't believe, and halfway through the treatment now, I created an Excel spreadsheet, and, as and, as you had, I think it was like 45 pills to take. Through half of it, I just couldn't get through it because of the volume of it all. We quit. They let me quit and then back, back, and that was during COVID and back in. I started back in 2023, and I went for two weeks to the third week. I got through it. It is tough. The third week I hadn't, I had the bilirubin.

Richard Horowitz, MD

That the bilirubin goes up with Dapsone, and that we took a break again for the second time, and then finally did it for the third time.

Kathleen Gariepy

I finally did it for the third time. I am in remission now. I finished in June, and everything has come back. I had to go. I had to do rehab as well. as well. John had me, just to her entire body to get everything moving again. That was wonderful. Now that I can cook, I want to do things. I'm reading, I'm in a book club, I'm knitting, and he saved my life. I just have to tell you: do not be afraid, because you can do it. You can be strong. You can. You owe this to yourself. It's a long journey. You've been on a long journey. God, please, all the physicians out there, start listening to Dr. Horowitz and using his protocol because it is saving lives. I just love you.

Richard Horowitz, MD

Thank you, Kathleen. That was lovely. I appreciate it. Thank you.

Kathleen Gariepy

You’re welcome.

Richard Horowitz, MD

Yes. Beautiful. Thank you.

Kathleen Gariepy

Bye bye.

Richard Horowitz, MD

The next person who will be sharing their story is John, who's coming to us from Malaysia of all places. John, you want to tell your story to people.

John Teoh

It's Singapore.

Richard Horowitz, MD

Singapore. Yes.

John Teoh

Yes. Back in 2015, I was living a pretty normal life, so I was quite active. I went camping in the Blue Mountains in Sydney, and I was bitten by a tick. I found a tick in my chest, and there weren't any instant symptoms. I didn't have a bullseye rash or anything like that. The frustrating thing was that Australia doesn't recognize Lyme disease, so I wasn't aware of the illness at all. Over two years, I went from a pretty active state to living with constant fatigue and serious brain fog. The point that I knew something was seriously wrong was when I was unable to read sentences in books, and I started consulting with several different physicians and doing many tests, including blood tests, MRIs, brain scans, allergy tests, and more. Everything kept coming back negative, and I finally found my answer through Google and confirmed the results through a German lab test. I finally figured out that I had Lyme, Bartonella, and the Babesia. The peak of my ordeal was in 2022 when I caught COVID, and at this point, this incapacitated me to the point where I was bedridden for nine months and struggled to walk and talk during this period. Primarily, my symptoms included cognitive issues, including memory loss, and difficulty processing information, physical and neurological symptoms, including body spasms, facial paralysis, walking issues, severe fatigue, body pains, vertigo, heat sensitivity, neck stiffness, and general depression. From there, over six years, I tried several different treatments, including hyperthermia, protocol, disulfiram, and IVs in a German clinic without long-term relief for my symptoms. Then, a year ago, I met Dr. Horowitz through my brother. The first treatment of the triple Dapsone protocol was the most difficult. I was unable to walk much and had anemia and severe nausea. Also, the sheer volume of pills that were required was quite intense to get down and keep down. It took about two months to normalize and feel better, and from there, the subsequent treatment plans were much smoother, with only anemia post-pulses than normal. A few weeks after each pulse present, I'm pretty much back to normal now with a few lingering symptoms. They come if I have a bad sleep routine that night or if I have certain preserved foods, and then I will have a flare-up in terms of body weakness or brain fog, but I would estimate that it is close to 80% normal at this point. I guess, winding back a little over a year ago, I thought my life was over. I didn't think I could continue living a normal life, especially after being sick for eight years. It was extremely demoralizing for my health to keep deteriorating and for no treatments to work. After going through the Dapasone protocol with Dr. Horowitz, I'm now nearly back to normal, and I'm having a newborn daughter in a week. What I want to share with everyone is that if you're feeling hopeless, please don't give up. You can get through this. With the right treatment and a bit of perseverance, you can turn things around. Thank you, Dr. Horowitz and your team. Thank you so much.

