MY LYME DISEASE IS NOT THE IDSA LYME DISEASE

My Lyme disease is not the IDSA Lyme disease

In response to various articles in the Chicargo Times and other newspapers found here
a number of patients posted their experiences with the above heading.

Blogger Lymenaide: says this:-

Do a Google search for "My Lyme Disease is not the IDSA Lyme Disease". See what pops up! Keep writing and posting your stories. Let's get the first few search pages to be filled with our stories. Keep the existing stories at the top of the list by reading them, commenting and sharing them with your friends and family.

Below is what I added to my side bar of both my blogs.

LYME LIFE

I started suffering with arthritis in mainly my large joints especially my knees 6 years ago. The symptoms varied and I remember saying that every joint was affected except my elbows to one doctor. I was told it would be hormonal and to take the usual supplements cod liver oil or glucosamine ( I would certainly recommend buying shares in the companies producing these supplements) They had no noticeable affect.

All my symptoms deteriorated significantly over a few weeks, 4 years ago. Hips shoulders and knees being the worst and I started with muscle weakness in upper arms and upper legs. I had difficulty standing and walking across a room. I was unable to walk upstairs and my husband was making plans to convert to a downstairs bedroom. I had seen 5 doctors and 3 Rheumatologists and put on steroids for Poly Myalgia Rheumatica diagnosis. I had been diagnosed with Fibromyalgia and ME/CFS.

I have X rays and scans showing signs of osteoarthritis and Rheumatoid arthritis. I have been retired early from the Civil Service having lost my job not to mention my earning potential.

My illness seemed to progress through my body not affecting the same joints left to right at the same time. I had bursitis in left hip, right hip, left elbow. I had synovial thickening in both wrists. At that time I could not lift and hold a magazine so lifting a kettle I could only do if a third full and with two hands. Each joint in my hands fingers feet and toes were affected. I had swallowing difficulties and many other symptoms. None of this describes the endless and awful pain whenever I moved or the tiredness but inability to get quality sleep.

Two years ago my GP gave me Amoxicilin for a sinus/throat/chest infection. All my arthritis symptoms improved. The course ended the symptoms deteriorated I started a second course the symptoms improved. The improvement was more significant than when I had started taking steroids. This led my GP to suspect Lyme Disease. I laughed because we do not travel abroad but she said they had had other cases in the surgery in the early stages of tick bite and Erythma Migrans rash. She said, but you have not had a bite. I said oh yes I have I had two on my ankles with rashes, March 05 this was confirmed on her computer at the time I had seen a locum doctor. My worst symptoms were waking up feeling rigid and having to painfully flex every joint in my body before struggling to get up. The only other time I had experienced this was in May 2003 during a flu like illness like no other I had ever experienced. At that time I had a bite and similar rash on my right foot which lasted like the other rashes about four weeks. I had also consulted the surgery and it was dismissed as a virus. I walked our dog daily in the woods adjacent to our house where the deer roam, prime tick area.

Thus started my very lengthy search about Lyme Disease leading me through http://www.lymediseaseaction.org.uk/ to a doctor who specialises in this illness. He confirmed my GP's suspicions. I never had a positive blood test but then they are antigen tests and there is much research that shows they are unreliable. In my case the year of steroids and many weeks antibiotics could have affected the results. So with a clinical diagnosis and following ILADS International Lyme and Associated Disease Society guidelines I continued on antibiotics for two years. Both my doctors continued to treat me despite the Health Protection Agency advising against long term antibiotics. I am now nearly 100% recovered I have no pain or muscle weakness. I can walk upstairs something I could not do for three and a half years. I can garden do house work and live a normal life. I still need to pace myself and with only a few months to 60 will not be looking to return to work.

Life is such a joy.

Sadly there is much controversy about Lyme Disease and doctors in UK are taught that it is so rare. Well where I live in Guildford I have been in contact with a dozen other people with it so perhaps not so rare as HPA would like us to believe. I am in touch with nearly 2000 other patients through a chat line Eurolyme most had been misdiagnosed with several other illnesses.

Look at UK charity http://www.lymediseaseaction.org.uk/ if you want to read more about this illness. There are many MP's taking an interest in the problems surrounding diagnosis and treatment see above charity links into a recent meeting at the House of Commons.

Thank goodness there are some thinking doctors around who have courageously treated me against opposition and I have made such a miraculous recovery albeit rather a lengthy one.

