Tick Boot Camp – Details, episodes & analysis

Episode Summary: In this powerful episode, the Tick Boot Camp hosts speak with Kim Strother—celebrity fitness trainer, holistic health coach, yoga instructor, and model for brands like Ford, Nike, Reebok, Adidas, Columbia Sportswear, Footlocker, and more. As one of LA’s top trainers, Kim shares her transformative journey from undiagnosed Lyme disease to becoming an advocate for holistic health and chronic illness recovery. Her battle with Lyme began with mysterious symptoms from a young age, leading to a 22-year struggle before finally receiving her Lyme diagnosis. Today, she uses her expertise to inspire others with a multi-modal, bio-individual approach to wellness.

Key Takeaways:

• Kim’s childhood on a family Christmas tree farm in tick-endemic New Jersey involved frequent tick exposure but little awareness of tick-borne illness risks. She began experiencing fatigue, migraines, GI problems, and chronic infections as a child, but these symptoms were dismissed or misdiagnosed for over two decades, setting the stage for a lengthy, difficult journey before her eventual Lyme diagnosis.

• By age 28, Kim’s health had deteriorated significantly, with debilitating, multi-system symptoms. After years of seeking answers, she was finally diagnosed with Lyme disease along with several co-infections and chronic conditions: Babesia, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, Bartonella, Candida overgrowth, mold and heavy metal toxicity, parasites, and SIBO.

• Kim’s recovery involved a multi-pronged approach that combined traditional and alternative treatments:
  • Natural Supplements: Homeopathic herbs and Monolaurin (a natural antifungal) helped combat infections.
  • Diet and Detox Therapies: A Paleo diet centered on greens and protein reduced inflammation, and therapies like glutathione IVs, infrared saunas, colonics, and ozone steam treatments supported detoxification.
  • Innovative Devices: Kim used the FreMedica Wave frequency device, which provided symptom relief through frequency-based therapy.
  • Electromagnetic Acupuncture Testing: This testing helped Kim track her health status and adjust her healing protocol.

• Kim emphasizes the importance of tuning into your body, maintaining patience, and finding hope even during setbacks. She underscores that healing from chronic Lyme disease requires resilience and support from knowledgeable communities.

• Her journey through chronic illness has deeply influenced her approach as a trainer and coach. Kim now focuses on bio-individual health strategies, mindfulness, and sustainable practices, helping clients achieve wellness with a balanced and holistic perspective.

Additional Highlights:

• High-Profile Career: Kim’s career has included being a featured trainer on the Melissa Wood Health App and earning recognition as one of the most in-demand fitness models by racked.

Advice from Kim Strother:

• On Lyme Healing: Stay hopeful, be patient, and celebrate small wins. Healing is a long journey, but each step forward is valuable.

Connect with Kim Strother: To learn more about Kim’s fitness programs and holistic health approach, visit her website and follow her on Instagram.

In this transformative episode of the Tick Boot Camp Podcast, host Matt Sabatello is joined by Janna Johnson—#1 best-selling author, keynote speaker, Functional Medicine Nutritional Therapist, and Lyme disease survivor. Janna’s powerful story of recovery from Lyme disease, breast implant illness (BII), and chronic illness showcases her commitment to functional health and the role of mindset, self-care, and lifestyle adjustments in healing. This episode offers listeners invaluable insights and actionable strategies for overcoming chronic illness with a holistic approach.

Raised in Texas, Janna grew up with a sugar-heavy diet that led to chronic inflammation, gut health issues, and mental health struggles, including anxiety and depression, by her twenties. Her journey to healing began when she made dietary changes, emphasized gut health, and embraced the connection between chronic inflammation and neurological symptoms.

Janna’s recovery from Lyme disease was rooted in holistic protocols, including essential oils and dietary changes. After years of misdiagnoses, she was finally diagnosed with Lyme disease by Dr. Aviva Romm. Her treatment strategies include:

• Keto Diet: Janna adopted a strict ketogenic diet, focusing on healthy fats, minerals, and low-sugar foods to reduce inflammation and restore gut health.
• Essential Oil Protocol: She used a blend of essential oils such as cinnamon bark, thyme, oregano, and tea tree oil to target Lyme bacteria and biofilms. Janna mixed the oils with a carrier oil (organic extra virgin olive oil) and took them in veggie capsules, adjusting dosages based on muscle testing and practitioner guidance.
• Lymphatic Detox Support: To assist her body’s detoxification, Janna incorporated infrared saunas, dry brushing, and regular exercise to support lymphatic drainage and symptom management.
• Mindset and Die-Off Preparation: She emphasizes the importance of mental resilience through die-off reactions—normal but challenging responses to microbial “kill” phases—reinforcing her belief in the body's capacity to heal.

