View Full Version : lyme disease
I got back about ten days ago from a hike through SNP. A week ago I woke up with leg joint pain and thought nothing about it. Thre days ago I went to my Dr. because I felt bad all over,temp of 102,very painful leg joint pain,nausa and headack. I thought I had Lyme disease, but he disagreed because there was no bull's eye rash. During the hike I took five small ticks off my wife but found none on me. Today,Sunday, I woke up and found a Bull's eye rash on my inner thigh and still have headack with low grade fever and a stiff neck. I don't want to go to the ER room and want to wait to see the Dr. on Wed. 3 days away. Is this smart? If I do have Lyme disease i want to go hike next month too. Any Information you have will be helpful.:mad:
FurTrappers
07-02-2006, 15:07
kyerger,
My advice would be to go to the ER. You stated it was TEN days ago, now your going to wait a few more? Also, seems like your Dr. wasn't to concerned about it before!! Go a head and get the antibodTics from the ER if you can. Its always been said, that if its caught within the first two weeks your good to go, so again, why wait.
Just my advice, but heck, what do I know!
Fur.....
get your behind to the ER, lyme is NOTHING to mess around with.:( :( :(
I don't want to go to the ER room and want to wait to see the Dr. on Wed. 3 days away. Is this smart?
No! No! No! My wife waited that long in 1992, and regrets it to this day. She was VERY VERY sick. If you're reading this now, go get your meds IMMEDIATELY!
I just got back from the ER. I was Dx'ed with Lyme disease. They gave me 2 weeks of antibotics and said i should be trail ready 1st of Aug. Lyme disease does make you very sick. Thank u all for the adivise.
Skidsteer
07-02-2006, 21:55
I just got back from the ER. I was Dx'ed with Lyme disease. They gave me 2 weeks of antibotics and said i should be trail ready 1st of Aug. Lyme disease does make you very sick. Thank u all for the adivise.
That's good news, Kyerger(that you're being treated, I mean). Have you given thought to having a stern/firm talk with your M.D.? Some of the reports on White Blaze seem to indicate that more than a few Doctors are dropping the ball when it comes to hikers and Lyme's.
Amigi'sLastStand
07-02-2006, 23:09
It amazes me that in states where Lyme isnt super prevalent, the docs dont error on the side of safety. In NJ and NY, they dont even mess around, "You were near ticks and have a fever, he's some levaquin." So to all of you, no matter where you are, demand treatment from your doctor for Lyme at the first suspicion. It is nothing to f around with!
Agreed, I had deer tick bites (and had the critters on me in a zip lock) and the doc gave me a scrip for 1 doxcyclene pill. Being from CT I'm used to getting a full presciption just for having been bitten. (This was a non-New England doctor.)
Anyhoo I took my pill and felt fine until weeks later when I took a few days off in MA. Then the symptoms hit me like a ton of bricks. I went to the ER and they hit me up with pills no questions asked.
After Big-K I saw my local doctor and got a blood test. I did not have Lyme disease but had ehrlichiosis and babiosis. (neither will give you the classic bullseye). I got another round of meds, doxcyclene and quinine.
orangebug
07-03-2006, 08:07
Goggle Lyme Disease and print some up for your Doc. Consider getting articles from NEJM (New England Journal of Medicine) for his review. CDC has very good stuff.
The classic sign of bulls eye rash is seen as rarely as 40% of the time. Labs are famously insensitive and error prone. This remains a clinical diagnosis based on history and symptoms. The costs and risks of a course of doxycycline is minimal, while the rare cardiac risks are catastrophic.
BTW, a prescription for a single doxycycline isn't such a bad idea for someone on a short trip. A few years back, prolly only 3, recommendations were for weekly dose of a single pill while in endemic areas.
A week after I came back from hiking the GSMNP in June, I had a fever and bad aches, (felt like the flu). I went to my doctor and told them I had been on the AT, but had not found any ticks on me. They would not give me any meds at all, but took a blood test and said there was no bacteria so it must be a virus. The fever went away after four days, but the aches in my joints, knees, shoulders, wrists, stillo are there. I don't think it meets my insurance requirements for an ER visit so I'm looking for another doctor, in the Raleigh area where I work, that might be more aggressive in treating this, incase it is a tick-bourne problem. Still not sure if it is though....
greg
My doctor was not in the office the day I went but another young doctor was. I agree now that he should have given me the antibiotic anyways.
