I haven't posted in a long time - because I got Lyme disease and have been unable to paint.

UPDATE: I've missed painting. Here's why...I lost the use of my right hand and arm due to Lyme disease and was forced to stop painting. My husband was also ill will Lyme but his manifested differently. However, all is well now and I want to share our story in the hope that it can help cure others from this dreadful disease. 

HOW WE CURED OURSELVES OF LYME DISEASE 

This is our story


CHAPTER 1: THE HOUSE IN THE WOODS

In 1989, my husband, Peter, and I moved to beautiful New Hampshire. Our house sat on a hill overlooking a pond. It was an idyllic setting for any lover of nature, and we had plenty of dogs and cats to share it with.

While I spent lots of time painting in my art studio, Peter loved being outdoors with so much to do--gardening, clearing land, splitting and stacking wood. We were blissfully unaware of Lyme disease or that it is carried by ticks.

CHAPTER 2: PETER NEVER NOTICED A TICK BITE

In 2008, Peter began having occasional night sweats. Sometimes he would wake up in the middle of the night with his clothing soaking wet. Around this time he began sleep walking. He would wander around looking like he was awake, but in fact, he was still asleep.

It was difficult for him to “wake up” quickly without confusion. It took him at least 10 minutes to exit his dreamworld. These episodes were startling, but thankfully infrequent (perhaps once a month). He seemed perfectly normal for the rest of the day, so we chalked it up to being just an “odd quirk.”

In May 2009, Peter was driving us in our car. Always a careful driver, he suddenly pulled out of our long driveway onto the road, failing to look both ways, and we were almost hit by a truck. Moments later he began driving on the wrong side of the road.

Luckily, I was able to get him to pull over, took the keys and drove us home. I was badly shaken and hid the car keys, as he seemed completely unaware that he had done anything wrong or dangerous. In the days following that terrifying incident, his behavior went downhill very quickly. He began to forget things.

He experienced a sudden and radical personality change--from being a real sweetheart and an intelligent guy--to a grumpy and belligerent man who couldn't give a straight answer to any question.

He began to develop some obsessive-compulsive behaviors and often slipped into a rage when things weren’t working for him. Peter's night sweats became more frequent and more severe. It was difficult for him to make the transition from sleep to waking up.

He'd get lost in a fantasy world where he was someplace else, and thus he behaved inappropriately. Finally, when he was awake, he did and said things that were not normal for him to say or do. He frightened me.

I had friends ask what was wrong with Peter. Within two weeks of the “car incident,” I made a doctor's appointment to have him checked out (but I fibbed and let him think the appointment was for me).

Uncharacteristically, he warned me that he would not allow me to say anything about his behavior and loudly claimed that he was OK. But he wasn't.

At the doctor’s appointment, Peter left the office for a minute and I speed-talked and told the doctor what was going on.

Luckily, our doctor knew about Lyme disease and did an IGeneX Western blot test on him. Then Peter's symptoms continued to get worse.

It was a very difficult, frightening and confusing time. Approximately one month later, the doctor told us the test results showed that Peter had Lyme disease plus the co-infection of Babesia (the source of the night sweats).

The doctor said it was most likely from a tick or multiple tick bites. He prescribed azithromycin 250 mg once a day plus atovaquone 750 mg/5 ml Oral Suspension twice a day. Peter went on those drugs, and he improved almost immediately.

Oddly, he could not remember the car incident nor any of the strange behaviors that had followed it. After four weeks, Peter was back to his old self! I even felt comfortable enough to “find” his car keys as he returned to his old self. He stayed on those medications until mid-June 2021, when he accidentally went off of them. (More on that sad incident later.)

Peter continued antibiotic drugs for the next 13 years, felt fine, and we went on with our lives. He was tested from time to time with the IGeneX Western blot test for Lyme disease and the results showed that the Lyme disease plus Babesia persisted.

Note: Peter does not remember ever having any tick bites. But living in a rural area and spending a fair amount of time outdoors, it seems inevitable that he would get a tick bite.

