No amount of words could explain the pain, the worry and the hopelessness I have felt over the past three years. Nothing can make up for the days where I just genuinely didn't think I could do it anymore and yet, here I am.

I'm going to be everything I want to be and nothing will keep me from where I'm headed, not even Lyme disease.

I thought I had the flu. My body ached and I was tired. My mom took me to the doctor and they gave me an antibiotic and sent me on my way; little did I know that for the next year doctors would be throwing whatever at me just to get me out the door.

I took the prescription and nothing happened. I went back, got more antibiotics and nothing happened. Every doctor I saw just didn't seem to care enough to look deeper into the problem.

A year went by with doctors calling me crazy, saying they couldn't help me or what I hated the most, giving me a bunch of medicine swearing it would work. It all just left me sicker and wasted my time. My symptoms were just getting worse: headaches, trouble breathing, panic attacks.

Finally, my mom asked if they could check for Lyme disease in my next blood test. We were just grasping at straws, desperate for an answer. They gave her a weird look but checked anyways and that's when everything changed.

It is sometimes called the "invisible disease" because you look completely healthy. There's no one symptom that screams Lyme disease so doctors will almost always rule it out. Even getting tested for Lyme can come up negative, when another will say otherwise.

There isn't a quick recovery when it comes to Lyme. You can't take antibiotics for it once you've had it for a long time. It takes so much focus every day.

My life since finding out has consisted of doctor appointments every week, herbs and vitamins that kill the Lyme spirochetes, a total diet change and a complete mental change as well.

I'm not the same person I was three years ago. Pain changes people; the mental and physical. Getting sick forced me to grow up because I didn't have a choice. Your priorities change when all you want in the world is to feel good.

I might not feel good all the time, but I'm healthier than I have ever been. As much as it hurts and how tired I get of managing my pain and making sure I do everything right to heal, I find myself thanking God for this disease. It has taught me so much about health and my own body.

After three years of fighting for my health and my happiness, I finally believe that I deserve it. This whole process has taught me to love myself and that I'm worth everything I'm doing to get better. And If I can beat one of the hardest bacteria's to kill off, what can't I do?

I've made a lot of sacrifices for Lyme disease and there have been many days where I get angry and wonder, why me? I think the answer to that is, I was meant for this. I was meant to grow stronger, love myself and learn about how hard life can get. Someday it's going to be clear what all of this was preparing me for and I'll be happy I didn't give up.

We all have a battle and this is mine.