OT - anyone ever have Lyme disease here ?

Billy NY

Well-known Member
I'm really not sure what is wrong with me, always been a fighter when something bears down on me, but at the moment I'm in a world of crap, gonna call the doc early am and push getting in. I've never been so debilitated by something, sure we've all been sick, this been going on for weeks steady, went away, came back sore joints, muscles, no bullseye rash, eyes hurt, hot flashes, have to rest in bed for long periods, so thought I would confer with the folks here to lift my spirit, as when I am ill, I'll admit I really don't have any back up, LOL !!! (she who must be obeyed etc.) and of course when the roles are reversed I'll be there for anyone in the same boat, always means a lot to someone hurting as I have seen and done over the years, but it really wears on you though when its your turn ! LOL Well don't call in the chaplin just yet but maybe send a smoke signal up just the same, my way of putting it LOL !

Seriously though, I've been nailed so many times by ticks in the past, never on more than 24 hours, and not long ago had one attached ever so slightly, but it was dead, never had one die on me, no idea how long it was there either, which is playing with my mind, hopefully the doc can see me, this is truly awful, would not wish it on anyone.
 
Friend of mine got Lyme's Disease several years ago- symptoms similar to yours. Early treatment helps, but he still has some issues cuz of it. Back then, was almost unheard of here.
 
Thats why the alarm has gone off to get my doctor to let me in tomorrow and see what the heck is going on before I convince myself otherwise, if in fact that is the case, you can't wait, diagnose can be complicated too, and gee I thought I just got over the flu, which I don't think I've ever had. But its this, for weeks now. Being weak, dizzy etc. when I got up out of the chair around midnight, its making my mind wander in a million directions, fall asleep, deep sleep, vivid dreams, its crazy, its great when you get over something, looking back where you have been, you feel so much better, I can't do a darned thing right now and "can't" is not a word in my vocabulary unless referring to carpentry LOL. I do fear long term effects, well at least my benefits are paid this month, hope when I wake up tomorrow, things are better, really odd, I would likely never post something like this here either, I appreciate your response ! Thank you.
 
Never had Lyme, had mono when I was in college. I was so ill that I slept for 3 days solid in the infimary. I'm sure they will check your blood count. Good luck.
 
Only other thing my untrained mind brings up is fibromyalgia- similar symptoms....extreme tiredness, sore muscles, etc. Army buddy got VA disability for that due to possible exposure where we were stationed during Agent Orange testing....not Nam. I think Lyme's is more treatable- especially with early diagnosis. Best of luck-
 
A lady that went to school with my sister was diagnosed with Lyme's disease probably 10 years ago and she's never fully recovered. A few years ago the vet found Lyme's in our dogs when checking their blood. He put both on antibiotics
and the grass is always mowed every week. The barrier between the two developments is like a jungle. I kept the area behind me mowed for years until they told me to keep off. It's full of foxes and coons. Hal
 
My son was diagnosed with it a little over a month ago. Through the summer he was tired most of the time, soreness mostly in his arm and shoulder. Some mornings he was almost in tears from pain and cound not get out of bed without help. Doctors were running different tests and it took them awhile to finally conclude it was Lyme's Disease. We were giving him ibuprofin to help with the inflamation which seemed to help. Once diagnosed he was put on a prescription anti-inflamatory and a strong antibiotic for a month which seems to have helped tremendously.

I do not know why it took so long to figure out what was wrong, but then again I am not a doctor. It's aggrivatinvg though to go through over a month of testing before finally reaching a conclusion.
 
My brother had it and never found a tick. They treat it with penicillin. He had it for a while before they diagnosed it. It left him with fibromyalgia symptoms.
A friend of mine had Epstein Barr Virus or visa versa . They had him in the Hospital before I could convince them to ask the Dr. about the possibility. Anyway our prayers are with you.
Ron
 
The darned things are thick around here, when the neighbor across the lane is busy, if I'm here I'll always walk their dog, which is a pug, very light color fur and short, he will be clean of them before I take him out, in no time he will have a 1/2 dozen ticks, I do believe she treats him for those, he loves to play, kind of a bigger one of these and a good looker for having a cabover type face instead of the conventional long nose LOL !