Janna resonated with Tick Boot Camp’s PARM model, a framework developed to guide chronic illness recovery:

• Prehab: Prioritizing detox and lymph support, as well as sleep, to prepare the body for treatment.
• Assist: Helping the body through the microbial “kill” phase by supporting immune function and enhancing the body’s ability to clear out pathogens like Lyme bacteria.
• Rehab: Focusing on healing the body from Lyme-related damage by incorporating nutrients, rest, and supportive practices that address neurological and physiological impacts.
• Maintenance: Creating sustainable wellness habits, like a nutrient-dense diet, stress reduction, and routine exercise, to support long-term health and prevent relapse.

After successfully managing Lyme disease, Janna encountered Breast Implant Illness (BII), experiencing symptoms like brain fog, anxiety, and chest discomfort. Muscle testing confirmed that her implants were contributing to these issues. Janna chose to undergo explant surgery, a process requiring meticulous removal of both the implants and surrounding capsules. During her six-month recovery, she revisited protocols such as keto dieting and lymphatic detox to support her healing.

At the core of Jonna’s journey is her commitment to cultivating a strong, positive mindset—a cornerstone of her approach to overcoming both Lyme disease and BII. She emphasizes that "our actions follow our thoughts," underscoring the power of belief in recovery. Jonna’s experiences reinforced that mental resilience, paired with self-compassion, is essential when facing the daily challenges of chronic illness. This belief in the mind-body connection enabled her to persevere through difficult treatments and stay committed to her wellness goals, demonstrating the profound impact of mindset on long-term healing.

Janna is the author of _Unf*ck Your Mind, which explores overcoming life’s challenges through mental resilience and self-compassion. Her upcoming book details her Lyme disease journey and provides readers with more information on her personalized healing protocols.

• Dietary Changes are Foundational: Reducing sugars and carbohydrates can significantly impact inflammation and gut health, especially for those battling chronic illness.
• The Power of Essential Oils: When used properly, essential oils like cinnamon bark, thyme, oregano, and tea tree oil can support the body’s defense against microbes and biofilms.
• Detox Support is Vital: Methods like dry brushing, infrared saunas, and regular exercise help the body eliminate toxins and reduce Lyme symptoms.
• Mindset and Perseverance: Janna emphasizes that mental resilience is just as essential as any physical treatment in the healing process.

Join Janna Johnson in this episode as she shares her inspiring journey, from Texas to full health, while discussing the strategies and mindset that helped her overcome Lyme disease, breast implant illness, and chronic health issues. Her message is one of hope, resilience, and the belief that recovery is possible with a dedicated, holistic approach.

• Janna’s essential oil protocol for Lyme disease
• Her thoughts on the Tick Boot Camp PARM model for chronic illness recovery
• Insights into breast implant illness and the explant recovery process
• Tips on treatment, diet, mindset, and self-care for chronic illness

In this enlightening episode of the Tick Boot Camp Podcast, hosts Matt Sabatello and special guest co-host Justin Lindorf sit down with Dr. Andrew Petersen, a Lyme-literate medical doctor with over 24 years of experience in treating chronic Lyme disease and other complex chronic illnesses. Dr. Petersen shares his unique journey into medicine, driven by a desire to "stick up for the little guy," and how he transitioned from family medicine to becoming a leading figure in Lyme disease treatment.

Key Takeaways:

• Creating a Healing Environment: Dr. Petersen emphasizes that the key to overcoming chronic Lyme disease is creating an environment where the body can make more new cells than are being broken down, which promotes overall health and healing.
• Promoting Cell Growth and Repair:
  • Ingredients for New Cell Formation: Ensuring the body has the necessary fats, proteins, carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals, oxygen, and water.
  • Proper Signaling Molecules: Maintaining the presence of hormones, peptides, cytokines, interleukins, enzymes, growth factors, and neurotransmitters.
  • Optimizing Cell Production: Addressing hormone and thyroid imbalances to enhance the body’s ability to make new cells.
• Reducing Cell Death:
  • Managing Microbes: Implementing strategies to reduce the microbial load, including Lyme-specific treatments and immune support.
  • Detoxification: Actively managing and reducing environmental and internal toxins that contribute to cellular breakdown.
  • Addressing Stress and Trauma: Implementing therapies to reduce the impact of psychological and physical trauma, which can trigger immune dysfunction.
  • Mitigating Electromagnetic Frequencies: Reducing exposure to EMFs, which can disrupt cellular function and contribute to chronic illness.
• Fecal Implants and Microbiome Health: Dr. Petersen discusses the use of ThaenaBiotic, a processed and sterilized form of fecal microbiota transplant (FMT), to help restore a healthy microbiome. This approach aims to reintroduce beneficial bacteria to the gut, which can be crucial for patients with Lyme disease and other chronic conditions.
• Dr. Petersen’s Journey: Learn about Dr. Petersen's unconventional path to becoming a DO, inspired by personal experiences and a dynamic biology professor.
• Understanding DO vs. MD: Dr. Petersen explains the differences between DOs (Doctors of Osteopathic Medicine) and MDs, and why he chose the osteopathic path.
• Challenges in Lyme Diagnosis: Dr. Petersen discusses the difficulties he faced in diagnosing Lyme disease during his early career, especially while working in tick-endemic areas without proper awareness or training.
• Integrative Approach to Healing: Dr. Petersen shares his holistic approach to treating Lyme disease, which includes addressing the key factors that contribute to chronic illness alongside Lyme-specific treatments.
• Justin Lindorf’s Perspective: As a Lyme patient himself, Justin offers valuable insights into Dr. Petersen’s compassionate and open-minded approach to patient care.

