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No Warranties or Representations
Lyme Disease symptoms vary from person to person. (lymes disease lyme's disease lime disease limes disease)
The data and information presented in this web site are presented in good faith and believed to be accurate regarding Lyme disease (commonly misspelled lymes disease lyme's disease lime disease limes disease) and other related diseases. Any and all liability for the content or any omissions including any inaccuracies, errors, or misstatements in such data or information is expressly disclaimed. The web site is compiled for the sole purpose of informing community members of resources and information pertaining to Lyme Borreliosis Disease and its coinfections. Lyme disease symptoms may vary from person to person.
The Canadian Lyme Disease Foundation, Directors and members are not liable for any direct or indirect damages or any damages whatsoever resulting from loss of use, data or profits, whether in an action of contract, negligence or other tortious action arising out of or in connection with the use or performance of information available from this website.
Consult a qualified Lyme ( Borreliosis ) Disease literate doctor for medical advice if Lyme Disease is suspect to discuss your Lymes Disease Symptoms.
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Is your teenager with Lyme disease struggling in school?
WILTON, CT - October 13, 2005 - Have you watched with sadness and frustration as your teen's academic skills have declined since he developed Lyme disease? Does she forget the simplest assignments or seem unable to stay organized? Does he stumble over tasks he used to perform with ease?
Patrick McAuliffe, M.Ed.-a doctoral candidate at Teacher's College, is recruiting teenagers for a study on the relationship between Lyme disease and cognition. As a school psychologist in Ridgefield, Connecticut, and as a facilitator of the Wilton Lyme Disease Support Group for Teens, Mr. McAuliffe has extensive experience with emotionally fragile teens in general and Lyme disease patients in particular.
Lyme disease may have a dramatic, disruptive effect on teens trying to meet the academic and emotional challenges they encounter every day. Some students become so ill they can't attend school on a daily basis. Those who make it to class may struggle with debilitating symptoms such as fatigue, headaches and joint pain. They may also experience a sharp, sudden decline in academic achievement. Teens with Lyme may well be overwhelmed as they try to meet the intense academic and social pressures of teenage life.
Mr. McAuliffe is conducting the first research project to examine the cognitive effects of Lyme disease in adolescents. The need is great, since Lyme is a controversial disease and spreading rapidly. Estimated to affect as many as 54 % of households in some communities, Lyme disease case reports doubled from 1991 to 2000, and have since risen a dramatic 40% between 2001 and 2002. Children are at special risk, since they spend so much time outdoors in their yards or on school grounds.
Objective research with appropriate psychological instruments is vitally important in order to properly evaluate teens suffering with Lyme. If Lyme's cognitive consequences are not identified and treated, the results can be devastating, leading to school difficulty and even school failure. The social consequences can also be extremely painful.
About the study
Adolescents in high school between the ages of 13 and 18, both with and without Lyme disease, are eligible to participate. Parents will be screened by phone about their teen's medical history. If eligible, the teen will be given various psychological tests that measure cognitive functioning. Teens and parents will learn the results of the tests, which will provide helpful insights into their issues and needs.
Participants will also receive a $20.00 gift certificate to Amazon.com.
About the researcher, Patrick McAuliffe, M.Ed.
Patrick McAuliffe, M.Ed. is a doctoral candidate in the school psychology program at Teacher's College, specializing in Neurosciences and Education.
In that capacity, he has trained at a hospital-based neuropsychological assessment service, a residential treatment facility for children and adolescents, a school-based health clinic, and in the public schools.
Mr. McAuliffe is currently a school psychologist in Ridgefield, Connecticut. He designed and runs an in-school therapeutic program for emotionally fragile high school students.
Before graduate school, Mr. McAuliffe worked as an evaluator with Dr.
Brian Fallon of Columbia University on a pioneering study regarding neuropsychiatric Lyme disease in children and adolescents. Dr. Fallon is an advisor on Mr. McAuliffe's current research project.
About the Lyme Disease Support Groups
The Wilton Lyme Disease Support Group for Adults was established in
1998 to provide information and support to patients and families coping with Lyme disease. Teenagers were offered a group of their own in 2001.
Well over 600 patients have now utilized the groups' services, which include professionally facilitated monthly meetings and periodic educational events.
Teens meet the first Tuesday of every month at 4:30 PM. Young people struggling with Lyme find support, hope and the opportunity to befriend peers facing similar challenges. Patrick McAuliffe, M.Ed., a school psychologist, offers specific social and academic coping strategies.
Adults meet the second Wednesday of every month at 7:30 PM. Lyme patients, together with family and friends, share information and support on a variety of topics. Subjects range from the disease itself, to navigating the healthcare system, to coping with chronic illness at work or in relationships. The group has been facilitated since its inception by clinical psychologist Douglas Bunnell, Ph.D.
The groups are co-facilitated by master's candidate Yvonne Bokhour.
She and Jay Lux, a nurse with a master's in public health, also handle the groups' administration, which include regular educational events.
For more information about Mr. McAuliffe's research study, please visit or write Pmcauliffe@lymediseaseresearch.com.
To learn more about the Wilton Lyme Disease Support Groups, which meet at Comstock Community Center in Wilton, call Yvonne at 203 594 9077 or write kos1@earthlink.net.
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