We never had ticks here when I was a kid, obviously since deer came back, they came with them. I am getting real attentive to the slightest sensation on the skin, and detecting them before they bite, if thats any consolation.....which it is I think, always have read they have to be on 24-36 hours or so before they can transmit the disease.
 
Thank you, its incredible how easy you can get "benched" by something like this. I feel like Val Kilmer "Doc Holliday" looked in that movie with Kurt Russell, Sam Elliot, in Tombstone.

Think the doctors office is open in 1/2 hour, hope like heck I can get in and get started figuring this out, its just persistent as heck, 3 days straight now, joints don't feel so bad though, might have gotten dehydrated, been drinking gatorade often, energy level is way down, hot flashes still, thought that was a female thing associated with menopause LOL !
 
Billy, I can"t remember all the medical terminology but I do recall reading that there are several different tick borne diseases that have simsilar symptoms to Lymes. Just a thought you may want to check for those also. Regardless good luck, hope you get to feeling better. Tom B.
 
Billy Hope you Get to a bgood DR fast , and get WELL !...that is like what i had in 2009.not sure exactly same .Dr , gave me steroid shot , vit B-12, and penecillan , and it turned it around... it took a full 6 monthes to be able to feel like pulling hard again ... i dug a tik out my waste band ,, month later while working booth at fair it hit me like a ton of brix, but i had not been feeling well for a few days before that dont remember driving home ,,breathing diffiulty , extreme headache and body joint aches,,hot and cold constant fever ,, 1st time i ever thought i could die if i dont straighten up .//
 
I thought I had it and was treated 15 years ago. Never really got a lot better. There is NO absolute medical test that can prove you've got it or not. If suspected by symptoms and bloodwork - they treat you with anti-biotics. If you then improve - they say you had it - in retrospect.

Dairy farmer near me was diagnosed with it 15 years ago. He got so bad he wound up in a wheel-chair on intravenous antibiotics. After years of treatment they (medical experts) decided maybe the cause was something else. At one point, they started treating him with anti-depressants saying maybe he had fibro myalgia. He wound up shooting himself - and then his medical issues were easy to diagnose.

One thing that IS known for sure. If you have Lymes - and the treatment works - it stops it from getting worse. It does NOT always remove the bad symptoms you've already got. Of course, every person is different. That is the reason why early treatment is important. Last I checked there were three different types of blood tests for it and none are are absolute.

Note also that with Fibro Myalgia . . there is also no absolute test. No known cause either. Just nerves gone haywire.
 
Billy, there is a blood test for this as ten years ago the Doctor thought I had it, but the test came back negative. Doctor even showed me what the 'bulls-eye' pattern looked like on my back. I have since recovered from whatever it was. But it WASN'T Lyme disease! I wish only the best for you, and pray that it's only 'old age' making its presence known. I've become acquainted with "Arthur"itis and all his brethren in the years since.
 
Billy, google mononucleosis and take a look at coconut oil therapy (2 tblspns twice a day) and vitamin C therapy (as much as your body will tolerate without diarrhea, 4grams for me, every two hours. I used both at the same time with xlnt results on a diagnosis of mono 2 years ago. They both kept me going. Coconut oil has both antibiotic and fungicidal qualities and provides immediate energy. The medical community is very skeptical of both therapies, but it really helped me. Read about it and decide if you want to try it. Good Luck. Mel
 
Well, I'll have to wait 24 hrs more, can't get in until tomorrow 8am, sun shining, calm air, kind of makes you feel better too.

One of my best friends dad in 2010 checked out in the same fashion, waited til his wife was out, went down behind the barn, right behind his tractor a 2020jd, some suspicion about anti depressant meds by the oldest brother, middle one found him shortly after.

