Ticked Off

The time is here to get out and enjoy all that warm weather has to offer. Unfortunately, not all summer-related things are fun. Like ticks. (Aside: what purpose does a tick serve? Seriously. Don’t even get us started on mosquitoes.)

Female ticks lay about 2-3,000 eggs in the spring. And despite the best prevention tactics, you can still suffer a bite. Now what?  
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Dr. Bill Rawls has some need-to-know info:

AFTER THE BITE: During the transition of Borrelia microbes entering the system, the symptoms of initial infection can occur. Immediate recognition by the immune system prevents overwhelming infection, so symptoms are generally mild. Typically, most people have a benign flu-like syndrome that lasts a week or more, but often noticeable symptoms don’t occur at all. Rarely is acute infection with Borrelia ever enough to put someone in bed. Potential symptoms: Low-grade fever, occasional chills, fatigue, stiff neck, rash around tick bite, transient muscle aches.

STAGES OF LYME DISEASE: Lyme disease is often divided into three stages, early localized, early disseminated, and late disseminated, but the difference between the latter two stages is often arbitrary. Clinically, separating Lyme disease into initial infection associated with acute tick bite and chronic Lyme disease is more useful. The longer a person has had symptoms of Lyme disease, generally the more difficult the recovery process. If Lyme disease becomes chronic, it can make you miserable for a lifetime and will cause you to age faster, but it is unlikely to kill you directly.

ACUTE vs. CHRONIC LYME DISEASE: Doctors (sometimes) recognize acute Lyme Disease, but say the chronic condition doesn't exist, despite many thousands of sufferers. So what’s the difference between acute and chronic Lyme Disease? A lot. With acute Lyme Disease, you’ve got a microbe that has never entered your system before that enters through a tick bite, and it can be one microbe or different microbes. If your immune system is strong, that reaction may be very mild, or you might not experience any symptoms at all. The most common presentation of chronic Lyme disease is gradual onset. It’s a disruption of the entire microbiome and a disruption to the whole immune system which becomes a chronic misery that lasts a lifetime.

ANTIBIOTIC THERAPY vs. NATURAL THERAPY: At least half of people with an infected tick bite will develop fatigue and migrating arthritis within weeks to months after completing antibiotic therapy (so called post-Lyme syndrome). All of the recommended protocols depend on development of symptoms to initiate therapy. Herbs can safely be taken concurrently with antibiotic therapy. Herbal therapy has the advantage of both suppressing microbes and enhancing immune function at the same time and can be safely continued for an indefinite period of time beyond antibiotics without concerns for causing harm.
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There’s nothing wrong with seeking medical treatment. Better safe than sorry.

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