Next time I see my regular doctor, I am going to bitch to him about the situation. My regular doctor is excellent.
Kyerger, What a hassle huh!?..I got diagnosed last Monday after feeling the same way for 3 1/2 weeks..It took that long for the rashes to put me over the top and get to a Doc..I'm assuming I cought it somewhat early but was curious about the prescription and dosage you got..I've heard my dosage of 100 mg of Doxy twice daily may or may not be enough. I've only been on it for a week and its cleared the rashes but i'm definately not feeling myself yet..Any body know of a Lyme literate Doc in Connecticut area?..I'm afraid my reg doc sucks and wanna have a specialist on deck just in case I need one...Thanks
Had similar experiences mid-June. Just finished two weeks of doxy, and feel much better. Had my regular doctor been available (he was off having surgery!) I could have obtained an Rx with just a phone call. He knows I spend 35 to 40 weekends plus a couple longer trips a year in the woods and will take my word for it if I suspect ticks. I do believe I had invasive tick(s) late Spring.
Instead, I had to go to the local ER where they would not listen to me until five hours later when they agreed with me after all that I had a tick-borne infection and gave me the exact same Rx (can't wait for the bill, which I will have to pay in full since I haven't met my '06 deductible).
Initial diagnosis at the hospital was Erlichiosis (based on microscopic study of a blood smear) but blood sent out for lyme confirmation came back negative. Go figure. In any case, the Rx seems to have resolved it.
excuse_me_please
07-05-2006, 01:23
Standard recommended treatment for (early) Lyme Disease is doxycycline 100 mg twice a day for three weeks (21 days). Other antibiotics are sometimes used and the length of the course may vary but this is the standard treatment.
You might want to check with your regular physician just to be sure.
orangebug
07-05-2006, 07:53
...Any body know of a Lyme literate Doc in Connecticut area?..I'm afraid my reg doc sucks and wanna have a specialist on deck just in case I need one...ThanksThat is one of the most ironic questions I've seen in a long time.
Conneticut should be crawling in Lyme literate Docs, almost as many as deer tics that can fit on a quarter. There has been a fad of overdiagnosis and making a political issue of Lyme disease. Years of IV antibiotics and other useless therapies have made a few folks dubious of anything to do with the condition. The history of discovering the disease was also faught with doubt and controversy.
The labs are simply not as useful as anyone would like. The disease is often minor and never presents to a doc. The occasional severe infection can be a disaster. The treatment, doxycycline, is cheap and fairly free of adverse events - and probably a safe way to cover our doubts/asses. However, docs are also counseled to avoid prophylactic antiobiotics, or antibiotics in absence of cultures and psotive tests.
Hikers might want to discuss this with their docs prior to getting ill and plan on how to deal with non-specific fevers/malaise/possible rashes before spending time in the woods.
doc. in CT???? you can go to www.lymenet.com (http://www.lymenet.com) and ask them because when i have been reading the forum they talk about a great lyme doc. who everyone there speaks very highly of him......... and i think he is in ct...
goodluck
lisa
Rhino-lfl
05-09-2007, 16:57
Lyme sucks man, I hate ticks, they are like tiny little democrats that aren't so fat they stick out a mile away.
If I had a dollar for every tick in my backyard right now, I'd be bill gates.
I'd rather die of cancer from too much DEET and pesticides than rot away from the lyme.
http://www.peaksurvival.us/Lymes_Disease.html
and some concise and too the point advice on posinous snakes in US
http://www.peaksurvival.us/Venomous_Snakes.html
has anyone had experince of a snake bite on the AT what did they do, and where they ok.
Appreciate feedback
Hey, I picked up Lyme Disease hicking the PA area of the AT. The tick wasn't even on my that long. I showed symptoms a little over 2 weeks later. It's now been 3 months and I have been getting IV medication for the past 4 weeks. The sooner she gets treated, the better. Watch the show "under our skin" It's an eye opening documentary about the disease, I just saw it this weekend. Scared the hell out of me.
The problem with doxy, is that the disease travels into the brain if not treated immediately. Doxy doesn't do anything for the brain, ceftriaxone does. It's also an expensive drug from what the dr's have been telling me.
I'm in the military, 31 years old, in great shape, but the disease knocked me on my butt.
If you need any info, PM me.
I hope you are on the mend.:)
What symtoms did you show?
I have eyesight issues, so I try to be aware of the after part. See a deer tick?