One day there will be many more people who are helped with their chronic illnesses when IDSA starts taking note of what our courageous LLMD’s are doing following ILADS Guidelines.
ME/CFS, Fibromyalgia, Polymyalgia Rheumatica, Arthritis, Bell’s Palsy, MS,MN, ALS, Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, Heart Block, Stroke, Psychiatric, gastric problems the list is endless. Not all suffering from Lyme Borrelia but how many are even properly assessed for it.

Monday, 25 January 2010
ME/CFS, FIBROMYALGIA, LYME DISEASE UPDATE

An update on my journey from ME/CFS, Fibromyalgia, Arthritis and Muscle weakness, Polymyalgia Rheumatica, to Lyme Disease and a cure for my illness which started in 2003.

I have details of my story on the right hand column on my blog and decided it was time to post an update.


I originally started Joanne's Cottage Garden as a record of my garden, I was able to enjoy gardening once again after an illness of 6 years. Those who followed that blog will notice my mention of my ongoing Lyme Disease symptoms, mainly in my legs.

A few months ago I started Looking at Lyme Disease blog in order to post information that interested me.


Over the last year my symptoms have continued to improve. My scariest symptom was swallowing problems which improved on Doxycycline but returned on Amoxycillin and improved again on a combination of Amoxycillin and Clarithromycin. I tried many times to reduce the Clarithromycin and always my arthritis and muscle weakness would deteriorate but by week three the worst symptom, the swallowing problems were the ones that would push me back into taking Clarithromycin again.


In November 2009 I stopped antibiotics. I still had some symptoms in knees, feet and facial tingling and twitching, I was never sure what was just muscle problems and what was peripheral neuropathies. My GP had discussed the Chief Medical Officers letter with me (details of this on Lyme Disease Action website). I had mistakenly thought she was going to refuse any further prescriptions and so decided to stop antibiotics whilst still having some in hand for emergency (Lyme patients would understand this, others not familiar with the problems getting treatment may not).


It is now week 13 since stopping antibiotics. So far my symptoms have deteriorated, weeks 4, 8 and 12 being the worst and symptoms picking up in between. Symptoms have appeared in a variable way in calf muscles, knees, wrists, feet, face and rt hip. So far I am delighted that my immune system seems to be coping and within a few days of any new symptom appearing, my immune system seems to get on top of it. This is what we are aiming for the immune system in control.


I did see my LLMD and he confirmed I still had Lyme like symptoms and at some point more or less definitely would need antibiotics again, but not just now. He advised me that many of the USA Lyme doctors would treat more aggressively and for longer. This I know, many would treat with cyst busting drugs, we discussed this and decided not to do so at present. The reason for my cycling symptoms is thought to be the dormant infection (which goes into cysts) replicating usually on a 4 weekly cycle.


So at present I am not as well as I was when last on antibiotics, fatigue being another of my problems but not the chronic fatigue that doesn't improve with rest. I am delighted not to be popping pills and delighted that generally my health is still improving so fingers crossed.


Discussing my situation with my GP she is as always very supportive and if the time comes when I need further treatment I am fortunate to have both my doctors there to support me.


I have to say that I have been very very lucky, so many Lyme Patients are far sicker than I ever have been even though there was a time three years ago when I did not want my life to go on because of the endless unremitting pain. It has been a very long and difficult recovery nearly three years of antibiotics, I suspect the 20 months of steroids given for the Polymyalgia Rheumatica Diagnosis would have compromised my immune system and made my recovery more protracted.

For now it is a joy to be pain free and no longer on any medication.

As of December2010

Sadly after a 5 month break off antibiotics my symptoms deteriorated sufficient for me to once again start antibiotics. Some of these symptoms are those described as Peripheral Neuropathies, facial, tingling and twitching, problems with vision, flashing lights and blurred vision, and tingling and numbness in legs and feet. Thankfully they responded well to antibiotics and whilst remaining on them I remain virtually 100% with only one or two remaining symptoms that have continued to improve month on month.

LEFT TO WALLOW WITH CHRONIC ILLNESS BY NHS

What we need to go through just to get treatment

by Ellie Marshall

I was a 42 year old healthy woman with an active full life with a wonderful husband David and two kids, Sarah and Jack until October 2002.

I was sitting having dinner, when suddenly I felt a stab/tingling-like jolt in the back of my neck, chest pains, my heart started racing. I physically felt very weak, my body felt very cold and I felt very dizzy.

I went outside and sat down trying to catch my breath. I could not get the symptoms to stop. It felt like my body was in a bubble. I felt pain from between the shoulder blades all the way up the spine to the neck.

