I was bitten last week by something, and have an itchy rash that may or may not have bull's-eye characteristics (or it may just be where I rubbed Neomycin on it).
I know only enough about Lyme to find my way here, but not enough to know what to do at this point.
I have had a lifetime of doctors giving me unnecessary meds with dangerous and sometimes debilitating side effects, so I am very leery of being treated for something that I don't know that I have.
I would like to know what you (who have been on the front lines of the battle) think.
Would you risk several months of damage (I don't do well with antibiotics) to be treated instantly for something that you might not have? Wouldn't it be a reasonable option to wait until you have at least a single symptom?
Is there ever going to be some kind of test that can show infection before symptoms appear???????
Thanks so much.
Posted by sixgoofykids (Member # 11141) on :
If I had a tick bite then had a rash, I would get treated immediately with doxycycline at 400 mg per day to prevent getting chronic Lyme. For me, it's a smaller risk to take the abx than it is to risk dealing with such a chronic, persistent infection.
A rash IS a symptom! Posted by Taximom (Member # 23176) on :
Yes, thank you, a rash is a symptom--but I don't know that it was a tick that bit me!!!!
I also know that there was no rash until I started putting neomycin on it. So the rash could be a symptom of allergy to the neomycin (which I've not used before).
Now, if I KNEW it was a tick, I wouldn't have any question except where to take the darn thing so that IT could be tested as well.
Posted by Tincup (Member # 5829) on :
Hey T...
You may never have a house fire... but I will assume you do have a smoke detector?
The choice is yours.
When in doubt, I'd treat. Forget the tick test... forget the "it might not be a rash" stalling mode.
Hanging on those statements can get you in the same boat as we are in... it is called "Lyme denial".
If you were from some place ice cold in Alaska and never left your kitchen... not even for a minute of your life...
I'd say Hmmmmmmm????? Maybe not.
But you are in one of the most endemic states we have.
Not treating would be about the same as taking the battery out of your smoke detector.
Or as Clint Eastwood would say...
"Do you feel lucky?"
Posted by sixgoofykids (Member # 11141) on :
Be sure to take a picture of that rash. You don't want to have to describe it to the doctor.
Posted by jennie46 (Member # 20953) on :
Treat now. I had the rash and decided it was not a bulls eye, so thought I was ok. I then got flu-like symptoms 5 weeks later and started ABX. I am still taking meds 4 months later and still not better. Please don't take that chance.
Posted by Lymetoo (Member # 743) on :
Don't risk it!! If you pass up your ONE opportunity to kill this out, you will suffer for a LONG time. I don't even want to tell you how long that would be. You wouldn't want to hear it.
If what you have is a bullseye, then THAT is DIAGNOSTIC of Lyme disease.
Check here for pics of Lyme rashes. They vary greatly.
NO, I was NOT treated immediately. That was 50 yrs ago.
Posted by Taximom (Member # 23176) on :
Thank you, everybody.
I will try to get this treated through whatever local doctor I can both trust and convince ( a tall order, as you all know).
I took pics yesterday and today--I'm learning!
One question remains: In looking at "Rose's 15 facts for newcomers," it says that 30 days of treatment has never once been shown to cure Lyme.
If that's the case, then what kind of treatment AM I looking at?
Posted by Hoosiers51 (Member # 15759) on :
I believe that for some people, treating it very early does work, and they only end up having to be on antibiotics for a short period of time, like a month.
I wouldn't recommend this in all circumstances, but if you get on antibiotics RIGHT AWAY, sometimes a month of abx will do a fine enough job.
I have two cousins that were both treated right away, and neither was treated for more than a month, and they are both fine now.
I'm not sure how soon they got antibiotics, but I'm assuming it was within a day or two.
However, I'm sure there are some people that treated right away that did not get better in a month. I'm sure it varies.
Most of the people on this site were diagnosed late, and that is why they are as sick as they are.
Posted by Taximom (Member # 23176) on :
Update: my doctor put me on doxycycline. I took the first dose with a glass of water on an empty stomach as per instructions--and threw up 30 minutes later.
I was feeling fine before that. I was on my way to work, but turned around, and headed for home. I didn't make it home. Good thing I had a plastic grocery bag in the front seat. Yuck.
I looked up doxycycline reactions, and the general suggestion seems to be to take it with food if it upsets the stomach.
(sigh) I REALLY hate meds.
Posted by coltman (Member # 21272) on :
quote:Originally posted by Taximom: Update: my doctor put me on doxycycline. I took the first dose with a glass of water on an empty stomach as per instructions--and threw up 30 minutes later.
I looked up doxycycline reactions, and the general suggestion seems to be to take it with food if it upsets the stomach.
(sigh) I REALLY hate meds.
Take it with food no real reason take without - just not with milk or other calcium containing stuff. You can also sometimes get away without food - if you drink A LOT of water with it
Posted by Lymetoo (Member # 743) on :
TAKE IT WITH FOOD... PERIOD!!!
Posted by Richard1062 (Member # 19233) on :
Yes, our daughter got treated immediately, but with 2 weeks of low-dose Doxy. And this happened twice in the past.
She is seriously ill now. We sure wish we had known better.
Posted by Taximom (Member # 23176) on :
Richard, what dosage is "low-dose" for Doxy?
Are there ANY studies showing ANYTHING with early treatment? Low-dose, 10 days, 2 weeks, 1 month?
I'm freaking out a little here. I felt fine before I started the Doxy, but feel like crap now. And the fact that there seems to be so little real knowledge and studies on what DOES work (does anyone even know?) is not exactly calming.
