Lyme Disease: Giving Voice to the Illness Experience-An Exploratory Descriptive Study

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to explore and describe the illness experience of patients suffering with Lyme disease. A survey containing demographic and Likert Scale items (The Illness Experience Survey) was constructed and administered to patients suffering with Lyme disease. Descriptive statistics were analyzed to produce findings that: 1) described the participants in the study, and2) described the participants’ illness experience. The study concluded that the pain and suffering that Lyme patients experience is undeniable and that people afflicted with Lyme disease appear to be at-risk of disenfranchisement by society at-large and the mainstream medical community; thus, adversely affecting their illness experience.