Lyme Disease

[truefusion 3]

Lyme Disease is generally an infection that is passed on by ticks. General information states that only certain kinds of ticks can pass on this disease; however, in practice it may actually be any kind of tick, regardless of the age and gender of the tick. While normally spread through ticks, there are other ways of contracting the disease. Due to the nature of the borrelia burgdorferi bacteria, digging its way into most parts of the system, pregnant women have the potential of passing on the disease onto their children. However, it is possible to prevent transfer of the disease from mother to child with proper treatment. So far i have not heard of any other observed methods of transfer, though some speculate other insects or sexual intercourse.

 

[update: there is information that says that the disease can be transmitted through breast milk—apparently contradicting that mothers who are treated for the disease won't pass it on to their child (but i will leave the other information in place, as it can be a case-by-case thing, which other information seem to verify).]

 

First signs of Lyme disease tend to involve a rash—practically any rash on the site of the tick bite. This rash can be in many shapes and in many sizes, but generally giving the appearance similar to that of a dart board's bull's-eye. However, this often takes several days to show as the rash slowly increases in size—which may appear like it will never stop increasing, but should eventually go away. In cases where no such mark exists, proper diagnosis of the actual source of the later-occurring problems—to which there are many, which increase over time—may be prolonged, sometimes taking years to figure out that they were caused by having contracted Lyme disease. Unfortunately, many doctors may pass off the symptoms as something else and may choose to deny any possibility of it being related to Lyme disease. Some state that many tests that attempt to detect the presence of Lyme disease are inaccurate and may return negative for people who are infected with Lyme disease.

 

[Note: there is a similar tick-born disease known as STARI which bears similar symptoms to that of the early signs of Lyme disease. Differences may include the rash being smaller in its maximum size than the one caused by Lyme Disease and perhaps lesser complications over-all. Differences should be noted before forming a conclusion.]

 

It should be noted that how long a tick is required to have been feeding off of you in order to contract the disease is mostly irrelevant. Some state that the tick requires at least 12 hours of feeding on the spot to transfer the disease, others say at least 24 hours or more; or that it is only transferred when the tick is done feasting. However, the disease can be transferred at any time through the course of its meal. Normally, the area of the rash becomes numb and therefore lacking a sense of touch or feeling. Interestingly enough, brushing over the area with, say, your finger may cause the area or surrounding area of the rash to itch; otherwise, it may not itch at all. I am uncertain if there is any proper way of removing the tick after puncturing your skin, but there is information for and against using tweezers to crush the head or neck of the tick. After removal, though, it is recommended to wash the area with soap and water—though i have no idea if this will actually help in avoiding contracting Lyme disease, which i doubt it would.

 

Some people may experience symptoms early, normally days after the bite; some may experience symptoms years later—which can be the reason of not remembering if a tick has ever bit them in the first place. Such early symptoms, beside the rash, tend to be flu-like. Over the course of time the symptoms can get worse, even life-threatening. The bacteria itself causes an auto-immune response by the body, causing the body to attack itself, making it difficult to put an end to the disease. It is said that if the disease is caught in its early stages, that removal of the disease will take a short time. However, i cannot say that the disease won't still be present but rather that it is asymptomatic. Though for chronic cases it may seem like forever when battling this disease, many have reported that they have been "cured," showing none of the symptoms which they were burdened with, even if it was one heck of a battle. Therefore there is hope for those with Lyme disease.

 

Many doctors are not competent enough in Lyme disease to properly handle such cases. However, those who believe that they have Lyme disease should look for Lyme Literate Medical Doctors (LLMD) in their area, or, if necessary, out of their state. These doctors specialize in Lyme disease and are more suitable in having you get the help you need. It is recommended to see one that follows the ILADS guidelines, not necessarily those who follow IDSA guidelines. Due to the fact that bacteria and viruses feed off of sugar and carbohydrates, you may be given a strict diet that excludes food that contain sugar and are high in carbohydrates. This is done in hopes of starving the disease.

 

Antibiotics is normally the first line of defense prescribed by doctors. A popular brand is doxycycline of the tetracycline family. Like all antibiotics, they don't just kill the bad bacteria, they also kill the good bacteria in the system. This can lead to yeast infection in both male and female patients (aside from the other side effects of the antibiotic). In order to replenish the good bacteria patients can consume products that contain probiotics—obviously not right before taking the antibiotic; best time may be before going to sleep. Once the antibiotic starts working, the bacteria associated with Lyme disease starts releasing toxins into the system as it is dying. During this time, symptoms may worsen, but it is normally a sign that it is working against the bacteria. There are alternative methods to treating Lyme disease, but it is generally recommended, if you take this route, to use them along side the antibiotics.