I had to go to the bathroom, I had diarrhea.

I tried to settle myself down, so I went to bed. I was feeling so weak. I got into bed and my body started shaking (like I had the chills), I got a hot water bottle and tried to relax. I was scared. I did not know what was happening to me.

My body was tingling all over. I thought I was gonna die.

The next day I went to my doctor, (in Hexham) she put me on a heart monitor, and did a scan of the heart, everything was fine.

My doctor gave me beta blocks for the palpitations, then sent me home. But my symptoms did not go away so for the next few years it seemed like I was going to the doctor at least once a week.

My GP did sent me to different specialists according to my varying symptoms (i.e.,: heart, back, etc). My GP took loads of blood tests and they all came back normal. The GP could not figure out way I was feeling the way I did, it was a mystery to them.

At one point my GP thought I was depressed, so she put me on anti-depressants, saying they should help. They did not help, in fact, I think it made many of the symptoms worse, so I stopped taking them.

My whole body ached all the time. I remember going to the circus with my family (even though I really did not feel like going) and my arms hurt so much I could not even clap my hands, just raising my arms ached.

I really did not feel like doing anything much, I was tired all the time, and I was scared to travel far from the house. I was in so much pain. The only time I was out of pain was when I was sleeping, unless I was woken up by heart palpitations. I went to A and E so many times, but they could not find anything wrong.


Then on morning of 26th June 2006 while doing my ironing, I happened to have a TV show, “This Morning”, on in the background. I enjoy watching that show while getting things done around the house.

Anyway, this particular day, Dr Chris Steele was talking about Lyme Disease, and some of the more regular and debilitating symptoms included, chest pain, back pain, terrible headaches, pressure in the head, painful/stiff neck, blurry vision sometimes, seeing spots, buzzing/ringing in the ears, diarrhea, hiatus hernia, shortness of breath, rib soreness, unexplained chills, night sweats, heart palpitations, unexplained shaking, fatigue, numbness in body, tingling, dizziness, lightheadedness, mood swings, feeling like losing mind, stammering speech, difficulty in thinking sometimes, memory loss, loss sex drive, weight gain, pain migrates to different to parts of body, always feeling unwell in general.

Well, after the show I went on to the internet and got some more information about Lyme Disease.

My husband and I remembered a bite of some kind on my arm. I thought it was a mosquito bite, although now looking back at it, the bite ‘ached’ more than it itched. At the time it never dawned on me that it may be related to Lyme Disease as it was not something I even knew about.

So for the first time in 4 years I was hopeful about these findings – connecting some of the dots that none of the professionals seemed to be able to connect.

Maybe I finally figured out what is wrong with me. (I COULD FINALLY BE CURED).

Well, I went to see my GP yet again, but this time armed with the knowledge of Lyme Disease, but she refused to give me the test.

She told me that Lyme Disease is not in the UK, it is an American disease, even though I had the bite on the arm and most, if not all of the debilitating symptoms of Lyme Disease.

Instead she offered me some counseling and another prescription for antidepressants. At that moment, I knew this doctor was missing the boat. I had nothing whatsoever in my life to be upset about, nothing to be depressed about (other than all of these symptoms and the pain) and couldn’t imagine how she leapt to that conclusion.

My GP stressed to me I had every test, X-ray, MRI, CT scan and they all show normal, except the MRI scan of the brain it showed small vessel disease (white matter).

So maybe I should just get on with my life.

So I left without a blood test.

I was totally confused and I feel like someone burst the bubble of hope for me.

I never thought for a moment that a doctor would refuse a simple blood test even if there was a remote possibility of something like this.

How could that be?

I never went back to that GP. I knew she wasn't going to be able to help me.

Dr Chris Steele spoke about Lyme Disease in the UK, and here my own GP tells me different.

So how come I have the symptoms of what I think is Lyme Disease then.. I sometimes wonder if all the doctors I've seen knows what it is like to go through something like this. I am frozen in life not wondering what will happen next.

Will anyone ever find out what is wrong with me.

This all seems like a very bad nightmare.. The pain, the sweats, the crying without cease, the feeling so sick, so sick I could barely reply when spoken to, sudden fevers, the pains in my bones, feeling like I cannot go on anymore...

Everyone that sees me says I look fine from the outside. but I am in so much pain inside...

I changed GP in the bid to get an answer for my illness, but no such luck. I continued to go to specialist after specialist – 25-30 of them from 2002-2008 (heart, back and pain specialists, Rheumatologist, Neurosurgeon, Neurologist - you name it, I went. (I was lucky enough to have private insurance through my husband's employer).

