Melanie Barker

In July 1993, Melanie Barker of Ames and her husband celebrated their 15th wedding anniversary by going to Dubuque.

The plan was to take a riverboat ride.But due to the massive floods that year, they hiked in the parks along the Mississippi River and the Wisconsin Dells area for three days instead. "We also remember that I was sick that last day," Barker said.
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That was the beginning of Lyme disease for Barker, although she was not officially diagnosed until April 1997 in Missouri.Lyme disease is caused by infected ticks.But Barker never saw the offending tick, nor did she even think to look for one after their hikes."A lot of people are like me (that have Lyme disease) - never saw a tick, never saw a rash, and never knew what to look for," she said."In 1993 there wasn't a lot of Lyme awareness going on in Iowa."But now she knows."By August 1993, I began having episodes of feeling very jittery - like you would feel if you drank a whole liter of Mountain Dew in an hour," she said."I would have to lie down and eat something and soon it would pass.My neck ached and felt extremely stiff.Body tremors began and I was also beginning to feel depressed and had troubles concentrating."Barker said in October of that year she had lab workups including tests for diabetes and thyroid problems.All tests came back fine, but she could feel her body deteriorating and her mental state collapsing.She said a variety of symptoms continued, including exhaustion, tremors and palsy much like Parkinson's disease - all affecting her work as a medical laboratory technician at Mary Greeley Medical Center.More tests were completed. "But there seemed to be no medical answers," she said.She began to read about Lyme disease in medical journals."Suddenly those four years of symptoms began to unfold on the pages," she said. She said the article mentioned tremors, heart palpitations, a stiff neck, depression, gait disorders and leg pain caused by the bacteria making "Swiss cheese" out of nerve endings.She was diagnosed with neurological Lyme disease in April 1997 after searching for answers over four years and 12 doctors.Since that time, Barker has been on antibiotics. Barker, currently the co-director of the Lyme Disease Association of Central Iowa, was also diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome.In 2001 she began an exercise regimen to help improve balance and to gain strength and stamina.A year later she still had tired mornings and averaged 8-10 bad days a month. She is much better these days as a result of taking a medication made from pregnant cows.The medication kills the viruses producing the chronic fatigue syndrome. "My immune system is now working again and finally after 10 years I am feeling energetic again," she said."I'm luckier than a lot of people.