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Dr. Susan B. Trachman, MD is a practicing psychiatrist with over 30 years of experience, an Assistant Clinical Professor at Virginia Commonwealth University, and Clinical Associate Professor at George Washington University. Dr. Trachman is also a prolific author and a columnist at Psychology Today.

Dr. Trachman grew up in the Long Island, New York Lyme belt where a passion for law and medicine grew out of a childhood interest in “learning how things worked”. She merged her two passions by focusing her medical school training and attending physician work to become the go-to doctor for “mystery cases”.

In this comprehensive interview, the award-winning Dr. Tractman discusses with Tick Boot Camp:

• How her passion for exploring medically unexplained illnesses taught her to focus on Lyme disease;
• How her Psychosomatic Medicine Fellowship shaped her ability to diagnose and treat the neuropsychiatric presentations of Lyme disease;
• How and why the acute care medical system in the United States is ill-equipped to diagnose and treat Lyme disease and chronic illnesses in general; and
• How the shortcomings of the medical system are causing frustration and trauma to doctors and patients alike.

If you would like to learn more about how the author of the soon-to-be-released book on medically unexplained symptoms is using her medical detective skill set to diagnose and treat neuropsychiatric symptoms of Lyme disease, then tune in now!

PS Dr. Christine Arseneau special guest co-hosted this interview with Rich from Tick Boot Camp!

Ann Pennington is a blogger, model, philanthropist, and multi-pageant champion. Her pageant achievements include Mrs. USA Earth 2023, Mrs. New Jersey Earth 2022, and United States of America Mrs. 2021.

Ms. Pennington grew up a daughter of the American west and was educated in Asia. She married and moved to the eastern United States to pursue professional opportunities in New York City. She was unaware that her move to the east coast would require her to protect herself and her family from the ever-present threat of ticks and Lyme disease.

Shortly after moving, she began to suffer from migrating health symptoms. Some of her 20 symptoms encompassed multiple joint pains, brain fog, memory loss, rashes, and fatigue.

Her illness progression stole her ability to work and walk without assistance. Despite having access to scores of New York City’s top doctors and medical centers, the cause of her symptoms remained a medical mystery. One of her medical doctor specialists suggested that her extreme weight loss, hair loss, and vision loss were the function of advancing to the “age of 40”.

After winning the Mrs. New Jersey Earth crown, she suffered from a symptom flare triggering her to call her sister. After hearing the description of her suffering, her sister recommended that she request a test for Lyme disease.

At her scheduled visit with an immunologist, she tested positive for Lyme disease with the traditional two-tiered blood test.

If you would like to learn more about how Lyme inspired Mrs. USA Earth 2023 to construct and promote the “Spray Before You Play” campaign to help protect children from suffering caused by Lyme disease, then tune in now!

Tanya J Miller is a 40-year-old author, speaker, coach, strategist, and entrepreneur. She is the owner-operator of a Minority Woman’s Business Enterprise (MWBE) business.

Shortly after starting a “side hustle” passion project, she began to suffer from “major pain”. She initially believed the pain was related to a previously diagnosed chronic illness but quickly discovered “that it was something else”.

Her symptoms forced her to visit between 10 and 12 doctors, all of whom struggled to locate the cause of her cognitive issues, seizures, and “legs going out without notification”. The first hint of a diagnosis came from her chiropractor who noted that her symptoms were similar to a “teen patient that was diagnosed with Lyme disease”.

Following the chiropractor’s advice, she returned to a medical doctor to demand to be tested for Lyme disease. The initial and follow-up blood testing confirmed she was positive for stage 3 chronic Lyme disease.

The treatment that followed helped Ms. Miller to discover her purpose, faith, and resourcefulness. If you would like to learn more about how Lyme disease taught a business professional that her God-given purpose was to represent others suffering from chronic Lyme, then tune in now!

PS Tiara Smith special guest co-hosted this interview with Rich from Tick Boot Camp!