Richard Horowitz, MD

It's my pleasure. You've done, I think, two Dapsone pulses of the six days for Bart. Because you have an active Bart. We still have a couple more pulses to do, but each pulse you improved after each pulse when you did it.

John Teoh

Yes. I think, after the first major treatment of two and a half months in New York. I was back to 50–60% functioning, and each subsequent pulse probably improved me by about 10-15%.

Richard Horowitz, MD

Yes. Because I'm finding it's about 4 to 6 pulses for most people to put them in long-term. But I'm happy you're doing so much better. Congratulations on the new little girl that's coming. Please send me pictures. Send pictures the minute she's born.

John Teoh

We'll do

Richard Horowitz, MD

Thank you again. Jack. Our next patient is going to be sharing. Is Nicki. I'm sorry. Nicholas.

Nicholas Stephens

Hello, Dr. H.

Richard Horowitz, MD

There you are. It's good to see you.

Nicholas Stephens

It's good to see you, too. It's a bit hard for me to pinpoint exactly how long I've been sick. But it's been about 14 years at this point, so it's quite everything I can remember. To me, most of the symptoms weren't anything special or out of the ordinary; they were just part of everyday life. I didn't think much of memory loss or joint pain. I just thought those were normal. When I was in second grade, I was taken out of school, and I was homeschooled because I wasn't able to function well enough to attend school. I was tested for Lyme about three times in this period. The first was the recommendation of one of my teachers in first grade. Each test came negative, but actually by the fourth came a positive, which changed things. After I had about a dozen doctors. But most of them just treated the symptoms and not the lyme itself. Eventually, after a few years, I was put on doxycycline and about a dozen other medicines. It was for months or years. I honestly don't remember how long it was or the specific medicines. Because of this, my condition improved quite a bit and eventually stopped. But in retrospect, it was not fully improved. Then, in the summer of 2020, I caught COVID, and Lyme got much worse from there. Several months before I started the protocol, I was bad enough that I had to lie down for at least 20 hours a day. Even when I was doing schoolwork and homework, I couldn't sit up. Eventually, my parents heard about Dr. Horowitz. I met him in June of last year, 2023. That I begin the protocol. To be entirely honest, I was very skeptical at first. I wasn't expecting any way to improve. Like I think I mentioned a minute ago, I didn't have any frame of reference for what normal should be like, which meant I didn't know how bad I was. During the Dapsone protocol itself. I did suffer some side effects, the worst of which was fatigue, which was far, far worse than the fatigue caused by Lyme. Even still, it wasn't bad enough that I couldn't do anything. I could exercise and play sports like that. I was still able to keep playing on my local high school's tennis team throughout the whole protocol. But I will admit that it was difficult to get through. My mom, who was being treated at the same time I was, did find it more difficult than I did. I'm not in remission quite yet, but I'm doing better than I was before. It took longer than I expected to improve after the protocol ended. The week after I went off Dapsone was probably the worst week. But after that, I began to improve. Like my normal amount every day. I like it, and a lot of that was just healing from the medicine itself. My symptoms, like back pain, joint pain, and memory issues, were getting better. I could tell they were getting better. Even when I was following the protocol. Overall, it was difficult to get through. For a couple of days, it was almost worse than the alarm was. But I would say it was worth it. Now that I'm starting to recover, I'm starting to feel normal for the first time. I would recommend Dr. Horowitz's protocol. without reservations.

Richard Horowitz, MD

Thank you, Nicholas, and I'm happy. By the way, I think I told you you might have been the only person on quadruple Dapsone who was playing tennis at the time when you were still doing this. I mean, you were amazing at pushing through the protocol. Thank you for sharing your story. It's a great story. We've still got some pulses to go, but you're getting there, and you've been sick your whole life, so it's encouraging to hear your stories. Thank you for sharing. The next patient will be Sharon. Sharon, would you like to come on and tell people your story?

