How long after bite?

Hi Manonearth!
Welcome to our forum!! I'm sorry that you even had a need to ask these questions! Although I'm sure glad you found us!! We are a great community that has lots of caring people that like to share information!

Most knowledgeable doc's now say "treat the bite" no matter whether there are symptoms or not. Lyme and the other infections that get passed from tick (or any other biting insect) to people can happen in very little time.

Joint pains can and do happen quite randomly. It's not a case of the pain following the infection - the infection is already there and evidently, by your symptoms, it's infected your nervous system and joints.

As for the bite site - be sure to keep it clean and dry, and apply abx (antibiotic) ointment to it. Some bites don't heal up right away.

Then, get yourself to a good LLMD or Holistic practitioner! You will most likely get tested, but the tests are horribly unreliable, as they look for the immune systems response to it, and all too often it can't be found, despite having the infection(s). There are several reasons for this - I can go into that if you are interested.

Otherwise, please read through our "New to Lyme? Start here!" thread that sits at the top of our forum. It has a lot of important info packed into it! From symptom lists (as Lyme rarely travels by itself!!) and informative links and pdf's to a list of questions that you can ask any doc that you are seeking treatment from!

Next, you will need to find a knowledgeable doctor to treat you. Do not count on Infectious Disease (ID) docs, as they don't believe the scientific information that is available for these infections - seriously! They ignore it. You will want to find what is known as a LLMD - Lyme Literate Medical Doctor.

For information on finding a LLMD in your area, you can start a new thread titled something like:"Looking for LLMD in the _______ area." Although you will need to enable your email option in your profile in order to receive any recommendations, as we don't allow doctor's names and contact info to be posted on the forum for several reasons. You can enable your email option in your profile, under 'edit profile'. Be sure to click the submit button to actually save your preference.

You can also email our long time member, Dan's Mother at:[email protected]

You can also email Stephanie at: [email protected] You can also go to: www.turnthecorner.org/ if you want to learn a little bit more about Lyme Disease.

You can also go to The Lyme Disease Association and search for LLMD's 3 times in a month. You have to register first. Here is the link:www.lymediseaseassociation.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=277&Itemid=74

You will want to find an ILADS (International Lyme And Associated Diseases Society) doctor. The ILADS site is another great place to read to get you started on your Lyme journey. www.ilads.org/lyme_disease/treatment_guidelines_clearing_ilads.html

I'm sure others will be along shortly to add in their thoughts!

Sorry, I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but practically everyone on here never got the rash. I have no clue when I got bit. And yes, Lyme most definitely can start wreaking havoc long after a bite occurred. It's a very insidious disease.

Don't go much longer without being treated. The longer you let it go, the worse it gets. Also, make sure you really do go to an LLMD. I don't know where you live, but most mainstream doctors refuse to believe that it exists. I live in Boston, which is supposed to be the hospital hub, and I had to go to DC to get treated.

This forum is a lifesaver for everyone. You can ask the craziest questions (seemingly) and someone else will have it, have had it, or know which direction to point you in to get an answer. Start your research ASAP. Know your body. Noone wants to have this. It's hard to hear it because at first, you think "Yay! Diagnosis!" Then you start doing research and you understand that simply taking antibiotics for 2 wks. is not going to cut it. Not by a long shot. Good news is, with a good doctor and good treatment you can recover. So don't wait to get started!!!

Good luck!

As you can see, Manon earth, not many of us believe in those kinds of coincidences - we're living proof that it's not much of a coincidence!

The Lyme bacteria can most definitely stay dormant for 9 months, and a lot longer before becoming active! What happens is that your immune system was strong enough to keep the infection from "exploding" in your body, but not strong enough to eradicate it, so it found a hiding place (joints, organs, tissues) until your body was place under just the 'right amount' of stress, and then it became an active infection, causing your symptoms.

Testing is so faulty with these diseases, as the bacteria's first order of business is to leave the blood stream - so it's not in the blood just circulating around where it can be seen or have a blood test done and get good consistent results. The bacteria only move into the blood stream periodically. The best way to know if you have the infection(s) is by your symptoms.

As is being pointed out, the longer the bacteria is in your body without adequate treatment, the more opportunity it's being given to do lasting damage.