Most dermatologists misunderstand Morgellons disease to be a purely psychosomatic condition, but new peer-reviewed scientific evidence points to a bacterial infection.

During the annual Morgellons disease conference Dr. Steven Feldman meets with patients, physicians, and scientists. His empathetic persona crumbles when things don’t go as planned.

Dr. Randy Wymore has studied Morgellons for well over a decade and reports an increasing willingness among physicians to accept Morgellons as an infectious disease

Medical Historian Harry Quinn Schone advocates for compassion and asks the question, “Why is it our instinct is suspicion and mistrust and derision when it comes to something we don’t understand?”

Microscopic examination of Morgellons skin tissue confirmed by DNA analysis have revealed borrelia spirochetes, the causative agent of Lyme disease.

Many dermatologists prescribe anti-psychotics when patients claim to have Morgellons, even without a physical examination.

Marianne Middelveen, Cindy Casey-Holman, and Nancy Eggers from MorgellonsDisease.org head to a meeting with lawmakers. Morgellons activism is on the rise.

Singer Joni Mitchell is the most famous sufferer of Morgellons Disease.

After discovering that some of her Lyme patients were dealing with Morgellons symptoms like lesions and fibers growing on their skin, Dr. Ginger Savely found some success in treating these issues with antibiotics.

Registered nurse Cindy Casey-Holman reveals her scars from Morgellons Disease.

Kelly Pickens , a Morgellons patient and activist, has helped spread awareness of Morgellons and has tried to get it recognized as a real disease by the CDC (Centers for Disease Control)

A spirochete is a type of bacteria that causes Lyme disease. It is transmitted into the body by infected tick bites. Many physicians believe there is a link between Lyme disease and Morgellons disease.

Cindy Casey-Holman protests lack of medical treatment for Morgellons Disease on the steps of the Texas State Capitol.

With the aid of a microscope, many Morgellons disease patients have been able to see filaments coming out of their skin.

After Edward Hu showed symptoms of having Morgellons, it put a strain on his relationship with his brother Brian, a doctor, after Brian recommended Edward get psychiatric care.

Brian Hu arrives at his brother Edward’s home in an attempt to mend their relationship after a recent falling out when Brian, a doctor, recommended psychiatric care for Edward’s Morgellons disease.

The CDC did a four year investigation into Morgellons disease that many found controversial. Many media outlets and physicians interpreted the results of the study to indicate that Morgellons disease is really just Delusions of Parasitosis.

Harry Quinn Schone is a medical historian and philosopher that has specialized in contested illnesses like Morgellons disease. Contested illnesses are ones that the portion of the general public believe aren’t real, valid, or have a medical basis.

Cindy Casey-Holman is a registered nurse that started having symptoms of Morgellons disease in the mid-90s that included swollen feet, fatigue, anxiety, headaches, and most notably, fibers growing out of her skin.

Volunteer firefighters raced to the home of Charles Holman’s home in an attempt to revive him, but were unsuccessful

Dr. Steve Feldman is a dermatologist who examines Morgellons patients and attends the Morgellons conference in the documentary “Skin Deep, the Battle over Morgellons.”

In the documentary film, “Skin Deep: The Battle Over Morgellons”, Cindy Casey-Holman and other activists protest at the Texas State Capital in an effort to bring awareness to the lack of medical treatment for Morgellons Disease patients.

Patients complain that many dermatologists will not examine their skin once they use the term “Morgellons”

Marianne Middelveen is a veterinarian microbiologist that started studying Morgellons disease after noticing a similar filament growth on cattle suffering from Bovine Digital Dermatitis.

Dr. John Koo is a psychiatrist and dermatologist. He claims that when a friend or family member believes a Morgellons patient is ill, they too suffer from a delusion, and terms it, “folie à deux”

Dr. Raphael Stricker is a physician specializing in internal medicine that believes there is a link between Lyme disease and Morgellons disease. Because of paranoia surrounding long-term antibiotics creating drug-resistant bacteria, many patients are not prescribed antibiotics that could help treat their infection.

For over four years the CDC investigated Morgellons disease. Due to a low population study group and a time consuming evaluation process that many believed to focus too heavily on a possible psychiatric connection, the CDC published were controversial.

