Resilience, Purpose & Chronic Illness: Ali Moresco's Journey from Lyme Patient to Advocate, Episode #93

What happens when chronic illness completely derails the life you thought you were going to live—and ultimately leads you directly to your purpose? In this episode of The Silver Lyming, Anne sits down with longtime friend and one of her personal inspirations, Ali Moresco, Lyme disease advocate, healthcare communications strategist, founder of Moresco PR + Communications, and Executive Board Chair of Project Lyme. Ali was in her early twenties, working in the fast-paced world of celebrity and entertainment PR, when a trip to Northern Michigan changed her life. After developing symptoms of acute tick-borne illness—including a rash that was not the classic bullseye—she spent two years moving through doctors and specialists before finally receiving answers. What followed was a years-long journey through Lyme disease, multiple co-infections, immune dysfunction, debilitating symptoms, and an enormous amount of trial and error in treatment. Ali shares candidly about the therapies that moved the needle for her, including immune globulin therapy and her experience with Dr. Richard Horowitz's dapsone combination protocols, while emphasizing an important truth: there is no single Lyme treatment that works for everyone. But this conversation goes far beyond treatment. Anne and Ali talk about the transformation that can happen when illness forces you to reconsider everything—your career, your priorities, your relationship with your body, and what you want your life to mean. Ali shares how her experience as a patient ultimately led her from entertainment PR into healthcare communications and national patient advocacy. Today, she uses both her professional expertise and lived experience to amplify patient voices, elevate physicians and researchers, support Lyme research, and advocate for meaningful change in healthcare. They also discuss the urgent need for better physician education, access to care, more accurate information surrounding tick-borne illness, and the importance of patients continuing to advocate for themselves—even when they don't have the energy to fight another battle. Perhaps most importantly, Ali shares what Lyme unexpectedly gave her: purpose, perspective, and the ability to slow down enough to truly experience her life. This is an episode about much more than surviving Lyme disease. It's about what can happen when the life you planned disappears—and you build something even more meaningful in its place. In this episode, Anne and Ali discuss: Ali's two-year road to diagnosis; Lyme disease and multiple co-infections; why a rash doesn't have to look like a classic bullseye; immune dysfunction and immunoglobulin therapy; Ali's experience with dapsone combination therapy; why Lyme treatment must be individualized; navigating years of chronic illness without losing hope; the evolution from celebrity PR to healthcare advocacy; the current state of Lyme awareness and advocacy; educating physicians about complex chronic illness; turning suffering into service; finding purpose after illness; and learning to appreciate the small moments that make up a life. Ali's message is ultimately one of hope: healing may not return you to exactly who you were before illness—but it may introduce you to someone you were always meant to become. Connect with Ali: Ali Moresco / Moresco PR + Communications⁠ Instagram: @AliTMoresco Slightly Spiritual Podcast with Ali Moresco and Cindy Luffred