Ick, ticks are gross. I used to work in lawn care, and got my share of tick bites. But Lyme isn't a big thing in our area, and I never had one that was a problem. Good luck with the waiting!

So sorry.

some reason to remain hopeful:

Tap to enlarge.

Well we do have Lyme in the area as my Dad had it twice, I had some kind of tick borne illness a few decades back and we think it killed my FIL...it was early on when no one was really familiar with the disease or knew how to diagnose it or treat it...he passed away from congestive heart failure.

But a few months ago, a fellow I worked with ended up in the hospital 2 weeks after a tick bite with anaplasmosis...high fever and lung infection.

Here's the list for our area:

DH and I have both had Lyme disease. His more severe than mine. There is good treatment available but like so many other things, you need to catch it early. It sounds like you are right on top of it though.

Hoping it turns out to be nothing 🤞

My husband had it, Never saw the tick but he had a round red circle about the size of a saucer on his arm and went to the doctor and got a shot--no problems. i am glad it was on his arm or we may not of noticed it. Good luck but keep watching the area.

Ick, ticks! Hate them. As mentioned upthread, the sooner you get them off you, the less chance of getting Lyme disease.

Sending good thoughts that it doesn't turn out bad. I am unfamiliar with tick bites, despite having lived in the country all of my life. Have seldom ever seen a tick. Glad you found it when you did.

They are icky arent they? i hope you will be fine, Annie.

I had two earlier this year after spreading some pine straw. I was fine except for having periodic itching at one bite site. My dermatologist said they can leave behind little barbs that can flare up for a while. Cortisone cream took care of it and its fine but it was still annoying.

Call your family doctor. Ticks and lyme dz are prevalent here. All we do is call our doctor and he/she calls in a one dose antibiotic to the pharmacy. No need to wait for symptoms or test.

Your chances are better if the tick attachment is less than 24 hour and/or not yet engorged.

AnnieD, and others:

The widely accepted protocol in informedd New England is to take Two ___mg capsules of Doxycycline together as a prophylactic. I can’t recall the dosage per capsule. It might be 200 mg

No need to wait and see if diseases or marker appear. And even if antibodies to the Lyme disease causing Borrelia are detected, it does not mean that one has Lyme disease; only that your immune system has encountered the bacterium.

The ”bullseye“ rash does not need to be present.

There is more misinformation online that factual info, so we must be careful when reading online, even at some self acclaimed ”expert” sites and organizations.

We have lots of deer ticks in our area. it helps to prevent bites by wearing permethrin treated light colored socks and trousers. Keep pantlegs of trousers tucked into socks. Sawyer’s spray is one brand. Try to avoid brushing past tall grasses and plants where ticks hang out, ”seeking.“ I have even spotted them on 4 ft tall raspberry canes. I’ve gotten tick bites in January (when no snow cover).

I’ve found that Benadryl cream can really help with the itch.

I almost have a tick a day hiking on the trail. Mostly I see them crawling before they suck in, but last week in addition to having a badly lacerated leg, right on top of where the bandage ended , a tick was borrowing. A tiny drop of blood and I yanked him out and burned him.

My DD got Lyme when she was 8, the spring after we moved into this house. She was complaining of headache and she definitely was lacking energy - then I saw the bulls-eye rash on her arm. Took her to our doctor who told us it was "just a spider bite" (this was back in 1992, and Lyme wasn't really reported in the area). I was really suspicious of the rash so took her to clinic at the Children's Hospital. The resident & attending who saw her did think it was Lyme, put her on a month of the appropriate antibiotic for her age (too young for tetracycline), drew blood for testing, and firmly instructed us to return in a month and to see this specific attending.

She got better quickly, but we couldn't get the follow up appointment with the same MD - it was the first week of July, the particular attending was on vacation, and the house staff had all changed. The one we saw just looked her over, said, "Whatever was wrong with her is over now", and didn't see the need to do the labs that the previous resident had planned. So, the Lyme was not firmly diagnosed, and also not reported to the public health department.

When I started working with an infectious disease doc in my research job two years later, the subject of Lyme came up - he was shocked to hear that she had been treated for it - he said that no cases had ever been reported.

I suspect that the tick got to her when she was playing around the old woodpile in the back yard. There are lots of deer in the area, and also I believe that the ticks also live on mice at an early stage of their development.

Ouch, so sorry Annie. I hope everything turns out well.

DS II got Lyme's several years ago. Also, our little Westie got it. Off to the doctor & pharmacy and the vet & the pharmacy.

I picked up a bottle of Doxycycline on one of my trips to MX since then to have on hand as a prophylactic just in case. Has already saved one visit to the doctor when DSI got a tick last summer and was freaking out.

We live in the woods in Wisconsin so there are a lot of deer around. And a lot of Lyme's cases.

Yikes! No good. I had one that bit my back recently but I realized it immediately and pulled it off. Fortunately he hadn't attached.

ci_lantro & others —

It is best not to hold onto Doxycycline. As it ages, it can break down into some very nasty stuff. I looked this up a few years ago when the price went up as I was considering keeping some that was outdated.

Ask online or check with your pharmacist.

Rae — woodpile area sounds about right ;) Ticks like damp (not dry) areas and yes, mice and small rodents, rabits rabbits, birds can be some of their targets. In years when there is a large crop of nuts, seeds seeds, acorns and other food for mice, the following year sees more deer ticks.