Sharon Davis

Hi, everyone. Hi, Dr. Horowitz, I am thrilled to talk to you today because I feel so much better than I have for most of my adult life. I first started asking doctors about my symptoms in 1995. I was 35 years old, and Lyme disease didn't show up on any of my blood tests. I was told that I was working too hard. But of course, I had three children, and I was working too hard. Then I was premenopausal, and then I was menopausal. There was always a reason why I felt incredibly fatigued and had severe, well, severe brain fog. I eventually, in 2014, went to a neurologist who sent my blood work to Stony Brook, and they diagnosed me as having Lyme and, eventually, Bartonella, so I had Babesia, but at the same time, I was also going to a clinic in New York that was treating people with early-onset Alzheimer's. Because that was my diagnosis at that time with the neurologist. I did some antibiotic treatments. I was on an IVIg treatment, and I did that for about 2 or 3 years, with the same results as other people said: feeling better for a while and then getting sick again. I had all of the symptoms that everyone else has talked about, except I didn't have to be in a wheelchair. But I had leaky gut, like, food allergies, mold, heavy metals, POTS, immune deficiency, low adrenals, and anxiety. I had tinnitus and joint pain, which included double-frozen shoulders, but the worst was the brain fog and disorientation at some points at the very end, not being able to have trouble finding my way home, and severe fatigue. I was thrilled when Dr. Horowitz started seeing patients again. I went straight there, and he did the same thing with me. We talked for 4 to 6 hours, and he explained the protocol. I went on the double Dapsones, and by the time I finished, I would say I was about 85 to 90% normal. Everything has been incredible. I've been in remission for two years. I am still working with Dr. Horowitz, and after the protocol, we worked on heavy metal detox and mold detox. There are still a few symptoms that I have, which include tinnitus, tremors, stillness, and brain fog. I spoke with him this week, actually, and we're going to a Dapsone pulse to see if I can get 100% better, which is what my goal is, and I'm not giving up until I get there. I will say the thing for me in the last month was quite bad. The last two weeks, I was on my back the entire time. If I tried to walk up and down the stairs, I had to stop every 2 or 3 steps and catch my breath. The last week, my lips turned blue, and everyone who knew me thought that I was out of my mind. But I was, I must have glutathione. and I did the red light sauna every day, and that helped with my symptoms. It took me about 3 to 6 months to start feeling better. But what I noticed was that every month I felt better and better. After six months, I thought I was better. Then, at 12 months, I was like, Oh my God, I feel amazing. and it's just been an incredible experience of rejuvenation and enjoying health. I think it's a miracle. I'm so, so grateful to Dr. Horowitz. Thank you so much.

Richard Horowitz, MD

Thank you. Sharon, it's a beautiful story, and I'm so happy you're doing so much better. Our next patient is going to be sharing is A.J. Can you come on and tell people your story?

