Lyme disease

[Wanabe1972]

Hello all. I don't want to be a downer but as most of you spend as much time in the woods as my family I would like to share some info with you. This is not to scare anyone but just for you to be aware. My oldest daughter((18) became very ill 2 years ago. We spent all of our savings and much more trying to find the cause. Long story short she has Lyme disease. She is now recovering after a year of IV antibiotics and almost has her life back. This morning I found a tick on my back went to the doctors and got it removed. Little did I know that in my mailbox were test results of my 16 year old daughter who has not been feeling well for weeks. You probably already guessed it but she is also Lyme positive. Please everyone try to protect yourselves. Tuck your pants into your socks. Check yourselves everyday you go in the woods everywhere they don't care where the burrow into you. There are many websites you can read up on percautions. The CDC doesn't think there is a problem in NY but I beg to differ Take care of yourselves and Thank you for letting me vent. Jeff

[MapleLady]

I am sorry to hear about your girls, Jeff. I hope that they will feel better soon. Sadly, we all need to be reminded to take precautions for ticks -- even in the winter! I picked up 2 last spring gathering sap -- on both occasions bit on the back of my neck. Prior to that, I always thought of bugs/ticks as a summer-time caution. Not so here in New Hampshire.

[SeanD]

The good news is, it is treatable, though more easily treatable if caught early. I'm sorry that was not the case for your girls, Jeff. I'm pretty vigilant about checking for ticks and I still got slammed with Lyme this past spring. It came with a fever and headache that I don't wish on anyone. I never saw the tick, only the rash afterward. It must have been practically microscopic.

Once I saw the rash, though I knew what it was and why I had been so sick. I was surprised that a course of anti-biotics took care of it. It took a couple of weeks, but in the grand scheme of things, it wasn't bad. The key for me was being aware what it was. Thanks for keeping this in the front of our minds as the ticks get going this fall.

Good luck,
Sean

[BreezyHill]

Jeff, I am saddened by your families misfortune but your thoughtfulness of your brethren is unequalled. Thank you for reminding us that safety is no accident.

Ben

[maple flats]

Everyone should be checking for ticks after being outside. 2 yrs ago I had a tick imbedded in my back. Had it removed and went thru a regimin of treatment. Several days later my wife had a tick, we removed it, it had not yet started attaching to feed. Then a couple of weeks later I again had a tick. That was the first year we ever saw any ticks. Last year we found and removed 2 ticks. This year, haven't found any yet.
If you or a family member get a tick , remove it by gently grabbing and turning counter clockwise while you pull. If the tick was engorged, tell your doctor. If anyone ever gets a bite they don't know what it was from, look for a classic bulls eye surrounding the bite. If you see the bullseye, get medical attention, it is a lime infected tick bite.

[Wanabe1972]

Thanks for all the kind words and hopefully we have caught it early enough so a dose of antibiotic will help her soon. My oldest daughter was undiagnosed for over three years and that is why she had it so bad. Lots of doctors around here are still uneducated on Lyme and just dismissed it as a mental issue. Also the testing for Lyme is terrible and almost 70% of cases test a false negative. Just watch for a rash as normally an adult tick will give you a general rash. Our doctor told us its the adolensant nymph that leaves a bullseye. Neither of my girls had a bullseye and my oldest never found a tick. Well I'm not going to speek of this anymore as I'm not a preacher and this is not the forum for this matter I just wanted all to be aware. Thanks again Jeff

[delivron]

Lyme's is a serious problem in NYS. The pastor of New Hope in Queensbury has been battling the problem for over a year now on an extensive drug therapy. Definitely a problem. We need to push our legislators to set aside money for Lyme's research and accurate diagnosis. Fortunately NYS Senator Betty Little, representing the North Eastern portions of the Adirondacks is a real supporter of research realizing the problem that exists. http://www.nysenate.gov/press-release/senate-majority-coalition-announces-task-force-lyme-and-other-tick-borne-diseases http://www.nysenate.gov/press-release/senate-majority-coalition-announces-task-force-lyme-and-other-tick-borne-diseases But we need more research now! (Note both cases are for folks that live within 10 miles of each other.)

Also the methodology of tick removal has changed.

