Summer Means Fun and Ticks Bearing Lyme Disease

Warm weather heralds the boys of summer, but it also heralds the bad bugs of summer, the tick bearing Lyme Disease being at the top of the list. Don't be fooled by his size. This tiny tick swings a big bat.

A bite from an infected tick will leave you suffering from Lyme Disease, one of those diseases that is severely misdiagnosed because the symptoms mimic so many ailments. The disease itself is caused by a bacteria---Borrelia burgdorferi---which the infected tick transmits to you after he has been attached to your skin for at least 24 hours.

The symptoms often manifest themselves a bit differently in different people depending on where the person was bitten physically. Just as problematic is the fact that symptoms don't show up right away, so a person won't have a cause and effect relationship between getting bitten by a tick and feeling ill.

All of this leads to repeated misdiagnoses, which in turn leads to more discomfort and pain for the sufferer. If you have been in contact with the great outdoors, even as little as mowing the lawn in short sleeves, and you start having any of the symptoms below, have your doctor run a Lyme test on you.

• ---Overly fatigued, and a general feeling of lethargy;
• ---A headache that doesn't quit, and is getting worse, rather than better;
• ---Swollen lymph nodes; and/or
• ---Aching at the joints.
• In general, as time passes, Lyme Disease gives off symptoms much like any common virus or a bad case of the flu.

It is only with an overt sign that many get the diagnosis they need to get better. In about 75 percent of tick bite victims, a tiny red bump erupts at the site of the bite which then becomes tender to the touch. It later develops into a rash as the bump expands outward. Between 3-30 days after the initial bite, this rash expands. People often describe it as looking like a bull's eye. The center gets clearer as the redness moves outward, expanding further on the body.

If Lyme Disease remains untreated, the symptoms become more pronounced

• ---Debilitating headaches;
• ---Arthritis-like aching of the joints;
• ---Severe stiffness;
• ---Loss of muscle tone in the face;
• ---Heart Palpitation; and/or
• ---Neurological symptoms.

Most cases of Lyme Disease can be tamed by a treatment of antibiotics, particularly if it is caught early on in its progression. Some people, however, report symptoms of the disease for years after the bite, even when antibiotics are used.

The best way to avoid Lyme Disease is to avoid ticks which means avoiding places ticks thrive. According to the Center for Disease control, a whopping 92 percent of the reported cases of Lyme Disease were from the states of Connecticut, Rhode Island, New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, New Jersey, Maryland, Massachusetts, and Wisconsin.

Unfortunately, you can pick up a tick in almost any grassy area, so your best line of defense is to do a thorough body search when you come inside. Check children and pets as well. Your pet can also become afflicted with Lyme Disease from a tick bite.

Wear light-colored clothing when you go outside so you can see and pick off ticks before they become attached to your body. Even with the best precautions, though, a tick may bite and attach itself to your body.

If you've been bitten by a tick, take careful steps to remove it from your body. A lot of tall tales are associated with tick removal, so pay special attention here.

• Use a set of fine tweezers and get up as close to the skin/tick as is possible. When you have gotten a grip on the tick with the tweezers, pull straight up on the tick in one fluid motion.
• Do not worry if you suspect a part of the tick is left behind. When the head has been separated from the body, it can no longer infect you.
• Do not use petroleum jelly, nail polish or a hot match to remove ticks. They're ineffective at best, harmful and irritating at worst.
• Clean the bite area with soap and water, then apply an antiseptic cream. Throw the dead tick away. No need to light him afire. He's quite dead.

Even if you've removed the tick, have your doctor check you out and run a Lyme test just to be sure. As this can be maintained by simple antibiotics, it's not something you should risk.