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Kickin' Chicken

Kick Shot Aficionado
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Let me start by saying that I'm not real keen on posting my personal biz as it relates to such matters, however, as the old saying goes, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

Please consider this a worthwhile headsup.

Tomorrow, I'll be having to get injections in my eyes to combat an inflammatory process (autoimmune) that I've been dealing with since acquiring a very bad case of Lyme disease over 15 years ago.

I had to get this procedure done once before in 2006 and while the med did its job, it turned into a mess with me having an allergic reaction which sent me to the hospital. This time they will be using a different medicine.

It is neither better or worse than a stick in the eye. It's exactly the same. :eek:

If it were a ride at Disneyworld, there'd finally be a short line - I guarantee it.

I've been trying to play around a black spot in the central vision of my good eye which I've actually managed to do fairly well. My other eye was messed up bad by this problem the first time around and so it's pretty much just along for the ride now at 20/90 with the center all blurred.

The reason I am bringing this up here, obviously, is for huge sympathy and money donations. :grin-square:

Actually, the real reason for posting about this is because the problems associated with this illness can, and oftentimes are, very severe. And it's entirely preventible.

The incidence of Lyme disease is endemic here in New England, and NY, NJ, Maryland, all down through the other Atlantic seaboard states, TX, OK, LA, AR, CA (especially northern Cal), the midwest, and MI (especially the upper penninsula). And, in less concentrations, it has and does occur in all of the rest of the lower 48. Add Canada, Mexico, and most countries in Europe and Asia have it, as well. Russia is particularly bad.

Be advised that the ticks that cause Lyme disease are on the move at any time of the year as long as the temperature is 32 degrees F or above. And at certain stages in their life-cycle, they can be as small as the period at the end of this sentence.

I won't start a novella but here's some important things to consider ( copied from lymedisease.org ):

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Reduce Your Chances Of A Tick Bite

Avoid tick-infested areas, such as leaf litter under trees. Avoid brushing against long grasses and brush on edges of paths. Don’t sit on stumps or fallen logs.

Wear light-colored long pants and long sleeves so you can easily see any ticks.

Tuck shirt into pants and tuck pants into socks.

Use DEET on skin and treat clothing with spray containing permethrin.

Do a thorough tick check upon returning inside and for several days following exposure.

Check bedding for several days following exposure for ticks that drop off.

Ticks, especially nymphal ticks, are tiny. Find and remove them before they bite.

What To Do If You Are Bitten

Use fine-point tweezers or a special tick-removing tool. Grasp the tick as close to the skin as possible. If you don’t have tweezers, protect your fingers with a tissue.

Pull the tick straight out with steady, even pressure. Click here to view a Tick's Mouth and why it is so important to pull out the tick correctly.

Avoid squeezing the tick, breaking it, or allowing any blood to remain on your skin.

Place the tick in a small plastic bag or vial with blades of grass, leaf, or moist (not wet) piece of tissue.

Label the bag with your name, date, site of bite and how long tick was attached.

Have the tick identified and tested by a lab, health department or veterinarian.

Wash your hands, disinfect the tweezers and bite site.

Educate yourself about tick-borne diseases and consult a doctor to see if treatment is warranted.

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If anyone has a question to do with Lyme disease, feel free to ask. Since getting Lyme disease, I've immersed myself in learning about it and have given talks on the subject at hospitals, chambers of commerce events and even garden clubs.

Stay the heck out of the high brush if possible. Hunters and hikers, take all of the precautions you can. You can still enjoy the outdoors and be safe while doing so.

Starting tomorrow, I need the 7 ball. :cool:

best,
brian kc
 
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Let me start by saying that I'm not real keen on posting my personal biz as it relates to such matters, however, as the old saying goes, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

best,
brian kc

Thanks much, and i wish you full recovery, then i will take the 7!!
 
Brian:

Thank you for posting this. I have a good friend, like you, that has the Tertiary phase of Lyme disease (it wasn't diagnosed until he'd had it for over a decade). It's with him for the rest of his life, causing complications with his eyes, back, joints, muscles, liver, kidneys, and even brain function.

