Kelly Osbourne opened up about how she almost died from undiagnosed Lyme disease
Kelly Osbourne has always been open and honest about her personal struggles. And Osbourne just opened up about near-fatal Lyme Disease in her new memoir, There is No F*cking Secret: Letters From a Badass Bitch, recounting how she was given countless prescriptions over the years for misdiagnosed symptoms.
In an excerpt from the book, she wrote:
"When I got yet another prescription that left me barely able to speak, I was reduced to a lump on the couch, and that was my breaking point. I took my bag of pills, and my fiancé [Matthew Mosshart] drove me to my mum’s house. I sat them all out, one by one, until they lined up the length of the counter. “I can’t live like this anymore, I said. 'I’m a vegetable.'"
Osbourne was exhausted and in agony — both mentally and physically. She recalls how she was feeling anxious from taking so many pills, and it seemed like a helpless situation until her family intervened.
“As a last resort, she [Sharon Osbourne] called Philip Battiade at Infusio, an alternative medicine practitioner. I’d first met him when he treated my brother for MS. When I met with Philip, I assured him that I hadn’t used unprescribed drugs in years and that I thought I had Lyme disease. I had started entering my symptoms into online quizzes, and the results kept coming back Lyme disease. For the first time, someone listened to me, and I got tested. The results were positive: I had stage III neurological Lyme disease. I was relieved to finally know what was going on, but I was also scared s–tless.”
Osbourne believes she contracted the disease in a reindeer sanctuary during her father’s 56th birthday. After her diagnosis, Osbourne began receiving stem cell therapy at a treatment center in Germany, and gradually strengthened her immune system so that her body could fight off the disease.
"I was experiencing emotions and feelings again. I’d been in a diseased and doctor-approved drug-induced haze for so long that I didn’t know what it was like to be happy or sad or in pain."
Osbourne experience serves as a solid reminder to always seek help if you’re experiencing any pain. Trust your gut, get a second opinion, and talk to your friends and family about it.
"I’ve learned to advocate for myself when it comes to my health, and I trust my intuition. If I think something is wrong, I refuse to let anyone dismiss it. And sadly, I stay the f--k away from reindeer."
Thanks for getting in deep and sharing this sensitive stuff, Kelly.
