Guys! I was diagnosed with Lyme's Disease!

scent of cedar

New Member
Like that would be a surprise after the woodtick season we had here this year!

Symptoms were not all that spectacular. I am deep down tired, and found that I was exhausted after activities that I would normally have been able to handle without a second thought. Not lethargy so much as a lack of endurance. Finally, I developed pneumonia.

Whether the bite occurred this Spring or last year, that was the main symptom.

Diagnosis is made through a simple blood test. Treatment, if the disease is caught in the early stages, involves oral doxycycline for three weeks.

Ehrlichiosis, another tick-borne illness prevalent throughout the country, but especially here in Wisconsin, is treated the same way.
Ehrlichiosis will make you much sicker, though.

So, if you are abnormally tired and just seem to have no endurance, or if you see those symptoms in your children, and if there is any chance of tick exposure, ask about having them tested for Lyme's (and/or ehrlichiosis).

Barbara

P.S. Here is a funny thing. We had our dog checked for Lyme's?
But not ourselves. One of those things you never think is going to happen to you, I guess....

:smile:
 

DDD

Well-Known Member
I'm SO glad you were diagnosed early on. My friend had a heck of
a time getting identified a few years back and actually arranged
a three-way conversation between the Center for Disease Control
and her local yokel MD..with her listening and paying for the call.

It was very difficult for my friend to "do nothing" for awhile
so her body could heal BUT she did heal and is good as new. Guess it's time for you to catch up on some time consuming reading. How 'bout War and Peace? The complete works of William Shakespear? Greys Anatomy? LOL

Sorry you're under the weather. DDD
 

Hound dog

Nana's are Beautiful
I'm glad they were able to get the diagnosis early. Sorry, though that you're feeling so crummy.

I have to say, it wouldn't be the first thing to pop into my mind either. (and I check my dogs reg)

Hope you start to feel better soon.

:flower:Hugs
 

Star*

call 911........call 911
I think if you have "limes" disease you should be able to have a Tequila prescription.


Honestly! We have a friend trying to recover from Nile Virus. They checked their horses and not themselves.

I am writing a prescription for improving health for the rest of your years!

Hugs and sorry
Star
 

Kathy813

Well-Known Member
Staff member
First giant spiders under your deck and now ticks with Lyme disease. Wisconsin doesn't sound like a great place to be.

Maybe you should stay in Florida year round. Oh wait ~ there's hurricanes in Florida.

Not sure where you should live, Barbara. Just stay away from Atlanta, would you?

:rofl::rofl:

~Kathy
 

Suz

(the future) MRS. GERE
Lyme Disease can be amazingly debilitating. One of my old neighbors had it and it had progressed to the point that it took hospitalization and weeks on IV antibiotics to get it under control. From what I understand it can have long range effects as well.

It sounds as if yours was caught early and you have a good prognosis. I'm so glad to hear that, Barbara.

Suz
 

scent of cedar

New Member
<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Kathy813</div><div class="ubbcode-body">First giant spiders under your deck and now ticks with Lyme disease. Wisconsin doesn't sound like a great place to be.

Maybe you should stay in Florida year round. Oh wait ~ there's hurricanes in Florida.

Not sure where you should live, Barbara. Just stay away from Atlanta, would you?

:rofl::rofl:

~Kathy </div></div>

You know? I knew I could count on you, Kathy, to support me in my hour of need!

It made me laugh right out loud though, so that was very alright.

Now...Lyme's with tequila. What an excellent combo! You never know ~ maybe the tequila would take care of some of these crummy bacteria currently overwhelming my poor, overworked system.

On the other hand, now that I know what it is, and the antibiotics have been started? I get to lay around all day, eat what I want, and soak in the tub GUILT FREE.

It's almost worth feeling so sickly! :smile:


:bath: :beach: :thumb: :ill:



For anyone curious as to whether tick-borne illness is prevalent in your area, google the Mayo Clinic website and then, ehrlichiosis or Lyme's. A map of the United States will come up, showing which illnesses are prevalent where.