And, all of my dogs have had the physical symptoms of Lyme disease -- crippled where they couldn't walk, needing shots of Doxycycline to combat the infection. They caught the disease, btw, even after they'd been treated with Frontline or Advantix -- which shows these products are not 100% effective. Two of my dogs are also positive for anaplasmosis -- another tick-borne disease that can be lethal if the dog's (or human's) immune system doesn't kick-in in time.

You're right, in that all of these tick-borne diseases -- Lyme, Ehrlichiosis, Anaplasmosis, and EEE -- are endemic here in the northeast. In fact, Lyme was first discovered (and named after the town) of Lyme, CT.

Pool-related, if you realize that you're suddenly having eye-focus problems, blurred vision, excessive "blank spots" in your field of vision, etc. -- you might want to have your doctor take a blood sample and check you for Lyme disease or Ehrlichiosis.

Every year when I go for my physical, although I ask for it as standard part of my interview with my physician, they test me for Lyme and the other tick-borne diseases. I've been very lucky so far.

-Sean
 
Kickin', Thanks for all this good information. Too bad you had to learn it the hard way. I feel for you buddy.

I've been asthmatic all my adult life, with severe allergies to things like the secretions from cats. I can be sitting on a chair (or couch) where a cat was earlier and within minutes my breathing becomes labored. I must get outside quickly and often need to use an inhaler to get my breath back. I had a full fledged asthma attack in 1994 that very nearly killed me. I was minutes from death. :sorry:
 
all my wishes , Brian . I've sent you a PM with uveitis-related contacts.

erriep , fighting for 12 years against an uveitis too.
 
I wish you the best of luck with your treatments. My nephew has suffered from Lyme's Disease for years. Any illness could be life threatening for him and very expensive to treat with his weakened immune system. He's a big boy. An All American college wrestler and a little tick took him down.

My son was bitten by two ticks this summer. We got him on an antibiotic immediately after seeing the trademark halo around each bite sight. He still suffered for a couple of months with unexplained sicknesses and fevers. I don't know if they were related, but he was pretty beat up.

With this new rise in Lyme's disease, why hasn't any attention been given to its increase in occurences? We spray for mosquitos, but is there something we can do about ticks? I understand the widespread nature and logistics involved, but do we have to have millions get sick before it becomes worth our time to do something about it? anim_04.gif

Best,
Mike
 
That is horrible. I have a great friend of mine who also got Lyme disease. She is only 30 years young and has had both hips replaced with her knees next to be replaced. She has chronic back issues and just received some really bad news. Although she has not told me how bad it is, she did tell me her spine is very bad shape and not looking good. This is a very serious disease from such a little insect with life long effects. I learned this when I grew up in Maryland. I wish you the best and I hope your eye situation gets better. Sorry you have to go through this.
 
Hang in there, Brian. Keep a good thought.
We have ticks in the Ozarks, but they don't seem to be the problem here as they are up in your part of the country.
The biggest problem here is cat thieves. They steal baby cats and sell them overseas to cat jugglers. Cat juggling, as you know, is illegal here in the States. :smile:
 
I hope all goes well at the doctors and you have a speedy and complete recovery. Johnnyt
 
I'm sincerely sorry to hear of your unfortunate situation & I wish you all the best.

I also thank you for your unselfish efforts to help others with this post as well as your other speaking engagements.

Good Luck with the treatment. A little Good Luck never hurts but you'll still be in my prayers as well.

Best Regards,
 
Thank you for bringing this to our attention, I hope you do well with your eye problems. Happy holidays to you and your family
 
I would have given you the 7 anyway :wink: I am terribly sorry that you are going through this. I'm glad we got to shoot some recently. I hope you get through it with as little suffering as possible. If there is anything I can do or help you with, please ask.
Brian
 
Hope all goes well for you, Brian.

If it does, you can change your screen-name from Kickin' Chicken to Lickin' Tickin'. :thumbup:

Seriously though, best of luck to you!!!

Maniac
 
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