Lyme Disease - Just A Minor Bite Or A Major Epidemic? | HuffPost Life

You can try to protect yourself by wearing long sleeves and trousers tucked into socks if you are out in nature. Use a good repellent and carry a tick remover with you. There is more advice on the Lyme Disease UK site.

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An executive coach and business advisor with a passion for integrating strong leadership, high performance and wellbeing into the work place.

An executive coach and business advisor with a passion for integrating strong leadership, high performance and wellbeing into the work place.

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May is Lyme Disease Awareness month. A year ago, I had never heard of it.

Lyme Disease is one of the most painful, debilitating illnesses and there is no cure.

In the UK, the NHS say there are between 2,000 to 3,000 cases a year. In the USA there are 300,000 new cases reported every year. In Germany there are 250,000 cases. Testing in the UK is inadequate compared to other countries. It is said that over half of NHS negative results are not accurate. Recent data collected by John Caudwell and his team now suggests that there could be as many as 45,000 cases in the UK.

Lyme Disease is a bacterial infection passed on to humans from infected ticks. The ticks are said to mostly come from sheep and deer and thrive in dense vegetation and long grass. They don't jump or fly, but transfer on to you when you brush past them. They are tiny creatures that you may not even notice on you or your pets. They burrow into your skin, suck your blood and pass on the infection. Some people get a bull's-eye rash as a result. Many do not.

Latest research from Germany now indicates that mosquitos can also pass on the infection. Everyone is at risk of this dreadful disease.

You can try to protect yourself by wearing long sleeves and trousers tucked into socks if you are out in nature. Use a good repellent and carry a tick remover with you. There is more advice on the Lyme Disease UK site.

If caught early enough, antibiotic treatment can help to cure. The difficulty is that the symptoms replicate many other things, so it is often missed. It starts with flu like symptoms and fatigue. If it isn't treated, it moves into post infectious or chronic Lyme. There is currently no agreement on the best way to treat people in chronic stage. As with other autoimmune diseases, there is no cure, and currently there is very little research being done to find one.

In chronic stage, those seeking help are often misdiagnosed with things such as fibromyalgia, ME / chronic fatigue, migraine, nerve damage, psychological disorders, depression, MS and other auto immune diseases. Many doctors do not even consider the possibility of testing for Lyme.

I have Chronic Lyme Disease.

It took 10 months for me to be diagnosed. After test after test with my GP and the Hospital for Tropical Diseases, I was diagnosed with a whole list of immune problems, including many of those above. It was only after reading an article on Lyme that I insisted on being tested for it.

My NHS test came back negative so I sent my blood to a German lab for fuller testing and that was when I got a diagnosis.

For some, long-term antibiotics help. For me, and many others, antibiotics make it worse.

Over 18 months my health deteriorated. I have gone from being able to work 10 or 12 hours a day, swimming 50 lengths, taking long walks and enjoying life, to being able to do virtually nothing. Most days, I cannot even leave the house.

Living with Lyme Disease is your worst nightmare. You don't just get Lyme Disease, it comes with many other co-infections as your immune system is depleted to such a level that you are wide open for other illnesses.

Lyme is constant muscle and joint pain. Your legs and arms feel like they are on fire on the inside. You get fever and severe sweating followed by chills that go through your body like an electric shock. Tingling and numbness in your limbs becomes the norm. Severe neck pain means you often can't even lift your head up. Migraine headaches, blurred vision, and arthritic pain in your hands mean you cannot even hold a pen. You wake up several times a night with numbness and the pain. The lack of quality sleep adds to the extreme fatigue. Some days you are literally unable to move or walk. Brain fog leaves you incapable of accessing your brain or being able to concentrate.

As a coach and therapist, I am lucky in that I have the knowledge and tools to stop myself dropping into the depression that so many others suffer with.

Because those of us with Lyme do not have a plaster cast on or some external display of illness, people cannot see the pain and discomfort going on in the inside. Because we still look relatively well, it is difficult for others to understand the level of debilitation.

No one would want to live with Lyme Disease. I would not wish this on anyone.

I am now taking my physical and mental wellbeing forward with a 360 approach to my health. Every day I congratulate myself on what I have been able to achieve. I don't focus on all the things I haven't been able to do. I am using my food and supplements as my medicine and am charting my way back to health in my blog so I can get myself well and also try to help others.

Lyme Disease is not just a minor aliment and it isn't going away. You can help raise awareness by joining the World Wide Lyme Protest. You can share this post so more people know to protect themselves.

We all need better testing, better treatment and more research into finding a cure. There has to be a way out of this dreadful disease for all of the thousands of people who are suffering with it.