How do we know that the Doxy (or other prescription drugs, or vaccines, for that matter) is just as responsible for symptoms as the spirochete?
It doesn't look to me like anyone has ever tested HEALTHY, ASYMPTOMATIC people for Lyme. What if everyone has the spirochete in their body--but only some descend into symptomatic hell?
My doctor (whom I think is NOT up on Lyme but is trying) said that he has always ordered follow-up tests (6-12 monoths later) with all patients with tick bites/rash, and that NONE of them turned up positive. Why didn't theyAre the tests that inaccurate? Or are they not testing for the right thing?
I'm not trying to say that Lyme isn't the problem--I'm just wondering if the angle of the treatment(s) (and understanding) is either incomplete or downright skewed.
Sorry, I bet you guys are already way ahead of me on this one, I'm just kinda thinking out loud here.
Posted by Elizabeth S. (Member # 22405) on :
I'm on Doxy, I take it with a piece of toast or two and I haven't thrown up in weeks.
You were correct in just about everything you typed: Some people don't get symptomatic immediately so they aren't able to catch it in time *POINTS TO SELF* until later on when they get REALLY sick and think back to the tick bite, but by then it's very difficult to treat because the bugs have moved on to more organs. A "follow up test" can be very inaccurate because Lyme is one of the trickiest things to pin down and NO we're not talking conspiracy theory. A dear friend of mine has never had it show up in her blood but it shows up in her spinal fluid: Very evasive. And the tests themselves? Oh don't get me started. Yes, they are that inaccurate, and no, they don't test for all of the most COMMON Lyme strains. Lyme is diagnosed clinically, meaing, you treat based on SYMPTOMS and use the tests to back it up--but they aren't always capable of doing that.
Don't worry about all of this, because if you treat it now effectively you won't have to stick around. You had the rash, and are in a very "scary" area as far as Lyme frequency, so just stay on Doxy, at LEAST 200mg (hopefully 300 or 400mg) a day, for one month. Take it with a small snack (maybe 8 crackers, piece of toast, etc.) or eat a full meal exactly two hours befor eyour dose, or you WILL vomit it back up. Good luck!
Posted by GraceT (Member # 16558) on :
My Sister, in Oregon was bitten by a nymph on May 15, 2009. She had a rash next day.
Told her to search for Doc and request 30 days Doxy or Mino.
She went to Urgent Care in Eugene and got lucky. Some doctor from out of state was fairly new there. He understood, said it was overkill, but did give her script for 28 days.
She tests clear, but anything can appear years later. No guarantees. Lots of reasons why.
Hugs, Grace
Posted by Taximom (Member # 23176) on :
I'm going to have to find another doctor, then--my doc only gave me a 10-day scrip and grumbled that THAT was overkill.
And I'm taking it with food, as I did not enjoy barfing up 10 oz of water in the car (luckily, I did have a plastic bag), and worry that the food is limiting its effectiveness.
Here's a weird thought: what if the antibiotics, vaccines, preservatives, artificial sugars, hormones & pesticides in the food, etc, are what trigger borrelia? What if everyone has it coexisting peacefully (hey, I read that MOSQUITOS can carry Lyme), and something ELSE is what triggers it?
IF they can't even test accurately for it, and it's a diagnosis of exclusion, how the heck will they ever figure out what triggers it?
Posted by Marnie (Member # 773) on :
It appears if caught really fast and given doxy for sufficiently long and
STAYING OUT OF THE SUN!!!
May work.
In mice infected with Bb, when exposed to UV light -> infection INCREASED.
UV light reacts with receptors called CB2 to trigger inflammation (current skin cancer research). Bb looks to trigger those receptors.
Bb NEEDS inflammation to happen.
Posted by Taximom (Member # 23176) on :
Whoa, didn't know that about the sun. Yikes. Thanks for mentioning it. Oh, dear--I take my border collie for runs and long walks. Good thing it's getting cold out, at least I'll be covered up.
For those of us who make our B12 from sun exposure, I guess that means, make sure to take sufficient B12 (methylcobalamin sub-linguals are the best) tao avoid B1 deficiency, which is ridiculously common in the US, and can cause many neuro symptoms that look like they overlap with Lyme.
Gee, whiz, what NEXT??????
Posted by linky123 (Member # 19974) on :
Hi Taximom,
I would find someone to give the full month's script of doxy. One month of abx is nothing compared to what many suffer if this disease spreads and becomes chronic.
It is a nightmare; those on Lymenet will agree.
If you start getting other symptoms like achiness, vomiting, flu-like symptoms etc. Tell the dr immediately. Ticks also carry Rocky Mountaing Spotted Fever which can be fatal in no time. My husband had it, but we caught it in time.
You might want to google lyme and co-infections. Ticks carry a lot of nasty diseases.
Consider yourself lucky to have had the rash. It is a warning sign that many who are bitten don't get.
Best of luck.
Linky
Posted by CarolPauley (Member # 23248) on :
My Dear "new" friend,
I have had experience with both treating right away and not being treated enough right away. In 1998 I was treated right away after having a rash, without getting any test results back. I was cured and no troubles. I am sorry you have trouble with anti-biotics perhaps your doctor can suggest something else - I don't know the answer to not using anti-biotics. I am "for" treating right away - NO MATTER WHAT!
I am now sufferring from a tick bite I had a year ago. Lyme is so hard to cure if you wait. It won't get better; it doesn't go away on it's own! You must treat right away!!!
I hope you do. Carol P.
Posted by lou (Member # 81) on :
Antibiotics can abrogate antibody production. So, if your doctor is treating people caught early and later testing shows negative, that could be one of the reasons. Most of the testing is for antibodies.
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