We learned from our doctor that the pathogens from a tick bite can lurk in the system for 15 to even 20 years before any adverse symptoms began to appear.

In hindsight, the only symptom Peter had experienced (about a year before the driving incident) was a "trigger finger." Some days it was so annoying he wore a splint.

(The trigger finger symptom disappeared almost immediately after he began his Lyme medications, and has never returned.)

CHAPTER 3: KARIN GETS SICK

I never saw it coming. I had no idea I ever had a tick bite. Beginning in 2010, I felt awful nearly all the time, and I thought I was a hypochondriac. Over the years, a bunch of odd symptoms slowly increased in number and in intensity.

None of my symptoms were anything like Peter’s Lyme disease symptoms, so I never suspected Lyme. In 2017 I felt ill every day. I began to experience floaters (dark spots in front of my eyes) off and on looking like a swarm of flies.

I experienced muscle spasms so badly that my paintbrush would suddenly flip out of my hand, and eventually I had to stop painting. I experienced numbness in my hands and feet, and sometimes in my entire right arm.

Almost daily, I began to get visual migraines. If I didn't lie down with ice on the back of my skull pretty quickly, the migraine would turn to nausea and dizziness. I had frequent sinus infections and a Z-pack of azithromycin immediately made me feel better.

But as soon as I ran out, the sinus pain came roaring back. I looked for help and visited a variety of medical providers. I tried homeopathy and a radical diet change. I saw a psychotherapist for my depression. Everything I did helped a little, but did not change the way I felt for very long.

However, in hindsight, I found some clues that the therapy I needed might not be chemical but electrical in nature. That began with my finding a biomagnetic therapist. She helped me a lot, but the IGeneX Western blot for Lyme disease showed I still had Lyme with the co-infection of Babesia.

Also, another therapist once told me about a patient she had with Lyme who kept coming to appointments with burns on his hands. He explained to her that he accidentally got a jolt of electricity at work and afterwards he felt better than he had in years!

So he continued to intentionally, despite the danger, to “shock” himself. I do not know how he did it, but I filed the story away in my mind as highly unusual but very interesting. I had no intention of ever trying anything like that! I experienced pretty severe arthritic pain in various joints.

The pain never stayed in one place very long until I experienced severe arthritis pain in my right knee for nearly a year. Then one morning I woke up and the "arthritis" was in my left knee. It had just “jumped over,” my right knee was pain-free and the good knee hurt like blazes!

It made no sense, and I wondered if I was crazy. I called our doctor. After hearing all of my seemingly unrelated complaints, he tested me for Lyme disease with the IGeneX western blot test. I do not remember ever being bitten by a tick. I never saw a bullseye rash. A few weeks later, the test came back with a diagnosis of Lyme disease and Babesia as a co-infection.

I began taking 500 mg azithromycin once daily plus 5 ml of atovaquone twice daily (for the Babesia). Within days, I felt better than I had in years. The monthly antibiotic bill for us was huge. They are very necessary and very expensive (a real pain in the pocketbook)!

I never really felt good, but much much better was good enough for me. I stayed on those antibiotic medications for the next four-plus years until mid-June 2021, when I surprisingly tested negative. And that’s what this story is about.

CHAPTER 4: THE RADIAC FOR KARIN

After all this experience with Lyme I decided to try an alternative treatment for Lyme (in addition to the antibiotics). Peter pooh-poohed the idea and did not wish to “experiment” with alternative treatments. I began working with the biomagnetic therapist (mentioned earlier).

Despite frequent herx* reactions, I felt better after each treatment. But on Dec. 3, 2020, I was tested and was still positive for Lyme and Babesia. I was not cured. I am fascinated with the work of Edgar Cayce and have read a lot about him over the years. I decided to seek an additional treatment and consulted Edgar Cayce’s Association for Research and Enlightenment (A.R.E.) at EdgarCayce.org.