Alden John Parker

Hi, there. I consider myself a pretty lucky case. I got Lyme very recently. Last summer of 2023. Back then, I had no clue what was going on. I had never even heard about Lyme disease at that point. I was experiencing all sorts of symptoms, mostly neurological; blurred vision, headaches, chills, and some anxiety came with that as well, which I later found out was probably one of the symptoms. I'd gone to a hospital in the E.R. in Indiana, where I was taking an internship. That's where I got Lyme disease. Thankfully, I was discharged with a wait-and-see diagnosis from the doctor because all the tests came back healthy and clear as if nothing was wrong. These very few, like abnormalities in my blood tests. We’ve had MRIs, CT scans, or even a spinal puncture. Nothing came back. Eventually, we started to go around to neurologists because we thought it was mostly neurological. and they were helpful, but mostly in the fact that they could tell me I didn't have anything neurological going on. It left us confused, worried, and without any real answers. We later found out that the general hospitalist at the Indiana Hospital had canceled my Lyme and tick-borne illness panel because they thought, he was not sick. where he doesn't need us. We later said, Fine, whatever. We went back to California. I got a Lyme test, and it was in the physical range, which my general doctor was not comfortable enough with to give me any antibiotics at the time. It took us a while. Finally, about a month into it, I got there. They give me doxycycline. I felt a little better after it. I then went on. I was preparing for my junior year of college, and I started to get all the symptoms coming back, including much worse ones, including stiffness in my muscles and joints, brain fog, and very high anxiety at that point. I was very lucky to have family members and friends who searched every corner of the internet and connections they had to try and find someone, and likely, eventually, family and friends of ours, the Lindbergh and Logan's families, introduced us to Dr. Horowitz. I was starting my junior year at that point, and I went out to New York. Then, for four hours, I think, during the appointment with him, I ended up getting tons of information, all lining up with the symptoms I had and all very accurately describing stuff I didn't even tell you, which made me very confident that I was on the right track. I was extremely happy that I was finally getting real, solid answers. Through the nine-week treatment at this point, I had some difficulty with it. There were quite a few times when I was herxing and something, and it caused my anxiety to skyrocket, including when I went to the E.R. with a panic attack the last couple of weeks, but nothing was wrong. Luckily, it was just me having a ton of anxiety about it. About a week after that protocol, I was feeling so much better. It was night and day compared to what it was before. I had been unable to work out or walk around the floor. It was hard for me to concentrate on schoolwork, but afterward, it was all better. During the actual protocol, by the way, while it was difficult, I was able to continue my schooling and pass all my classes. While it is tough, it is not impossible to get through it and still live a semi-normal life. it's. My point is that it shouldn't be too scary. I'm currently in my first pulse. This is the last day of my first pulsing and obviously, I'm currently on the double steps, and I'm still feeling somewhat decent, as you all can see.

Richard Horowitz, MD

You are actually on your last day of quad Dapsone with hemoglobin that's a little elevated. You're speaking perfectly on the call. I mean, you're the reason I also wanted you to tell your story—you're in the middle of the treatment now during the last day.

Alden John Parker

I am, and, well, it's not a walk in the park. It is manageable at this point. This pulse has been so much better. After the first treatment, most of my symptoms were gone, mostly, I think, because I was able to find Dr. Horowitz very early in this cycle. I am very hopeful that this next pulse is going to put me out much further. I'm so happy that I was able to find Dr. Horowitz and have family and friends who can support me through this. This has been lifesaving, and I recommend it to everyone and anyone who has a disease.

Richard Horowitz, MD

Well, thank you, AJ. It's a great story. I'm glad you're doing well in school; you're about to get through, and you've got a great, supportive family. Congrats. We're looking forward to great things in the future for you. Thank you for sharing. We're just going to make a quick difference because I just got a text that one of the patients who's in school in California needs to go next. Olivia, would you please come on and just tell people your story so I can get you back to classes?

