Episode 307: Strength from Sweden - an interview with Åsa Rydmark Kersley

Åsa Rydmark is a 48-year-old woman from Sweden who has traveled all around the world. She’s worked in the medical field as a Registered Nurse (RN), research nurse at a gynecological ward, and for the last two years as a research coordinator at Linköping University. Ms. Rydmark had many tick bites throughout her life, got a bullseye rash when she was 14, and Lyme came out and wreaked havoc when she was 39 due to mold exposure and environmental toxins weakening her immune system while performing home renovations. At first, she thought her symptoms were due to “sugar addiction” after reading an article in the newspaper about it. Removing sugar and gluten from her diet helped her feel a little bit better. Ms. Rydmark quickly realized there was more to the picture and saw many doctors, all of which told her she was fine and her tests all came back normal. She was finally diagnosed with Lyme disease at the age of 46. Ms. Rydmark and her doctors believe she suffers from Acrodermatitis Chronica Atrophicans (ACA), a late and chronic manifestation of European Lyme borreliosis (Borrelia afzelii), which is characterized by red or bluish-red lesions and leads to extensive flaccid atrophy of the skin. Ms. Rydmark was treated with Doxycycline for a month, but her doctor wouldn’t do any more for her and she only made minimal health improvements. She started researching and came across the Tick Boot Camp Podcast, Dr. Rawls’ work on chronic Lyme, and Dr. Horowitz’s Multiple Systemic Infectious Disease Syndrome (MSIDS) all of which solidified her gut feeling that she was still sick with Lyme disease and needed more help. Ms. Rydmark started her treatment with Dr. Rawls’ herbal Restore Kit and Gut Revival Kit from Vital Plan, but the international shipping costs weren’t practical so she had to stop despite feeling better and kickstarting her true healing journey. Next, she tried some Microbe Formula products that built upon the improvements started with Dr. Rawls’ products. She also discovered Swedish Fascia Vibes which helped improve lymphatic flow and aided her body to rid itself of toxins more easily. This was a gamechanger for Ms. Rydmark. If you’d like to learn more about how Ms. Rydmark “found a new complete and whole sense of self and a belief in the power to heal and help others,” then tune in now! PS Rachel Barnes, a Life, Health, and Wellness Coach, special guest co-hosted this interview with Matt from Tick Boot Camp!