Hi all. Haven't been around for awhile b'cause mainly I've been feeling great until I had something weird happen a month ago.
I got another tick embedded in my back between shoulder blade and spine. One of our dogs or cats must have gotten on the bed and left it behind.
It's the only answer I have for getting it where I did and when I did.
This time, I had an immediate and rather severe allergic reaction to the bite.
Area around swelled like a hive and itched like bloody blue blazes even after my husband removed it safely for me.
Benedryl helped.
I immediately took a bolus of Doxy that I keep on hand. Saw the doctor the next week.
The bite was still itching badly and swollen like a big hive.
Didn't feel bad or have any symptoms until about a week ago when neuritis crept back into my life again.
Lower back very painful around spine. Feeling generally crappy with it. Not much relieving the pain.
Doctor put me back on Doxy for two weeks due to my Lyme history.
Read that seldom is an allergic reaction connected with reinfection with Lyme.
Question is, did the bite cause me to have a flare?
I haven't had neuritis pain for almost 8 months. Now this.
Don't want to go back on Doxy. I have SEVERE sun sensitivity to it and this would make for a disastrous summer.
Thinking about Biaxin but don't know if it is even warranted at this point.
How do I get the neuritis to settle down again?
Using Niacin, and calcium/mag/zinc supplements but need to get feeling good again.
Anyone else had this kind of reaction to a second tick bite after being treated for Lyme?
Posted by WhitneyS (Member # 25666) on :
honestly I'd go on doxy, even though you dont want to. Disastrous summer huh? How disastrous is it gonna be if you get sick for a long time? WAY better to be safe than sorry-- buy yourself a nice sun hat.
Posted by HopesAlive (Member # 29774) on :
Is "Frontline for humans" DEET?
I hate to put those chemicals on my dog, but I honestly feel it is the lesser of two evils, and even though it has been said that some ticks are now immune it IS still helping him, because he has brought in ticks, but never attached when he is on Frontline (yet!).
Interesting concept, Frontline for humans. I always imagine the stares I would get if I dressed as recommended: long sleeves on a 90 degree day. Shoes, socks, pants tucked into my socks. May as well wear a hazmat suit, right?
Still thinking of moving to the desert, lol. And I do know there are no guarantees, even there, but I am right in the heart of "tick country," and I have been here my entire life and where did it get me?
Posted by lymeboy (Member # 24769) on :
oh man get on that Doxy and don't stop until you're feeling 100% - and then treat for another 2 months!.... Ditto 1000X what Whitney said!
Posted by CherylSue (Member # 13077) on :
Ceftin (cefuroxime axetel) is a good Lyme drug and you can take it in the summertime.
Posted by Robin123 (Member # 9197) on :
How about really having tick repellent on/around in every way you can think to do it?
I like using essential oils. I use diluted Orange Guard, from oranges - I spray it on clothing, the environment and lightly rub/mist it on dog/cat fur in addition to what they get from the vet/petstore. And then other essential oils for skin.
Posted by Nemo (Member # 22783) on :
I live in a tick haven. Cannot avoid them 100% as there are woods all around us.
But I do have a set routine whenever I venture out into the great outdoors.
1) I never shave my legs smooth.
I use an electric clipper and leave a slight stubble.
This allows me to feel any movement of ticks on my legs.
2) I spray all my clothing with a tick repellent spray.
3) I wear a netted research hat that I purchased from campmor.com that is also sprayed with repellant.
4) I always wear long pants and shirt in the woods.
5) I spray my shoes with repellent.
6) I spray rings of deep woods OFF around my ankles, wrists and neck. I also spray around my stomach and mist the rest of my body liberally including my hair.
7) I strip the minute I come in and check for any interlopers.
Inevitably I will find one either crawling around stunned or trying to embed.
I shower when I come back inside and body check again.
I enjoy dirt bike riding, trail riding in the woods and hunting.
Giving up these activities is not an option so I have decided that I need to develop a defense against ticks and hope for the best.
Bites are inevitable though. It's getting them before they can deeply embed that is a must for me.
Thanks for the tip about the Ceftin. I have to see the doctor again in a week or two and I'm going to get him to switch me to that from the Cipro I am on now.
Felt pretty rough last night but better this AM.
Rode my bike 5.5 miles to work.
Not a lot of energy yet.
Pushing lemon water. Trying to rest.
I know this will pass.
Just hate backsliding after feeling so good for months.
I have become a Lyme advocate in our small town.
Several including myself are victims.
I can't believe the flippant attitude of some about ticks.
"Oh, they bite me all the time and I'm fine.(ha ha ha)" kind of attitude.
I just smile sweetly at them and say
"It only takes one bad bite."
Posted by Jason21 (Member # 16393) on :
I did not like doxy because of the side effects. It bothered my stomach more than the other abx, and I hated the sun sensitivity since I like to be outdoors as much as possible.
Also, I am not convinced that anything other than very high doses of doxy are effective against LD. According to some literature, lower doses (below 600 mg per day) seem to be bacteriostactic instead of bactericidal.
You might want to try Tindamax instead. The good thing about Tindamax is that it is abx, antiprotozoal, and is reputed to be a good LD cystbuster, so you get all that good stuff rolled into one medication.
I just know Tindamax seemed to work best for me with less side effects than the other abxs. I combined it with cipro to help knock out Bb and bart.
I took tindamax 500 mg and cipro 250 mg, twice daily with meals. I stayed on that combo for about 6-7 months after about 18 months on other abx combos.