Olivia Goodreau

Thank you so much for making that change. I appreciate it. My name is Olivia Goodreau, and I was bitten by a tick at the Lake of the Ozarks in Missouri when I was seven years old. I didn't see the tick, and I didn't have a bull's eye rash. I spent the next 18 months seeing 51 doctors, all from Colorado. I had an MRI, CAT scans, EKGs, and a liver biopsy. I had my adenoids removed, and I was misdiagnosed a ton of times. They thought that I needed to drink water because I am originally from Colorado and it's a high-altitude state. Then they thought that maybe I had Wilson's disease, and the tests came back saying that I didn't have it. They started to think that I was maybe making it up for attention. I was misdiagnosed with Munchausen syndrome. Then, after the 51st doctor, I was finally randomly diagnosed with Lyme disease, and I hopped around with a couple of other doctors who were making sure that I was staying out of the hospital, but they weren't making any progress on my health. Then I met Dr. Richard Horowitz when I was in the sixth grade, and we had our very first appointment, and I think it lasted somewhere around six hours. He went through all of my records. The entire time, he was like, My gosh, they could have seen this symptom, they could have known, and I could have done this test. Of course, when he got to the Munchausen syndrome part, he banged his head on the wall because he was like, This happens to so many people, and this is just so unfair. He was able to diagnose me with not just Lyme disease but Bartonella, Babesia, POTS syndrome, relapsing fever, and iron deficiency in my liver. Then, after that, I went on a protocol of taking 86 pills a day for a couple of years. It was, to be honest, so much. It was terrible. It made me feel better. I was still making progress, but just the amount of pill taking, and I was still in school, and I wanted to be in school. That was my motivator. Getting out of bed every day was seeing my friends and doing what the normal kids did. Then in the summer, going into my freshman year of high school, Dr. Horowitz had this idea to put me on double-dosed Dapsone, and I believe, correct me if I'm wrong, I don't think we did. Did we do a double dose or did we do just a single dose for my body weight? I think.

Richard Horowitz, MD

You were the first patient. You were the first pediatric patient I ever put Dapsone on, and you did up to 100mg for up to a year, then didn't even do any treatment, I think for six, seven, or eight years because you were well enough from the low dose, but then you were about to go to college. We did the bar test; it was positive for the FISH, and we went, Okay, Olivia, you got to do the whole protocol the way we described it.

Olivia Goodreau

Yes, absolutely. Yes, I did that freshman year going into high school, and I felt great. Throughout high school, I was, I believe, roughly around 70% better. I was slowly getting there. Then I got up; it got up like 86%. I was slowly getting there. Then, in my senior year, we realized that we needed to follow the actual proper protocol. I did the nine weeks, the quadruple dose tops, with, I believe, the last week being all the quadruple dose. I was ramping myself up until last week. To be honest, again, someone else went to that. It's not a walk in the park, and it truly is. I feel like if all 42 of those pills had been combined into one singular pill, I would have done a lot better. I think that the issue was that your gut can't handle that many pills. It takes a lot for you to take those every single day. That was my biggest difficulty: looking at the box and being like, I have to do this again. It got rid of all of my symptoms. I used to have brain fog and tremors. I had muscle aches and pains. I lost my vision for periods at a time. It was hard for me to get out of bed. My neck muscles gave out. These pills that I took and this protocol truly saved my life. Throughout this time and my journey with Lyme disease, especially with Dr. Horowitz, I have seen it all. I have created my nonprofit because what I went through was terrible. But I know that people out there are going through so much worse, and they do not have Dr. Horowitz to help them. Truthfully, he has saved my life. I'm now at UCLA. Now, I'm living my best life. I have felt the most normal that I've ever felt in my entire life since I was seven years old. I can confidently say that I'm in remission, and I know that we just had this conversation a couple of days ago, but now I worry about the illnesses that college kids get and am trying not to get super sick. We're not worrying about Lyme disease and tick-borne illnesses anymore. It's such a relieving and refreshing change to have, and so this treatment has been incredible for me. I would recommend it to anyone eligible for it. It is truly amazing. It has turned my life around for the better. I wrote a book talking about my nonprofit, my journey, and my journey to becoming better while also dealing with school. I have a newer version of the book coming out in May this year. Yes, I have it next to it. It looks like this. and it talks more about Dapsone and how that was, especially being in high school and trying to be active with friends, family, school, and work. I was getting into colleges at that point. I had a little bit on my plate to deal with, and on top of that, every morning and every day I was taking all of these pills. If you ever need a second opinion and you're like, man, I want to try this treatment, but I want to hear from a patient, I would recommend maybe just checking out the little chapter that I have about Dapsone. But, Dr. Horowitz, you have truly saved my life, and I thank you so much for that. Every single day.