ETA — doycycline may break down into harmful compounds. There’s a lot of info under ”Expired Doxycycline.” Discussions and FDA non-binding statements. Tetracycline (different antibiotic) that’s old (or not kept under suitable conditions) is more of a concern because these deterioration products can cause kidney problems. Doxycycline may not pose the same risk. a lot of the discussion it technical and the deterioration depends on just how old, storage conditionds and so on. In addition, the efficacy of a well-expired medication may be a concern.

Too many ticks here, too.

Tucking jeans into socks means those socks lose all elastic ability and have to be thrown out. I tuck into my boots and spray.

My poor cat has to be checked frequently for ticks. And she is strictly indoors.

Thanx for the heads up on doxy, Petalique. I'll check the expiry date on mine.

Feb 2025 so I'm good.

I tell the thru-hikers on the trail to check every night for ticks. Probably unnecessary advice as I'm sure they've uncovered many. I average one a day.

When I'm working outside I always tuck my pants into my socks, and wear rubber boots. I've been doing this for years, and none of my socks have lost elasticity. In a way, this is unfortunate because my size 5-9 socks are a little too snug and I wouldn't mind throwing them out. :-)

Well, I have a low-grade fever, went to doc for blood work and then we'll know. Also started antibiotics. Rats! Poor DH. Here he's trying to recuperate and instead he's driving me to docs and such. I am so sick of seeing doctors!!

Oh darn, Annie! I hope your fever is unrelated to the tick bite, but any kind of fever isnt good. I know that feeling of being sick of being sick, or hurting somewhere.

I swear if i didnt go to the doctor, I wouldn’t go anywhere..

I wondered about your bite, during all the info about husband, but thought you were in the best place if you did get symptoms. Didnt realize it would take this long to show up. Well, at least you two can take care of each other.

Bad news: I do have anaplasmosis

Good news: My fever broke last night, my body is adjusting to the antibiotics and I have enough to see me through

Bad news: DH is going back to the docs today with an issue with a varicose vein in his leg which is becoming inflamed. Probably needs an ultrasound to find out what's going on.

I am so sick of seeing doctors!! But thank goodness he was well enough to take care of me and my fever and now I'm well enough to take care of him. So long as we aren't both sick at the same time!

I’m sorry you had the reaction to the tick bite Annie. Especially after all you have been through with your DH, it just seems like piling on. I can imagine you are just done with doctors right now, so hang in there and hope you both get better soon.

So sorry Annie! I hope you completely recover quickly.

So sorry your husband has to go back to the doctors but I'm very glad he gets really good care from them. My sister had this and they may have to adjust his blood thinners to counter the clots. At least that's what they had to do for her.

The article I read about anaplasmosis makes it sound awful and it seems to be on the rise. I also never knew that generally ticks need to be on the body for a fairly long period of time in order to transmit their diseases. Not sure if it's true in every case or not.

https://www.precisionvaccinations.com/anaplasmosis-cases-result-25-percent-hospitalizations-compared-5-percent-lyme-cases

Well, I'm glad they caught caught the anaplasmosis. A friend's daughter was in the hospital for a week before they identified it. That was a few years ago, and she recovered completely.

Try not to overdo if you can. Fevers can leave us temporarily weakened.

((((Hugs to you and DH))))

My sister had this and they may have to adjust his blood thinners to counter the clots.

He can't have any blood thinners as he's too low in blood as it is, so if it is a big clot, he'll have to be hospitalized again to put in a "filter".

Was the tick embedded for 12-24 hours? I think that's the time frame for anaplasmosis. I must say I am always freaking about Lyme disease and I get plenty of ticks off myself but have never heard of this disease. Something more to worry about and another reason I hate summer. I hope the news is all good for you and your husband. You've both been thru a lot.

Oh my, you guys must feel like Job. I'm so sorry for the both of you but glad you have staggered your illnesses. Do you think it might be worth seeing someone at a teaching hospital? I don't know where you live so perhaps this is a moot suggestion. Thinking of you and the mister, Annie.

Lily I don’t know but suspect so as i got the disease. In our area the 3 diseases deer tick carry are anaplasmosis lyme and babesiosis

Sjerin our hospital is a teaching hospital

I don't know if this really works or I am just lucky, but when spring breaks I start showering with Irish Spring. I have got tick bites when I didn't use it, but none since then. I figure it doesn't hurt and I still get clean.

Interesting...I know it repels deer as does ivory soap...

I'm so sorry, Annie. I have heard of anaplasmosis, but didn't know anything about it. Glad you were aware and hope you heal completely and feel much better soon.

I'm sorry you're going through so much right now.

Oh Annie....hugs to you & your DH!

Talked to my bud who had anaplasmosis earlier this year and he said he's doing well. Unlike Lyme, it seems to be easily rid of permanently with antibiotics. I sure hope so! The disease impacted my liver function and doctor told me it could impact blood platelets too.

The best thing I know for discouraging ticks is Rose Geranium essential oil. It confuses a powerful sensor of theirs.

The Kindle version of this book is FREE on Amazon today:

LYME, by Mary Beth Pfeiffer

I'm feeling lousy, like I'm still sick even though I'm on the antibios and don't have a fever....so I'm searching around and found this in the Merck Manual:

“Some patients continue to experience headache, weakness, and malaise for weeks after adequate treatment.”

Oh [BAD WORD]!

Well, that sucks, Annie! Are you on Doxy? That med makes me feel terrible, fyiw

Yes I'm on Doxy but I've not had trouble with it in the past....but then again, I was younger then too! I'm going to be on it for 2 weeks.