Yahoo Tuning Groups Ultimate Backup makemicromusic Re: [MMM] Waterloo... the long story

>The area I have live in for the past eight years, Cape Cod,
>Massachusetts, has an exceptionally high rate of Lyme disease. And as
>I'm always out in the woods wherever I go, it didn't take long for me
>to realize why--one spring day my first year here I sat down under a
>few trees on a hike for less than ten minutes only to find at least
>five tiny deer ticks crawling on my pant leg. Needless to say I was
>quite paranoid thereafter, and figured it was only a matter of time as
>these ticks were so small compared to the wood (or dog) ticks I'd
>grown up knowing off-Cape.

Those ticks are the antichrist. We had both dog and deer in
Pennsylvania, in massive quantities all around my house growing up.
I was completely paranoid of them as a youth, and it kept me indoors
a lot (explains much, I know.. though I would take long walks in the
winter). As a teenager my drive to go into the woods overwhelmed
anything else, and I had lots of fun counting how many I'd picked up
after each trek. I once saved some deer ticks in an airtight glass
vial in my fridge, and they happily started crawling away when I
opened it about a year later. They're almost invisible to the naked
eye unless under bright light. When I moved to California, I rejoiced
to find that ticks are far less common here. The openness (lack of
low-lying brush) and/or dryness of the forest means you can take many
treks and never pick up a single tick.

>Problem is I never got a telltale rash or any of the arthritic-like
>ailments commonly associated with Lyme, at least not since I'd been on
>the Cape.

Lyme is sometimes completely asymptomatic at infection.

>Was it possible that I'd had Lyme disease for at least 15 years?

'tis possible.

>The specialist who prescribed the Tetracycline had warned me that it
>might pull the Lyme out, but I was totally unprepared for the possible
>severity of the symptoms. Had I known, I would never have done this
>alone (my fiancee is in Slovakia until the 29th) and I would've at
>least been prepared with some heavy sleep medication or something to
>dull the torture. I can only assume the effects are usually not so
>pronounced. For what it's worth, in Slovakia they do more extensive
>initial testing to try to either prove or disprove the presence of
>Lyme in the body, like lumbal punction and other more specialized
>blood tests that show more than the IgA, IgM and IgG antibodies. In
>the US, they seem to prefer the initial Lyme panel, clinic testing and
>treatment with oral antibiotics like Tetracycline for several months.
>In Slovakia, Tetracycline not prescribed due to its many adverse side
>effects, and Lyme is generally treated in the hospital with
>intravenous Cephalosporin for two weeks.

I knew someone who had IV antibiotics for Lyme. Personally, I'd
choose the tetracycline. Eat a lot of yogurt when it's over.

>I'm thankful, and after the ordeal--the Waterloo--of this past
>Friday, I'm frankly grateful just to be alive.

Keep on truckin'. These bodies can be hell to care for. Hope
your hearing problems clear up!

-Carl

i know that at one time both Lou and Bill got this disease.

Carl Lumma wrote:
>> The area I have live in for the past eight years, Cape Cod,
>> Massachusetts, has an exceptionally high rate of Lyme disease. And as
>> I'm always out in the woods wherever I go, it didn't take long for me
>> to realize why--one spring day my first year here I sat down under a
>> few trees on a hike for less than ten minutes only to find at least
>> five tiny deer ticks crawling on my pant leg. Needless to say I was
>> quite paranoid thereafter, and figured it was only a matter of time as
>> these ticks were so small compared to the wood (or dog) ticks I'd
>> grown up knowing off-Cape.
>> >
> Those ticks are the antichrist. We had both dog and deer in
> Pennsylvania, in massive quantities all around my house growing up.
> I was completely paranoid of them as a youth, and it kept me indoors
> a lot (explains much, I know.. though I would take long walks in the
> winter). As a teenager my drive to go into the woods overwhelmed
> anything else, and I had lots of fun counting how many I'd picked up
> after each trek. I once saved some deer ticks in an airtight glass
> vial in my fridge, and they happily started crawling away when I
> opened it about a year later. They're almost invisible to the naked
> eye unless under bright light. When I moved to California, I rejoiced
> to find that ticks are far less common here. The openness (lack of
> low-lying brush) and/or dryness of the forest means you can take many
> treks and never pick up a single tick.
>
> >> Problem is I never got a telltale rash or any of the arthritic-like
>> ailments commonly associated with Lyme, at least not since I'd been on
>> the Cape.
>> >
> Lyme is sometimes completely asymptomatic at infection.
>
> >> Was it possible that I'd had Lyme disease for at least 15 years?
>> >
> 'tis possible.
>
> >> The specialist who prescribed the Tetracycline had warned me that it
>> might pull the Lyme out, but I was totally unprepared for the possible
>> severity of the symptoms. Had I known, I would never have done this
>> alone (my fiancee is in Slovakia until the 29th) and I would've at
>> least been prepared with some heavy sleep medication or something to
>> dull the torture. I can only assume the effects are usually not so
>> pronounced. For what it's worth, in Slovakia they do more extensive
>> initial testing to try to either prove or disprove the presence of
>> Lyme in the body, like lumbal punction and other more specialized
>> blood tests that show more than the IgA, IgM and IgG antibodies. In
>> the US, they seem to prefer the initial Lyme panel, clinic testing and
>> treatment with oral antibiotics like Tetracycline for several months.
>> In Slovakia, Tetracycline not prescribed due to its many adverse side
>> effects, and Lyme is generally treated in the hospital with
>> intravenous Cephalosporin for two weeks.
>> >
> I knew someone who had IV antibiotics for Lyme. Personally, I'd
> choose the tetracycline. Eat a lot of yogurt when it's over.
>
> >> I'm thankful, and after the ordeal--the Waterloo--of this past
>> Friday, I'm frankly grateful just to be alive.
>> >
> Keep on truckin'. These bodies can be hell to care for. Hope
> your hearing problems clear up!
>
> -Carl
>
>
>
> > Yahoo! Groups Links
>
>
>
>
>
> -- Kraig Grady
North American Embassy of Anaphoria Island <http://anaphoria.com/index.html>
The Wandering Medicine Show
KXLU <http://www.kxlu.com/main/index.asp> 88.9 FM Wed 8-9 pm Los Angeles

Re: [MMM] Waterloo... the long story

🔗Jon Szanto <jszanto@...>

🔗Carl Lumma <ekin@...>

🔗Kraig Grady <kraiggrady@...>

🔗Kraig Grady <kraiggrady@...>

🔗Jon Szanto <jszanto@...>