From the Center of Disease Control

If you find a tick attached to your skin, there's no need to panic. There are several tick removal devices on the market, but a plain set of fine-tipped tweezers will remove a tick quite effectively.

How to remove a tick
1.Use fine-tipped tweezers to grasp the tick as close to the skin's surface as possible.
2.Pull upward with steady, even pressure. Don't twist or jerk the tick; this can cause the mouth-parts to break off and remain in the skin. If this happens, remove the mouth-parts with tweezers. If you are unable to remove the mouth easily with clean tweezers, leave it alone and let the skin heal.
3.After removing the tick, thoroughly clean the bite area and your hands with rubbing alcohol, an iodine scrub, or soap and water.


Avoid folklore remedies such as "painting" the tick with nail polish or petroleum jelly, or using heat to make the tick detach from the skin. Your goal is to remove the tick as quickly as possible--not waiting for it to detach.

[regor0]

I found a line of clothing that has tick repellant in the fabric. It's call Insect Shield. We all wore it this year and it really helped keeping the ticks off. Also Columbia has a similar line of clothing. They aren't that much more expensive that regular clothes so that's what I have been wearing instead.
www.insectsheild.com is the website or I found the Columbia at Gander Mountain. I also bought a set of coveralls I wear in the woods that have the permathrin impregnated in them, they have velcro cuffs and velcro around your ankle to cinch them up, also around your neck. No place for the little buggers to get in, except on your head.

[Flat Lander Sugaring]

Sorry for your family illness hope for full recovery for all.

To my knowledge there are two types of Lyme tests. One has a very high false negative and is cheap and what the Ins. companies like. The second one I want to call Western Blot?(Nurse is a sleep would kill me if I wake her). The second one is more accurate but expensive.
Not all tick bits leave bullseye. There is a little tool almost looks like a spoon with a V cut in front edge, two different sizes. Put the head of tick in and turn counter clockwise like some one said earlier pulls them right out. Dont use a head of match, nail polish or old wise tails. Those make the tick regurgitate its meal into the victim and a higher possibility of contracting Lyme or other disease it carries.
There was a lady in Granville NY I heard died of another disease the tick carries earlier this summer, so its just not Lyme anymore.
Been lucky here no ticks on dogs this year that we found unlike last year and just found first tick on me today crawling on pants at deer camp, now last year they seemed to be a lot more.

[maple flats]

Wow, was that timely to post this thread? Yesterday I had to remove my first tick of the year. It was just starting to imbed. I'll watch the site closely for the bullseye to appear. May need to see Dr and get some meds.

[SeanD]

Typically, if you get it out in <24 hours, you have a much lower probability of getting Lyme's. Definitely watch for a rash. In my case the rash came after the first fever and headaches began.

[sg5054]

I was bitten late this summer by something on my upper left arm. Didn't know it until about 3 hours after my walk with the dog. I took off my shirt for a shower and felt a touch of pain. Looked in the mirror, no bug, just a pale lump like a large skeeter bite but also a little red around it. 3-4 hours later much much larger patch of red and tender. By 10 that night I really felt worse than any flu symptoms I have ever experienced. Major headache (I rarely get them), chills, very high fever, fatigue, wow did I feel like crap. Went to the doc the next afternoon. Red patch now was about 6 inches long, 4 wide, very red. No defined bulls eye. No obvious sign of a bite he says. 21 days of Lyme antibiotics and a blood test. Test comes back negative for Lyme. Only thing we figure is that it was a spider bite. Red patch and the tender spot lasted for a good 10 days.
I'm better now but man I really don't want to do that again. I would rather hit my thumb with a hammer. I have never felt so bad so fast before.

[motowbrowne]

I have something to add from my personal research into Lyme disease over the last couple of years: the "classic" bullseye rash only appears in approximately 60% of cases. This means if you get a bite and don't get a rash, it doesn't automatically mean you didn't get Lyme. Also, the number of patients who are diagnosed with Lyme who didn't find a tick is very high, something approaching half. This means if you are feeling the symptoms of Lyme, don't ignore them because you don't recall a tick bite. I have heard of many cases of people getting Lyme and either ignoring the symptoms or being misdiagnosed with something else. I actually gave a ride to a woman from Eugene OR back to Wisconsin who had had Lyme disease for two years. She had been diagnosed in Oregon with Multiple Sclerosis because they don't really have Lyme out there and most doctors wouldn't think to test for it. Her mom, back in WI, kept saying that her symptoms sounded like Lyme and made her get tested, so she did but the test results were interpreted in OR as negative. Mom didn't buy it and had the same labwork sent to here doctor in WI, where they were found to be positive for Lyme. I'm glad she got the right diagnosis eventually, but it made me think that testing, and second opinions are really important in the Lyme issue. Sorry to hear about your run-ins with Lyme, and I wish the best for your family.