Lyme disease was not known in Cayce’s day, but there was syphilis, and I learned that the spirochete (pathogen) for Lyme and syphilis was the same thing. A.R.E. recommended Baar.com, which officially supplies Cayce’s remedies. The Radiac has been called a meditation unit, stress reducer, bio-electric balancer and spiritual and self unfoldment tool.

Dr. Bruce Baar, the manufacturer of the Radiac, is featured in the books: UnBreak Your Health, The Complete Guide to Complementary & Alternative Therapies and Super Memory" and SuperLearning 2000. The Radiac is also mentioned in more than 1,000 readings given by Edgar Cayce. It is exclusively manufactured by Baar Products, Inc. See: Baar.com 


The Radiac has been referred to as the mind machine, the bio battery, the radial appliance, the dry cell or the impedance device. No batteries and no electrical outlets are involved. To use it, place it in a plastic container (#102, see below), add ice to the red line, then add water, wait 15 minutes and attach to your wrist and ankle as described in the instruction booklet.

I began using the Radiac machine for meditation before it occurred to me to use it with a Baar Vibradex solution as a medication for Lyme Disease. I read The Radiac Book from Baar Products found at baar.com

I began to use my Radiac with the recommended Lyme Vibradex solution in mid-April 2021. (Note, I continued to take antibiotics). I did about 60 treatments from April through June 2021. Peter declined to do this treatment with me.

When both Peter and I went to the doctor to be retested (with the IGenix Western blot) for Lyme disease, I simply expected the tests to continue to show the persistence of Lyme yet again. However…

CHAPTER 5: KARIN WAS CURED, AND PETER MADE AN AWFUL MISTAKE

When we returned to the doctor on June 15, 2021, we learned the results of our Lyme tests: I was Lyme (and Babesia) free--I was cured! Peter’s test showed that he still had the Lyme and Babesia infection.

Peter had misheard these results. Here’s why: Peter has worn hearing aids for many years and has them adjusted about every 4 months.

He was due to have his hearing aids adjusted the day after that doctor's visit. I was so surprised and excited that I tested negative and could finally stop taking antibiotics!

But I did not realize Peter had misheard and he wrongly thought that he tested negative too. His test was not negative. He was still Lyme and Babesia positive. But unfortunately, he then stopped taking his antibiotics, without my knowing it.

CHAPTER 6: ALL HELL BREAKS LOOSE

On July 15, exactly one month after Peter stopped taking his medication for Lyme, he very suddenly, within a matter of two hours, “went off the rails” and exhibited aggressive violent behavior. He experienced “Lyme rage,” in which the pathogen simply takes over the brain.

I took him to the ER and unfortunately the doctors there did not recognize Lyme disease, nor did they understand it. And they were unable to hear me when I told them. I called the drugstore we used and the druggist confirmed that Peter had not refilled his Rx for antibiotics the month prior.

The druggist remembered that Peter said WE were “cured of Lyme disease.” (However, I was cured, but sadly, he was not.) Peter was diagnosed in the ER as having “advanced senile dementia and schizophrenia.”

I insisted that he had Lyme disease and that his behavior was caused by a pathogen in his brain. The ER doctors gave him the ELISA test for Lyme, and it was negative. ELISA is a highly unreliable test. But they used it, unfortunately believed the faulty result, and discounted everything I said.

Peter was hospitalized and was given heavy-duty industrial-strength tranquilizers and antipsychotic medications to calm him down. My anger, fear and frustration hit new levels when the doctors refused to believe it was Lyme disease.

They refused to give him antibiotics and rejected the fact that he had been on antibiotics for years for Lyme. The doctors simply did not believe me when I told them that Peter had been “normal” several hours earlier. I went home after being with Peter for nearly 48 hours in the ER and collapsed from the stress and not having eaten.

I unknowingly took a bad fall, and I suffered a broken clavicle and a concussion and was hospitalized. However, on July 21, because I had medical power of attorney, I won the uphill battle to keep Peter out of the state psychiatric hospital and got him to our Lyme doctor. He immediately put Peter back on stronger antibiotics. Peter was finally being treated correctly.