Maybe on my best day.
Wise Old Owl
11-02-2009, 22:41
Uhh Mudhead he started this thread in 2006! or are you talking about Toy soldier? I have had huge disagreements with my doc and now I walk in with photo dated evidence.
mkmangold
11-03-2009, 02:52
Uhh Mudhead he started this thread in 2006! or are you talking about Toy soldier? I have had huge disagreements with my doc and now I walk in with photo dated evidence.
In my ERs in Wisconsin (Lyme Country), all patients who had been hiking and camping and then developed Lyme-like symptoms were treated presumptively with antibiotics for 14-21 days depending on the antibiotic. Having seen full-blown Lyme disease in a Veteran's mental health ward, I erred on the side of over-treatment. In addition, anyone presenting with a tick that I removed was started on an antibiotic and told to continue unless notified that it was not a deer tick from the lab.
Hey,
I'm in the military, 31 years old, in great shape, but the disease knocked me on my butt.
If you need any info, PM me.
Uhh. My way of learning and also saying hello to someone. I could have used a PM, but did not.:)
i started out with an upset stomach for a couple of days, went to the dr, he gave me some antibiotics. i then became sensitive to the son a couple of days later. i started to feel very weak almost flu like. one morning out of nowhere i woke up shivering and sweating. we were right in the middle of vacation. it was about 95 degrees outside and i was shivering. i wasn't running a fever though. i saw a dr the next day that gave me another type of antibiotic. my wife researched my symptoms and started to hint at lymes disease.
i went back to the dr a couple of days later and was just very weak they ran blood tests which came back normal. he did the typical take these drugs and come back in a couple of days if you are still feeling the same. about 3 1/2 to 4 weeks after being bit i had "bullseye" shaped rashes all over my body. luckily i saw another dr that knew what they were from after i explained to her my symptoms. i was treated with 2 weeks of doxycycline.
while i was taking the doxy, i became absent minded and had a hard time concentrating and remembering things. i was still pretty weak and tired. at the end of the dosage i felt great physically.
things ended up going downhill again a month later, so i have been on a total of 6 weeks of iv medication along with seeing a neurologist several times a week. i'm scheduled to deploy to afghanistan next month, so who knows how that will go. its been a bumpy ride!
Found a good video here about lymes disease from an Ex-AT thru hiker, awnsered allot om my questions.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OMf57jnfbDw
Badger2011
12-22-2011, 13:29
I thru-hiked this year. Although I was fortunate enough to not contract Lyme Disease (although I did pick off several deer ticks), I know several other thru-hikers who have, and many of which didn't learn of it until getting home. Most of them are okay now after taking anti-biotics, but one has permanent nerve damage, still gets debilitating headahces, and has blurred vision.
!!!LYME DISEASE NEEDS TO BE TAKEN MORE SERIOUSLY!!!
Unfortunately this disease is largely swept under the rug, and because the AT goes through the most prevalent region of Lyme, thru-hikers don't fully realize the risk they're putting themselves through. I don't advocate not hiking the trail because of deer ticks, but I do think more awareness needs to be raised about this very serious and dangerous issue.
If you're interested in learning more about Lyme Disease on the Appalachian Trail (http://zrdavis.com/lyme-disease-on-the-appalachian-trail/), please check out the write up I just did on it. I thoroughly recommend watching the documentary (Under Our Skin) at the bottom of the aforementioned post.
I've experienced joint swelling and pain, redness, hot to the touch. My PCP thinks I'm a hypochondriac when I suggest Lyme disease. I basically order him to prescribe doxycycline when this happens, with a little song-and-dance about how he wouldn't want to miss it and have all of his colleagues know about it, plus the years in court, etc. etc. I only keep him because he takes the lame insurance coverage offered by my wife's company. Thank God she has coverage.
Lately, with the onset of gout, I'm beginning to think that the couple or three times I've had severe problems with my elbow (as stated above) it might have been gout all along, though it usually shows up in the big toe. I've had gout flare-ups in my big toe four times, and all four times my doctor has been on vacation. When he gets back and I get tested my uric acid levels are back to normal (on the high side).
I've never had a full blown bulls-eye rash, though I have had a round angry red rash on my belt line once. I didn't take any chances and got treated.
rocketsocks
12-22-2011, 18:29
Thanks Badger,I had never seen this before,good film.I too have had my share of doctors and screwy diagnossis.Also Idig you site.