I returned home from my trip to the beach house and the next day I found a tick on me. Heavy sigh. I would like to say that I was calm, cool, and collected but that wasn't the case. The tick was removed, the tick wasn't engorged, the tick was still moving and, the tick was placed in a zip lock bag. Why you ask - well, most of my Lyme websites talk about keeping the tick in case you want it tested for pathogens.
Once the tick was removed I then proceeded to cry. Crying helps right? I was scared and worried and basically neurotic. I am not as strong as Heather. It was more fear of the unknown, but also knowing how sometimes a tick bite can be life altering.
Heather was so brave when she was diagnosed. Maybe it was because for over a month they were unsure what was wrong and they were running so many tests and ruling out so many awful things. She was so brave during her MRI of the brain, spine scans, numerous blood tests, CT Scans, and nerve conductivity tests. Her amazing team of doctors included an internist, rheumatologist, hematologist, gastroenterologist, and an infectious disease specialist.
So.......I turned to the internet - the more you read, the more you "think" you know, and the more you worry. I tried to compare my tick to images on the internet. Even with a magnifying glass and my reading glasses, I couldn't determine the type of tick.
Then, I stumbled upon this AMAZING site. You take a picture, include your email, state, zip code, and they email back a response within a few days - and this service is FREE. Twelve hours later they sent a detailed email telling me that they thought it was a lone star tick and that these don't carry Lyme disease. However, they said they needed better pictures.
24 hours later I took the tick out of the zip lock bag and the damn thing was still alive. I took better pictures, emailed them, and they responded that it was definitely not a deer tick.
In the mean time I called my doctor, we discussed a three week course of antibiotics if I saw a rash or felt ill, but I passed on that since I felt fine and the "tick professionals'" were confident that it wasn't a deer tick.
I am sending a donation to this site. It brought me peace of mind. If you find a tick on you and are concerned, I 100% recommend this web site.
I didn't tell Heather about my tick adventure until I knew everything was fine. No need to make her worry. I wish Heather had seen her tick and had the opportunity to start treatment. That is one of the awful things about Lyme disease - remember 50% of the people never see the tick or the rash.
The picture for this blog was taken in 1993 at the beach house. It was so amazing to pull into the driveway and see a wild horse in your yard. Even more incredible to be sitting on the beach and watch them stroll by. By 1997 all of the Corolla wild horses were relocated to the northern beaches of Carova, NC, which were (and still are) only accessible by a 4WD vehicle. Two sound to sea fences were constructed 11 miles apart to keep the horses from wandering into more congested areas - one is located along the northern Corolla border, and one close to the Virginia state line. As a result, this wild horse habitat offers the horses over 7,500 acres of coastal shoreline, maritime forests, and all the dunes, marshes and small estuaries in between.
Things to ask yourself if you find a tick:
Step 1 - IS MY TICK RISKY? TickSpotters helps identify the type of tick and assesses the riskiness of your TickEncounter. Submit a tick picture to TickSpotters and receive a customized reply full of best practice, next steps advice in just 1-3 days.
http://www.tickencounter.org/tick_testing
Step 2 - IS IT INFECTED? TickEncounter now partners with UMass Laboratory of Medical Zoology and their TickReport.com to offer reliable, high quality tick testing with the lowest cost and fastest turn-around time in the industry.