It took the next two months to recover from this awful episode and return, once again, to his “normal life" on antibiotics. Naturally, after recovering from this awful episode and hearing the stories (he had no memory of any of it!), Peter had a change of heart and was eager to get home again and try the Radiac device since it worked so well for me.

CHAPTER 7: THE RADIAC CURES PETER

Peter began using the Radiac from Baar with the Lyme Vibradex solution on Sept. 22, 2021. He used the Radiac 73 times over the next four-plus months. On Feb. 9, our doctor retested him for Lyme using the new and more sensitive IGeneX ImmunoBlot test for Lyme.

One month later the result came in, and Peter was negative for both Lyme disease and Babesia! He is cured. We both are. It seems obvious that the Radiac device from Baar with the Vibradex solution for Lyme is the reason. (I think of the Radiac as a “forgotten miracle.”)

We were told that Lyme disease (and those nasty co-infections) could not be easily cured and that we both would likely be on antibiotic medications for the rest of our lives. If we hadn’t found the Radiac we would likely still be taking those antibiotic medications.

The cure for our Lyme Disease wasn’t chemical--it turned out to be electrical. And it was gentle. We did not experience any herx* reactions at all during or after our treatments.

* NOTE: Herxheimer or herx reactions are a short-term (from days to a few weeks) detoxification reaction in the body. As the body detoxifies, it is not uncommon to experience flu-like symptoms including headache, joint and muscle pain, body aches, sore throat, general malaise, sweating, chills, nausea, or other symptoms.

RESOURCES:


TESTIMONIALS ON THE RADIAC: (It’s not just a cure for Lyme disease) https://www.baar.com/radiactestimonials.htm

THE RADIAC DEVICE: https://www.baar.com/radiac- starter-kit 


VIBRADEX #185 - LYME'S SOLUTION: https:// www.baar.com/vibradex-185-lymes-solution

VIBRADEX SOLUTION JAR STARTER SET : https:// www.baar.com/vibradex-solution-jar-starter-set

THE ESSENTIAL CONTAINER FOR THE RADIAC: https://www.baar.com/container-for-your-radiac

BOOK ABOUT THE RADIAC: https://www.baar.com/radiac-book

HOW TO CONTACT BAAR:

Orders: 1-800-269-2502 Customer Service: 1-610-873-4591. Fax: 1-610-873-7945.

#LymeDisease #lymediseaseawareness #ilads

FYI: As I understand it, the Radiac uses your own body’s energy and equalizes it, then by adding a solution like Lyme - it then sends the vibrations of that solution into your body, very subtly, and basically gives your body what it needs to heal itself. Neither my husband nor I experienced any herx reaction during or after its use. We are also cured of our co-infections of Babesia and Bartonella.




This is my badly hurt right hand - my painting hand - as it was recovering from paralysis. Normally, my right hand was much larger than the left. At the time, this photo showed my hand slowly beginning to recover from the Lyme. (Note, it is completely normal today).


There are hundreds on ticks on the back of this hand. They are difficult to see and they cannot be felt. And this is why most people never notice a tick bite... and years later they develop an odd combo of symptoms - and it is a devil for most doctors to diagnose properly.

BTW. Right now, the ONLY accurate test for Lyme disease and confections is IGeneX. 









LEONARDO DA VINCI’S GENIUS MAY BE ROOTED IN A COMMON EYE DISORDER


A close-up of Leonardo da Vinci’s “Salvator Mundi.”

For centuries, people have theorized about the source of Leonardo da Vinci’s artistic genius. Just how was he able to so accurately capture depth and perspective on a flat canvas?

New research suggests da Vinci’s unmatched talent may in part be the result of his ability to see the world differently — literally.

There is now evidence that da Vinci’s renowned capacity to reproduce the three-dimensional world in paintings may have been aided by an eye disorder that allowed him to see in both 2-D and 3-D, according to a study published Thursday in JAMA Ophthalmology, a peer-reviewed journal.

