What is Lyme Disease?

 
Lyme Disease is an infection caused by a bacteria that infects humans from the bite of ticks which are infected with the bacteria.  Lyme disease is called "The Great Imitator" because it can imitate many other diseases such as MS, Parkinson's Disease, Motor Neurone Disease (ALS), Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Fibromyalgia, Guillain-Barre Syndrome, Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis, Lupus, Alzheimer’s Disease etc.  Lyme Disease can affect any organ in the body including muscles & joints, the heart, gastro-intestinal system & neurological system (including the brain).

As well as giving people Lyme Disease, the ticks often also transmit other diseases (co-infections) such as  Babesiosis, Bartonella, Ehrlichiosis, Tularemia, Rikettsia & Mycoplasma (to name a few).  
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(This definition and list of symptoms comes from the Lyme Disease Association of Australia)

What are the symptoms of Lyme Disease?

Lyme Disease is generally categorized into:
  1. early Lyme Disease &
  2. late (or Chronic) Lyme Disease

Early Localised Lyme Disease Symptoms:
  • flu like symptoms such as headache, fever, muscle soreness & unexplained fatigue.
  • Fewer than 50% of  people with Lyme Disease develop the “bulls-eye” (or erthema migrans) rash a few days or even a few weeks after their tick bite (if they remember the bite - only 30% of people with Lyme Disease remember being bitten by a tick)


Late (Chronic) Lyme Disease Symptoms (no one will have every symptom)

Head, Face, Neck
  • Unexplained hair loss
  • Headache, mild or severe, Seizures
  • Pressure in head, white matter lesions in brain (MRI)
  • Facial paralysis (Bell’s Palsy, Homer’s syndrome)
  • Tingling of nose, (tip of) tongue, cheek or facial flushing
  • Stiff or painful neck
  • Twitching of facial or other muscles
  • Jaw pain or stiffness
  • Dental problems (unexplained)
  • Sore throat, clearing throat a lot, phlegm ( flem ), hoarseness, runny nose
  • Difficulty swallowing or feeling of food stuck in throat
  • Changes to skin - bumpy rash on neck, chest and back
    • 

Eyes/Vision

  • Double or blurry vision
  • Increased floating spots
  • Pain in eyes, or swelling around eyes
  • Oversensitivity to light
  • Flashing lights/Peripheral waves/phantom images in corner of eyes
    • 

Ears/Hearing

  • Decreased hearing in one or both ears, plugged ears
  • Buzzing in ears
  • Pain in ears, oversensitivity to sounds
  • Ringing in one or both ears
    • 

Digestive and Excretory Systems

  • Diarrhea
  • Constipation
  • Irritable bladder (trouble starting, stopping) or Interstitial cystitis
  • Upset stomach (nausea or pain) or GERD (gastroesophageal reflux disease)
  • swollen or distended abdomen
    • 

Musculoskeletal System

  • Bone pain, joint pain or swelling, carpal tunnel syndrome
  • Stiffness of joints, back, neck, tennis elbow
  • Muscle pain or cramps (Fibromyalgia) 
    • 

Respiratory and Circulatory Systems

  • Shortness of breath, can’t get full/satisfying breath, cough
  • Chest pain or rib soreness
  • Night sweats or unexplained chills
  • Heart palpitations or extra beats
  • Endocarditis, Heart blockage
    • 

Neurologic System

  • Tremors or unexplained shaking
  • Burning or stabbing sensations in the body
  • Fatigue, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, weakness, peripheral neuropathy or partial paralysis
  • Pressure in the head
  • Numbness in body, tingling, pinpricks
  • Poor balance, dizziness, difficulty walking
  • Increased motion sickness
  • Lightheadedness, wooziness
    • 

Psychological well-being

  • Mood swings, irritability, bi-polar disorder
  • Unusual depression
  • Disorientation (getting or feeling lost)
  • Feeling as if you are losing your mind
  • Over-emotional reactions, crying easily
  • Too much sleep, or insomnia
  • Difficulty falling or staying asleep
  • Narcolepsy, sleep apnea
  • Panic attacks, anxiety
    • 

Mental Capability

  • Memory loss (short or long term)
  • Confusion, difficulty in thinking
  • Difficulty with concentration or reading
  • Going to the wrong place
  • Speech difficulty (slurred or slow)
  • Stammering speech
  • Forgetting how to perform simple tasks
    • 

Reproduction and Sexuality

  • Loss of sex drive
  • Sexual dysfunction
  • Unexplained menstrual pain, irregularity
  • Unexplained breast pain, discharge
  • Testicular or pelvic pain
  • Miscarriage or stillborn pregnancies
    • 

General Well-being

  • Phantom smells
  • Unexplained weight gain, loss
  • Extreme fatigue
  • Swollen glands/lymph nodes
  • Unexplained fevers (high or low grade)
  • Continual infections (sinus, kidney, eye, etc.)
  • Symptoms seem to change, come and go
  • Pain migrates (moves) to different body parts
  • Early on, experienced a “flu-like” illness, after which you have not since felt well.
  • Low body temperature
  • Allergies/Chemical sensitivities
  • Increased effect from alcohol and possible worse hangover
  • feelings of skin "crawling"
  • Skin irritations and unexplained itching and scratching

For More information go to www.lymedisease.org.au

Thank you to the Canadian Lyme Disease Foundation (www.canlyme.com)  for their list of symptoms and the Lyme Diseaes Association of Australia (www.lymedisease.org.au) for their definition of Lyme Disease.