Well Spring is here and it's about 70 degrees here in NJ.
The grass is getting greener and higher....
Them damn bugs are coming out to feast on innocent hosts!
The parnaniod part of me is setting in.
If I walk outside for a minute I feel like a million ticks are crawling on me.
I better move to Antarctica!
Posted by Barby (Member # 18348) on :
:-(
Posted by Dekrator48 (Member # 18239) on :
I know, it sure does give you a different perspective, doesn't it?
I do not plan on ever going in the woods or tall grasses again. I will at the very least stay on short grassy lawns and inpect everyone.
Posted by nenet (Member # 13174) on :
Since I am still mostly housebound and bedbound, I haven't had to deal with this quite yet, but I understand the fear.
My plan is to slather up in my favorite natural repellant, that is actually good for my skin and completely safe. Some are actually proven to be even much more effective than DEET! It also smells good.
There are quite a few products like this out there, so maybe you can try some of these and just wear them like lotion after you shower or before you get dressed.
They are also great for animals/pets.
I know there have been several threads about natural repellants. If you are interested in the one I use let me know and I can go look it up (told you I don't get out much - I already forgot what it's called).
Posted by Kreynolds (Member # 15117) on :
Thanks for the replies....
The worst part about it is I live on right next to a cornfield and woods.....
Ughhh....
I feel like they are crawling all over.
When I walk my dogs it takes me 1/2 hours of inspection!
I used to love the Spring,Summer and Fall....Now it makes me sick!
Posted by Lymetoo (Member # 743) on :
I don't do grass. Basically I avoid walking on it!
Hate the hot weather too.
Posted by nenet (Member # 13174) on :
Yeah, we live out in the country too, lots of woods all around, and overgrown fields. The deer walk all the way up to our house.
And you won't like to hear this, but it's important for people to be aware of:
Last year... we found a TICK
crawling on our second story screened window...
on the outside!
Now, we have some feral cats that roam around the general area, and even had a groundhog climb a tree in our yard, so I guess it's *possible* the cats or some raccoons got on our roof or balcony and dropped off a passenger. But regardless, that is NOT FAIR!
Posted by Kreynolds (Member # 15117) on :
nenet:
It's insane... we have feral cats, rabbits, deer, and bears.
They will walk right up to you....
I already had to catch 2 feral cats with a Haveaheart trap and had the vet pick them up.
Myself, I love the warm sunny days.... just not since this disease.
Posted by Robin123 (Member # 9197) on :
Kreynolds, I was told recently that TKO Orange can be lightly misted/rubbed on pets. It's a bug deterrent/killer. Also sold as Orange Guard.
I put a couple drops in a spray bottle, fill up with water and spray it on my clothing if I'm going to be contacting vegetation.
It's ok to use as long as no one's allergic to oranges.
Another woman awhile back said she put a little bit of the grapeseed extract on the dog (herself, house and yard too) and no more ticks.
Posted by Geneal (Member # 10375) on :
We have ticks here all year round.
At least you get a break even a small one.
Good news is that it just flooded (river was high).
Maybe it swept some of those little suckers down stream.
Sigh.
You can only do what you can do.
I worry more about the mosquitoes.
I don't let it keep me from outdoors though.
We basically live outside all summer long.
We don't walk in the woods though.
Hugs,
Geneal
Posted by lymeHerx001 (Member # 6215) on :
I dont like the warm weather because when the ac kicks on in my house its mold city.
Ive been trying to clean up, what a tought deal~!
I like it right in the middle. I was just in Memphis and the weather was bonita!
I need a new job, but most importanlly a new body and brain free of contaminates first!
Posted by jmb (Member # 18338) on :
I wonder if a tick could give me a disease I don't have. Perhaps 2 weeks after a tick were to feast on me, it would need to see a LLMD.
Silliness aside, woods and grass cover a good portion of the planet - the portion of the planet that I like the most. I proposed marriage to a girl on a moon-lit riverside path in the woods.
I would be a liar if I said I had no fear of the woods and the grass in me. But if I do not go to such places, for me I lose. So as spring springs, I will take precautions: when I ride the sweet new mountain bike I will wear more clothes for coverage as opposed to less. In particular I will wear cap under the helmet. (Even if I am called a roadie!) I will use repellant. And I will check me and the fam for ticks.
A two-year old who wakes up and tells me, ``I want to go outside,'' reminds me why I need to be well. There are risks like ticks outside, just as there are risks like WII inside.
Sound reasonable? Perhaps so to me but I will still have to repeat it to me over and over and over and over to believe me.
Whether I joke or am serious, I have more fear than I did before sickness. I hate it, but I am certain it is true. Good luck with yours, y'all.
Posted by heiwalove (Member # 6467) on :
any suggestions for effective natural tick repellant?
Posted by Kreynolds (Member # 15117) on :
Thanks for all the replies....
Yeah These past two years I huddled inside...
Maybe it's time to return to my old self in that respect!
I'm tired of being housebound......
Posted by Starfall1969 (Member # 17353) on :
I had my kids outside yesterday, and I found what I thought were deer turds right by our driveway
(turns out it was just some gunk that my husband had scraped off the tractor, but it still freaked me out).
I was frantic every time one of the kids ran off into the grass.
I hate being this paranoid (geez, it just took me like 30 seconds to think of that word...) about them being outside.
And the kids want to do an Easter egg hunt outside on Saturday. Posted by nenet (Member # 13174) on :
quote:Originally posted by heiwalove: any suggestions for effective natural tick repellant?
quote:Originally posted by Robin123: Kreynolds, I was told recently that TKO Orange can be lightly misted/rubbed on pets.
Robin, I thought I read that TKO Orange is very dangerous and harmful for cats?
Posted by sutherngrl (Member # 16270) on :
I have noticed that the fear has set in for me as well. Here in the south I worry about the mosquitos because they carry "West Nile Virus". I actually left a family outing in the woods because the mosquitos came out in droves. I could just imagine what would happen if I got WNV on top of everything else.
I feel protected from the ticks right now, at least while I am taking antibiotics. I am more concerned about when I am better and off of them. I think it will take a while to over come the fear, but you can't live in a bubble.
Also I think if my immune system would have been in better shape, I may not have gotten LD in the first place. So I will definetly try and keep my immune system in good shape.
Right now though, whenever I am around the outdoors or other people's animals, I think about TICKS! It makes me feel crazy. I look around and realize that no one else has even one "tick thought" running through their heads.
Just another way that LD wins.
Posted by randibear (Member # 11290) on :
oh, odd man out, i actually feel better when it gets warmer.
When I'm cold, my skin turns all kinds of red and purple and my joints get so stiff I can barely move.
However, I know that really hot weather, like the 100's we have here, is not good either.
I like it around 75 to 90. Hmm, gotta be someplace in this country I can move to...
Posted by sutherngrl (Member # 16270) on :
Randibear, you are not the odd man out. As far as how I feel physically, I do better with warmer temps. I like the 75 to 90 temps too. Any warmer and it's too hot.
But it does make me think of ticks more.
I can just see them coming out in large droves, looking for a warm body. Warm because its 80 degrees outside. It makes me squirm!
Posted by DakotasMom01 (Member # 14141) on :
Randi & Suthern, I am with your gals!! I feel much better in 70-90* temps. 5 *'s either way and I am a wreck.
Posted by Kreynolds (Member # 15117) on :
I prefer the warmth...
No hotter than 80 degrees any higher than that and I feel like I'm gonna pass out!
But with warm weather comes ticks....lots of 'em!
I can't stand the grass, I used to play soccer and football without a care in the world.
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