Richard Horowitz, MD

Thank you. Lev, it's my pleasure. You have a great family. It's been great knowing you. I know you're going to do great things in school and go on and help the world. Thanks again for sharing your story.

Olivia Goodreau

Thank you.

Richard Horowitz, MD

We're going to go back to normal. So, Nicki, can you please come on in and tell your story to the audience?

Nicole Kramer

Hi. I’m Nicki, I wanted to start by saying that the Dapsone treatment has been a complete game-changer for me. I got sick in 2017 and was lucky enough to get diagnosed in August of 2018. I was diagnosed with Lyme, Babesia, and Bartonella. My symptoms included a lot of neurological manifestations: pain, extreme fatigue, joint pain, neuropathy, and cognitive difficulties, just to name a handful. I barely made it through my senior year of high school, and then I took two and a half years off from college. I'm also a triplet, so it was extremely hard for me to compare myself to two other healthy people and to see where I was in comparison to them. Before seeing Dr. Horowitz, I did work with a different Lyme doctor. I did IV antibiotics for a little over a year, as well as a cocktail of oral antibiotics, which I sold for him for around eight months. When I first met with Dr. Horowitz, it was concluded that I also had mild symptoms, more toxicity, and severe adrenal dysfunction. I met with him in May of 2022, and I told him that it was my dream to be able to go back to school in August, and we made that happen. I have done a few rounds of Dapsone, and I've tolerated the drug extremely well. I was worried about the side effects, but I had no issues whatsoever. Previously, getting the IV treatments was very limited in terms of what I was able to do. I took years of oral antibiotics, and that was also something I experienced burnout from multiple times. It's hard on you mentally and emotionally to be taking pills every day for years at a time. But once I started with Dapsone. I got so much better, so much quicker. It's been great that the Dapsone pulses are so short. Because taking all these pills helps with mental health and burnout, and when people ask how the treatment is, I don't lie. It is hard, and it is intense. But I chose my hard, and my hard would be the treatment and not my suffering with my Lyme disease. Today, I'm about 95 to 98% better. I just finished a quad. I just did quad Dapsone; I just finished that about a month ago, and I'm feeling great. I've moved out, living with my parents. I'm in school, and I'm doing so well that I don't even remember the last time I felt so great. Thank you.

Richard Horowitz, MD

It is so great to see you look so well. Nicki. You look fabulous. Now you can kick butt with your other triplets. Now it's, I'm like, I'm the only one who's sick. Congratulations on getting back into school! This was, I think, your second six days of Dapsone pulse. This was the second six-day pulse. You have done four six-day pulses. They're easier as you go along, and you get better with each pulse.

Nicole Kramer

Yes. the load. Each time I do a Dapsone, the load of bacteria is lower. The herx aren't as bad.

Richard Horowitz, MD

That’s great. Thank you. It's so good to see you looking so well. It makes me happy. Congratulations on getting into school! We also look forward to great things. Thank you again.

Nicole Kramer

Thank you.

Richard Horowitz, MD

Our next person is going to be Tap. Tap, would you like to come on and tell your story?

Preston Stephenson

Good morning. I was diagnosed in 2003 after trying to figure out why vertigo was so bad and why I couldn't remember things. At one point in 1999, they were testing me for Alzheimer's. I was 39 years old at the time. I found a Dr. Rexine. My wife found Dr. Rexine. She was the one who diagnosed me, and then we had to go find somebody who agreed. and I was on 55 weeks of I.V., antibiotics, and then went on to a bunch of other systems, and then I ended up, got I was, pardon me, but I ended up with Dr. Horowitz, thankfully. Nothing worked well, I've been through it for 12 years. Some close to that.

Richard Horowitz, MD

You and I have been together for at least 12 or 15 years.

