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Ticks transmit Lyme disease. (Photo provided)
By Marcus McCartney
OSU Extension Educator
Lyme disease is the most common vector-borne disease in the United States. Lyme disease is caused by a specific bacteria, Borrelia burgdorferi. It is transmitted to humans through the bite of infected blacklegged ticks, commonly known as deer ticks in our region. Here in the middle valley of Ohio, we have an epidemic of Lyme disease. Currently, 1 in 12 dogs are positive for Lyme. My little dog, Bella, is one of those dogs and it was because of her that I got Lyme disease. Sometimes Bella sleeps at the foot of my bed. A tick crawled out of her and onto my foot, biting me and injecting the bacterial disease into my bloodstream, changing my life forever. My experience with Lyme disease has taken a toll on me and my family. I contracted the neurological disease at the end of 2018. Even though I made a full recovery, my family dynamic has changed forever.
Towards the end of 2018, I started to feel bad or sick. At first I rejected what I was feeling and thought it was nothing more than a cold or a virus. However, over time I never recovered from the initial illness and my health slowly deteriorated. My symptoms included: severe fatigue, increased blood pressure, weak muscles, extreme dizziness, and it was difficult to sit still for long periods of time. I felt disconnected, like my head was in a constant state of fog. I never developed the rash associated with Lyme disease and I don’t even remember having a blacklegged tick on me. Before I could get an accurate diagnosis, the standard Lyme disease test always came back negative and my so-called “diagnostic” always came back like the same thing, a sinus infection. After personally taking antibiotics for seventy-six days, I was finally given a prescription for doxycycline, the Lyme disease antibiotic, for a 28-day cycle. Towards the end of my 28th day, I finally started to feel better after just four months of operation. Being able to function again has been a huge relief and a blessing. Life seemed normal again.
During my ordeal with Lyme disease, that’s when I learned that there was an epidemic in our area. Now, when I am outside, I make sure I take preventative measures so that I do not get this disease again. This experience has given me immense respect for tick vector diseases as well as for animals that consume these ticks, such as possums. My advice is that whenever you are outside, especially in wooded areas or tall grass, protect yourself from ticks and always check yourself when you get inside. My experience with Lyme disease is that no matter what your health is, this disease will make you fall down quickly and affect every aspect of your life; potentially life changing like in my case.
If you have worked outside on your garden or lawn, even at this time of year, as blacklegged ticks (deer ticks) are active most of the year and find a tick attached to your body , you should not throw it away after you remove it properly. You need to identify which tick species was attached to you because some tick species carry certain diseases. You can bring your tick to the OSU extension office for accurate identification. After you identify the tick, you should keep the tick in case you feel bad. Store ticks in your refrigerator or freezer for a few months or send them to a lab to test for disease. In conclusion, protect yourself because tick-borne diseases are increasing dramatically.
Marcus McCartney is OSU’s Agriculture and Natural Resources Educator for Washington County. He has been working in the extension field since 2014. Marcus received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from West Virginia University Agriculture Education.
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