Adena Sampson is a best-selling author, singer-songwriter, coach, and founder of Outloud Productions and The Unbreakable Spirit Movement.

The multi-talented entrepreneur and artist constructed an almost magical life and career. She became a sought-after speaker, emcee, narrator, and presenter and she graced the entertainment stage across the globe as the opening act for world-renowned artists such as Patti LaBelle and Wayne Newton.

In 2008, everything changed for the worst. “Everything just fell apart - [her] health, [her] relationship, [her] finances. [Her] world came crashing down and so did [she]”. For the next 7 years, her health decline forced her to visit “too many doctors to count” until she was finally diagnosed with chronic Lyme disease.

Following her diagnosis, she traveled a long road to healing. During her travels, she learned 9 principles that allowed her to rediscover the road back to the version of herself stolen by chronic illness.

To share the healing principles she learned while healing, she wrote the 2021 Best Book Award Winner: The Road Back To Me - 9 Principles for Navigating Life’s Unexpected Twists & Turns.

If you would like to learn how Lyme disease taught an entertainment professional the principles for recovery and healing, then tune in now!

PS Cole Elbel special guest co-hosted this interview with Rich from Tick Boot Camp!

Tony Felice is the 58-year-old founder of Felice Agency, an award-winning branding, advertising, marketing, and public relations firm. He is a dual citizen of Phoenix, Arizona, and San Diego, California.

After a summer vacation trip to tick-endemic Cape Cod, Massachusetts, Mr. Felice returned home with an extensive skin rash, joint pain, brain fog, vertigo, and flu-like symptoms that lasted for months. For the next 2 years, his health steadily declined prompting him to visit 24 doctors in search of a diagnosis.

Unfortunately, the mysterious symptoms were not new to Mr. Felice. Two decades earlier, he lived in Maryland where doctors diagnosed him with “Lowland Swamp Fever” a diagnosis he believes may have been a precursor to the discovery of Lyme disease.

His diagnostic puzzle was finally solved when a Naturopath administered diagnostic tests confirming active infections for Lyme, Bartonella, and Babesia.

If you would like to learn more about how Lyme disease redirected a marketing and public relations expert to lend his talents to Lyme disease advocacy and charitable works, then tune in now!

PS Dani Tygr special guest co-hosted this interview with Rich from Tick Boot Camp!

Dr. Kent Holtorf, MD is the founder of the Holtorf Medical Group with offices in El Segundo, California and Marietta, Georgia. He is also the founder and director of the not for profit National Academy of Hypothryoidism and Integrative Science (NAHIS). His work has been featured on numerous TV shows including the Today Show, CBS Sunday Morning, ABC News, ESPN, CNN and Fox Business.

Dr. Holtorf suffered from and managed a series of undiagnosed childhood and early adult illnesses that caused him to have difficulty getting out of bed. By the time he attended medical school, he suffered from terrible fatigue leaving him barely able to function.

He visited numerous medical colleague practitioners and specialists and was told that he was “depressed or stressed and needed to get more sleep and more exercise”. The standardized diagnostic tests he studied and learned to utilize in medical school “revealed nothing abnormal”.

His undiagnosed medical condition left him feeling hopeless until he tested positive for Lyme disease, Babesia, Bartonella, reactivated viruses and mold toxicity. Finally securing a diagnosis allowed Dr. Holtorf to resolve his symptoms by using innovative treatments including peptides, SOT therapy, NK cells and other progressive treatment practices.

If you would like to learn how a journey with Lyme disease inspired a doctor to open treatment centers to help others who are suffering the way he had, then tune in now!

PS Daisy White special guest co-hosted this interview with Rich from Tick Boot Camp!

Dr. Miles Nichols is the 37-year-old co-founder of the highly regarded Denver, Colorado based Lyme and mold treatment clinic: Medicine with Heart. He also co-founded the Medicine with Heart Institute to provide professional training to clinicians in the treatment of complex chronic diseases.

Born into a high achieving Ivy League educated family, Dr. Nichols followed the family tradition and was accepted into gifted and talented educational programs through middle school. By the time he entered high school, a multitude of nagging childhood illnesses merged and presented as chronic fatigue causing his grades to decline.

Debilitating fatigue forced Dr. Nichols to seek alternative educational models. He attended a school founded by a Buddhist Monk and then he gritted his way through graduate school. Unfortunately, his physician father and scores of doctor colleagues could not solve Dr Nichols’ chronic fatigue puzzle.

Finally, in 2016, Dr Nichols tested positive on a blood test for Lyme disease. In 2019, he tested positive for Babesia and Barronella. If you would like to learn more about how Lyme disease inspired a doctor to build a heart centered treatment institute in an effort to end suffering caused by Lyme and mold diseases, then tune in now!

PS Micaela Hoo special guest co-hosted this interview with Rich from Tick Boot Camp!