Symptoms appeared quickly: fatigue, headaches, muscle pain. His GP dismissed it as “exam stress”. A mistake that marked the beginning of a chain of medical missteps, costing Dominic nearly three decades of his life.
Gruelling symptoms and medical ‘care’
As his symptoms worsened – migraines, heart rhythm disturbances, extreme sensitivity to light and sound – Dominic sought help at various hospitals. Doctor after doctor ignored his story about the tick bites. Their diagnosis? Psychological issues. “It’s all in your head”, he was repeatedly told.
By 2005, his health had hit rock bottom. Overcome by pain and exhaustion, he ultimately attempted to end his suffering. What was later diagnosed as acute neuroborreliosis, a brain infection caused by Lyme disease, was dismissed at the time as a mental health crisis.
Dominic was placed in a psychiatric clinic and heavily medicated. Epileptic seizures were dismissed as “attention-seeking”, and he received rough handling by nursing staff. It wasn’t until an outsider, a duty GP, intervened and had Dominic urgently transferred to the University Medical Center Groningen that he received the necessary acute medical care. Yet even there, the diagnosis was missed. Back in the psychiatric clinic, he was once again told it was “all in his head”.
An unaccepted diagnosis
Years of misery followed. Dominic lost his job, his relationship, even contact with his brother. He ended up isolated, trapped between pain and disbelief. It wasn’t until 2008, after seeking a second opinion at another hospital, that the truth finally surfaced: active antibodies against Borrelia burgdorferi, the bacteria that causes Lyme disease, were found. Neuroborreliosis. The disease he had been suffering from all along.
Antibiotic treatments came too late to prevent long-term damage. Dominic continued to suffer from epileptic seizures, chronic fatigue, and other lasting symptoms. Meanwhile, his doctors still treated him as a “problem patient”, with outdated, incorrect diagnoses lingering like a shadow over his medical records. Unbelievably there were even attempts by medical institutions to prosecute Dominic for “misuse of medical care and emergency services”. As if his suffering wasn’t enough.
A turning point: hope from abroad
In 2015, a German doctor finally provided a breakthrough. After extensive testing, it became clear that Dominic wasn’t just suffering from Lyme disease but also multiple other tick-borne infections, including a past tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBEV) infection. Blood tests also revealed high concentrations of pesticides like glyphosate and imidacloprid – substances Dominic had frequently been exposed to during his work. So it wasn’t a functional disorder, somatic unexplained physical complaints (SOLK), conversion disorder, or PNEA after all. To his great relief, psychiatric disorders were finally ruled out and disproven. With an intensive treatment plan of antibiotics, nutritional supplements, and detox therapy, Dominic began a slow recovery. For the first time in years, he felt heard and helped.
Invisible scars of a life-altering disease
Today, Dominic is still not fully recovered and doubts he ever will be, but his life is no longer one of constant suffering. He has energy again, can walk, cycle, do volunteer work, and tirelessly advocates as a board member and patient representative for various tick-borne disease organisations. He fights for recognition of all tick-borne diseases and their chronic symptoms, improved diagnostics, revision of treatment guidelines, and compassionate care. Not just for himself, but for everyone enduring a similar ordeal.
Improved medical awareness desperately needed
Dominic’s story is not unique. It reflects a medical system that fails when symptoms don’t fit neatly into a box. A system where doctors can be too quick to label patients with psychological terms like “functional disorder” or “MUS” rather than look deeply enough into their health. “Some doctors have apologised” Dominic says, “But that doesn’t change the thirty years I’ve lost. Thirty years of fighting, suffering, and surviving”.
Dominic’s message is clear: tick-borne diseases are real and can destroy lives. Ticks may be tiny, but their impact can be immense, and those affected deserve way more than disbelief.
Follow Dominic on social media:
Facebook: @dominicdsmithnl
Instagram: @dominicdsmith
X: @dominicdsmith
Bluesky: @dominicdsmith.bsky.social
LinkedIn: @dominicdsmith