OT---slightly tractor related---Deer Ticks/Lyme

8N'r--WI · May 31, 2011

I picked up another tick bite in SW Wisconsin (a very hot Lyme Disease area) while mowing grass with my tractor...(tractor related)

I have been diagnosed with Lyme early stages twice before and have a very good friend with severe immune system damage from a tick bite.

Lyme has been found in every state now and if anyone wants to see a superb documentary movie on Lyme and its effects and how the majority of the medical profession/health insurance industry feels/deals with it...this movie is a MUST SEE.

The forum has discussed Lyme before, but I never saw mention of this film.

http://www.underourskin.com/

Believe me, Lyme Disease is nothing to fool with so if you think you have been exposed to a deer tick bite...go get a blood test done even though your doctor may want to pooh pooh the thought.

Tim

rrlund · May 31, 2011

My cousin had it 20 years or so ago. Took them almost a year to diagnose it. Took a long time for him to come around,but he got over it in better shape than they thought he would.

Ken Macfarlane · May 31, 2011

I got a tick 15 miles away from Lyme New Hampshire about 5 years ago. Saved the tick to get it tested but I apparently didn't put any water in the container with it and it dried out preventing testing.

Haven't developed any symptoms yet luckily.

oleclint · May 31, 2011

About 17 yrs ago ,I fought with the DRs. in Southwest Mo. for over a yr. to get a lyme test .Finally did get tested. They insisted that it never was a prob, in SW .Mo. They had and have billions of ticks in the Ozarks . I did not have Lyme s . clint

tjdub · May 31, 2011

I just pulled a deer tick out of my hip last night. I'm not too worried about Lyme disease though. Just watch the bite area for a bull's eye rash and if you get a rash anywhere head to the doctor to get antibiotics for it.

Anyway, get the tick off within 24 hours and you'll have almost no chance of getting infected.

If the tick that bites you is in the larvae stage (the teeny tiny ones) and you have almost no chance of getting infected because you're that tick's first meal so it hasn't caught anything from another host yet. I've pulled a lot of ticks off myself over the years and the only ones that were bit in were the larva stage ones. The bigger ones, I always seem to find before they bite because they're big enough to tickle. Or maybe I've just been lucky.

Paul in MN · May 31, 2011

I got the dreaded tick bite during 1st hay cutting in 1985. Up until that time I had enough energy to work full time as a high school physics teacher, and run a subcontracting business nights and weekends. When there was not enough work to satisfy us, my partner and I would build complete houses, besides the teaching job and some farming. I did not short the teaching job, as I even earned advanced degrees in Physics and Biology.

After the tick bite (in belly button), I have never been the same. I was lucky to complete my career to the point of taking an early retirement, and my wife worrying if I didn't pull out at that time, I would probably die on the teaching job the next year. My energy is quite limited, and when it is gone, my body looses coordination and walking becomes very difficult, and thinking is nearly impossible. My ability to read and understand anything complex is totally gone. I have participated in Lyme support groups since 1990, and have seen hundreds of other's lives ruined by insufficient medical treatment. We have seen some Lyme sufferers die from the effects, especially those who have a misdiagnosis and thus can't proper and sufficient antibiotics.

To those who think that the tick has to be attached for 24 hours, you are living in fantasy land. Research has shown that the Lyme bacteria can be in the Central Nervous System (spinal cord and brain) in less that 2 hours. Most antibiotics will not cross the blood/brain barrier, so once the bacteria (spirochete= Borrelia burgdorferi) has entered the spinal and brain tissue, you have almost no defense in fighting this relapsing fever type disease.

I could go on, but nobody wants to know the serious crap about this disease. Just know that a negative blood test is nearly meaningless. The tests are highly unreliable, and many more people have Lyme than are diagnosed with it. Some public health authorities have estimated that 10X as many people have it, as compared to the number with a positive diagnosis.

My life?? We all get something before we see the pearly gates, and I thank the power above that I can do what I can, helping my kids and 8 grandkids. But my "Plan A" in life sure came to a crashing end because of Lyme, so I had to readjust to "Plan Z". And I have had continual medical treatment since 1985, thankfully..

Avoid ticks of all types!!

Paul in MN

Sean Feeney · May 31, 2011

Ken just for interest

The disease is named after the town of Lyme, Connecticut.

Heavyduty1 · May 31, 2011

(quoted from post at 23:19:56 05/31/11) I got the dreaded tick bite during 1st hay cutting in 1985. Up until that time I had enough energy to work full time as a high school physics teacher, and run a subcontracting business nights and weekends. When there was not enough work to satisfy us, my partner and I would build complete houses, besides the teaching job and some farming. I did not short the teaching job, as I even earned advanced degrees in Physics and Biology.

After the tick bite (in belly button), I have never been the same. I was lucky to complete my career to the point of taking an early retirement, and my wife worrying if I didn't pull out at that time, I would probably die on the teaching job the next year. My energy is quite limited, and when it is gone, my body looses coordination and walking becomes very difficult, and thinking is nearly impossible. My ability to read and understand anything complex is totally gone. I have participated in Lyme support groups since 1990, and have seen hundreds of other's lives ruined by insufficient medical treatment. We have seen some Lyme sufferers die from the effects, especially those who have a misdiagnosis and thus can't proper and sufficient antibiotics.

To those who think that the tick has to be attached for 24 hours, you are living in fantasy land. Research has shown that the Lyme bacteria can be in the Central Nervous System (spinal cord and brain) in less that 2 hours. Most antibiotics will not cross the blood/brain barrier, so once the bacteria (spirochete= Borrelia burgdorferi) has entered the spinal and brain tissue, you have almost no defense in fighting this relapsing fever type disease.

