Please stay aware of Lyme Disease.

[jenny80]

Good morning,
As a chronic Lyme sufferer, I thought I'd mention this horrible disease to you and ask you all to be careful.
Lyme Disease and other tick borne illnesses are contracted by ticks which can be found on wild birds, cats, dogs, hedgehogs, long grass and deer, amongst other places.
Most people don't even see the tick that's bitten them and it certainly doesn't have to be attached for 36 hours to infect you.
Less than 50% of people with Lyme get the characteristic bullseye rash.
Burning a tick is a bad idea, so is smothering it in vaseline as this will make it sick, making it more likely to infect you.
You can buy a special tool to remove ticks called the O'Tom Tick Twister (which can be purchased here http://www.bada-uk.org/products/tickremover.php ) or you can use tweezers if you do not twist whilst you do it. (I am not affiliated with the tick twister product).
If you believe that you may have contracted Lyme Disease but your Doctor says it doesn't exist in this country or disagrees because you haven't a rash then please stick to your guns.
You can have a western blot test at the Doctor's but this will most likely come back negative even if you're infected. There are 3 Lyme Literate Doctors in the UK, one tests using blood microscopy and the others send your blood to America to be tested.
The One Show did a segment on Lyme Disease last month, which can be seen here. Lyme disease - useful information - Consumer
Lyme Disease is a very contraversial illness, with 2 parties having opposing views; the IDSA (whose guidelines the NHS follow) and ILADS. I'm not going to get into politics here but if ever affected by this horrendous disease, you may wish to look into the differences of 'views'.
A trailer can be seen here of the award winning Lyme Disease documentary, "Under Our Skin" (Please note that I am not affiliated with this film).
Under Our Skin - Watch Movie
Here are the links to the two UK Lyme Disease charities: Lyme Disease Action, the UK based Lyme charity and Home page: BADA-UK
There is also Eurolyme, which is an extremely informative Yahoo group. EuroLyme : EuroLyme Lyme Disease Support Group
If you're bitten by a tick then don't panic but if you start to feel fatigued over the next few weeks, get yourself to the Doctor and get yourself some antibiotics. Be firm and don't ignore the signs.
Very often Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME) is diagnosed instead of Lyme, around 80% of Lyme patients are given a false diagnosis of ME before going private and discovering they have Lyme.
I was 23 when I was bitten, for the first few months I just felt myself slowing down and these days I struggle to walk on my own, spend most of my time in bed, suffer with brain fog, seizures, terrible pain and a multitude of other symptoms.
Sorry this is long and also if I've missed out anything important.
Take care, enjoy the Great British countryside but be careful and stay aware.

[nightshade]

I think your reminder is timely, with more people starting to go out into the countryside. Personally I find Ticks are one of the few things that make my skin crawl.

[Hedge Witch]

Sorry to hear how bad you have it jenny, and thanks for all the advice.

So you can remove a tick with tweezers? Where do you grip it? Is there any other advice for removal?

[ron1863]

I think you twist and pull it ant-clockwise to remove it, like unscrewing a bottle I dare say the instructions will be included with the tweezers though.

Does anyone know if the incidence of Lyme Disease is higher in females than males. Women generally expose more skin than men and a woman walking in a dress would be much more likely to pick up ticks.

[agrumpycow]

Originally Posted by ron1863

Does anyone know if the incidence of Lyme Disease is higher in females than males. Women generally expose more skin than men and a woman walking in a dress would be much more likely to pick up ticks.

I don't think many women walk in a dress these days!

[Jez]

Spray on Organic Mosimix when going out walking this will give you protection from being bitten by ticks! Pm me if you would like the link.

[Tracey.A]

Jenny, I'm so sorry that you have Lyme disease, I can't imagine how horrible it is to suffer from this and my heart really goes out to you. I've read various things regarding Lyme disease and yours is one of the most informative I've read. My thoughts are with you Jenny. I'm glad you've joined WAB and I hope you enjoy this forum as much as I do.

Tracey

[Hobjob]

There is no advantage in removing ticks either clockwise or anti-clockwise.

Tweasers, if used, have to be very fine pointed and placed right under the
the little devil. They are not really recommeneded.

Much better are the dedicated tick removiers above and also the easily available
ones that are like the nail removing part of a tiny claw hammer.
They are usually sold in packs of two, large and small. Vets and
some pet shops, also on ebay.

That ticks regurgitate their stomach contents when roughly handled is
established, but, it is still only a theory that this increases infectivity. A
very plausible theory, but not yet proven (well it wasn't last year when
I did a web only based literature search).

The weight given to different theories by different protagonists has resulted
in very polarized views, especially accross the the pond - but note that in
the USA they have different infective agents to UK and Europe, so
comparing the two is fraught with difficulties.

Hypothesis --> Theory --> Proof

Books have been written on the subject, so be cautious in what is actually a "proof".

[Hedge Witch]

OK, I'm not particularly squeamish, but I'm getting more than a little concerned about these parasites now. I've never knowingly had one, and I don't really want one. But what are the chances I'll have my tick remover with me at the time if I do?

I have a question for anyone who has had one. Do you feel it when it takes hold?

[Jim Ford]

Originally Posted by Hedge Witch

I have a question for anyone who has had one. Do you feel it when it takes hold?

I've noticed that whilst I don't conciously feel a definite sensation, I seem to instinctively know they're there - I find my hand wandering to a slight swelling on (say) my upper arm, which on investigation turns to be caused by a tick. If there is any irritation at all, it's very vague and slight.

Jim