Lymes Disease - Important please read.

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staffitaxi

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Andrea
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I have just received this email from a friend - Lymes Disease is passed on from tick bites. Not all ticks are carriers of the disease. Her daughter is only 12. This isn't some internet scare mongering, I know them personally.

"I have been quiet for a long time as my daughter is very very poorly and has been since Oct 07, she can no longer walk, is bed bound and is deteriorating daily.

Lyme Disease can affect any one of you especially as we all do, have animals, you can get in in your garden sitting outside, you can catch it anywhere.

We have just received a diagnosis that she has Lymes Disease. It has taken since October and many many doctors to get this diagnosis, and because it has gone undiagnosed for so long the bacteria has attacked almost every part of her body, including her brain.

I would advise all of you to look at Lyme Disease Associaton UKs website to familiarise your selves with this devasting illness. If it is diagnosed early its a simple case of two weeks antibiotics, but unfortunately so many doctors and GPs and specialists are ignorant and UK testing is very very poor.

She is about to embark on IV antibiotics for three months
followed by 6 to 12 months of oral antibiotics and no one can
gurantee a full recovery at this stage.

It has effected every part of our life including the fact i can no longer work as she needs 24 hours care."

I guess I just wanted to bring it to the attention of particlarly those of you who like to walk in rural areas for your photography.

There is full linformation on the website below:

http://www.lymediseaseaction.org.uk/index.htm

I've just bought a tick remover from them so at least if one does get attached I can remove it safely.

Andrea
 
thank you for the link .staffitaxi my best wishes to you and your family and hope things improve will keep you in my thoughts .All the best .andy
 
Good link and thankyou for bringing this to my attention :thumbs:
I sincerley hope your friends daughter makes a full recovery :thumbs:
 
Thanks Andy / Birdy.

I don't think people should stop going out in the countryside and enjoying themselves, I certainly won't be changing my lifestyle.

Some of the leaflets on the website are really good about explaining what you can do to minimize the risk, they also put across that you can get bitten by a tick anywhere, even in a London Park.

I just wanted to make people a little bit more aware.

Andrea
 
Having become quite ill myself some years back with a then unexplained illness with similar symptoms, I can relate to what theyre going through... and my heart goes out to them.
I sincerely hope your friend's daughter makes a good recovery.
 
When living Stateside my wife became ill and was diagnosed as suffering from Lymes disease.

We were lucky as it was a well known problem there where we lived and she recovered quickly after treatment.

Hate to think what would have happened if it had not been diagnosed almost immediately!

Heres hoping for a full if not speedy recovery
 
I was told by the doctor in December last year that they thought I may have lymes disease, after a what turned out to be a nightmare sinus infection lasting nearly 5 months, swollen neck glands and aching elbow joints and shoulders and lower jaw, blocked ears and 5 courses of antibiotics..after all this time it is just clearing up but not yet gone...so after checking up on lymes disease I was astounded at how common it is in the UK, so thanks for the warning Stafftaxi, it should be heeded.

But my god, I didn't know that sinus's could be so much trouble.

I hope that the iV works quickly for your friends daughter.
 
A subject very close to me.

Having had a lump removed from my arm I was called back to the doctor, sat down and told in all probability it was Cancer as the pathology lab had identified a high level of lymphocites, I was down, no energy, no will to be the person I normally am.
I lost count of the bloods and scans that were taken and I eventually found myself at Hope Hospital Manchester in the dermatology unit, having done MacMillan to no avail.
My specialist at Hope was amazing, I lived in the Lakes, I have a dog, I ride a motorbike, I did a tour of the West Highlands on my bike and I am a smoker, from this she deduced that bikers stop and sit in the grass at the side of the road for a fag, I walk my dog in the woods and meadows, in all probability in shorts in Summer and while riding the bike I create a nice atmosphere in my leathers for - you guessed it Deer Ticks.
I was cleared of Lymes and they found nothing else wrong so I don't know to this day what the lump was and neither does the Doc, all I know is that if I ring up for an appointment I am normally offered one in the next hour, lol, not a bad position to be in.

I am truly sorry to hear about this little girl and hope the treatment is not to invasive and makes a total recovery, please keep us informed of her progress.

Is there anything she really loves that we, as a community can photograph for her and perhaps forward a print or two each to cheer her up ?
 
dseered said:
Is there anything she really loves that we, as a community can photograph for her and perhaps forward a print or two each to cheer her up ?
Click to expand...

dseered that sounds like a great idea to me. I spent time in a hospital bed as a child and the gifts I recieved from school friends and family kept my spirits up. So I'd be happy to contribute something.

Staffi I hope your friends daughter makes a full and speedy recovery.
 
My thoughts are with anyone who has had a brush with this terrible disease.

As regular walkers and geocachers, we invested in a pair of gaiters each to wear while out in the field. I can highly recommend them as a preventative measure. They're available from most good surplus or camping stores, I think ours are Gelerts and are only around £7 from Amazon.

Please stay safe ...

