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Have I been infected with Lyme Disease? (picture)

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Posted 8/15/2009 2:14 PM (GMT 0)
Lovemuffin,
You would be wise to start the Doxy ASAP. It is not going to hurt you one way or another. And your right about your Dr. They need to be available when you need them. Also, this seems like a recent infection. Having your blood drawn this early will likely not show anything. Your body has to make the Antibodies, it takes a little while for them to show up. I would ask your Dr. to continue the Doxy. Research is now showing that you need to be on it for 6-8 weeks to eradicate it totally. And follow what the IDSA says with caution. They are misguided at best. I wish you the best.
Posted 8/15/2009 6:55 PM (GMT 0)
Hi all,

 

I am jumping in (even after all these exchanges) because I was infected recently and wanted to share my experience with lovemuffin. The first picture that she sent sure looked like a bull's eye. Me too when I first got mine thought that it was just a mosquito bite gone bad or something like that but when I went to see the doctor, he immediately said that it was a classic EM (Erythema Migrans) which is the sign of Lyme disease. It looks just like yours, was itchy and warm. I didn't have any other symptoms other than being a little tired. I questioned whether it could be a spider bite and he said that they are usually painful so I would be feeling some pain and I didn't.

 

Now, I immediately started the treatment which was for 200MG of Doxy daily and 600MG of Omnicef daily. One month treatment but I am supposed to see the doctor again after one month and probably will continue for at least another 2 weeks. Reading what the other people posted, I am a little concerned about the Doxy only being at 200MG, and hope that this is enough. Also, does anyone know why I was prescribed Omnicef as well?

 

To be honest, I knew about Lyme disease but after reading other people's posts here, I would rather do everything I can now to get rid of the disease than hesitate and be stuck with it for years. So I'll take as much antibiotics as I can. Maybe even considering doing 2 months if I can.

Posted 8/16/2009 3:05 PM (GMT 0)
lovemuffin,

That looks like a classic lyme rash. Please dont' be afraid to take the meds!! You need as much as melaB is talking about. That is not a lot of meds comparted to what the rest of us have taken.

That much meds can make the rest of your life so much easier!! Lyme disease is devastating.
You are lucky to have had the warning, many of us did not and ended up taking years of abx instead of a few months.

Good luck to you!
Posted 8/16/2009 4:02 PM (GMT 0)
I agree with MelaB! And New York is THE place to get Lyme!!! I can't believe doctors there are so uneducated. Okay, well I guess I can. Take the antibiotics! When I was bit on my thigh, my whole arm went numb and tingly for a month and I lost all muscle mass. There is no rhyme or reason to this. Every case is different and with your symptoms so far you'd be better off being safe than sorry.
Posted 8/16/2009 8:42 PM (GMT 0)
I just want to thank all the members here for posting. You are all so compassionate and caring. You all are very knowledgeable too. Thanks for taking time out to help others.
Posted 8/17/2009 8:44 AM (GMT 0)
OK, I could start a new thread but I thought I might as well post here. So, maybe it's my paranoia, but I think I could've possibly seen a tick on my bedroom ceiling. I went to kill the thing with a tissue, but it was running fast and when I moved in on it, it fell. Then I lost track of it, despite looking under all my furniture and stuff. I should've used a big book or something to smush it -- I am an idiot. Anyway, I don't really know if it was a tick at all, I just know that can't recall ever seeing a bug that looks like what I saw around my house. It looked grey/light brown to me and it seems, from looking at pictures, hard ticks are black and dark brown. Potentially a soft tick? No clue. I'm no bug expert.

Either way, has anyone here every tried using a dry ice tick trap? Do they work? My paranoia is in full swing. If there really are ticks in my house, catching the little jerks would be nice. If there aren't, maybe this trap would tell me. Apparently ticks are attracted to carbon dioxide because hosts release it and the dry ice releases a ton and attracts them. Links: http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/54980/how_to_build_a_
dry_ice_tick_trap_and.html?cat=6 and http://greenmethods.
com/site/weblog/2008/08/how-to-make-a-tick-trap/. Let me know if I am being neurotic. I'm seeing the doctor in only a few hours (I couldn't sleep at all), hope she doesn't treat me like I've lost my mind.

P.S. MelaB, thanks for the comments. You might want to start a new thread with any questions because I am sure these people are sick of me. tongue

Post Edited By Moderator (CajunGrl) : 8/17/2009 4:50:44 PM (GMT-6)

Posted 8/20/2009 11:15 AM (GMT 0)
lovemuffin, I think what I have read is that the 1 time dose of doxy is for after a tick bite, as a prophylaxis (?sp), not if you have a bull's eye rash or symptoms.
Take Care, KO
Posted 8/20/2009 8:37 PM (GMT 0)
FYI: Ticks are in the city. They're everywhere. We have to wake up to this fact. A friend of mine was bitten in a hotel parking lot, in a city.

And that clinic doctor was ignorant because NY state has one of the highest Lyme disease rates in the whole country. Their ignorance is absolutely maddening! My own Lyme doctor said he would never move to NY state because of the alarming number of lyme disease cases.

My advice, read as much information as you can (especially by doctors who were or are members of ILADS).

Question doctors. Don't accept their opinion as fact, as most are completely ignorant of this disease.

Lyme tests are only 30% accurate. They shouldn't even be used as they are not reliable.
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