I might be jumping the gun on Lyme, but like you say the diagnosis, testing and follow up treatment does not seem to be an exact science.

The symptoms appear similar, and I sure as heck know not to play around with doctors with this, you need one that is Lyme literate. I've found that one has to be very careful with medical professionals, my father has had a rough time the last few years, only within the last year since switching doctors, to one that had a real interest in helping him, getting to the root of the problem, he just had a minor surgery that resolved something that was likely the cause, he was darned close to succumbing to complications caused by a a long standing infection in his sinus cavities, was triggering asthma, which played heck with his heart rhythm, BP etc. If he continued with the same regimen it would have no doubt got the best of him, I saw it with my farmer friend while he was hospitalized, doctor on the hospital floor disagreed with the large dosages and medication prescribed by the previous doctor, I was sitting right there, he's a good friend, doctor said everything in laymans terms, but in summary, this change and his follow up to continue healing saved his life, and though he downsized the ag work to just hay, mostly round bales, he can still work, what he was facing was the end of all of it and very possibly himself. A person really has to be proactive with these medical professionals, as it seems they do more of prescribing medications vs being a physician, and the 2 cases I mention above were cut and dry after changes were made, had both continued, they'd not be here, I guess its like the difference between a mechanic and parts replacer LOL !
 
Make sure they test you for it NOW! My cousin had it for a year before they even tested for it and diagnosed him. He was one sick puppy. By that point,they weren't even sure they could cure it. They said the medecines might cause him as much trouble as the disease by that point. He did come through it alright,but at that point it was a matter of beating the odds.
 

Lymes disease: very prevalent on eastern L.I. N.Y. If a person is diagnosed with it and is treated early there is a very good chance of a full recovery.But all subsequent blood tests for it will indicate the person is still infected. My wife and several of my friends have had it and all have made a full recovery. My wife was on intraveinous A/B for several weeks to get rid of it.Early treatment is key.
It wasen't too long ago that many docters had never heard of Lyme diesease.
 
The first time I ever heard of Lyme's disease was about 20 years ago. A game warden in western MD was having a lot of heath issues similar to some of the symptoms posted on here. Before they knew what he had, he died. Hal
 
Everybody is different. In my case - maybe 15-20 years ago - almost all-of-a-sudden I started feeling real tired and sometimes had ache and pains almost everywhere. So considering all the ticks we have around - I went down to the doctor and got a blood test. First one came back negative and the doctor refused to "grant" me a second test. I then paid out of pocket for a 2nd test and this time it indicated I DID have it. Still proof of nothing. I got antibiotics for 6 months and it made no difference. Then I went to the hospital pain-clinic and was diagnosed with Fibro Myaligia. They prescribed Amitriptyline. This drug is used in low doses as a sleep remedy and higher doses as an anti-depressant. I took it for a week and started feeling REAL weird mentally. So I had to quit before I became an axe-murderer. A few years later after doing my own research, I suspected I had Hepatitis C. Went to the local doctor and she told me my self-diagnosis was "nonsense" and refused to authorize a blood test. So again - paid on my own and came back positive. I've been tested every 6 months since and am always positive. I've never taken any treatment for it. The only known treatment is interferon "chemo" for 6 months to 1 year. Seems to have a 40% success rate. They geno-typed the strain that I have and gave me a 20% chance of improvement from it. I've passed so far. I'm over 60 as it is and I worry the "cure" might kill me. That's what happened to the founder of Walmart as I recall.

Anybody that has had surgery, dental work, etc. before 1993 can have caught Hep C.

By the way - my friend's wife was diagnosed with Lymes 20 years ago. That diagnosis changed from Lymes to Fibro Myalgia, then to MS, and now to Lupus.

Obviously medical "science" is not an exact science.
 
Its a shock to your system when you are used to making good use of your time, that last sentence sums it up when you're feeling the worst of it.

