111–120 of 182 posts
the sad thing about lyme disease is that we dont have a vaccine due to anti vaxxers: https://www.vox.com/science-and-health/2018/5/7/17314716/lym...
I've stopped hiking and camping largely because of this. Its just not worth it any more. This page has an uncommon photo of just how small the nymph deer ticks are. https://sectionhiker.com/backpacking-lyme-disease-prevention...
I recommend to have one of these on you at all times while you're hiking https://www.amazon.com/Life-Systems-34020-Lifesystem-Remover...
I've stopped hiking and camping largely because of this. Its just not worth it any more. This page has an uncommon photo of just how small the nymph deer ticks are. https://sectionhiker.com/backpacking-lyme-disease-prevention...
That sounds extremely irrational. Not saying ticks aren't a health risk. But an inactive lifestyle is also a health risk, and very likely a much bigger one. There are things you can do to protect yourself and reduce the risk, e.g. using insect repellents and removing ticks quickly if you see them. Also for FSME there's a vaccine if you live in a risk area (for Lyme there is none, although a vaccine used to exist...).
You don't have to perform activities that expose yourself to the risk of getting tickborne illness just to be active.
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Two people to remove a tick? And I thought these little removal tools were crazy. You'll feel it itching after it digs in. Just be vigilant in the shower and use a loofa or other abraisive scrubber. Fingernails work perfectly fine as well. Of the literally thousands of ticks I have had to remove over the years, probably less than 5 were ever left on for up to 48 hours. Most people will scratch them loose accidentally…
I've never felt itching with any of the ticks that've gotten me. A few big ones I just noticed running my hands over my body. The one that gave me Lyme I never saw at all. Luckily I got a big bullseye rash and with antibiotics never had worse than an afternoon fever for a few days.
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I recommend to have one of these on you at all times while you're hiking https://www.amazon.com/Life-Systems-34020-Lifesystem-Remover...
I got bit by a few ticks and we would always light a match, blow it out, and apply the still hot match to the visible back end of the tick. Scares the little bugger and they pop right out.
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Two people to remove a tick? And I thought these little removal tools were crazy. You'll feel it itching after it digs in. Just be vigilant in the shower and use a loofa or other abraisive scrubber. Fingernails work perfectly fine as well. Of the literally thousands of ticks I have had to remove over the years, probably less than 5 were ever left on for up to 48 hours. Most people will scratch them loose accidentally…
Some spots on your body are very difficult to check carefully and/or reach for a clean, safe extraction. I went to the ER once to have a tick removed. I felt absurd doing so, but I simply couldn't reach it properly, and I had no one else around to take care of it.
Baby ticks can still carry Lyme, and can infect you with their bite.
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I got bit by a few ticks and we would always light a match, blow it out, and apply the still hot match to the visible back end of the tick. Scares the little bugger and they pop right out.
Unfortunately the way they pop out is, IIRC from Boy Scouts, at least in part, vomiting. So I was always taught to never induce them out because you'll still risk infection from the excreted stuff.
Got bitten in 2010 while camping in Czechia, we failed to remove the tick properly and the head stayed in my skin so we had to butcher me a bit more and it left a tiny wound. Two days later I got the famous painful rash that I had no clue about, red circle, swollen and painful. I went to the doctor who immediately told me "you might have Lyme disease", I had never heard of this before but I understood that it require…
First, I didn't think much of ticks - I thought they were a nuisance, but nothing serious. So, after I got particularly attacked one warm summer evening, I didn't really care much for it. 3 ticks in one day - okay, not ideal, but I wasn't going to freak (I've been stung by jellyfish, bitten by snakes, hundreds of spider bites, the odd encounter with a wasp or two .. Australian problems...)
But, a few days after I brushed it all off, I noticed the tell-tale signs of the red bullseye targets .. and I did nothing. I simply was ignorant that it could get so bad.
Three weeks later, I was feeling awful - just totally shit. I happened to mention that I was in an area known for ticks, and my friend said "well, have you been bitten recently?" .. I recalled the event, and they promptly sent me straight to hospital for a blood test.
Yup, I came back positive for Borellia. 6 weeks of antibiotics, and real hellish symptoms - lethargy like no other I've ever experienced, headaches, lack of attention and sometimes real cognitive problems. Aches in every bone in my body.
Take this one serious, folks. Get yourself tested within days of a tick bite. Its really not something you want to go through, believe me ...
Anyone that have Lyme, please look into PEMF solutions such as Ampcoil or Ryfe. It seems to be highly effective in treating Lyme disease.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Rife
The best treatment for Lyme disease is a course of antibiotics.