Scared of going out walking again

I posted this on an anxiety forum, but I received quite an insensitive reply by someone telling me I was silly to google Lyme in the first place, a bullseye rash didn't have to mean I had Lyme and if the NHS will treat IVF and give weight loss surgery then they will treat lyme. Basically they beat around the bush and didn't answer my question and just made me out to be an anxious idiot. I'm fairly sure they had no knowledge on Lyme whatsoever. I was bitten fairly recently and I thankfully got the 4 weeks of doxy at 400mg through the invaluable information that I gained from this forum and other websites, so if it weren't for you guys I would still be untreated. So I thought I would ask that same question here:

I'm scared of going out walking in woods and parks again. I now know that the ticks can't jump but they can climb, so I imagine I would be dodging the tall grasses and bushes on the edges of the path like a crazy person! I am considering going on the lawn of a big park, but I'm not so sure about paths and definitely not off path. I know I am probably being silly and I guess a lot of you with chronic lyme may even venture out into rural places. What are the chances of me being bitten again? I'm worried. :(

Thanks all <3

MarieLS said...
Hi Anxious Girl,
Try not to get upset by people that don't know anything about LD, it takes a lot of your energy... I noticed that people can get very territorial when it's about 'their' disease, and can get very mean...

I really fight being scared of the outdoors. I can't imagine that I would never walk in woods again. Nature is the only thing that make me feel entirely at ease.
I'm more conscious about the possibility of having a tick on my skin, that's all. And I put tea tree oil on my skin to repell insects. I check my skin, aware of the fact that they can be very small.

Marie

Good advice
I have heard tea tree oil is an exellent repelent.
Avons skin so soft expedition bug gaurd works great as well
all my metal detector buddies that go in the deep woods, favor the skin so soft

I don't think I could ever forego taking nature hikes. I live in Oregon so that would be a crime not enjoy all that it has to offer. Caution is the key. I think it's like wearing a seatbelt; it becomes second nature to be cautious. Most people wouldn't stop riding in a car because there are accidents. Nature has a lot to offer. I know it helps me when I feel depressed. Thank you Rick and Opu for the Avon recommendation. I didn't know about that one.

Natrapel (I get it at Walgreens), contains picaridin which is supposed to be as effective as DEET (more effective for tics I have read), but not toxic. All of our pants/socks (and all my daughter's clothes when she is horseback riding) get sprayed with permethrin (which I buy from REI) and allowed to dry. It will remain on the clothing for up to 7 washes. The dog's beds are sprayed with permethrin as well. Cats are sensitive to permethrin before it dries, so shouldn't be exposed to it.

Lyme is not a new infection. Borrellia DNA was found in the IceMan mummy:
http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/11/iceman-autopsy/hall-text

Something about our environment/immune responses has made symptoms more prevalent. Is it pesticides, vaccinations, heavy metal contamination, GMO food, lack of a proper evolutionarily appropriate (paleolithic type) diet....IDK.

Take precautions and make your immune system as healthy as you can. Each generation has it's own battles. We were lucky not to have to live through wars, starvation, concentration camps - this is ours.

anxious_girl,

I don't want to minimize or discount your fears. I think that caution about the outdoors is in order when it comes to possible exposure to the insect vector. I identify with those who realize the possible dangers, but take sensible precautions to prevent exposure to the bugs.

In my daughter's case, we urge her to take a thorough shower after she has been outside in the grass, bushes, or trees. She received 3 misquito bites at an outside graduation pool party last week. When she came home we topically applied Thieves Oil to the bites, and she took the Jernigan products Borrelogen and Microbojen internally. We don't anticipate any problem. The illness is always in the back of our minds when she goes outside, but we choose to not permit that concern to be blown up into anything larger than a caution.

Heather is even more relaxed about it now than we are. She does not harbor the mindset of a disease victim. She is fully confident that even if she is bitten by a disease carrying insect, that she can handle it this time. She is not the same person that she was.

Now please don't misunderstand what I am about to tell you. My advice is to be cautious, but not enslaved by fear. That sort of life-controlling factor within you will only destroy, but will not heal you. I like some of the opinions that have already been expressed here!

Don