Concern about ticks?

[Richard]

I live in the woods. We have five indoor dogs. We keep their tick/flea treatments up to date however...

Having ticks from being outside or from being transported inside by the dogs is simply part of our life.

Wife still freaks out when she sees a tick (on her or a dog) and calls me to remove/vanquish it.

I've been awakened at 3:00 A.M. before with a tickle feeling on my arm, neck, leg...somewhere... and low & behold, it's a tick. Get up & flush em.

All that is just a preface to paint the picture.

Maybe 2 weeks ago, I went to bed. In the morning, I saw a TINY spot on my right arm, right at the shoulder. TINY TINY tick. pulled it off and sent it packing. It had not been there for more than 7 hours (wasn't there prior to going to bed)

I STILL have this spot where this tick was embedded and it still itches like a SOB today.

I'm beginning to think this was a deer tick (although I'm the first to admit I do not recognize variations among ticks)

I DO NOT have the 'bullseye' marking that a deertick might leave.

Fast forward a week... and after working outside all day, I ended up finding two more small ticks. I'll spare you with where they were imbedded since no one wants to envision me sitting on the poor ticks...

Here's the gist of my question... these three specific ticks I've had (out of maybe 5-6 total) have each left a VERY itchy spot. Indeed, I've got what appears to be a welt on my butt, much like a bee sting (although it was a tick).

I'm letting these heal by themselves but then it dawned on me, what if they were deer ticks with lyme disease. I know nothing about this.

(if these were not lyme ticks, then I suppose they will heal by themselves)

If indeed, they were lyme ticks, at what stage does one want to go see a doctor? Immediately? after the bullseye?

Part II: Would you see a "regular" doctor or would you go to an allergist or perhaps a dermatologist?

(I've seen all three over time and would hate to see one just to be told to go to the other (and get a bill from the first for the advice))

I'm getting intrigued at how long it is taking for these to heal. The welt on my back side is large enough and itchy enough to be a nuisience.

**** little buggers....

 

[clemsonfor]

Don't worry yet. Im a forester and a hunter etc. I get my fair share of ticks each year some embedded for a day or more. From deer ticks dog ticks and tiny seed/wood ticks the size of a period on a 12 font printout on paper. A red area around a tick is normal for me as well as if one has been attached several hours a spot that has a red and open place that itches for weeks sometimes, the more you scratch the longer it lasts it seems like. Every one is different and will react the same, mosquitoes welt me but not as bad as my wife i suppose ticks are the same. Your descrition seems about what i get after on has attached, although i would never describe one as painfull? Once you see the bullseye; (dont make yourself see one though) i have often had what some panicy people would call a bullseye, but never any symtoms of Lyme disease or Rocky mounted spotted feaver; anyhow once you see the bullseye you can go to the regular doctor (family practice type is fine) you will not die even if it takes a week for you to get around to it. Lyme i thing makes you sluggish and more tired than you usually will be. Most doctors may test but if they see symptoms they may just start you on the antibiotic or whatever they prescribe. My brother and cousin have both had it although i think they just said it sould be in my brother and did treatement before it was onset, i think i remember him saying the test took to long or was often inconclusive or false positive. Kind of like swine flu they just told people that had the symptoms and knew another victim that they had it as the test took to long to get back and was very expensive, and places like universities were just treating not testing all cased that they confirmed.

-Nate

 

[LostInTheWoods]

Richard:

First, nothing replaces talking with your personal healthcare provider, so take this for what its worth...and you would start out by talking to your "regular" doctor. An allergist or dermatologist would not be required/warranted.

Sounds like you have very little to worry about. It is believed that ticks need to be attached around 36 hours prior to there being any real chance of disease transmission.

Be aware that not everyone who ultimately contracts Lyme disease remembers developing the classic bull's-eye rash.

Most of those who do contract tick-borne illnesses will develop a flu-like presentation that begins in the neighborhood of 3 - 30 days after the bite (fever, aches, +/- rash).

The lumps/inflammation you have sounds like a local inflammatory reaction and is relatively common. Not just with ticks. Some people will experience this with mosquito bites as well...may take a month to fade away.

My suggestion...take an over-the-counter antihistamine like Benadryl or Claratin and perhaps a topical cortisone applied over the bites. If you develop a worsening rash, fever, body aches, etc. then go to your physician.

 

[Richard]

Thanks for the advice.

So far, the red spot (inflamation) around the sites are staying static. Still itch like a SOB but, I hadn't thought of the claritin type solution.

IN fact...


HA!!!

