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Maples, who recently joined the Season 22 cast of “Dancing With the Stars,” started to experience Lyme symptoms at age 22.
“I had aching joints and muscles, couldn’t think clearly and doctors thought I might have Epstein-Barr,” she said.
Despite her years as a Georgia-bred tomboy jock and Broadway dancer, Maples found that her energy level had changed dramatically.
“I was achey and hurting and had very low energy,” she said.
Maples was eventually diagnosed and treated with antibiotics for six to eight months, partly because she had also picked up a parasite while visiting Guatemala and the Peace Corps.
She hasn't taken antibiotics since, rather, “I want to care for myself inside out versus outside in" and practices yoga, "clean eating - kosher food, no gluten, no dairy" and meditation and ozone therapy.
Maples has previously not spoken out publicly about Lyme, but called herself a “quiet warrior” for those suffering from the disease.
“I have many friends with chronic Lyme and it’s a tragic disease,” she said.
“I want to help them, to guide them, let them know the importance of the mind-body-spirit connection."
The gala is a major fundraiser for Global Lyme Alliance, a Lyme and tick-borne disease nonprofit.
The Gala will be held from 6:30 p.m. to midnight at the Hyatt Regency Greenwich, Old Greenwich.
For more information, or to purchase tables or tickets, visit GlobalLymeAlliance.org or call (203) 969-1333.
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