Breathing is good, body it weak and tired, no gastrointestinal issues, appetite is less , just takes longer to get hungry, I've got a couple of places nearby with some very good close to home cooking, big help to get by, til I feel like pushing a shopping cart and hauling in the weeks groceries. Sad thing was I lost a whole pile of ripe red bell peppers, temps got past my tarp, which is usual, but I can sometimes make it til December, just no umphh to have picked them, loaded with vitamin C I'll eat em raw, lettuce still standing though !

I've had surgeries, been injured and similar, at least then you know you will heal up, but this kind of situation is flat out strange, stop sign pops up and you're on the bench, such a nice day today too, the kind you live for. Cripes looked at the clock it was just 830, laid down, wake up 11 am ! See an old friend made it up, (his dad actually) from Tennessee to walk the land out back, he still enjoys the whitetail deer too, always welcome, I won't even be able to visit with him darn it LOL well heck at least someone is enjoying today, thats all that counts, I'll just be off the left somewhere, but will send up some smoke from time to time LOL !
 
Modern medicine is wonderful, but like you say, it ain't nor will it ever be perfect.

That situation you describe sure has to embed itself in your mind, because you can't seem to get closure on it and you've got a youngster to raise, a wife to enjoy, + the places you have, you want to be there for him, and the other things who needs this crap LOL !!!

I agree, some of these meds are just crazy, I had a doctor prescribe paxil, was on a tough, stressful job in NYC, and was taking a beating with the hours and imbalance of off work hours, little moody, so ok doc, thanks for the help, whoa... wait a minute, few weeks into that, once it got into my system, felt like I had a ear to ear smile, as if I was on some illicit narcotic, hallucinogen or the like, not for me at all. Turned out a little Xanax when I felt I needed something to relax, that one for me was what worked great, it helped and was used on a very limited basis, last time I had it was before a surgery, to relax, higher dosage. No need for it now that is for sure. I don't care for any off the shelf or prescription drugs for the most part, all chemicals and its hard on the liver, only when really necessary. You can have drugs like Paxil, $100/ per prescription for something that you would think someone would find on a street corner somewhere LOL !

Hep C, that can be really bad and harsh on your liver, causing a lifetime of issues my father had a good friend, whom while was in college was helping push a stalled car out of the way and a drunk hit them, he lost a leg, drunk had diplomatic immunity, could do nothing to prosecute, he eventually had a liver transplant, 12 years later though it was most likely the cause of death.
 
I think it was a lot less prevalent, medical professionals did not seem to be well versed in it either. We never had ticks though either, I never saw one as a kid, we had livestock too.

I've got some other info to provide for the doctor, darned white footed/field mice have gotten in again, as is usual this time of year, first sign I put traps everywhere inside/outside, just go to war on them, you can catch something from them, being ill, have not got the remainder of traps out yet, no doubt they're ahead of me.

I plowed my larger garden patch though I know the leach field is close to one end, I found the top of pipe between the concrete tank and distribution box, water was clear at least, system is working well, reached in with gloves on, cleared some dirt that fell in, left a section of pipe, a 90 fitting as it changes direction, have a fernco fitting as well, easy fix, I just cant complete the hand work yet, washed my hands but good after, but will mention to the doctor. Well at least I finally know where the darned thing is now, field is much deeper, than the pipe before it and I had a small ornamental tree come up and been growing to the left, as I really did not know where the lines were, but that plow sheared the few shallow roots off, up on a hill, well drained likely never an issue, even then I can do those in my sleep, I like the tree, I'll move the laterals if it ever causes trouble.
 
