“AHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

Well, perhaps there is no reason to get that excited but let me tell you the tale of my horrific experience (supposedly) by the hands of a tick.

Two weeks ago I was heading home after work and decided to skip a previously planned rendezvous due to an emerging sledgehammer of a headache. As a few more days went by the headache got worse, the fever increased, I would absolutely be soaked in sweat while sleeping due to chills, and finally my neck began to become stiff. The stiff neck was the beginning sign that this was more than the flu.

Six days later I was in the ER getting a spinal tab for possible viral meningitis. Not ok. My fever was topping 105 (cooked liver anyone?) After a round of morphine, anti-biotic and 24 hours I was feeling better, two days after that I was back on the street and handed two containers of anti-biotic, Amoxicillin and Doxycyclin. Blood tests were in the works.

In the meantime I find out that another friend has also gone to the ER with the same symptoms, eerie!

Upon a follow up to my principal physician I find that my test results never came in but that according to my symptoms I was “very sick” and perhaps close to death. Lyme’s disease is, of course, the classic tick borne illness but apparently my symptoms were more severe indicating I had something else. Lyme’s tends to just make the victim tired, while I was much more in the trenches. With Lymes you will get a rash resembling a bull’s-eye where you were bitten, I did not have this reaction. Although a large number of people who get tick bites never remember being bitten. In fact there are ticks the size of the period on the end of this paragraph that can get you and put you under.

I also just learned of another friend that contracted Lyme’s just a minute ago. I don’t know the statistics of tick borne disease and due to my still undetermined illness I suspect it will be hard to gain an accurate stat but what I can tell you is that they are out there and if you think you’ve been bitten it might be wise to get an appointment and snag some pills. Or if you’ve been out in the woods and seem to have contracted the flu for a bit too long you need to get checked out.

The above also begs two questions.

Question one: Why can’t our bazzillion dollar heath system get my damn test results to the right place with in two weeks? I mean, come on! Look, I’m glad I’m cured but I’d like to know what the hell almost killed me!

Question two: Has global warming brought more ticks and diseases to our area?

Talk amongst yourselves…………