Ryan

[Wanabe1972]

This disease is still misdiagnosed in upstate NY in an alarming rate. My daughter was first told she had a mental issue(conversion disorder) She was at the top of her class very popular a star athelete with a great future. She developed motor and verbel tics. She was then told she had torettes and then is was MS. She was all over the TV and has had. Several documentories about he. We were finally sent to NYC to see a child infectious disease docter who ran multiple tests and finally found Lyme, babesia and several othe tick borne diseases. A YEAR of IV antibiotics and she is back on track. If you are interest in seeing the movie you can pm me as it is on netflix.You won't see me in it as insurance only pays for 1 month of antibiotics and sh had it for 13 months so I was working 60 to 72 hours a week to pay the bills.

[campus189]

Unfortunately a lot of people believe the common insect repellents work at repelling or killing ticks.
And some of us can't afford the expensive clothing.
There are products that contain "Permethrin (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Permethrin)" <----Click link for more info..
It is TOXIC to cats & fish , but kills ticks on contact and is safe for humans.
It will last through 2-3 washes as well.
You can read up on it by clicking the link above.
It is an effective product, but do your research on this before purchasing.
I use it all year and I am in the woods more than anyone I know :)

[Flat Lander Sugaring]

Unfortunately a lot of people believe the common insect repellents work at repelling or killing ticks.
And some of us can't afford the expensive clothing.
There are products that contain "Permethrin (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Permethrin)" <----Click link for more info..
It is TOXIC to cats & fish , but kills ticks on contact and is safe for humans.
It will last through 2-3 washes as well.
You can read up on it by clicking the link above.
It is an effective product, but do your research on this before purchasing.
I use it all year and I am in the woods more than anyone I know :)


I wouldn't say its safe for humans, hell the fda say we can eat anti freeze in certain amounts but kills dogs and cats? go figure.

I have read some where in my personal research on Alzheimer that permethrin possible contributes to the on set of ALZ.

I use it hope I can beat the odds of ALZ. if you use the stuff in spray cans Please follow the instructions DO NOT SPRAY ON CLOTHING ON THE BODY!! The directions specifically say not to but had to find out for myself DUHHH. I hadn't sprayed my clothes and wanted to go out hunting so got dressed and lightly sprayed legs of pants it went right through the fabric to my skin felt like just ate a Jalapeno on my legs. Needless to say its the fastest I have ever stripped and jumped in shower.
I now don't procrastinate and spray clothing a few days ahead of when I am going to start wearing them. I try to wear some kind of clothing under treated clothes don't touch my skin

[campus189]

I personally take my clothes that I will be using outside and spray them to allow them to dry for a few hours just to be safe.
A lot of people don't follow the directions and improvise. That is where they run into problems :(
I have 6 Dogs ( don't ask,lol) and I don't want to risk having them get sick, why I spray clothes outside to be safe.
I have done this for years & all my dogs are fine :)
And believe me, my dogs are like family to my wife and I :)
You do make a valid point. It is toxic to fish & cats but safe for humans.
Kind of makes you wonder..
The biggest thing is to read the directions, or better yet, do the research before purchasing.
I have been using this for years with no problems besides the extra ear growing from my head. ( kidding )
Makes me think of "Blinky" the three eyes fish from the simpsons,lol

[Birddog]

This past spring I ended up with a bulls-eye on my back, never saw the tick and developed a fever with the bulls-eye. I went into the clinic, tested positive for Lyme. After antibiotics (that made me nauseated all the time) all is fine. I have my dog vaccinated for Lyme each year and use frontline on her. She ended up getting Anaplasmosis, another tick borne disease. The only symptom she showed was she didn't have as much energy as normal. She was on antibiotics for a month and seems fine now. Some of these ticks are so small they are very hard to detect.