Gary :)
 
I hope your friends Daughter gets well Andrea. I know from talking to my folks how hard it can be having a sick child (I spent 14 years in and out of hospital with doctors trying to work out how to cure my blood disorder)

I've lost count of the number of tic's I've had whilst in Scotland.

Fortunately OK so far.....
 
Andrea How sad that your friend's daughter wasn't diagnosed sooner - I do hope she eventually makes a full recovery. There are lots of people here on TP willing her to get better. :)

Ticks are not something people think about in most of the country, but raising awareness has to be good. They're common here in the New Forest and our dogs often get them. We check them over regularly (even in the winter) and use a tick removing tool (a bit like a crochet hook) which we got from our vets. Ticks burrow their heads into the host's skin to draw out blood and and it's important to get the beastie out intact - it'll still be alive :gag: If you don't notice it, it will drop off when its finished feeding, and you may be none the wiser unless you fall ill.

They can look a bit like skin tags when they've burrowed into your/your pet's skin.

It amazes me that visitors to the Forest wander round in flimsy sandals and bare legs. I'm not scaremongering but with ticks and adders about I'd rather cover up a bit. I'm wary of saying that in 20-odd years of living here none of the family has ever got a tick (I bet there's one out there reading this thread :lol:) but I don't want to put people off enjoying this fabulous part of the country. Trainers and socks are sensible protection. :)
 
I only logged on tonight to correct something on the Rescue Website but thought I'd pop in and see what was happening on TP.

I've just read through all your messages and am sat here thinking what a wonderful bunch of people you all are.

Her Mum is extremely angry at the moment, I'm not sure if she's more angry that its happened or that it has taken so long to get a diagnosis, because it took so long its made things so much worse.

The one thing she wanted was to make people aware of this and I guess by people reading this thread its working.

I would recommend anyone reading some of the leaflets on the website I posted. They not only tell you what to look out for they show you how to remove ticks and things you can do to avoid getting them in the first place.

Thanks all.

Andrea
 
Hi Andrea!

thanks for the information, I had no idea what this diease was, had only heard it mentioned in passing. Didn't realise how serious or common it is.

Really hope your friends daughter is doing well and will make a full recovery, X X X
 
^^Gord^^ said:
Since then I've carried a removal tool in my camera bag:

http://www.bds.org.uk/product57.html

Well worth the purchase for people who spend time out in the countryside.
Click to expand...

That's a good idea - I've always kept mine with the dog grooming stuff, and never thought about humans getting bitten. doh. btw, I've never had to remove a tick small enough to use the little hook, they always seem to need the large one. :shrug:
 
staffitaxi said:
I have just received this email from a friend - Lymes Disease is passed on from tick bites. Not all ticks are carriers of the disease. Her daughter is only 12. This isn't some internet scare mongering, I know them personally.

"I have been quiet for a long time as my daughter is very very poorly and has been since Oct 07, she can no longer walk, is bed bound and is deteriorating daily.

Lyme Disease can affect any one of you especially as we all do, have animals, you can get in in your garden sitting outside, you can catch it anywhere.

We have just received a diagnosis that she has Lymes Disease. It has taken since October and many many doctors to get this diagnosis, and because it has gone undiagnosed for so long the bacteria has attacked almost every part of her body, including her brain.

I would advise all of you to look at Lyme Disease Associaton UKs website to familiarise your selves with this devasting illness. If it is diagnosed early its a simple case of two weeks antibiotics, but unfortunately so many doctors and GPs and specialists are ignorant and UK testing is very very poor.

She is about to embark on IV antibiotics for three months
followed by 6 to 12 months of oral antibiotics and no one can
gurantee a full recovery at this stage.

It has effected every part of our life including the fact i can no longer work as she needs 24 hours care."

I guess I just wanted to bring it to the attention of particlarly those of you who like to walk in rural areas for your photography.

There is full linformation on the website below:

http://www.lymediseaseaction.org.uk/index.htm

I've just bought a tick remover from them so at least if one does get attached I can remove it safely.

Andrea
Click to expand...

My daughter has been ill for the last 8 years after being bitten by a tic in California. She is constantly in hospital, once with bacterial meningitis, twice with viral meningitis, encephalitis, myocarditis, kidney problems, joint pains, palsy , rigours and terrible chest pains which they thought were a heart attack, but turned out to be pleural lesions. At the time she was bitten the doctor said that it was impetigo, which I told her was not correct, as I studied epidemiology and microbiology, but she believed the doctor "as doctor knows best". The sequel to this is that she has now been diagnosed with Lyme disease, and is going to see a specialist in Cardiff next Monday to start treatment. Treatment for Lyme disease needs to be started soon after infection so the prognosis is not great.

She had a very good career in teaching, but has now had to give that up due to ill health. It's about time that the doctors in this country recognised it, as there are lots of cases of it about.
 
if i get it i can add it to my idiopathic urtacarea, my dermography, my psorisis, my dodgy knees, bad back, piles and hernia, and seemingly regular plueracy oh and ashtma i probably wouldnt even notice it.

hope the girl gets better.
 
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