Do all you can to help.

Facts About Lyme Disease

There Are Two Types Of Ticks With Lyme(01 of11)

Canada has two kinds of ticks that spread Lyme disease: the western blacklegged tick, which is found in British Columbia, and the blacklegged tick, which is found in other parts of the country. In Canada, Lyme-carrying ticks are most often found in southern British Columbia; southeastern and south-central Manitoba; southern, eastern, and northwestern Ontario; southern Quebec; southern New Brunswick and Grand Manan Island; and parts of Nova Scotia. However, ticks do attach themselves to birds, which means they can be found in areas other than those where Lyme is considered endemic. (credit:pennstatenews/Flickr)

Who Is Most At Risk?(02 of11)

While anyone can get a tick bite, people who work outdoors or participate in outdoor activities are more likely to be in areas where ticks are found. Take precautions against tick bites while golfing, fishing, hiking, camping, and hunting, Health Canada advises.

Lyme Disease In Canada (03 of11)

Overall, Lyme disease cases in Canada are increasing: the government reported 128 cases in 2009 and 682 in 2013. But while the incidence of Lyme disease is rising in some parts of the country, it's holding steady in others, says Dr. David Patrick, an infectious disease specialist at the University of British Columbia. “Canada is a whole bunch of different ecosystems,” hes says, which means there are many different environments for ticks. More Lyme is being seen in southern Nova Scotia and southern Ontario, he say, up to 50 per cent of ticks on the Niagara peninsula. By contrast, Lyme is only found in 1 in 200 ticks in British Columbia where this level has remained constant for some time.

Know Your Local Risk(04 of11)

Because risk can vary so greatly across the country, it’s important to know what it’s like where you live, Patrick says. The Canadian government works with experts and public health organizations across the country to track tick populations and Lyme disease incidence.

Everyone Should Be Aware(05 of11)

But everyone should be aware: “It doesn’t matter where you live,” Patrick says. “People should know about tick prevention.” While Lyme disease is the most common disease spread by ticks, others are a concern as well. And even if you live in an area with low incidence of Lyme disease, that doesn’t mean the individual tick that bit you doesn't have Lyme.

Preventing Lyme Disease(06 of11)

If you are hiking in the woods or in an area known to have ticks, stick to the middle of the trail, Patrick advises. Wear long pants and a long-sleeved shirt, and consider using an insect repellent with DEET, he says. Afterwards, have someone help you do an allover tick check — the bites are painless, so you may have been bitten without realizing it.

Symptoms To Watch Out For(07 of11)

If you’ve been bitten by a tick, watch for the symptoms of Lyme disease over the coming days or weeks. You may see a mark where you were bitten — many people say it has a bulls eye shape, round with a clearing in the centre. Patrick points out that the clearing may not be obvious. “If you have a rash after a tick bite, you want to see a doctor,” he says. Some people also experience fever, chills, tiredness, swollen lymph nodes, or fatigue after a tick bite. And if things progress, you could have more serious symptoms like sore joints, arthritis, heart rhythm issues, and nervous system issues. It’s uncommon, but Lyme disease can be fatal if left untreated.

How To Remove A Tick(08 of11)

Blacklegged ticks can range in size from that of a poppyseed to a pea. If you do find a tick embedded under your skin, it’s important to remove it quickly and completely. With a pair of tweezers, grab the tick under the body, where the mouth connects to the skin, and pull it out steadily (get someone else to help if it’s too hard to reach by yourself). “What you’re trying to do is not leave the mouth parts behind,” Patrick says. Once the tick is removed, wash or disinfect the area.

Get The Tick Tested(09 of11)

In most parts of the country you can get the tick tested for Lyme disease, Patrick notes. If you remove a tick, try to save it in a plastic bag or pill bottle and record the date and location of the bite. Ticks can be submitted to the National Microbiology Lab, which tests them to determine where in the country blacklegged ticks are being found and what the risk levels are.

Watch Out For Pets(10 of11)

Pets can get Lyme disease — dogs are particularly at risk. However, animals like dogs cannot spread Lyme to humans, Health Canada says. However, pets can carry infected ticks into your home or yard, so check your animals, particularly if they’ve been in wooded or overgrown areas. (credit:shutterstock)

How To Treat Yourself(11 of11)

Lyme disease is often treated with a two to four weeks of antibiotics, though some people require a longer course of treatment. “The recommended courses of antibiotics do a very good job of eliminating the organism,” Patrick says. However, for some people, symptoms can persist for six months or longer after treatment. Always speak to your doctor if you are concerned.

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