I could go on, but nobody wants to know the serious crap about this disease. Just know that a negative blood test is nearly meaningless. The tests are highly unreliable, and many more people have Lyme than are diagnosed with it. Some public health authorities have estimated that 10X as many people have it, as compared to the number with a positive diagnosis.

My life?? We all get something before we see the pearly gates, and I thank the power above that I can do what I can, helping my kids and 8 grandkids. But my "Plan A" in life sure came to a crashing end because of Lyme, so I had to readjust to "Plan Z". And I have had continual medical treatment since 1985, thankfully..

Avoid ticks of all types!!

Paul in MN

I know someone who lost a small child to a tick bite back in the 80's. The child had a severe fever and they never did find out what happened until the child died. Turned out the child got Rocky Mountain spotted fever from a tick bite while playing in the back yard.

I check myself for ticks often and use some spray on my clothes that makes em run off me. :wink:

John730D · May 31, 2011

A nurse discovered a safe easy way to remove Ticks where they
Automatically with draw themselves when you follow her simple instructions.
Read this one as it could save you from some major problems.
Tick removal
Spring is here and the ticks will soon be showing
Their heads. Here is a good way to get them off you, your
Children, or your pets. Give it a try.
Please forward to anyone with children... Or hunters or dogs,
Or anyone who even steps outside in summer!!
A School Nurse has written the info below -- good enough
To share -- And it really works!
========
"I had a pediatrician tell me what she believes is the best
Way to remove a tick. This is great, because it works in
Those places where it's some times difficult to get to with
Tweezers: between toes, in the middle of a head full of dark
Hair, etc."

"Apply a glob of liquid soap to a cotton ball. Cover the tick
With the soap-soaked cotton ball and swab it for a few
Seconds (15-20), the tick will come out on its own and be
Stuck to the cotton ball when you lift it away. This
Technique has worked every time I've used it (and that
Was frequently, and it's much less traumatic for the
Patient and easier for me.."
"Unless someone is allergic to soap, I can't see that this
Would be damaging in any way. I even had my doctor's
Wife call me for advice because she had one stuck to her
Back and she couldn't reach it with tweezers. She used
This method and immediately called me back to say,
"It worked!"
Please pass on. Everyone needs this helpful hint.

Billy NY · May 31, 2011

General Practitioner's don't seem to provide any insight as to what to do, mine especially seems numb to Lyme, so time to pursue it on my own.

Recent local news article presents a tough scenario, to get examined, diagnosed etc. Link below.

What I got out of this article was you really have to press the issue. I'm not sure at the moment as to what insurance providers policies are dictating to physicians, but since these tiny little blood sucking crustacean like, sub fur dwelling annoyances seem to find me regularly, often times I have not been in grass, fields, woods etc. cannot figure out where I got em except one of the horses or possibly the cat ?

Bites leave a raspberry color necrosis like area surrounding the bite sometimes, though I think most if not all have been off in 24 hrs, and I've never had any symptoms, bulls eye etc. still makes a person concerned given the damage it can do, just the shear number of bites alone still "bugs" me, even though none I believe were on long enough.
Lyme Literate Doctor

8N'r--WI · Jun 1, 2011

Billy---your attached article states.. "Since the infectious disease doctors make policy and have put forth a protocol of treatment — antibiotics for 21 days — insurers don"t recognize chronic sufferers who often require years of care."

In the movie "Under our Skin" that I saw last week, they talk about this IDSA (Infectious Disease Society of America) policy and the 12 doctors who made up the panel that wrote the document.

An investigative journalist found out that 9 of the 12 had financial "connections" to the Health Insurers.......amazing, eh?

Tim

8N'r--WI · Jun 1, 2011

Paul---your story has similarities to what happened to my friend...prior to his bite, he was running a very successful Carpentry Business building high end homes in the Milwaukee Area.

Before he had the disease, he was the type of guy that could, and did, work 12-14 hours a day, and a lot of 6-7 day weeks.

Since then he has gone down hill each year. He now is 52 years old. He can still work as hard as anyone, but only for a few hours, and then he needs about 2 days of rest.

He was originally diagnosed, and then after diagnosis, given the Lymerix immunizations,,,a big no-no....

Hope to meet you some day, we missed you in Minn. last year when I got to meet Colin and Jerry.

Best Wishes to you.

Tim

Billy NY · Jun 1, 2011

Right, and the chronic sufferers may have arrived at their current condition for a variety of reasons, perhaps a failed or timely diagnosis, not knowing until symptoms finally appear and cause a change which seems to be common, and I'm sure other ways I'm not thinking of at the moment.

The fact that deer ticks that are carrying Lyme, are abundant and the development of more accurate testing seems to be lacking, should alert these medical professionals that this is a very serious problem because of what Lyme does when left unchecked. The latter is what concerns me too, if you go to the doctor, explain that you have been bitten recently, they prescribe antibiotics to knock it out of your system, ok, but what if it gets past you for whatever reason, and you are a chronic sufferer, your insurance provider adheres to the policies based on this corrupt/ conflict of interest panel of doctors that instituted the policy and you are then left to fend for yourself.

The last thing we need is doctors writing protocol on something like this, whom also have interest in the health insurance providers, what if one of them get it ????

Arkansas · Jun 1, 2011

I know this is serious stuff, and here in Arkansas we have plenty of the little critters, but 'tick pickin' is how I met my wife :lol:

Ken Macfarlane · Jun 1, 2011

Thats reassuring sort of, the town in NH I was it had a posting on their web site that 80% of ticks collected near the town that year tested positive for Lyme!

OT---slightly tractor related---Deer Ticks/Lyme

8N'r--WI

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rrlund

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Ken Macfarlane

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oleclint

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tjdub

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Paul in MN

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Sean Feeney

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Heavyduty1

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John730D

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Billy NY

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8N'r--WI

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Arkansas

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