Lyme disease, can be life long.

Even though this is a RV site, we all spend a lot of time outdoors.

I had no idea that Lyme disease could last a life time.

I have known this young woman and her family since she was 12. This has been a very long battle.

Please watch the video, and share for just how important dealing with ticks quickly can spare a person many years of health issues. Thank you.

https://youtu.be/T_i_t2d-064

Many RVers do spend lots of time in the outdoors and this is an important subject.

Lyme Disease carrying ticks are in the Michigan woods that we frequent.  My wife and I each carry two sets of permethrim treated outer clothing for our tromps in the woods.  We had a neighbor who was diagnosed with Lyme Disease within a short time of getting bit by a deer tick carrying Lyme Disease.  Even caught right away it was still a long and involved process to get her healthy again.  Because of the warm winters and summers these last few years the ticks are out here in record numbers.

I was bitten in the UK, you need to look out for what is called a "bullseye" a red spot with a larger outer red ring.  This is a sign of the lyme disease my doctor told me.  I was treated with the 2 medicines and my blood tested OK.

Best to wrap up well and use the sprays to keep them away.  Be careful of spraying permethrin around pet cats.

National Pesticide Information Center says "Permethrin is more toxic to insects than it is to people and dogs. This is because insects can't break it down as quickly as people and dogs. Cats are more sensitive to permethrin than dogs or people because it takes their bodies a long time to break it down."

The only time you should be spraying Permethrin is when you use that method to treat clothing.  For us that is once at the beginning of summer.  Indeed we no longer use the spray method.  To much work.  Sawyer used to offer a military type treatment package that included the correct amount of permethrin for one set of clothing and a zip lock bag to soak the clothing in.  That method is much easier then spraying it on and you also probably get a more even distribution with that method.  i talked to Sawyer about it and they no longer sell the kit commercially but the 24oz spray bottle can be converted into soak kits with your own zip lock bags. 

Read the instructions and follow the instruction...they do warn about fish and cats.

Although a rash shaped like a bull?s-eye is considered characteristic of Lyme disease, many people develop a different kind of Lyme rash or none at all. 

If you are in an area where you think ticks are a full body review by you or a close friend should be done when you undress.

I have bought my Sawyer Permethrin at Amazon.com for about $18 for 24 oz.  Treats 4 sets for clothing.  But I see Target is advertising the same thing for $15 with free delivery if you pick it up at a store. 

The main ingredient of head lice shampoo treatment that some many of us have had to use on school age children is Permethrin.

Len and Jo said:

Although a rash shaped like a bull?s-eye is considered characteristic of Lyme disease, many people develop a different kind of Lyme rash or none at all. 

If you are in an area where you think ticks are a full body review by you or a close friend should be done when you undress.

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Didn't know this about rash. Good adviceabout checking too!

I was bitten by a deer tick in August 2015 and happened to see it after showering the next day on a Sunday. I was at the Dr's the next morning and immediately put on antibiotics and tested negative about a month later. It is important to catch those little buggers early. This tick was so small I could not tell what it was until I took a photo with my phone and blew it up. It's head and most of the body was buried and was very difficult to remove. Still have a red mark on my thigh.

jackiemac said:

Didn't know this about rash. Good adviceabout checking too!

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Jackie, do you have Lyme disease in the UK?

We do.  I'm not sure of all the locations but in 2008 I was on the Island of Mull and this was where the doctor reckoned I had been bitten as there is Lyme disease there.

Our National Health Service website says:

Cases of Lyme disease have been reported throughout the UK, but areas known to have a particularly high population of ticks include:
Exmoor
the New Forest and other rural areas of Hampshire
the South Downs
parts of Wiltshire and Berkshire
parts of Surrey and West Sussex
Thetford Forest in Norfolk
the Lake District
the North York Moors
the Scottish Highlands

Here is a link to the page which has useful info

http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Lyme-disease/Pages/Introduction.aspx#risk

Lyme disease in the N.E.

http://www.wmur.com/special-reports/growing-tick-populations-increase-risk-of-disease/40000432

I have Lyme Disease.  It is clearly a life changing disease!!

MOST tests are very unreliable.  I have never tested positive per CDC protocol.  Thankfully, my doctor had a brain and was willing to use it.

Bulls Eye rash ONLY OCCURS with Lyme infection.  (I had the bulls eye)  However, only 40% of cases develop this rash.

Early detection and treatment with HIGH dose antibiotic for a month or more MAY eliminate the infection.

Lyme Disease has been identified by researchers, not CDC, in all US states except Hawaii.

Because no minority groups with political power suffer from Lyme, CDC does not take Lyme seriously, nor do most doctors.

MY STORY

Tick bite in 1987.
Did not get sick until 1992.  In March, changed oil in both mowers, mowed yard, trimmed yard.  I was worn out, but done.  In June, my son cut most of the grass with the rider.  I tried to keep up with the trimming.  In August, if my son did not cut it, it did not get done.  In December, I was sleeping 16 hours a day, and trying to work the other 8.  By the end of the year, I simply could no longer answer the bell, and my DW was making mental funeral arrangements.