Preston Stephenson

Yes, we've gone through lots and lots of protocols, and we finally came up with Dapsone, and they did, a couple of months of Dapsone, just a single Dapsone, and we worked it up to another protocol with 100mg that, Dapsone. Then along came the double dose. That helped so much. It took me to the point where I could finally come up with some reliance on my abilities; it took most of the brain fog. It took most of my memory back. Was it tough? Yes. Yes, it was tough. My mom watched my mom go through three rounds of cancer and chemo, and it was not. It's not as bad as chemo. He just had two knees replaced and went on a six-day pulse, and we found that I had a different view of being in pain. It's not that bad. I mean, yes, I've had to have two knees replaced, but I get to tell you, being on the double dose of Dapsone and fixing just about everything, it's worth doing. Absolutely. There's not even a question in my mind. Anyone who's not thinking about who has Lyme is not thinking about doing it. Think again. You need to do this. It will fix your life.

Richard Horowitz, MD

Thank you. Tap. It's great to see you so much better. Please give my best to Jenny, and thank you for telling your story to everyone.

Preston Stephenson

Thank you very much.

Richard Horowitz, MD

The last person of the day is going to be Enid. Enid, you're going to be the last person to tell your story, which is an interesting one.

Enid Haller

Thank you. Dr. H., let me just come back on there. Hi, Dr. Enid Haller's my name. My husband and my daughter have all suffered from Lyme disease for over 15 to 20 years. We wouldn't have figured any of this out if it wasn't for Dr. H. That's for sure. We were misdiagnosed for many years. The thing that happened was that we had to move away from New York City, where I had a psychotherapy practice that was thriving, and I couldn't work anymore. We moved to the worst place in the world, Martha's Vineyard, which is ground zero for Lyme disease. We didn't realize that that was our vacation spot. That's probably where we were infected. I'm sure it was all three of us. My daughter, whose second year we moved there, didn't lose her ability to walk. She was bedridden. Someone handed me it. It was my friend Brooke Adams who lived down the street. I used to be an actor. I knew her from my old acting days. She gave me the movie Under Our Skin, which had been at the film festival that summer. If I hadn't watched that movie and seen Dr. Horowitz in that movie, I wouldn't have figured out what to do. I saw this film, and I was like, Those are all our symptoms. We all have different symptoms of Lyme. That's why it was so confusing. Three different people have three different sets of symptoms. But what was wonderful was just to see that film. Then I contacted Dr. Horowitz. Back then, it was easy to get in to see Dr. Horowitz. before anybody knew about this. But he spent it; it was the most incredible experience of my life with a doctor. He spent three hours with each one of us. We were there for nine hours in his office on a Saturday, I might say. That was, I was just crying, and at the end, because I was just. I was so thankful that we found the doctor, and I knew that when he said to us the last thing he said when we left that day, he said, Don't worry, you're going to get better. I was just like, Oh my God, after years of just misdiagnosis and going through so many different doctors, I'm saying your bloodwork is fine. There's nothing wrong with you. It was just such a blessing. It took a while to get better. It was like peeling an onion. We just had everything that he had to hit our symptoms with. Starting to get better away. My daughter started walking away. It was rather quick for her. She hadn't been ill as long as Sam and I, but Sam had been bitten on Martha's Vineyard when I was 14, and he had Bell's palsy in his face, and he had to go home to New Jersey after that. He had Bell's palsy for a year and his face at age 13, and nobody was diagnosed with Lyme or anything of this. He had been carrying Lyme for a very long time. We all gradually started getting better. We were very thankful. I became a Lyme advocate on Martha's Vineyard, started the Lyme support group there, and because everybody was sick on Martha's Vineyard, it was a bad, bad area for Lyme. I just sent everybody to Dr. Horowitz. I think it reached many patients.

Richard Horowitz, MD

Stop it now, Enid. No more.