I had Lyme disease about four years ago, it was not fun. At first they couldn't diagnose it. Symptoms started to appear in June, it wasn't til September that the actually determined it was Lyme disease. Started with a bout of Bells palsy and was treated for that. about 2 weeks later I felt so sick, I left work early and I drove to the hospital. The hospital gave something for the pain and sent me home that night, by
tuesday morning I was back in the hospital whole body ached, shaking having trouble thinking clearly, eventually affected my vision. they treated me with pain killers, ran a bunch of test Parkinson's, MS and a bunch of others. Don't remember whole about lot of those weeks. They did send me home 7-10 days later i dont recall but they still didn't have diagnoses. The pain was incredible and near constant couldn't sleep at night or any time really, moving was painful lying still was painful. the first test for Lyme was negative so they were guessing at how to treat my symptoms. Finally in late August or early September they got a positive for Lyme and started treating me with oral antibiotics. By this time it had affected my nervous system greatly. I did start felling better in September. Started working at my job first at halftime and after two weeks was driving to my doctors to get clearance to go back full time and hit a pothole that wrenched my back so severely (I was only a half mile from doctors office) when got to the doctors it took me over ten minutes to walk twenty feet into the office, the doctor took one look at me and said "do want to call an ambulance?" Well instead going back to work I was out again, more pain killers, physical therapy and finally months later cortisone shots, which made things worse. Finally was sent to a back specialist got to operate he says thinking it disk problem. Turns out he winds up doing a Laminectomy procedure because my spinal cord was swollen from the Lyme disease. Surgery was in March
Started back in May again halftime June full time but was having troubles with legs and feet swelling. Go back to doctor what I thought was routine visit a follow up. But she tells me I would best for me retire and I would require oxygen full time. I have had lung problems over the years caused by an accident on grandfathers farm when I was 13 and I knew I would retire earlier than normal but still comes as quite a shock. Sorry for making such a long but just wanted be careful because Lyme can also affect any other medical conditions you have.
Chuck
 
Billy---you write--"never on more than 24 hours".

If you are 100% sure of this, you probably do not have Lyme"s.....however, having had the desease myself, I can tell you with certainty that you don"t always see the tick, nor have rash symptoms, or the infamous "bullseye"...

I tromp around a Lyme hotbed in Western WI....my hunting partner of 35 years has Lyme so bad, he is on disability at age 52.....hard to live with when he was the kind of guy that worked hard 10-12 hour days as a habit and now is shot if he does any physical activity for a few hours.

Hope whatever you have is treatable, and you get to feeling a bit better...

There is another fella that is very well versed on Lyme that may see this post and chime in...

Best of Luck..

Tim
 
Hep C can kill one person in a year, while another can have it for 80 years and die of something else. It causes scars on the liver and can wind up causing liver cancer - or requiring a transplant. Many "celebs" have it (or had it). Evel Kenivel, J.R from Dallas (Larry Hagman), Winona Judd (singer), Crosby from Crosby-Stills-Nash-Young, Gregg Alman (Alman Bros Band), etc. Before 1993, medical and dental instruments were not heated high enough to kill the virus so anybody who was around before then could have it. With many - you can have NO symptoms for 40 years and then they start. That sometimes 40 year delay makes "cause and effect" hard to detect. Hep C can give similar symptoms as Lymes or Fibro Myalgia.
 
You're right, many people have gotten nailed and not known it, I'm optimistic too, but given the situation, I thought it wise to ask and start some dialogue on it, prepare myself for the worst, I sure as heck will not leave out any details with the doctor on anything I can think of, I've never had an illness last so long and or take me down, another day gone by, I was supposed to be pulling a round of logs in, have everything set up, I did a few hours work, Sat and Sun, nothing strenuous, Monday I was out if it, had about 2 hours work left to do, with that weather coming in and had all I could to to get everything done, past 2 days have been identical to a weeks worth of the same, felt better too, just about fine, soon as I did any work, wham, right back at you !
 
What a turn of events that was for you, really nothing to take lightly. I have not had any great pains, though my belly has been sore all day, I'm coherent and in good spirits, about time to place an order from the great restaurant down the street, been having breakfast and one decent meal per day, finally hungry again, I'll look forward to being able to prepare my own meals again, like I always do, figure I may as well treat myself as there is not much gas in the tank at any given time lately.

Still cannot believe what you had to endure with this, hope like heck it don't come back on you !
 
