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Anyone here with Lyme?

iowabucks

iowabucks

Member
I found out about 6 months ago i have Lyme Disease. Haven't been feeling very good last couple years and doctors could never get anything figured out. "I" asked my Iowa City specialist for a Lyme test. He told me "that wouldn't cause any of those symptoms". Well, guess who was right. I think i have had it for about 13 years now. I used to work in a meat shop that does alot of deer each year. I remember dragging in deer for the customers many times and finding many tick on me. I have had plenty of tick bites in the past too, just no bullseye rash.

I now see a lyme specialist in Sprinfield Missouri, 8 hour drive. I go that far because most doctors don't know how to treat it the right way. The doc told me in 13 years of treating lyme patients, he has never seen anyone with so many positives on his test. Went through many different antibiotics so far with none of them helping yet.

He also told me Iowa State did a test awhile back and found that 1 out of 6 ticks in the Ames area carries lyme, and 1 out of 4 in the Iowa City area carry it. Thats alot more common than i thought.

Just wanted to know if anyone else in here is in the same boat, and how they are doing.

Jerry
 
If the actual number of infected ticks is that high, its a wonder we dont all have it.

Also curious, what kind of symptoms or problems have you had from it?
 
Mostly right side head/neck pain, ear, headaches. Nerve type pain. Also, lots of aches and pains. It feels like my body has aged 10 years in the last 2.

There is a list of symptoms a mile long, and it affects everyone differently. Thats why it can disquise itself as something different and make it hard to diagnose.
 
Lymes disease is no joking matter. My Aunt has had Lymes disease for the last 15 years. While your case is no joking matter it could be much worse. My aunt has been in a wheelchair the whole time. Her symptoms are pretty close to MS. As mentioned already she is confined to a wheelchair, she has trouble talking, shakes, cant feed herself or go to the bathroom etc. She is lucky to have a man like my uncle to take care of her instead of putting her in a nursing home. I sincerely hope you start to feel better or at the very least I hope the progression stops.

James
 
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I have had plenty of tick bites in the past too, just no bullseye rash.

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Boy that sounds familiar
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I've had all the symptoms several times including severe joint pain in my shoulder/arms.

I've often wondered what happens if you don't get tested...
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I heard the blood test was very expensive and often innacurate but maybe I should talk to my Dr about it.

A nieghbors Dad came down to visit last spring...got bit by a tick and ended up in the hospital near death for awhile with Lyme disease.

I've also been told that blood tests are more apt to show positive the more time goes by...a few days after a bite is not long enough.

Thanks for posting your situation!
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What ever happend to the vaccinaion for Lymes?

The 'Bonker

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That's a good question! I remember people getting vaccinated for it some years ago..but I thought...heck "real men" don't get vaccinated for ticks.
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Worth asking about since I can't step into the yard without coming in covered with the darn things.
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... "real men" don't get vaccinated for ticks.

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Case in point, you were right, I got vaccinated.

I have since heard most people that got the shot didn't "convert" and it was pulled. I think Pharmer had a post about this awhile back. He would know. I asked my doc to draw blood to see if I had immunity but he said something about all it would show was I had received the shot.

This is becomming such a common disease these days that I would think the insurance industry would be screaming for an effective vaccine.

The 'Bonker
 
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This is becomming such a common disease these days that I would think the insurance industry would be screaming for an effective vaccine.

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You would think so
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If they ever come out with one that is effective, I'll be standing in line...right behind you Bonker!
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About any organ system can be affected therefore, the difference in symptoms from one patient to the next. It is a scary disease and one that is tough for animals to get rid of as well.

Do they have you on doxycycline iowabucks and if so, what is the duration of taking it they are recommending?
 
My father in law has Lymes, it affects his joints.

A couple years back a guy from work asked me about a rash he had on his leg, a classic bullseye rash when I looked at it. I told him to get his arse to the doctor. He was put on antibiotics and told he was lucky to catch it early. The bullseye doesn't show up on some people.
 
DNR papers say very few Iowa ticks carry lyme disease. In fact,,before I moved out here I read a paper that said Iowa was disease free. Guess is not the case. How fast can a tick get down to biting on you?
 
I got tested a few years back as I was having a few of the symptoms, headaches, joint pain etc. and had recently found a deer tick burried in my back. Came back negative and I don't seem to carry any of the symptoms so that is good.

I believe the last time I looked there were very very few confirmed cases in IA (42 or something like that, maybe it was 42 per year), so I am not sure if the numbers reported above on the ticks would be accurate as it would seem a bunch of us on here would have the disease.

Anyhow, I believe the vaccination was called LimeX or something weird like that. I looked into getting it since I figured I am in the outdoors enough that it would be worth it. That was 2 or 3 years back, they had stopped producing it because of the lack of interest and some side effects I believe. Anyhow, I wish they would bring it back I would be in line for the shot.
 
I pulled two ticks off me this weekend in Pike.... I hate those damn things! I don't think I have it....yet.....
 
Good luck with your health IOWABUCKS! I absolutely HATE ticks! They are definitely my phobia. Today in fact I had one crawling up my jeans and I wasn't paying attention while I was pulling stickys off my pants and i pulled the tick off and was wondering why it was sticking to my fingers and I took a look and WHAMMY, theres a tick! I hate the lil bastards! Hope it wasnt carrying lyme disease!
 
Yeah i'll be upset if that thing had lyme disease.... then I'd probably feel bad for laughing my ass off at you throwing that tick out the window
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I just pulled two off of me. I picked them up in Allamakee county today, so they are out up north too. They were a little different looking than ones I have seen before. They were bigger than a deer tick, but smaller than a wood tick. Half of their body was black, and the back half was a tannish brown color. All I know is before I pulled them off, which they could of only been there a couple hours max, there was already big red spots all around them.
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I think it is really strange how in southern Iowa you find hundreds upon hundreds of deer ticks. In Eastern Iowa, you get alot of wood ticks. In Central Iowa, I can't even think of a time I have pulled a tick off of me. It is very strange.
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I wish the best to you in your recovery.
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Most doctors believe that 3 weeks of doxycyclene is enought to get rid of it. If you catch it right away it works. After a month or so it progresses to the point where the 3 weeks of doxy is no longer enough. But according to the CDC, (Center for Disease Control), that is all you need. Believe it or not, the CDC doesn't have a clue what it takes to rid a person of the symptoms.

It is really strange, what i have seen is most doctors think 3 weeks will do it. They look at a specialist that says you need more, and the doctors think he is a quack. The regular doctors go by what thier little medicene book says like it is the gospel. Regular doctors think lyme is over diagnosed, and over prescribed. I'm here to tell you that 3 weeks of antibiotics is not enough.
My doctor in Missouri,(who shall remain nameless), has treated 800 lyme patients in 13 years. 90% are releaved of symptoms by long term antibiotics. You can never totally get rid of it. I'm talking 12 to 16 months. Thats another thing regular doctors don't like. I'm on my 6th AB with no improvement in symptoms.
I know i am not explaining it well, but the CDC and regular doctors rufuse to admit that there is a real problem here. So treatment is hard to come by and these lyme literate doctors often get chastised by other doctors for the way they treat them.

If anyone does get the blood test, make sure and get the Western Blot, not the Elisa test, from a reputable lab. The elisa test will often come up negative.

oh2b-- I am very sorry about your aunt. I know alot of people with it end up in a wheelchair, with MS. I hope she gets better.

Jerry
 
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