I'm at work and wondered if I had some claritin sitting in my deck drawer in front of me. I do!

I'll be downing it momentarily.

:licking:

 

[buckredstone]

I deal with ticks every year, seems to me the more bites you get the more they all itch, they communicate somehow. Doctor tells me that if it has not been attached for more than 24 hrs no problem. The little seed ticks are the worst so just keep scratchin your back side. Ps if you never scratch they go away a lot sooner.

 

[Toyboy]

Don't write off that itchy bump so fast. I had a similar bite like your talking about a few years back and was told the same thing by neighbors...don't worry about it. Well two weeks later I was sick as a dog and required antibiotics to fix it.

Then last year I got a tick attached between my big and second toe, (how it got there??) itched like crazy. Removed it that nite and by morning foot was swelled up and blisters like poison ivy. Doctors at first thought it was a spider bite until I told them I had removed a tick there. Can't remember what they finally decided had happened, but it was similar to blood poisoning w/streaks coming up my foot. Antibiotics again saved the day. Lyme disease is not the only thing that can be transmitted by ticks.

I guess my point is they are not to be ignored. See your Dr. and let him call the shots......or give 'em.

 

[LostInTheWoods]

One other thought....

Ticks are like taxes. Some are easy to see, others are "hidden"

Make sure you've double-checked the, um, hard to reach places...the small ones can be very hard to spot.

 

[milkman]

Don't worry yet. Im a forester and a hunter etc. I get my fair share of ticks each year some embedded for a day or more. From deer ticks dog ticks and tiny seed/wood ticks the size of a period on a 12 font printout on paper. A red area around a tick is normal for me as well as if one has been attached several hours a spot that has a red and open place that itches for weeks sometimes, the more you scratch the longer it lasts it seems like. Every one is different and will react the same, mosquitoes welt me but not as bad as my wife i suppose ticks are the same. Your descrition seems about what i get after on has attached, although i would never describe one as painfull? Once you see the bullseye; (dont make yourself see one though) i have often had what some panicy people would call a bullseye, but never any symtoms of Lyme disease or Rocky mounted spotted feaver; anyhow once you see the bullseye you can go to the regular doctor (family practice type is fine) you will not die even if it takes a week for you to get around to it. Lyme i thing makes you sluggish and more tired than you usually will be. Most doctors may test but if they see symptoms they may just start you on the antibiotic or whatever they prescribe. My brother and cousin have both had it although i think they just said it sould be in my brother and did treatement before it was onset, i think i remember him saying the test took to long or was often inconclusive or false positive. Kind of like swine flu they just told people that had the symptoms and knew another victim that they had it as the test took to long to get back and was very expensive, and places like universities were just treating not testing all cased that they confirmed.

-Nate

Now that's funny, my mom has welted me a few times with a switch when I was a kid, but I won't put up with that from my wife...

I found a spot on the back of my arm last night and thought it was a mosquito, but when I looked real close, I could see a small black dot. I had the wife pull it off and had to get a magnifying glass to see that it was a tick. I found another one on my shoulder, never seen ticks that small. They sure itch like crazy.

 

[Taylortractornut]

One of the men at work got a tiny seed tick off his stomach 2 years abo the wound stayed there nearly 2 months. The tick had dug in and it was one of his little jabbers left in there. The worst tick I had I got working under the compactor at work, It was in some grass and I was fixing a hose above me, I felt some thing in my ear and my worker told me it was a piece of grass. Laterthat night I was havig trouble hearsing and my ear got terribly sore. I went to the ER and waited 2.5 hours on a slow small town night while the doctors and nurses all were on the cell phones. The doctor who I barely understood said nothings wrong just in my head blah blah blah.


When I got home I went to sleep in my chair and Amy got home and noticed my heads was red and I had a v ery bad fever. My ear ached terribly. SHe looked at it and said she saw a round grey thing. She took a picture and showed me, I figured that sensation earlier was a tick. Went back to the ER and the doctor told me and I quote " in a few day he fall out on own."

We left right then, It was storming and the next ER is 25 miles away. I got amy to stop at the Walmart and get me a bottle of rubbing alcohol, and we went home. I told Amy to pull it out with a pair of needle nose pliers and she wouldnt. I gave the little sucker adrink of the alcohol then. I was in pain so I convinced Amy to put the pliers on it and I did the work. In just a few minutes I my face was normal and my neck and head quit hurting. but some of the bad ones are little seed ticks

 

[impdaddy]

My son had lyme disease TWICE. if you start to fell like crap(beyond normal) see the doc. nothing to play with. my$.02