Enid Haller

I sent him many people over the years and have gotten better. I started the Lyme support group there. I ran for over 10 years there, and all of them I sent to the doctor, Dr. H. So, he has saved so many people. I just can't even tell you. Everyone is so thankful for the vineyard, especially. and then I just wanted to try to give back. We all got, it very well, I did get, an IV in my arm for a year. We received it. I did go to Germany. We did that with hypothermia. But it wasn't until the Dapsone that got me over the hump that I felt like I could do it myself. I was myself again. That was five or four years ago. Five years ago, I think I got the remission. Since we did the Dapsone and I did the double dose, that just got me back to normal, and I wasn't able to go full force. I helped produce a film when the kids came to see me on Martha's Vineyard, and she said, I want to do a documentary. I said, so do I. I've been wanting to do that for years. We did the Quiet Epidemic. Please go stream it if you can. Doctor, age is all through it. It tells the story pretty well, I think, of what happened with Lyme. It took seven years to make it, but we put all our heart and soul into that film, and I thank God I was able to get well enough to try and do a film and pass the knowledge on, hopefully to as many people as possible. I hope people hear this. I hope this is a little sad. My daughter and I were in pre-med school at George Georgetown last year, and they just would not hear one thing about chronic Lyme at Georgetown University. They didn't want to hear anything about that. She dropped out, and now she's learning how to do magnet therapy with John Randall here in Woodstock, which is how she has helped many people. Lots of doctors and patients have come to Joan with this magnet. Therapy is good too. But I have to say that, Dapsone, is the thing that's happened. Thank you, Dr. Horowitz, for saving all three of our lives. and thank you for being such a good friend through the years.

Richard Horowitz, MD

Well, thank you. Thank you for telling your story. One of the most important things in your story is that, apart from being sick for so long, it wasn't me who gave you the IV antibiotics for a year. You took one year of Rocephin, and within one month of coming off Rocephin, you relapsed. I did double-dose Dapsone, and you're over four years in full remission. I mean, people need to know, that I don't even need IV antibiotics anymore. People are getting their lives back with this nine-week oral protocol with these two-week pulses. Thank you again. Yes, The Quiet Epidemic. It's a wonderful documentary and I'm sure a lot of people will see it. Thank you, Enid. I really appreciate it. We've come to the end today of these talks that we're having with others. I just want to thank everybody for attending this Healing from Lyme Summit. I think you're going to find that this particular episode is probably one of the most striking ones. You will occur during our entire summit because you heard from people directly about how sick they were for so many years. They went from doctor to doctor. Olivia, I think there are 53 or 54 doctors. I've had them go up to 100, but you can hear that looking at the MSIDS model, looking at the six sources of inflammation, the downstream effects, working at heavy metals and mold and pots, adrenal dysfunction, co-infections—all of these things are important to get you better. It's all in my last book. How Can I Get Better? All of this, by the way, is written up in the medical literature. As I said, we've published eight articles on Dapsone. If you're listening to this and you want to get Dapsone therapy, your doctor just has to look at the last article I published in Microorganisms in September 2023. The entire protocol is there to get you better. I want to thank everyone again today from the bottom of my heart for taking the time to share your stories. Dapsone Combination Therapy for me has been a life changer for all of my patients. It's given them hope, and it gives me hope as a physician that we have an answer, and the next step is going to be a double-blind, multicenter, randomized, controlled trial. Look out for the end of this year. We're going to use these testimonials to show everyone to hopefully raise the funds to do a Dapsone trial and prove to the rest of the world what you have known today and what you've shared today, which is Dapsone Combination Therapy and the 16-point MSIDS model is an answer for those people who are chronically suffering and you should all have hope. Again, thank you from the bottom of my heart to everyone today who has participated. Again, my name is Dr. Richard Horowitz. I'm co-hosting the Healing from Lyme Summit. Thank you for joining us today, and we'll be seeing you for another episode soon.

Discover Healing: 18 Dapsone Testimonials

Richard Horowitz, MD

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Richard Horowitz, MD