[killingworthmaple]

We live next to Lyme CT where the disease was first found I have had it several times it is serious. I first got it in the 1990’s. I have a cousin that went undiagnosed for years and he ended up with life long debilitating effects. If you have too, educate your DR.!!! ***FYI*** doctors in our area have now found two other diseases from local ticks that are worse than Lyme, I have a friend that just spent days in the hospital, his legs would not work, they were paralyzed the Doctors found out that it was caused by a tick bite. He is recovering.

[Jebediah]

Two ticks on my pants this morning, light colored pants beneficial. 28 degrees, and ticks quite active, surprising to me.

[campus189]

Two ticks on my pants this morning, light colored pants beneficial. 28 degrees, and ticks quite active, surprising to me.

Yes, they seem very active again this year :(

[bees1st]

I just want to mention that just because you haven't been in the outdoors doesn't mean you shouldn't check yourself over . I've had them " lay in wait " in my truck for two days . Hop in in the morning and boom, there's one on my arm . And then there's the cross over from your pets that go outside .

[grimmreaper]

everyone tells my don't wait to see the doctors.i removed a tick 2 weeks ago and the spot is about 3-4'' circle and now I have all sytpoms o lyme disease.its not pleasant .so much to do to be ready for sugaring but it might have already ended...

[Ittiz]

Ticks can be horrible around here. The very warm year (2011-12?) my daughter walked through a bush and got dozens of deer ticks on her. That year they were so bad they literally got all over everything. Under the edges of the deck rails, on the swing set, in the sand box, everywhere. If I've been in the woods while it's above freezing I check myself when I get back. During the summer I can usually find a few ticks, every single time I come in. Our solution was to buy Guinea Fowl. Those birds are tick eating machines, they patrol the yard checking every blade of grass for ticks and other bugs. I'm hoping the prolonged cold snaps we've had this winter will put a dent in the tick population.

A couple things to keep in mind about them. The male ticks don't attach, but they will bite you for a quick drink like a mosquito. The smallest of the small ticks (the larva) don't carry Lymes because they have never bitten anything. They can be easily identified because they only have 6 legs rather than 8. However you'll need a microscope to make the identification they are so small. Adult ticks hide in the leaf litter for the winter, so they can't emerge until the snow starts to melt. They are pretty sensitive to cold (so much so I use duster can to freeze them to death), so the colder the winter the lower their population will be in the spring. Finally Lymes is probably the least lethal of tick born diseases. There are many tick born diseases, many carried by types of ticks other than deer ticks. I know someone who's dog got Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, it wasn't pretty.

[regor0]

I hate ticks!. I have often thought cold would take care of them, If you put them in the freezer for a minute they are dead, but after hearing my brothers experience I'm not sure.
He has a camp up in Canada about 200 miles north of International Falls, Minnesota. It gets COLD up there and stays cold a long time. When he goes up around the 4th of July every year he says it's nothing to find 40 ticks on you every time you go outside.
I live in the UP of Michigan and last year we still had snow on the ground the first of June. I found my first tick in April. How do they live through a frost? It's baffling to me how they die in the freezer after a minute and the day after a frost you still find them. My dad says they hide under a leaf to survive the night, maybe, can't believe there that clever.
Did I mention I hate ticks!

[happy thoughts]

I hate ticks!. I have often thought cold would take care of them, If you put them in the freezer for a minute they are dead,

I can't say I've ever thrown a tick in my freezer but I highly doubt freezing for a minute causes a tick to die. As cold blooded creatures, at best they become dormant at colder temps. If you let it thaw out it most likely will become active again.

I once had a dog come down with Lymes in late winter after a warm spell. It just takes temps above freezing to make them active again. Sure would be nice if freezing killed them but if that were the case there would be no ticks in sugaring states and the disease would be called San Antonio or Atlanta disease instead of Lyme :).

[regor0]

I have done on lots of them. They are dead in a minute, take them out and let them warm up. Still dead. I have even kept them in a tupperware bowl for 4 months to see how long they would live. Still alive, put it in the freezer, dead. Yup too much time on my hands and too many ticks.:lol:

[happy thoughts]

LOL I almost hate to ask this but what did you feed them? I've heard of flea circuses but can you make a tick do tricks? :lol:

[Flat Lander Sugaring]

old timers here in VT say you need a deep 5' frost so the ground still very cold when they wake up, not sure how true but hoping it is AFTER THIS YEAR

[Don(MI)]

This is pretty incredible to read something like this here on the trader. Ironically....i am undergoing antibiotics and being treated for lyme disease.