Da Vinci is believed to have had a condition called intermittent exotropia — commonly referred to as being “walleyed” — a form of strabismus, eye misalignment that affects about 4 percent of the U.S. population. Those with exotropia usually end up favoring one eye over the other, which means they are more likely to see the world as if it were, say, painted on a flat canvas.

“When they’re in that condition . . . they’re only seeing the world monocularly, with much reduced depth cues,” the study’s author, Christopher Tyler, a professor at City University of London and researcher at the Smith-Kettlewell Eye Research Institute in San Francisco, told The Washington Post. “The image they’re seeing is much closer to what they want to paint on the canvas.”

But in da Vinci’s case, the painter was, at times, able to control his wandering eye, which in turn provided him with an artistic advantage, Tyler said, noting that the ability to switch between the two perspectives meant that da Vinci would “be very aware of the 3-D and 2-D depth cues and the difference between them.”

Tyler, who has studied da Vinci’s life for more than 20 years, said he started noticing the disorder’s telltale sign while examining works by the artist and those done of him.

In many cases, “they had the eyes diverted,” he said.

“This is something I would notice, what I’m attuned to notice,” said Tyler, who specializes in studying binocular vision.

Tyler set out to support his theory by conducting mathematical analyses on six works — two sculptures, two oil paintings and two drawings — believed to reflect da Vinci’s appearance. The pieces included Andrea del Verrocchio’s “David,” a bronze sculpture said to be a depiction of da Vinci as a youth, as well as da Vinci’s “Salvator Mundi,” which recently became the most expensive painting ever auctioned, selling for more than $450 million last year.

Measuring the relative positions of the pupils, irises and eyelids in each work, Tyler wrote in the study that da Vinci had “an exotropic tendency of approximately -10.3° when relaxed.”

“There’s a weight of evidence in all these portraits that tends to add up to something meaningful,” Tyler said.

Da Vinci would not be the first famous artist to have the disorder. Previous studies analyzing eye alignment in self-portraits have suggested that painters such as RembrandtEdgar Degas and Pablo Picasso were also strabismic.

Shira Robbins, a professor of ophthalmology at the University of California at San Diego who was not involved in the research, called Tyler’s findings “intriguing,” echoing his belief that the ability to switch between seeing out of one or both eyes “can be advantageous from an artistic perspective.”

“What happens in some people is when they’re only using one eye . . . they develop other cues besides traditional depth perception to understand where things are in space, looking at color and shadow in a way that most of us who use both eyes at a time don’t really appreciate,” said Robbins, who is also the educational director at the Ratner Children’s Eye Center within the Shiley Eye Institute in La Jolla, Calif.

But Robbins pointed out that there’s a “caveat” in the research — the “images are not 100 percent identifiable as being” da Vinci, she said.

Very few self-portraits of da Vinci exist, Tyler said, adding that he had to take “a more creative view” when identifying “likely portraits” of the famed artist.

While several of the works examined “have not generally been considered to be self-portraits,” the study said, “da Vinci himself was very clear that artists’ work is likely to reflect their own appearance.”

In the Codex Atlanticus, the largest set of da Vinci’s drawings and writings, he wrote that the soul “guides the painter’s arm and makes him reproduce himself, since it appears to the soul that this is the best way to represent a human being.”

If the works Tyler studied are in fact accurate reflections of da Vinci, Robbins said she would agree that the painter appeared to have strabismus.

The research, she noted, would have a “hugely positive” impact on the large number of people with eye-alignment disorders. The condition often leads to the misconception that people who have it are of “lesser intellect,” Robbins said, adding that research has shown those people often get passed up for jobs or aren’t as frequently invited to social gatherings.

“Anybody who has strabismus will look at this and be imbued to know that someone as brilliant as Leonardo da Vinci had a similar problem to them, and it certainly didn’t seem to hinder him in any way possible,” she said.

By Allyson Chiu, reporter for the Washington Post.
Article Here.

