Please help. New tick bite and not sure what to do!

Hi there. I'm new to this forum and want to start off by saying that I am so sorry for the things people here have suffered through. I have had cancer and other health issues in my life and know that there is. I support like the support from those who have walked in your shoes, so I always seek advice from support groups and forums such as this one...
Anyway, my reason for posting: last night, I was changing and found a tick on my side that looked to be wngorged with blood. I have never had a tick on me that was swollen like that. I have picked ticks off before but they were always flat..! This one wasn't huge but was probably the size of a rice grain....it was dark brown, no spots. My daughter pulled it out with tweezers. We didn't save it. I guess we got the head but I was honestly kind of freaking out and she just put it down the drain.... I clean it with soap and water in the shower then alcohol wipes them neosporin....I have no idea when this tick got on me...we buried our dog earlier on the week and it could have been then, but I feel like I would have seen it....also, the morning of the day I found it I had been doing laundry and had washed my husbands clothes he was wearing when he buried our dog. I wondered if maybe this tick had been on them and then gotten on me....who knows. Anyway, it's the weekend, so I haven't called my docs office but did text a friend who is a nurse orations for an internal med doc. She said don't worry unless I see a rash....of course, I haven't seen anything like that at all yet and have no symptoms whatsoever....except I am scared too death and don't know what to do.....I have other health issues that I don't want to get into but I can't afford to add another one....my question is... should I call my doctor and insist on a course of doxycycline..? We are in Georgia which apparently is not a high risk area, but honestly that doesn't really make me feel any better....also, if you take the doxycycline--are there bad side effects for that...? I'm so concerned. Any advice at all would be helpful and o really appreciate it.

Hi bkwjww - welcome!


Purrrsiankitty has given you some good information.

I'd like to add to it.

First: The bullseye rash only appears in less than 50% of the cases. So, please don't wait to see that.

I have pasted a portion of Dr. Burrascano's (member of ILADS) Lyme Disease Treatment Guidelines:

TICK BITES - Embedded Deer Tick With No Signs or Symptoms of Lyme (see appendix):
Decide to treat based on the type of tick, whether it came from an endemic area, how it was removed,
and length of attachment (anecdotally, as little as four hours of attachment can transmit pathogens). The risk of transmission is greater if the tick is engorged, or of it was removed improperly allowing the tick's contents to spill into the bite wound. High-risk bites are treated as follows (remember the possibility of co-infection!):
Adults: Oral therapy for 28 days.


I would do the 28 days of antibiotics if I were you. It sounds like a lot of antibiotics...but the risk you are taking by not treating and getting sick...just isn't worth it.

www.ilads.org/lyme/treatment-guideline.php

If you click on the link...you can scroll down to where it says Download Guidelines. You will see the excerpt I have pasted on page 19 of the Guidelines.

In addition to getting members recommendations for a LLMD, you can also email me (click on the envelope below my screen name on the left) and I will check my list for your area and send you names.

If your regular Dr. is able to give you a month worth of antibiotics take them...but it would be a good idea to make an appt. with a LLMD...and if you end up not needing the appt...you can always cancel. If your Dr. will only give you a couple weeks, then I suggest you keep the appt.
It can take several weeks to months to get an initial consult.

Your husband is correct - you don't know if the tick carried Lyme disease.

Try not to worry...You have the information you need.

I wouldn't be concerned about long term damage for one month of doxycycline.

Take a lot of probiotics...and support your liver and kidneys...and you should be fine.

Yes...the other is scarier.

Hi bkwjww, and welcome!

You did good by coming here quickly.

Since your bite is fairly recent, I would put a generous dab of antibiotic ointment on the bite area about the size of and thickness of a dime. Its ok that you are just doing this now but the sooner the better.

Loosely cover it with a band aid so the ointment doesnt get wiped away, but leave space for the ointment to bulge a bit.

Continue to do this and try to keep ointment atop it for at least 24 hours consecutively. Reapply ointment as needed to keep a layer on the site and apply new band-aids as needed.

A most common side effects of Doxycycline are nausea and stomach pain. This will continue for about 5 days after you begin taking it and then you should be able to tolerate it much better after that initial period has passed.

How do I find an LLMD?

In addition to members recommendations - you can send me an email by clicking on the envelope below my screen name. I will check my list and send you names I have.

You can also contact ILADS

ilads.org/ilads_media/physician-referral/

also, the woman who answered my call in Roswell said they would test my for Lyme (bloodwork)....I thought it would be too early for that at this point....?

Thank you Traveler. I really appreciate your advice. My PCP did end up calling in a rx for doxycycline but I don't know for how long yet....I guess I will go and get it filled. Is it okay to take with food? The main thing I am worried about it anxiety and it affecting my sleep......Ive read some reports of that and that is something that I have finally gotten under control after a bout with cancer and some real insomnia issues afterwards......hopefully it won't be a problem

do I have to completely avoid dairy while taking it? I eat yogurt every morning and have cereal everynight before bed.......

it's a good idea to avoid Dairy, but most importantly with taking Doxy is to familiarize yourself with de-toxing, which is crucial to getting through the treatment as comfortably as possible.
It's explained very well on our intro's first page, headed in bright blue the words "Detoxing".


And here is a link to the outside source. www.tiredoflyme.com/detox-methods.htm

You will want to read this info and get what supplies you can. It's good to begin a couple of the methods now and increase more gradually. When we kill the Lyme bacteria, the dead organisms with all the other toxins our body filters out on a day to day basis, can overwhelm the glands and organs responsible for this job and then recycle themselves into our blood stream. You could feel pretty poorly, and this is called in short a "herx" reaction.

This can actually come within an hour of treatment that stirs up the bacteria, or 3-5 days later.

Some people don't have any noticeable reactions, especially those that are just newly infected. some that have been infected longer, or people that are previously sensitive to many things do, so it's good to be cautious.

I take an herbal supplement everyday called protandim. It has ashwaganda, green tea, bacopa, milk thistle and turmeric. I hope I don't have to stop it either

What if my excited is only for 100mg 2x daily? I only weigh about 110lbs

Is your script for 30 days? You could double up on your dose and get 2 weeks out of it, then switch to astragalus if you can't get it refilled. I believe that at 110 lbs, you still need at least 400 mgs a day in divided doses (2 doses of 200 mgs each daily).