 

It appears that Lyme disease is present in every state in the United States except for Hawaii. However, there is talk that Lyme disease is under-reported, but it is most apparent for the north eastern part of the United States. It is not surprising that it would be under-reported given the fact that many doctors rely only on tests that return positive (ELISA reportedly being the worst or completely useless), while others even disregard those very same tests, denying contamination of Lyme disease. I hear insurance companies only provide short-term support for patients with Lyme disease since they don't see Lyme disease as an epidemic or as something that could last the person several years or their entire lifetime.

 

While i have not verified all information provided herein, i can tell you that most of it has been verified and found to be true. The information provided here has been provided in the hope that it will be useful. If you are wondering why did i pick this subject, i picked it because i have recently been bitten by a tick and am showing symptoms of the early stages. Therefore i am researching as much as i can on Lyme disease. I've never been bitten by a tick before, and the first one that did bite me just so happened to be carrying a disease. It amazes me slightly that these ticks do not die as quick as you would expect them to (or would want them to ) though bearing such bacteria. It is also interesting to read that the saliva of the tick (yuck), just like lice, apparently, prevents the hole the tick made in your skin from closing and from the blood hardening. If it weren't for its saliva, no one would probably obtain the disease—but this i am uncertain of.

 

Since i believe i carry the disease now, any information that has not been verified, i feel, will be verified through experience. Hopefully, by the time any questions arise, i will be competent enough to respond to any queries concerning this disease.

 

Here are some resources for personal research and support:

lymenet.org/http://info.lymebook.com/matthewgoss.htmlilads.org/http://www-lymedisease.com/pdf_lymedisease.pdflymeinfo.net/http://lymebytes.blogspot.com/

Edited December 3, 2009 by truefusion (see edit history)

[sheepdog 10]

I did some reasearch myself on Lymes disease a few years ago. I had been feeling pretty rough and just kept dragging down and down, it was a miserable feeling, completly lathargic, body aches, etc. The symptoms of Lymes fit my condition to a T. I went to the local health department, and discoverd that the test for the disease alone would cost between $150 to $200. The recomended treat for Lymes is tetracycline, and since this is a very inexpensive drug, from the vet it was just $40 for a big bottle of 1,000 pills,(or you can get it in Mexico for $4 per hundred) I choose my usual path and self medicated. It really worked, I was feeling better in no time at all. I still don't know for sure if it was lymes, but the treatment cured whatever was ailing me, so that's all that really counts anyway.If you do think you have lymes, I'd get some tetracycline and get started on it right away. You have to take a long extended course of it, I believe for 30 days. The longer you let it go the more damage it does to your body. It really sucks you only getting bit by one tick and it to have lymes. Sound about like my luck, I rarely get bit by the little buggers myself. Guess all it takes is one though, dang it. Hope you get to feeling better. I wouldn't wish lymes on anybody, it's pretty rough.

[inverse_bloom 0]

Sorry to hear you got that Truefusion. Despite the odd mention of the word being brought up, to be honest I've never heard of it before. After a quick search i found that it is a problem encountered globally. Here is another site that might be of interest to people -

http://www.tickalert.org.au/seekmedi.htm

[truefusion 3]

Right now i can't differentiate between STARI and Lyme—and it seems a bit too early to really tell, but i'd rather be prepared for the worst. I hear the tests aren't good indicators if done within a month's time since the tick bite (but, then again, from my research, neither are they that great for those who've had it for years), and there doesn't seem to be much information on STARI. The first day of symptoms i've had was a soar throat (that doesn't seem to want to go away, and i'm losing my voice a bit because of it), a really runny nose, and a feeling that you get when you haven't slept for days and it's catching up to you (though i've slept fine that day). I haven't experienced any headaches or fevers or joint pains yet, but i have experienced some muscles shaking on their own, and for the past couple of days i have not been able to get more than 4 hours of sleep at a time. I'm not really sure what to expect from this, but from what i've been reading implies that this rash should have grown a bit bigger than what it currently is (though it did grow by about 2 millimeters).

[sheepdog 10]

So, how are you feeling now, you haven't mentioned any more about your ailment for awhile? Hope you have it under control and are feeling better.

[truefusion 3]

So, how are you feeling now, you haven't mentioned any more about your ailment for awhile? Hope you have it under control and are feeling better.

Well, after about two weeks from the tick bite, the symptoms went away, including the rash, and i feel normal now. Nevertheless, the headaches and sore throat was the worst i have ever experienced—and the headaches didn't let me sleep. The headache started with my upper-right muller area aching and worked itself to the side of my head, eventually leading to its normal spot, the lower right part of the back of my head where my neck and head meet. The gums at the upper-right part of my mouth became swollen, too. Hopefully, that is the end of that.