FYI, highly appreciate the responses here, kept my focus and not let the mind wander about, had another friend call, check in on me, say the word if you need anything, nice to know!!! I have that appointment first thing tomorrow, just got to make til then, staring at the walls, dozing off, repeat, sure is no fun LOL !!!
 
I got three ticks on me this last Saturday while out hunting and didn't find the little suckers until late that night. Two were attached well but not blown up yet and one wasn't attached. Think I might have had a fourth on my neck and it might have got knocked off by my collar cause I had a sore spot on my neck and after picking at it got what seemed like a possible head of a tick out.

The first one I found was on the inside of my arm by my elbow. It was in sight and I bumped it or something to where it caught my attention and when I saw it I thought... oh crap. So I went to a big mirror and started looking my wonderful self over. (humor... fifty years old with a good beer gut...) That's when I found one up on the back of my shoulder that was also attached. Plucked it and dug around for a bit then right between my shoulder blades saw another and it was apparently just cruising around deciding ona spot to sink in?

The little things are tough too. You have to get a fingernail to fingernail pinch on them to snap the little sons a guns.

Got one last year hunting on my belt line. Called the Dr's office a day or two later after some prodding from others at work. They gave me a prescription for anti-biotics as a just in case thing and never bothered testing for the Lyme's disease.

Was going to call again for these ticks but thought maybe I'd just wait and see how the spots look after a few days. Well the one I can see easy isn't really a bulls eye per say but it did change. Started out sore and red dot size of a pencil eraser. Yesterday it changed to where the inside of the circle is more flesh colored and the outer edge still dark red. Today it's about the same.

After reading this thread and watching the clip on another thread called Lyme's II... I've decided it'd probably be best to give the pill pushers a call and possibly prevent a lot of problems. Think I'll ask 'em about testing my blood this time.

Oh and Bill... I know what you mean about feeling every and little thing on your skin lately. Every time a hair moves on my head (what little of it that's left) or anything twitches at all, I have to feel and make sure it isn't a tick.

Well good luck and hope the good dr. fixes you up.
Bob
 
Hi
do you have west nile from the mosqitos down where you are. that can be a put ya on your butt deal too.
My friend got sick like you doctor messed for
3 months, I told her lymes doc said no chance. then outta the blue friend says dogs done it got lymes.
I said go back to doc and say about dog and get tested cause you both been in the same place with ticks. Doc buggered around more. Friends getting to the point of loosing job she's so sick. so goes back and demanded the antibiotics. 3 days later she was back to normal.
I am no doc but figured it out makes you wonder why half these guys get paid the dollar. i fix tractors and farm hogs maybe a time for career change lol.
good luck and let us know how ya do
Regards Robert
 
Can't rule that out, west nile, skeeters were not bad this year at all, was so dry, but I've been bit, sometimes I don't ever feel the little bloodsuckers, don't even itch from it either. I have seen them right into December in my heated garage, man cave in the back,after a wet summer or wet fall, it might be the floor drains, the toilet, for water who knows and I have been bit like last year up until that time. They say the odds of getting bit by a carrier are not good, same with ticks, but its out there and so are we.
 
Bob the bit about the mirror made me laugh!, we are all so humbled by it LOL !!! I just woke again and I've had the same thing on the skin from bites in the past, pencil eraser size but never the much larger bullseye rash like they show in photos. That video is hard to watch, you certainly cannot play around with these. Worst part is I can't even go to the wood shed without getting one, had not been outside all day, wanted a fire to warm up, one comes walking down the back of my neck, its unnerving, time for guinea hens or something, fox and coyotes will love that !

Theres a method, special tweezer etc. for removal videos on removal are posted on you tube.


The long night ahead of me, ending with the doctor in the am, hope like heck I can rest easy, just seems you stare at the ceiling once the sun goes down, really have not slept right in days actually its almost a week cause of this.

Pure hell, belly aches pretty good right now, hope it works out for me its not much fun worse off at times, bearable at others thanks for your and everyone's kind words !
 

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