Bugs, Bugs and More Bugs!

Currently, I am struggling with reminding myself not every pain, ache or fever my children come home with is a result of the haunting bacteria, Lyme disease.  This past week of runny burning eyes, aches in our bodies and joints, headaches, fatigue (like mono), and fevers which plagued our family, reminded me that we can actually get sick from other bugs!  Last night, as my husband and I cooled our 104.4 fever ridden daughter, I worried about the infection known as anaplasmosis, which she could have gotten from a deer tick.  Of course, I knew nothing about this disease except what the local news put up about it this past month, and so I worried. Especially, because our little one's fever was so sudden and eventually a rash started over her arms and chest.  Reassuring our daughter she was not going to 'die' as she kept asking, we all calmed down.

Looking back over the years, I can say it is definitely scary to see my active child go into such a lethargic, withdrawn state and see them suffer so quickly from something invisible to the eye, doctors, and even those unreliable tests. Non, of my infected children ever had the EM rash, but all of them presented with a few or all of the following known acute Lyme disease symptoms, such as; headaches, mild aches and pains, low grade fever (rarely over 101 degrees F), and mild flu-like symptoms.  As you can see, that sounds like every flu our children have ever had!  Well, I still keep a notebook close at hand and make sure to note strange flu's that are out of season, and any other possible symptoms - just in case. Tonight, we enjoyed grilling on Nana and Pop's deck, being bit by mosquitoes, watching the bugs crawl over the deck, feeling the warm air hold us, and walking back home through the woods. This is living.