Dr. Randy Wymore is an associate professor of pharmacology at Oklahoma St. Center for Health Sciences. Dr. Wymore is absolutely certain that Morgellons is a real, biologically-based disease.

After discovering similarities between Bovine Digital Dermatitis and Morgellons disease, Marianne Middelveen and Dr. Raphael Stricker (pictured above) tested Morgellons tissue and Morgellons fibers to discover the existence of Borrelia spirochetes in the Morgellons skin tissue and the natural proteins keratin and collagen composing the Morgellons fibers.

Dr. Robert Bransfield is a psychiatrist that believes some diseases like Morgellons that are considered by some to be psychosomatic (physical illness caused by a mental or emotional disturbance) are actually somatopsychic (mental symptoms caused by a physical illness).

In an effort to build bridges between doctors and patients, the Morgellons disease conference started by Charles and Cindy Holman invite doctors that may be skeptical about the disease. Dr. Steven Feldman agrees to attend the conference in the documentary film, “Skin Deep: The Battle over Morgellons”

Lyme disease can cause muscle and joint symptoms, neurological symptoms, cardiac symptoms that are very unpredictable and difficult to diagnose. It is the belief of some doctors that if Lyme disease goes untreated and undiagnosed that it can progress to Morgellons disease.

Dermatologist Steven Feldman examines CIndy Casey-Holdman’s skin in an effort to better understand and find possible reasons for the filaments and lesions on her skin

Morgellons fibers can be viewed embedded in the skin with the help of a microscope, giving loved ones and family the opportunity to bear witness and acknowledge them.

When Cindy Casey-Holman showed her fellow nurses the Morgellons fibers growing out of her skin, her rare condition was confirmed by her co-workers

Dr. Timothy Berger is a dermatologist that has treated patients suffering from Morgellons disease who believes many of the symptomatic complaints of the disease comes from the spreading of these stories online.

Doctor Brian Hu attempts to better understand Morgellons disease by speaking with his brother Edward Hu who suffers from it. The brothers attempt a reconciliation after a long fallout in the documentary film, “Skin Deep, the Battle Over Morgellons.”

In the documentary film, “Skin Deep: The Battle Over Morgellons”, Edward Hu is able to find relief from Morgellons symptoms with the help of long-term antibiotics.

There were 227 people that received letters to participate in the CDC study of Morgellons disease. Of that number, only 115 met the CDC’s case definition, which included “the belief of fibers in the skin” and not “having fibers in the skin”. Of that 115, only twelve had fiber samples collected from them and no patient was observed to have fibers growing from their skin directly.

Dr. Philip Stenquist is a neuropsychiatrist that believes Morgellons disease may be a somatoform disorder in which a patient shows physical symptoms due to psychiatric causes.

With many finding no help from their doctors, sufferers have used the Internet to find others dealing with Morgellons to help find common symptoms and discover ways of dealing with the disease.

Patients have protested to gain recognition of Morgellons disease.. In the documentary film, “Skin Deep: The Battle Over Morgellons”, Cindy Casey-Holman and others protest at the Texas State Capitol.

While some within the medical community believe Morgellons disease is a physical condition, there are many doctors that believe it to be a delusional disorder. Dr. Steven Feldman (shown above) is a skeptical dermatologist who investigates the disease in the documentary film, “Skin Deep: The Battle Over Morgellons.”

In an effort to remove the filaments on his skin, a Morgellons patent burns them off.

Multiple studies done by Marianne Middelveen (pictured above) and Dr. Raphael Stricker support the theory that Morgellons disease is a bacterial infection linked to Lyme disease and not a delusional disorder.

Charles E. Holman and Cindy Casey-Holman founded a Morgellons disease conference in Austin, TX that is attended by nearly 100 people every year.

The definition of the term Morgellons can vary widely on the Internet. In fact, conspiracy theorists who claim Morgellons is government mind control via chemtrails get more YouTube hits than trained scientists explaining the infectious process of Morgellons disease.

Melissa McElroy Fesler is a nurse practitioner that treats Lyme and Morgellons disease patients. Because of Lyme disease testing inaccuracies, Fesler believes that there are many people suffering that go untreated or undiagnosed.

Nancy Egger is a Morgellons activist and patient that has worked to gain recognition for the disease by the CDC and lawmakers