Many doctors tried.

None had answers.

Some thought they had answers – one thought it was a trapped nerve at the top of my spine for which I had surgery.

Another told me to have a hysterectomy, so I did. I was desperate for some kind of relief.

Another specialist diagnosed costochondritis;

another specialist saw, through an MRI, that I had small vessel ischaemia, which I now know to be related to Lyme Disease.

I even had a Lumbar Puncture because of the headaches and found that the opening pressure was high and prescribed yet more medication which gave no relief.

As the years went on my headaches, chest pains , etc., got worse.

Then in 2008, 6 years after this all started, I asked a new Neurologist if he thinks it could be Lyme Disease.

I always kept the thought of Lyme Disease back in my mind. He did not think it was, but be said he would write to my GP and ask for a (NHS) Lyme test to be given.

I told him that in 2005 I asked for a Lyme test, but had been refused the test from my old GP.

While I was waiting for my Lyme test from my GP, I did more research on the internet and I found a Lyme Disease support group called EuroLyme.

I decided to post my story and my symptoms to the support group, and within a few hours, I received tons of e-mails back, all agreeing that I have the symptoms of Lyme Disease, many describing their own frustrations and experiences dealing with a medical community fundamentally ignorant of Lyme Disease and it's symptoms.

The support group recommended that I go see a Lyme Literate Specialist rather than relying on the NHS-approved blood test, as from their experience the NHS-approved blood test comes back negative 95% of the time.

It has something to do with the compounds they use for testing. It is not accurate enough.

Anyway, 21st Feb. 2008, I went to a Lyme Literate Specialist. He identified by microscopic examination of my blood, a borreliosis.

This result, combined with my symptoms was sufficient for him to diagnose Lyme Disease.

In the 6 years of suffering I finally felt heard.

Of course, I was furious with all the GP's, and specialist I went to, too.

He immediately prescribed an antibiotic while he continued to culture and examine my blood samples. He then prescribed a more specific antibiotic based upon his findings. He claimed that I should some improve in 6 - 8 weeks, although, because I have now had Lyme Disease for so many years now, it may take longer.
Just after that appointment, I received my appointment to see the local nurse for a Lyme test as requested by the Neurologist I saw.

I really wanted to take the NHS test, as I wanted to see what my results would be. More than anything, I was curious about the results, given that I had heard so many bad things about the NHS-authorized Lyme test. Even though I know all about the NHS test. I had the NHS blood test, and it went off to one of our local hospitals.

I then started my Lyme treatment from the Lyme Specialist, while I waited for my results from NHS.

Well, weeks went by and no results, so I contacted the hospital my blood went to, and the nice gentleman I spoke with said they were storing my blood, because they had no idea what they were testing for, as the nurse/GP did not state it on the forms, and they were waiting for my GP to contact them.

Well, I told the gentleman that it was my blood, I told him it needed to be tested for Lyme disease, he then told me that Lyme Disease testing is done at Southampton, and he would send my blood to Southampton for testing.

Again weeks went by, and no results. I called Southampton, and they told me they had no record of receiving my blood. This was unbelievable. I was angry.

It took years to finally get a NHS test and it all went wrong. I started thinking that maybe my GP really did not want me to be tested. So I gave up getting this blood test done. The GPs couldn’t even get this right.

I continued on my treatment from my Lyme specialist.

In June 2008, I found out there was a Lyme Specialist closer to my house, so I went to see him, and again he agreed with the other Lyme Specialist I saw.

With all the symptoms I was having was enough to diagnose me with Lyme disease. This specialist also did his own Lyme blood test, but it was sent to the States for testing.

A few weeks later, the results came back as full on Lyme Disease and loads of co-infections. My new Specialist wanted me to have IV treatment ASAP, so he would arrange for a Hickman Line and he would write my GP about the necessary medication.

The day I was supposed to get the Hickman Line put in, I received a letter through the post from my GP saying she did not agree with the IV treatment, and she would not authorize the medication.

I asked her why she would not, and she told me that I was never diagnosed with Lyme disease from NHS, and she did not want to put her License on the line.

I did try to explain to her that I tried to get a NHS test but the blood never went to the right hospital to be tested. She did not say much.

My Hickman Line had to be cancelled that day. However, a few weeks later I finally got the line, and my IV treatment started July last year, nearly 7 years after starting to get ill. I had the IV treatment for 12 weeks. I had a private nursing company come to my house everyday. My private insurance company covered the cost.