MY TEACHERS ARE TEACHING!

When "talent finally meets a teacher," something exciting happens.

PULIDO STUDIO 
PAINTING CHILDREN WORKSHOP
OCTOBER 2 - 6, 2017


This is an intensive 5-day oil painting workshop with two nationally known instructors.
All levels accepted including professionals who are looking for a more efficient and orderly technique.


"Finishing up" ~ 5th Day of their former Still Life Workshop 


More details. 

Numael and Shirley Pulido are not only great painters, they are the best teachers I ever had! They teach both Still Life and Portraiture in separate intensive workshops.




Portrait by Numael Pulido



You can enjoy some of their work here. Numael's works are in oil and Shirley's works shown here are in pastel ~ and oil. More information here.

This five and a half-day course is meant to accommodate artists looking for a unified approach to picture-making and oil painting technique.

Contact them here.



Portrait by Numael Pulido

Their workshops are an intensive course of instruction and open to only 11 students per workshop.


Still Life by Numael Pulido

It is a teaching applicable to all levels, - for beginners or for advanced painters who are looking for a more classical approach.


Still Life by Numael Pulido

Each student will start a start a still life with the same instruction and advance according to his/her own level of experience.


Portrait of Shirley by Numael Pulido

Some time will be devoted to advice for doing more effective set-ups for both still life and portrait painting.


Portrait by Numael Pulido

This is a workshop which provides the student with a great amount of procedural information and time-tested principles that allow the natural talent of the student to become more accessible.


Flowers (pastel) by Shirley Pulido

Schedule:

Begin Monday 9 am.

Friday will be the last day of formal instruction. 

Saturday morning, 9-12 AM they will cover reference photography and be available for questions.


Flowers (pastel) by Shirley Pulido

The price of the course is $750 which includes some materials such as non-toxic medium.


Portrait by Shirley Pulido

Accommodations are abundant in the area - and New England’s oldest, beautiful inn is right in town.

Good lunches, a five minute walk to town center.

And Peterborough, a cultured and elegant town, 7 miles down the road from Hancock for relaxed evenings.


Portrait by Shirley Pulido

The Manchester NH. airport is 45 minutes from Hancock.

The Pulido Studio is located at #6 Forest Rd. (Rte 123) Hancock, New Hampshire.


Portrait by Numael Pulido

We urge anyone considering this course to call so that we can discuss in further detail any of the above.


Portrait by Numael Pulido

Emails are fine, but we would also like to establish a personal contact by phone if you are planning to come.



Portrait by Numael Pulido

Contact Numael and Shirley Pulido,
Hancock, New Hampshire


Still Life (pastel) by Shirley Pulido


Study Form, Composition, Light, using the limited palette: ideal for artists wishing to enhance their knowledge of master painting technique and classical composition.


Still Life (pastel) by Shirley Pulido

This is a real opportunity to study with two masters of classical realism. And they are only accepting 11 people.


I recommend The Hancock Inn (one of the oldest inns in the country) as a delightful place to stay. It is within walking distance of the Pulido Studios, dining, library, grocery store....and a large picturesque pond.

"The Classical Realism Workshop" is a rare opportunity - so grab it if you can. I promise, you won't be disappointed.


Some Earlier Workshops:


I stopped by the last workshop toward the end and snapped a quick picture of the students busy working. This studio is small - but very comfy. The Pulidos have painted a mural on the far wall that gives their space a delightful "airy" (and classical) atmosphere.

I never met anyone who wanted to paint that was totally lacking the talent. But without solid instruction it is nearly impossible to get to a professional level.

For a lucky few, Numael and Shirley Pulido took their workshop participants through a step-by-step classical oil still life painting. Having experienced this procedure first-hand, the student can now return home and bring this traditional knowlege to all of their future works.

As I expected, they all "got it" - and the resulting work is most impressive. It is really exciting for me to see what happens when "Talent Finally Meets a Teacher."

Visiting the Pulido Studio Workshop made my day!

Here are some photos from recent workshops: