Lymes disease.
Whitetail Deer
Just saw a clip on GMA about Lymes. We as outdoor people know that it is a real problem. BUT, how many of you really take action. How many of you are pro-active. How many of you think that it will never happen to you. We as hunters and outdoor people, should be on the frontlines to help stop this problem. Pat has this web site, so that we as hunters can help and inform others of our passion,Being in the outdoors. I know that in early March, I go to the turkey forum an remind people to be pro-active. Guys this is a real thing. It can an will hurt you. I know many non-hunters that have it. I think that Pat should "Because he has the resource" to have more information on Lymes. Guys, be safe and look when you are out there.
It's crazy here. I think 50% of my friends have had this now-MN is rampant with these ticks. I actually avoid doing most foresty things in MN most of the Summer.
There are dozens of Bowsite threads on protecting yourself from Lyme disease. Personal responsibility is the proper way to stay safe. Safe hunting everyone.
Agree, Lyme's is a serious concern for Outdoors enthusiasts. I personally think pevention is a key factor to consider.
The best prevention I've found is to treat my clothes, socks, boots with a permethrin spray and follow the application instructions closely.
Sawyers sells pump spray bottles of it - the stuff stays active for several weeks and two washings.
So, true on the personal level. But, I have non-hunting friends that have been doing yard work an got it. Not knowing what to look for. I myself, was in the treeline this summer doing some trimming. Came in the house right there on my neck, a tick. Had my wife remove it. EDUCATE, EDUCATE, EDUCATE......
Jeannine got bite early summer then I got it again 2 weeks ago. Both times wearing clothes that I had not sprayed. My fault. My neighbor at the lake got Lymes and was knocked down for 2 weeks with inter veinis anti biotics and I believe today is his last day of the follow up pills.
I agree with Sawyers treatments, also I take a deodorized Garlic pill every morning. Mosquitoes and ticks are not fond of it. I have found some ticks on me 2 in 5 years only 1 bite, took precautionary (doc in a Box) shot. Its not fool proof but I hunt the eastern shoe marsh and woods crawling with critters very few mosquito bites and only 1 tick bite in 5 years. I do both sawyers and daily Garlic. It is a blood thinner for those on medicine.ask your doctor. hope this helps someone out
I use Cabela's Bug Skinz during hunts. I have not gotten 1 bite by either ticks or chiggers thru CBS. I love it.
For work, I use the highest % deet spray I can find. I do not use permethrin because I have had an adverse reaction to it. All that stated, I can't help but wonder if the modern standard American diet, wildly pro-inflammation that it is, does not play a huge role in the symptoms of Lyme.
I've had cancer and chemo. I was diagnosed with Lyme's in 1999. Of the two, as miserable and bad as the chemo made me feel, it was easy compared to the fight with Lyme's. Boy's it's a life changer if you don't get it quick enough. And, I didn't. So, don't play around. Get the immunization for it. And prepare for it. God Bless
I've had it twice. Caught it early both times, luckily, though needed IV antibiotics the second time. Permethrin, high % deet, and I limit my time in the woods in the Spring / Early Summer.
I've had it twice. Caught it early both times, luckily, though needed IV antibiotics the second time. Permethrin, high % deet, and I limit my time in the woods in the Spring / Early Summer.
They did a check in Pa. Collecting ticks and 50% of the ticks were infected with Lymes disease.
There is currently no viable immunization for the disease. There was a trail vaccine 10 years ago but it was quickly pulled off the market. C
My son passed 33 yrs old pass away form apparent effects of Lymes, was taking vancomycin IV which contributed to A-fib, got up in the morning and log-on to his work and fell out his chair and expired. Remember he had a tick buried deep in his upper inner thigh with a blueish purple ring before he pulled it and month latter he was gone, I told him to get to the dr but didn't listen until he was getting sick. Just spray your clothes and gear down and check your dog out also, they can transfer the ticks to you also, nothing to fool around with.
Lyme disease, if not caught quickly, will forever change your life and not for the good. It is nothing to take lightly. The medical community is just starting to understand this disease, but there are many doctors who don't understand it or refuse to even acknowledge its existence. Unfortunately I speak from abundant experience.
Then you have the dreaded Bourbon Disease that seems to be gaining on us too. Makes one allergic to all read meat. Can't even come in contact with utensils or pans used to cook red meat! I hate ticks. Almost died from a tick bite back in the late 80's. Blood poisoning, believe it or not.
I showed symptoms earlier this year, but insurance wouldn't cover the $700+ blood test, so my Dr. just went ahead and prescribed the 6 week antibiotics... Felt MUCH better after the antibiotics...
It's Lyme, not Lyme's.
I never saw the tick, or whatever, that got me, no rash (only 1 of 3 DIAGNOSED ever had the classic bullseye rash they said HAD to be present) turns out that was b.s. I had it pretty bad, could hardly move, going up steps on hands and knees, barely step up on a curb, excruciating pain in all joints, sleep less than 1 hour at a time, daily severe headaches, heart arrhythmia, interrupted breathing, muscle spasm and twitching 24/7, and lots, lots more. For months I went to several doctors, surgeons, and specialists, was misdiagnosed, undiagnosed, and one insisted on operating on my knees. I didn't let that happen. And I'm in an epidemic county of Pa. They should have known. But they follow agenda biased insurance company and government protocals... and they're incompetent idiots.
The single crappy Lyme titer I was given missed it. Eventually, after much research, I self-diagnosed and went to a Lyme specialist, and paid for the Western Blot out of my own pocket. POSITIVE, chronic and acute. It was a 2 year ordeal. I was on several antibiotics, antivirals, antimalarials, and in conjunction with herbal supplements, extracts, mega-vitamins, etc for over 1 1/2 years before I felt myself again. But by then I was very weak, thin, and looked like I aged 20 years. It was a scary, dark time, and for too many nights to count, I didn't think I was going to make it to morning... and I was ok with that.
Like Mad Trapper said, it changed my life forever. It's nothing to screw around with. It's a lot more prevalent than they know/admit even today. Protect yourselves.
I found the medical professionals (Urgent care + my normal doctors) here in the Minneapolis / St. Paul area to be very knowledgeable with regards to Lyme and other tick borne diseases when I went in earlier this year. Even before the blood test results came back I was put on a 2-week Doxycycline prescription, the standard amount for how soon I caught it (~1 month). I did treat my clothes with permethrin two different times as I was turkey hunting in three states. I never saw a tick bite me, even with daily showers. Only a few regular ticks were on my clothes.
Doxycycline will take care of most of the tick-borne stuff, but there are a couple diseases that are not curable right now and will kill you. The list of tick borne diseases is quite long. Lyme is tough because symptoms from person to person will be different. If you don't trust your normal doc you should get them to refer you to an infectious disease specialist.
I suspect most guys here are like me, felt decent enough at first and would power through the fatigue not thinking I could have lyme. Then months or years go by and it becomes severe joint pain and neurological issues that can't be cured... Fortunately I have good insurance and went in early and had good care.
Jeff I got a bit ill reading your post. Brought back a lot of bad memories. Took me a lot longer to get on top of it. Glad you are on the mend!
Quite a few people I know have reecntly tested positive for Lymes. Thankfully had a negative blood test myself a month or so ago. I'm harcore on treating my clothes and wear snake boots more to keep the ticks and chiggars out than snakes.
I only find ticks in the spring? only one red spot from 3 bites that i caught? shit i could have it!!! I try to be carful?
Mad trapper , Jeff , Same thing for me . Only add, Lyme - Meningitis to the grand list .Ending in 5 days in critical and all sorts of ugly symptoms. 5 years or so later still having issues but not like the first 2-3 years . I got my tick (one of many that were promptly removed) in a patch of P.I. that I was scratching for a week or so . Bulls-eye. I Misses one little bugger and life is changed . I remember being happy with a few days a month of not feeling terrible turning into a few days a week . Years later I still feel like I'm always dragging this crud with me . The East coast plague ... Spreading to a state near you !
I used to work as a forest tech for a major paper company. Fifteen or twenty years ago they recommended all forest workers take a series of 3 shots that would reduce the threat of Lyme by 80 to 90 percent. Most every one in the department took the first. Come time for the second injection they wanted everyone to sign a release they the company would not be held liable for any unwanted side effects. Mainly arthritis. Few of us took the second and I believe none took the final injection. So there was some sort of vaccine that came with possible unwanted side effects. Lime is not something to take lightly. One of my co-workers got it when it first came into our area. It was un-diagnosed, miss diagnosed, or whatever until it became chronic. He lost a foot from complications. Those that work in the woods can take all the preventive measures available and still get the Lyme or any of the other tick born diseases. We all sprayed our clothes with permethrin and taped our pants legs to our boots and checked our bodies for ticks and still we got tick bites. I have been treated twice and almost every one I worked with was on Doxy at one time or another. One day earlier this year I flagged a harvest boundary for a logger friend and took all the above precautions and still I picked at least 35 to 40 of the black hearted blood suckers off me that afternoon. DO ALL YOU CAN TO PREVENT TICK BITES BUT DON'T ASSUME YOU ARE SAFE FROM LYME IF YOU GO OUTSIDE EVEN OF YOU FOLLOW THE PRECAUTIONS.