My Lyme Specialist kept my GP informed of my treatment but it seemed to me that she was not interested.

All I could think about was all of the people who did not have private insurance and who could not find someone who could actually help them rather than think they are crazy and prescribe anti-depressants.

After my IV treatment was finished, my Lyme Specialist prescribed 3 months of oral medications. They cost me £900 as my GP would not give them to me on NHS. This I did have to pay for, as my private insurance does not cover oral medications. I had to take the meds, as it was all part of my treatment.

I finished the meds just this past Jan, 2009.

My Lyme specialist was very happy with my progress, at this moment, so he me off all medications. He wanted to see how I would do without the medications. However, 3 months later, I started getting some of the symptoms came back, so my Specialist put be back on medication.

My specialist was not surprised with the symptoms coming back, as I had Lyme disease for a long time, it will take a while to clear.

He had told me previously that it was possible this would happen.

I have had Lyme Disease for so many years now and these borreliosis don’t die off easily. This could take some time.

In the meantime, I keep educating myself, by watching a movie called, “Under Your Skin”, a documentary on Lyme Disease. It was hard to watch, especially because people are dying from this completely treatable disease, but I was glad I did watch it. There are so many symptoms, so many people who have this, it is unreal. And yet, there is so very little education of the medical community on this disease.

In November 2008 my GP offered me to see an Infection control specialist in Newcastle General Hospital I went to see the Dr, (as I really wanted to make peace with my GP). The Dr wanted to do his own NHS Lyme Disease test. (my Lyme Specialist told me of the risks of taking the NHS test especially since I already started my treatment (IV and then oral medication, and I was on the oral medications at the time I was offered the NHS test by the Dr ).

The Lyme Disease results came back negative. (no surprise to that result) I did call a Dr at Southampton (the lab that does the NHS test), and asked he a few questions about the Lyme test, and she got really defensive about the questions I was asking her, she hung up the phone on me.

I then contacted the manufacture that supplies NHS with the Lyme Test, and they told me that I should have not been on treatment at the time of the test, and that the test has a lot of false negatives as well as a lot of false positives, and that Lyme Disease is also diagnosed by simptoms.

I brought this information to my GP and still he fused to accept I had Lyme Disease. (because of the NHS test). But the NHS result did not stop me from continuing my treatment with my Lyme Specialist, as I was finally feeling better.

My specialist also requested I have a Neurophysiological Assessment of Autonomic Function test, to see if I have any nerve damage.

Again, my Lyme Specialist wrote my GP to see if this test could be done on NHS if the PCT approves it, however, the PCT did not approve it. I had the test done anyway. Thankfully, my private insurance paid for it. I had the test done on 01/05/09 at Barts of London by a well respected Specialist Autonomic Neurophysiologist.

My results showed that I have nerve damage caused by the Lyme Disease (there is no treatment for this), chronic respiratory acidosis, supine hypotension, abnormal spontaneous brainstem activation, excess carbon dioxide do to the toxins of the lyme.

The specialist advised me to have supervised breathing exercises (Butyeko) to try and remove the excess carbon dioxide.

I wrote my GP asking to refer me to a Butyeko specialist and he refuses to write the referral, he told me that my Lyme specialist or my Neurophysiologist should refer me some place in the private sector. (even though I have given my GP all the test results)

My Lyme Specialist did some more blood testing to see how my immune system is holding up. The good news is that my immune system is fine. (this blood test was called CD57, and my blood was sent to Germany, again I had to pay for this test to be done)

How is it possible that these other countries – the U.S. and Germany have better and more accurate tests than the U.K.?

How come the medical community is in such denial here?

I keep asking myself these questions.

If I had the first blood test done over 6 years ago, I might have had to go through a few series of antibiotics.

What, would perhaps cost £100-£200.

Now, I can’t even begin to think of the thousands and thousands of pounds spent with continual mis-diagnoses.

My youngest child, Jack, only really knows me with Lyme. I find this so sad. My daughter remembers me without it. She wants that mum back. So do I. So does my husband.

But, I am lucky, I have a loving family who has stood behind me and by my side as I have had to navigate the mess of our medical community. I wish this on no one. Truly.

I am feeling loads better since treatment, I know I still have a way to go to be 100% but at least I have my Lyme Specialist, my hero.

I had no help from my GP/NHS, only road blocks.

Only excuses.

Only continued mess-ups.

Only denial.

I always knew this was not something in my head The doctors seem to be so unbelievably unsympathetic or uneducated about the subject.