My blood testing was right on the fence. There are actually disease panels that are positive or negative in the blood testing. I had 2 positive. But what really concerned my doctor was my low 'natural killer cell' blood count. I guess a count of 200 is normal, 100 is a minimum. My three readings were 71, 24, 71.

I am now on antibiotics for 6 weeks....then off for awhile.....then back on again. My symptoms are headaches....some minor unstableness, concentration issues....some memory loss (even though family jokes about that....lol) and other symptoms i dont wanna talk about.

This really is nasty stuff and i wish it on nobody...ever. The Lord is taking care of me and I am in his hands.

[68bird]

They are bad for us humans, but around here they have devastated the moose population.Biologists say in the last few years there has been a 100% mortality rate on yearling moose!

[Flat Lander Sugaring]

They are bad for us humans, but around here they have devastated the moose population.Biologists say in the last few years there has been a 100% mortality rate on yearling moose!
I didn't know the tics had effects on moose

[Bruce L]

My cousin in Toronto, has had Lyme disease for over 14 years now. He contracted it by means of the tick on a family camping trip to the Muskokas around 1999-2000. At that time, our health care system, and namely our government, didn't have the testing equipment or funds to be able to properly treat/diagnose the disease.. He was told he was depressed, touch of flue, exhaustion, amongst an array of other misdiagnosis as the doctors didn't know what they were dealing with. Finally he was able to find a clinic stateside to which a blood sample was sent, and confirmation was made that he tested positive for Lyme disease. By this time though the damage was done, his organs were deteriorating to the point that he didn't have the strength to eat, medication he was on would help, but once his organs started failing his doctor would pull the meds, whereupon the Lyme disease would again run rampant through his body. Once his organs had regained strength, he would go back on the meds for the seesaw effect over and over again. Thankfully his wife is a nurse, or I am sure he would have left us years ago. When I would call him on the phone, he could only muster the strength to speak for about 3 minutes, and though I was not witness to it I was told his wife and daughters would cut his food up very fine for him to eat, sometimes a small meal could take as long as three hours to eat, then he would be comatose for a day.
In 2006 he was feeling good enough to come down for my parent's 50th wedding anniversary, but that trip totally exhausted him to the point that he has been bedridden ever since. That will be 8 years this June since he has been able to sit up in bed, walk outside in the fresh air or even go to the window to look out on the street. In speaking with him recently, he spoke of how much of his daughter's growing up he has missed, how in fact they had to grow up quickly to care for him. Last fall, his youngest daughter had her leg amputated at the knee to stop a rapidly moving cancer. My wife and I have both lamented how hard it has to be for him to not be able to sit up to console his daughter, or be able to sit with her through her procedures of treatments, anguish etc
Forgive me for my longwinded post, but though this has not happened to me directly, it really bothers me to see the rough blow that God has dealt him, and when he looked for help from our health care system heads were buried in the sand with total denial of what was transpiring. Even today, Lyme disease still isn't receiving the recognition it should for something that is becoming so widespread.

[Flat Lander Sugaring]

Well Bruce about 6 to 8 years ago when Lyme started showing up here in VT our state side docs where poop/poooing symptons also even though we have the tests. They loved using the cheap one which gave a lot of false negatives (Insurance Companies love cheap). You had to about go to congress to get the other test. Today they are a little quicker now to give the better test,

[slammer3364]

Just read an article where a man went in anaphlactic shock after eating meat from a tick bite ,his father also has the disease. I wish I had the article here Iam sure you can Googl it.

[Clarkfield Farms]

Well, not that I'm 100% sold that it's 100% valid, but I never have found a tick on a possum in more than 45 years handling them (don't ask). Here's what I'm talking about:

www.caryinstitute.org/discover-ecology/podcasts/why-you-should-brake-possums

[happy thoughts]

Well, not that I'm 100% sold that it's 100% valid, but I never have found a tick on a possum in more than 45 years handling them (don't ask). Here's what I'm talking about:

www.caryinstitute.org/discover-ecology/podcasts/why-you-should-brake-possums

Interesting article. I'm rather fond of possums and may be the only person on earth that feeds them in winter. But I've never attempted to handle one. And since you said not to ask, and since you usually have enjoyable stories. I have to ask, lol. Why do you handle possums?