DDD, you are right. Lyme's can be very serious if treatment is not begun early. Ehrlichiosis is even worse.

Thanks, guys ~ I just loved coming on here and finding posts from you all.

Like getting a whole packet of get well wishes!

Except for Kathy's, of course.


:rofl:


Barbara
 

sameold sameold

New Member
My stepmom and my 3 yr old niece have both been diagnosis'd with this. My step mom is very tired all the time and has a feeling of pressure in her head all the time, they are both on the regimen of antibiotics. Good luck to you
 

Kathy813

Well-Known Member
Staff member
Laughter is the best medicine. :rofl: Just trying to do my part. :smile:

Seriously ~ I hope you get better quickly!

~Kathy
 

Marguerite

Active Member
Good ol' Borrelia burgdorferi, spreading joy and light wherever the tick takes it...

We have a problem with Lyme Disease in Australia - it's down to doctors who interpret the test too liberally, getting positive findings in just about everyone they test. And since they test everyone who reports in with symptoms of fatigue, weakness etc, there are a lot of people being diagnosed with Lyme in some parts of Australia. Funny, though - nobody has ever found Borrelia burgdorferi in Aussie ticks... but there ARE Borrelia strains which occur naturally in people, not causing any symptoms. Most people have a variant of Borrelia in the mouth, it seems... and golly gee, is it possible that being too broad in interpreting the blood test could be picking up antibodies to the body's natural load of Borrelia? Perish the thought!

And it's highly likely we have other nasty arbobviruses in Australia, we have so many other nasty things like that, why stop at macro-organisms?

Here's hoping the treatment kicks the bug out of your system so you get your bounce back. It's no fun. At least you live in the right country for a valid diagnosis!

Marg
 

TerryJ2

Well-Known Member
I'm glad you caught it, Barbara. You know what happens if it gets out of hand. I am so sorry you had to get through the bite, as well as the lethargy. I hope you're feeling better.
[[[hugs]]]
 

SRL

Active Member
Marg, here it's just the opposite. The doctors nearly always miss the early signs unless there's a classic bulls eye rash. And because the test isn't very reliable it's often just bypassed.

One of my best friends presented with neurological symptoms only and it was a year and half before it was diagnosis. It's been very debilitating.

Take good care of yourself, Barbara. Rest up and get the best treatment you can.
 

tinamarie1

Member
SRL, its true in Louisiana with what you said about the doctors always nearly missing it! Get this, one weekend a few years ago we went to a lake that is around a very heavily wooded area, we had to scoot on our behinds down hill to get to the water, and we only had swim suits and t-shirts on. I got bit so many times, I lost count, but broke out the hydrocortizone that night when we got home. I was putting it on when I noticed this huge red circle on the inside of my thigh and it had what looked like a mosquito bite in the center. I showed husband and said, look at this it must be a horsefly bite...and he said no that is def not a horsefly bite tina! I got on the internet and started searching for pics of bug bites and came across the exact image on my thigh....sure nuff, it was what they showed for lyme disease, or the beginnings of it from the tick. I was on my doctors doorstep at her office at 8 am sharp that next day. She didn't believe me even when she saw the bullseye! I said, do you have a medical book with a picture of what is supposedly looks like? She said, I'll be right back. She comes back with the medical book in tow and holds it up to my thigh and she said, that is definitely the same thing! shesh! medical school mean anything to ya?
She put me on the medications immediately and they made me very queezy, but I was able to finish them all and am ok today I think. I have alot of nerve related issues though, and I can't help but wonder if that is what its from. Facial twitching, I have had bells palsy twice, and I get numbness and tingling in my hands and feet, even when I am walking or doing housework. I dunno...
 

scent of cedar

New Member
You know? My father (nearly 80) was rushed into the hospital this summer (by ambulance) and spent some time in Intensive Care ~ it turned out to be ehrlichiosis.

That's the reason I thought to have myself checked for tick-borne illness when I began to feel so crummy.