I would still be suffering and searching for a diagnosis and a cure – probably having more unnecessary surgeries, taking more unnecessary drugs and most importantly, losing a quality of life I would never be able to get back.

Even though I was initially denied the medical tests that could have diagnosed Lyme Disease early and possibly cured it with a simple course of antibiotics, many years ago.

Now, if only doctors would begin to educate themselves, people would be able to get treated and cured a lot faster!

Lyme Disease is more common than doctors are willing to admit, for some reason.

I took my story/case to NHS complaints and lost.

Then I took it to the Ombudsman and lost...

I am still paying for my treatment.

Ellie
Hexham

The above was posted by : Ellie Marshall
Post date: Fri Oct 29, 2010 on Patient UK here

Sadly Ellie's experience is like so many more patients left to wallow with chronic ill health by our Health Authorities who, deny how complex this illness can be without even bothering to look at the huge body of research that shows what a complex relapsing illness Borrelia can be and so our doctors refuse treatment that helps so many of us.

A CALL FOR MORE AWARENESS

A FATHER-OF-TWO from East Yorkshire has told how he is still suffering a range of horrendous symptoms from Lyme Disease – 12 months after being bitten by a tick while walking in the Lake District.
Kevin Slater, 49, has spoken out in a bid to increase awareness of the illness, both amongst the general public and medical professionals in the UK.
“The effects of this disease are so horrendous that I made a promise to raise as much awareness as possible to try to prevent other people, especially children, from becoming infected,” he said, claiming there was a severe lack of knowledge and understanding within the NHS of the disease and appropriate methods of treatment
“It is crucially important that early treatment with aggressive antibiotics is given to stop the spread and eradicate the bacteria in the early stages.
“There should be public warnings about Lyme Disease in parks and open spaces so that people can take measures to protect themselves.
“We often see public notices in doctors surgeries warning about the dangers of disease such as malaria should we travel abroad. However, there is nothing mentioned about Lyme Disease, which exists in our own country.”
The Press reported last autumn how Mr Slater, a self-employed engineering consultant from near Pocklington, was bitten by a tick, an arachnid that cuts through flesh with barbed teeth before inserting a needle-like feeding tube, when he was walking in Grisedale Valley, Patterdale, during last August, probably while he was walking through a patch of bracken.
His illness developed into encephalitis -inflammation of the brain that can cause brain damage, blindness and even death.
He said today that over the past year, his symptoms had included fatigue, low grade fevers, swollen glands, stiff neck, myalgia, chest and abdominal pain, sleep disturbance, poor concentration, depression, back pain, blurred vision, tinnitus, headaches and dizziness.

To read the full article and comments click here

RAMBLERS BEWARE OF TICK BITES

To Watch this tick in motion click here which will take you to the video on Lyme Disease Action Facebook page.

WILDLIFE EXTRA NEWS

see the full article here

Watch out for ticks & Lyme disease now the warm weather is here

07/06/2010 12:13:44

Lyme disease on the increase in the UK

Soon summer will be in full swing and many of us will be spending more time wildlife watching, walking, climbing, cycling and camping. Few, however, will be aware of, or indeed prepared for, the hidden danger of tick bites and what can come with them - Lyme disease.
The highest risk period for tick bites is from May to October when the tick is most active and feeding.
Ticks - tiny (the size of a full stop on an A4 page) blood-sucking parasites - are present in woods, moors and parks throughout the UK; London parks are no exception, and tick numbers are on the rise due to changing habitats and climate. Lyme disease, caused by the bite of an infected tick, is also on the rise, and is found throughout North America, across the UK and Europe, and Scandinavia - so it's important for everyone, at home and on holiday, to know what to look out for and to seek early treatment if necessary.

What is Lyme disease and what are its symptoms? Lyme disease is caused by the bite of an infected tick and causes a wide range of symptoms which may include a circular red "bull's eye" rash, headaches, a stiff neck, extreme fatigue, muscle and joint pain, and disturbances of sight, hearing, digestive system and sleep.

My comments on the above article included :-

It took 5 doctors and 3 Rheumatologist 4 years to diagnose me. I was diagnosed with ME/CFS, Fibromyalgia, Polymyalgia Rheumatica, Arthritis, Musculo skeletal disease, and eventually Lyme Disease. A chance course of antibiotics significantly improved my symptoms and led my GP to suspect Lyme Disease. There had been other cases of Lyme disease at my surgery. I had presented at the surgery at times of bites, bulls eye rashes, summer flu and migrating arthralgias before chronic illness and disability set in all had been documented on my records.