New to Lyme - So confused and Feel Like crap!

I was bitten by a tick on Memorial Day weekend 2014. I noticed the tick on my hip when I was in the shower and pulled it out while in the shower. Somehow, I just don't think this was the tick that I got Lyme from because it was so large. I seem to remember that I did have a tick earlier in the spring but I can't recall any specific details.

A week or so into June, I had what I thought was a bug bite at the top of my left leg. Apparently I scratched it a lot in my sleep and irritated it. I had sort of an allergic reaction and the area became red and swollen. The worst part was right where the elastic from my underwear was and I could not wear underwear for almost a week and pants for even longer. This resulted in a shopping trip for long sundresses. I tried Tea Tree Oil, Oil of Oregano, NEEM Oil and got no relief. I finally took Benadryl and the allergic reaction type of swelling was greatly reduced.

The area surrounding the bug bite (which I never really got a good look at due to its' location) stayed red and spread. Eventually it took on the appearance of the EM Rash. In the interim, I developed EM Rash (2) on my back, (1) on my left forearm and (1) on my right inner thigh just above my knee on the inside. They did not itch. I kept looking online for a photo of the same rash and finally discovered it on a tick site on Sunday June 29.

It should be noted that for the last several weeks or so I have been suffering from severe exhaustion and inability to concentrate on my work at all. I did not make a connection to this and the tick bite until I saw the photo and corresponding information on the tick site.

I went to see my doctor (GP) on Monday June 30th and told him I thought I had Lyme and showed him the EM rash. He was skeptical and said he did not believe it was Lyme but drew blood for a test anyway. He wrote me a prescription for a Z-Pack and sent me on my way. On Wednesday July 2nd, he called me early in the evening to tell me my blood work had come back and that the results showed I had Lyme. I don't know what type of test was ran but he said that anything over a 1 was considered a positive and that my levels were 6.69.

I started taking Doxy 100mg 2 X per day on Thursday July 3rd. I have all of my prescriptions and supplements entered into my profile for my prescription health care web site and have not been taking my Vitamin D3, multi-vitamins, Calcium, Zinc and Magnesium as they all showed an interaction. I do not have a thyroid as it was removed in 2000 due to thyroid cancer. I take Nature-throid 1.75 grains daily and take it in the middle of the night to avoid any conflicts with any medications or supplements.

My doctor indicated I should be on the Doxy for 21 days and then another blood test would be taken a few weeks after coming off of it. Is this sufficient?

When will I start feeling better? It's not getting any better and in fact it's getting worse. Last night was a nightmare with little restful sleep and joint pain that Aleve did not help at all. I get hit with extreme exhaustion and must lay down to rest for a little while. Brain fog..... I'm supposed to drive to Delaware tomorrow for my job which is roughly 250 miles round trip and I'm not feeling very warm and fuzzy about doing that right now.

I work from home so I do have some flexibility as to when I work as long as I make my conference calls but I don't know how much travel I can put off and for how long. I don't travel far. All of my projects are in the DC/Virginia/Maryland/Delaware area but I have just been informed I am also picking up Pennsylvania and more projects. Work has been slow but is now ramping up to screaming busy and I just don't know how I'm going to be able to keep up the pace!

Can anybody provide any advice, suggestions, information that would be helpful?

Should I see a specialist and if so what type?

I'm freaking out. I want this to be done and over with ASAP and from what I can tell, that is probably not going to happen.

Thanks for anyone who can help.....

Also if you do not feel better in a few days try not to feel discouraged. Everyone is different and every Lyme is different!

Hi Aparker,

Welcome to the forum!
I'm sorry you have to be here, but it's a good place for questions and support.

Could I ask you to go through the thread on top of the Lyme page 'New to Lyme?... Start here!'. It's packed with useful information about Lyme and coinfections, symptom lists, different treatment options, useful links, detoxing methods, etc...

LLMD stands for Lyme Literate M.D. Seeing a Infectuous Disease doctor is not advicable cause they are following IDSA guidelines, which are not realistic to say the least.
You can try to find a dr by going to the ILADS website, or by posting a new thread here, asking for a dr in your area (Looking for LLMD in____). Be sure to enable your email address under My Profile, Edit Profile, then click on 'Show my Email address'. This is because we can not post dr's names on the forum. Members will then be able to contact you privately with the information you were asking for.

Is the dr that you are seeing an infectuous disease dr? Cause 2x100mg of doxy for 21 days is definetely not enough to treat Lyme Disease. That is why you need to see a LLMD.

I hate to say this, but there is no fixed treatment duration. It is different for each and every one of us: duration of infection, possible coinfections, medical history of the patient, genes, etc...

The fact that you are feeling like crap since you started the Doxy is probably caused by something called a Herxheimer reaction, a reaction caused by the release of endotoxins when large numbers of organisms are killed by antibiotics. It can cause an aggravation of your symptoms, or flu-like symptoms, more pain, nausea, increase in fatigue, feeling more exhausted, etc...
You need to detox as much as possible to get rid of those toxins that are overwhelming your body. There is a list of detoxing methods in the New to Lyme thread. Please be sure to detox.
Also: use a good brand of strong probiotics while you are on abx.

As for the joint pain: you could try some natural supplements like Curcumin or Boswellia. I use a product called 'Zyflamend' for pain and joint inflammation. (I am in no manner connected to this product or this brand).

This infection is not easy to deal with, since it has an impact on so many levels. The only advice I can give you is: listen to your body, try to keep your stress levels as low as possible, detox, find a LLMD, and go day by day. Don't push yourself into doing extra things that are too much for you to handle right now. If you can work from home, do it. You will get better (there are a lot of success stories here), but first you need to take this hurdle and beat this.

Hang in there and don't hesitate to post.

MarieLS