And here's the scary part about that. With my father being as old as he is, and with the symptoms so slyly and steadily progressing, these kinds of illnesses can be mistaken for normal aging.

Even here, where tick-borne illness can be so prevalent, my father's diagnosis was only made correctly after an infectious disease specialist was called in.

And he could easily have died, and we would all have thought it was age-related.

My father looks better now than he has since we got back this Spring. That's what I mean about the symptoms being so deceptively lethal. Especially in our elderly populations, tiredness, muscle aches, even pneumonias, are assumed to be par for the course.

Diagnosis is by simple blood test. Doxycyline for three weeks cost $6. (Doxycyline is similar to tetracycline ~ an old, tried and true antibiotic that has been around pretty much forever.)

Suz was right, too. Since I have been diagnosed, we have been hearing more and more horror stories about people in our area who had been incorrectly diagnosed / treated.

And I can't help but wonder how many people diagnosed with Chronic Fatigue or some of the chronic muscular things might not have something like this.

Well, I will get down from my soap box now. :smile:

I started the doxycycline last Saturday. Doctor says I should begin feeling better after seven days.

I think I might feel a little better already. :smile:

So, check that Mayo site to see whether this is prevalent in your area.

Anyone you know with a chronic fatigue diagnosis or some other amorphous "sorry we can't help you" diagnosis ~ have them check for tick-borne illness.

Barbara

P.S. Can you tell that I just can't believe something like this could ever happen to me?!?

:bath:
 

Suz

(the future) MRS. GERE
Well, wouldn't you know....I was out of town this weekend and got bitten by a tiny little tick. Dang this was still clinging onto me for dear life when I discovered it while taking a shower a couple of days ago. It left a bizarre round mark...doesn't look like the "target" they use to describe it but it's odd enough that I have a call in to my doctor's office. :hammer:

Suz
 
Barbara,

I LOVE tequila!!! I'll be right over :smile: :beach: :smile:!!!
I wouldn't want you to be alone in your time of need!!!

I'm glad you're feeling a bit better and you caught it in time. Ticks are a big problem where I live too. WFEN
 

scent of cedar

New Member
I was just reading about tequila this morning. (Reading is about all I have energy for these days ~ and believe me, a few weeks ago? I could not even concentrate enough to retain anything I was reading! Better now, though.)

Anyway, here is an interesting thing about tequila: (You guys are going to love this one! :smile: )

Tequila is made from a tall bud that shoots from the heart of a spiky-leaved desert plant, the blue agave. In past years, the plant grew wild in the desert. After seven years, the bud would form in the center and grow out to the surface. HERE IS THE INTERESTING PART: The men would cut the bud off with a machete. The women of the village would be summoned to :censored2: the juice from the truncated stem with a straw and then, to spit the juice into a container BECAUSE (AND THIS PART IS TRUE) THE SALIVA OF WOMEN IS DIFFERENT THAN THE SALIVA OF MEN, HASTENING THE CONVERSION OF PLANT SUGARS TO ALCOHOL MORE QUICKLY THAN MALE SALIVA COULD EVER DO.

So, now we know a little something interesting about cacti and saliva that we did not know before I read that book this morning.

Yep. Even when I am sick, so sick, there are so many interesting little factoids out there I hardly have a moment's peace....

**************

Suz, the chances of having been bitten by an infected tick are pretty rare (except here in Wisconsin, I guess!) It's my understanding that if you are tested too soon, the test will show negative. Sometimes, the tests will show negative even if the results are positive. All of which goes to say that the tests just aren't that reliable. The treatment is relatively harmless and very inexpensive. Another interesting thing is that, while both my father and I picked up a tick-borne illness, neither my mother nor my husband have done so.

So, there has to be some genetic something going on too, in whether we are vulnerable or not, wouldn't you think?

I hope you are one of the ones who are not susceptible to anything that stupid woodtick may have been carrying, Suz.

But if you are?

I have a book here about blue agave and the manufacture of tequila you might be interested in reading.... :grin:

Barbara

P.S. Suz, have them check for ehrlichiosis, too.
 
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