It has been almost exactly 1 year since I got back to 100% and stopped all abxs. So far, I have not had any LD symptoms return.
Posted by lyme in Putnam (Member # 11561) on :
Whatever you have to go on, do it. You don't want to be stuck indefinitely with this c____.
Posted by Nemo (Member # 22783) on :
Lyme in Putnam, I couldn't agree more.
I was diagnosed early.
Got bit back in spring 08 with bullseye rash.
Symptomatic that fall.With symptoms worsening.
Made the connection the next April when I found a second tick on my arm and started Doxy.
Did Elise testing 30 days later with a weak positive but given I had the rash, my doctor took me seriously especially when I developed severe neuritis along with memory lapses and tremors.
Insurance wouldn't cover a LLMD so bless my doc's heart, I handed him Dr. B's excellent study on Lyme that I found here and told him he was about to become a LLMD.
He didn't laugh, didn't refuse. He read and started treating me.
On Doxy for over a year with my symptoms slowly ebbing away.
I had a good 80% recovery of symptoms to the point that I was just on maintenance abts and doing well. Energy good, few if any symptoms.
Now this.
Called doc this AM. Will see him on 21st.
On Cipro till then and I am sure he will switch me to something else given the severity of the neuritis and neuralgia this time.
I guess it could be worse.
Problem is I have Polymyalgia Rheumatica and Polyarthralgia Rheumatica along with severe allergies that we have to deal with along with the Lyme.
Try balancing that one out when the only treatment for one is steroids and they are contraindicated in the other.
I get so frustrated sometimes......
But I'm sure you all know what I mean by that.
Posted by lpkayak (Member # 5230) on :
1. what is a doxy bolus please-how much...
2. i strongly suggest you go on doxy 4-6 weeks, 400 a day
you were well. you don't want to come back and be a regular here.
i hope you know what you need to do. good luck
Posted by Nemo (Member # 22783) on :
Doxy bolus. Two hundred milligrams as soon as you discover a bite.
Cannot remember where I read it but I do it religiously.
Cannot tolerate Doxy during the summer.
Tried it once and wound up with my skin on my lips and hands peeling off from sun reaction.
Wasn't a sunburn. It was a reaction.
I couldn't even get near a window.
Dr gives me Doxy in winter and switches to an alternative during the summer months.
I hate it cause I know the Doxy works the best.
Posted by nefferdun (Member # 20157) on :
I agree doxy is a good idea. It is useful against the other infections too which is why it is almost always the first drug to use.
I know what you mean about not being able to enjoy your summer because of sun sensitivity. But it is better to have a rest of your life to enjoy. Maybe go out very early morning and late evenings.
Posted by Jason21 (Member # 16393) on :
Nemo,
Since you are already on cipro, have you tried or can you tolerate adding tindamax? I believe Lyme MD's blog talks about how cipro helps to shuttle other abxs into your body's cells.
I just know the tindamax/cipro combo seemed to work the best for me.
Posted by Nemo (Member # 22783) on :
Jason21, I have to be careful with the antifungals such as flagyl and tindamax as they tend to hit my GI track hard and then get really nasty. I can take them for short term but it's very short term at best before they do their nasty deeds to me.
The Cipro works, Augmentin works, Doxy REALLY works. I have yet to try Ceftin or Biaxin. They are on the list for me to hand to my doctor in a week and a half.
Has anyone noted the GI problems with the tindamax that you can get with flagyl? Cipro is good but I feel as though I could be getting better benefit from it.
In the mean time, I have resumed Flax, Magnesium and am going to resume cats claw.
Herxing a little today and really tired. Something is working and killing off the buggies.
Posted by Nemo (Member # 22783) on :
UPDATE
Saw my doctor today.
I'm feeling better. Still a little run down.
Still some nerve pain.
He agrees with me.
Either that last tick bite reinfected me with something,or I had an antibody reaction to the bite that caused the flare up.
Glad he listens to me.
He is keeping me on Cipro for now as it seems to be working and talked to me about using Lyrica for the nerve pain.
He said that unfortunately that when I have the flares as bad as the neuritis gets, we may have to resort to prednisone to control it.
I feel like I'm walking a tightrope with this but at least I am rebounding pretty fast.
three weeks with this last flare and I'm starting to recover.
We both agree. I MUST avoid tick bites.
Easier said than done.
What type of results has anyone gotten with Lyrica as far as neuritis is concerned.
He also suggested acupuncture at this point.
Again, anybody had any luck with it?
Posted by Lymetoo (Member # 743) on :
Stay out of the woods and as far away from steroids as you can get!
Acupuncture helps to some extent. Not sure it would help with neuropathy type pain. (?)
Posted by Nemo (Member # 22783) on :
Easier said than done, Lymetoo.
One of my favorite recreations next to bicycling, is dirt bike riding in woods followed by hunting and hiking.
We have 20 acres of timber.
Funny thing, got this last tick bite in bed. I think one of our dogs or cats dragged it in and it fell off in our bed. I think I slept on it.
I go in the woods like a commando.
Full gear down.
Liberal Deep Woods Off for body and clothes.
Boots and cargo pants that gather at the ankles.
Full body search upon leaving woods.
Avoided a bad bite till now.
I have come to the conclusion that they are everywhere. Their numbers are increasing along with the deer population in the Midwest.
![[Smile]](smile.gif)
I can take them for short term but it's very short term at best before they do their nasty deeds to me.