Here is a photo of a tick bite from a blacklegged tick or also known as a deer tick.
That is the tick that causes Lyme disease. FYI, Lyme disease is an infection spread through the bite of a deer tick that is infected with a bacterium called Borellelia burgdoferi (who really cares about the name!). Those cruddy ticks get it from biting another infected animal like a deer, bear, mouse, other mammals, and even a bird. (So how did those critters get it?)
Ticks look for their hosts from the tips of grasses and shrubs but not from trees. They get on you when you brush against vegetation. Also, they only crawl. They can’t jump or fly.
Ticks feed on your blood. They stick their mouths (only their mouths) into your or another host’s skin and feed on the host’s blood. These miserable little buggers don’t eat fast, either. It might take several days of feeding on you to get a whole meal. And as they get your blood, they get bigger!
So, compare the photo above to my bite. They look kind of alike. But I’m not sold on it.
Mary Huse says
November 3, 2018 at 5:55 pmA simple blood test will show if you have exposure to Lyme Disease. Two rounds of antibiotics, 2 different kinds, will knock out the infection if it hasn’t been with you for a long time, although exposure will continue to show up in testing.. Symptoms are much like what you’ve been experiencing. The area where my cottage is was identified as “ground zero” for Lyme Disease when it first appeared here. The deer tick is no larger than a poppy seed and very hard to notice before the bite. I
If you learn you are actively infected, find a doc who is well skilled in the latest treatments. Your local power company probably could recommend someone because linemen are often in areas known to harbor ticks. Complete treatment can take several months.
Lynn Sholes says
November 11, 2018 at 2:55 pmThanks, Mary. I am having bloodwork drawn this Wed. for that.