[Clarkfield Farms]

STORIES?!?! MOI?!?!?! ME?!?! Well I NEVER!! :cool:

Um, I suppose I could say anything I wanted to here, couldn't I...? :D But, no, I wasn't a 'possum juggler whose career was ended far too soon by animal rights issues. Yes, an uncharacteristically short answer but that's as far as I'll go for now.

...for now...

[happy thoughts]

STORIES?!?! MOI?!?!?! ME?!?! Well I NEVER!! :cool:

LOL. I suppose I'll just have to wait anxiously until that time.... But the thought of possum juggler sure was entertaining!

Second question- Are you still running an asylum for wayward cats or is that problem solved now?

All the best. Hope you have a great season when it finally starts.

PS- did you see the thread in the sap handling forum someone posted with ??? re maple beer? I dropped your name and said you might be inclined to answer. I'm still fond of your old screen name :)

[Clarkfield Farms]

lol, well, I liked it too, but it seemed to have ruffled some feathers. Or fur. Or marsupial pouches. Or all the above?

I haven't been on here much for some time now, Happy. I'm reasonably certain things will improve. And I neither RAN, nor was committed TO, any asylum, cat or otherwise! harrumph! :) But it has more or less been resolved: The cats are gone, but I'm still dealing with the after- um, math, yeah that's it, aftermath, of 35+ years of, um, well just leave it as "aftermath." Steve (bucket head) visited the other day when I was shoveling loads of aftermath from the barn. Shoveling since what, August? of last year. I HOPE to be done shoveling aftermath by the end of this month, and then who-knows-how-long cleaning, deodorizing and sanitizing will take. I know, fire is great for all of that but with THIS Town?!?! They've already told me they'll NEVER allow me to rebuild. And no, I didn't mean fire by an errant moonbeam, but rather letting the local fire department use it for a practice burn. Which the Empir - er, Town - has already told me they'd refuse to permit. But, there's only about 1/4 of the lower level and the old hayloft left to empty. I figure there was originally somewhere in the neighborhood of 270 cubic YARDS of aftermath to shovel. And no, can't really get a bobcat (DID I JUST TYPE "CAT"?!?!?!) or any other type loader in there to do the job. But, every shovelful is another shovelful I'll NEVER have to see or handle again.

Back to Lyme disease, though - no laughing matter. At all. But certain "aftermaths" can cause effects just as debilitating. I generally wear a respirator when the door(s) can't remain open. At minimum, a high-quality dust mask.

I'll try to get over to that thread. Thanks for saying hello!
- Tim ...the recovering Yeast Pimp. :D

[WindyPoplars]

We know all too well about Lyme and coinfections. A friend is dying by inches. Her husband and the babies she had while infected (did not know what was making her ill) also had it, but thankfully they responded well to care.

DH picked up Bartonella in the field, while he was guiding last fall. Took a while to figure out what it was. He was flat on his back in bed for 2 weeks, and then antoher 2 weeks of puttering before he was able to work again.
It was horrible. Drs gave him a code speak diagnoses. refused to make it official, as the treatment and drugs are now illegal.
By the time we figured it out he was getting better. But we dug in and used essential oils and an ozone sauna to kill the protozoa.
It was not until I cam down with it a couple weeks later that we discovered it is sexually transmitted. Thankfully, we were well armed by then, and were able to stop my progression well before the time I would have seemingly recovered.

The frightening thing is, the protozoa infect every square inch of the body, including the brain ( and yes, you can track its progression by symptoms) and even when it was treated in hospitals, they still live on.
the long term laundry list of symptoms that take years to develop are awful.
Killing it off from the get go is vital!

Some common long term symptoms of Bartonella are severe insomnia, migraines, anxiety, constant worry, agitated-depression, panic attacks, bipolar disorder, depression, agitation, autistic-like symptoms, hallucinations, memory loss, brain fog, excessive weight gain, compulsive lying, and aggression sometimes referred to as “Bartonella rage”.