January 1993, my DW found a Lyme literate Dr out of state and took me there.  I was too sick to drive, and too sick to care.  With time, I did get a little better. By August, I was working about 15 hours a week (all I could handle).  Next came the Road Runner cartoon, where the coyote runs off the edge of the cliff, looks around, waves bye bye, then plummets to the bottom.  My last day of work was October 14, 1993.

I have been on SS Disability ever since.  I have made significant improvements since.  For a few years, I was volunteering at the hospital about 20 hours a week.

In February 2012, I had a major intestinal surgery, which really stirred up the Lyme bacteria.  I nosedived, had to change Dr to another out of state Dr, and have just started getting a LITTLE better in the last 6 months.

THE LIST OF SYMPTOMS goes on for at least 80 items, and for a given person, only part of the list exhibit symptoms

ANY ONE WANTING MORE INFORMATION ABOUT LYME ARE WELCOME TO E MAIL OR PM ME.  As a Lymie, I understand your struggles.  I will do whatever I can to advise and support you.

For clarification, by Profession, I am an Analytical Chemist, and was employed as such until October, 1993.  I am a Preacher by avocation.  It has never been my primary source of income.  Lyme took away the chemist, but only death can take away the (physical) Preacher in me.

Oh Gordon, I love your posts,  but not this one. You've not had it easy, nor your family. I hope you keep getting stronger. Hugs

A few years ago we were leaving a Virginia campground that had many high weeds and I apparently was bitten by a tick.  The next morning (Sunday) we were in Pennsylvania.  When Jerry awakened me he noticed the distinguishing red bulls eye on my ankle and informed me that we were going to the hospital NOW.  I wanted to eat breakfast first.  No way!  We went to my home town hospital where the doctor said it "probably" was Lyme disease and gave me a prescription.  Within 24 hours the redness of the bulls eye was lessening and it was almost gone within 48 hours.  We caught it early and there have been no other problems.  We had a friend who was bitten in Sonoma Co. CA before Lyme Disease became well known and she was going blind among other things.  My advice is - don't mess with tick bites.  I'm really glad Jerry pushed me so hard to go to the hospital!

ArdraF

Taking one of our grand daughters camping with us this week.  By the end of summer we hope to have taken all five of them out with us (one at a time).  Not only do we have Permethrin treat clothing with us we have also treated several sets of our grand daughters clothing.  Only cost about $4 to treat a set.  Better safe then sorry.

All the above comments reinforce in my mind the action we are taking. I think Lyme disease is fairly rare but if you do contract it it can be devastating.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n_XvX9Hyrhw

I had no idea, we have a man locally that said he had Lyme and it changed his life.  He is a big healthy
looking guy but said he just couldn't do much.  Well I thought maybe he just didn't want to work, sorry,
I'm that way sometimes.  He had said how sick he was and it took them a long long time to diagnose it.
From what I've read here then he likely is in bad shape.  We will be careful.

Our eldest son just got diagnosed with Lyme Disease last week. My wife's niece has Lupus and the the later found she had Lyme's. The Dr.'s said the Lupus may have developed from the Lyme's. She was also telling my wife that her Dr. she has now says Lyme's should be treated aggressively with antibiotics. She said there should be at least 4 different antibiotics taken during the course of a year, one taken after the other. Her Dr. said that the disease can be tolerant of one antibiotic after a short time, and rotating 4 antibiotics keep it from getting tolerant. How true and proven this is, I don't know.

Sorry for not checking on this post sooner.

Ardra, I am VERY glad you got treatment QUICKLY.  I hope it was enough to kill it completely.

PatStab, your neighbor is, indeed in bad shape.  It is not lazy, it is illness.  My mantra is I can do anything I want, but I can not do very much of it!

kdbgoat,  I am very happy she found a good Lyme Literate doctor.  They are hard to find!  You are very correct about the aggressive antibiotic treatment.  It took me 6 doctors to get a proper diagnosis.

At one point about 5 years into my ordeal, I added up all the antibiotic I had taken so far.  250mg x 3 times a day x 365 days, etc.  Doing all the conversions, I was just over 25 POUNDS of antibiotics!!  Yes, you read that correctly.  At one point I was doing 2 GRAMS 3 times a day by IV, then 1 GRAM 2 times a day IV, for a total of 7 months!


Lyme Disease is very common in the US.  DIAGNOSIS of Lyme Disease is rare.  It is not a politically correct disease.  CDC pretends it does not exist.  It is not one disease, but a collection of tick borne diseases with very similar symptoms and treatments.

Putting this in Cancer terms ( a collection of similar diseases, all involving malignant tumors)  the CDC has narrowly defined Lyme Disease as liver cancer, and only liver cancer.  Any malignant problem with the brain, breast, lungs, colon or skin may be serious, but they are not cancer, because cancer only affects the liver!  Go Figure!!

Again, I will be glad to address any questions about Lyme by e mail or PM.  Even if you just need assurance you are not going crazy!