It’s that time again! Ticks...bloodsucking, disease-spreading parasites are on their way. The weather is warming up in New England and it’s time to start preventative protocols to protect yourself and your family against these parasites and the diseases that come with them.
Blacklegged ticks, or deer ticks are the primary carriers of the Borrelia bacteria. They also transmit other disease-causing bacteria, viruses, and parasites. These are known as co-infections. Which is why it can be hard sometimes to treat Lyme disease. Recent studies have also shown that Lyme disease can be spread through fleas, mosquitoes, biting flies and in some cases human contact; such as sexual contact and through breast milk.
Lyme disease, is an infectious disease caused by bacteria of the Borrelia type which is traditionally spread by ticks. Borrelia burgdorferi, is a type of corkscrew shaped bacteria known as a spirochete(pronounced spiro’keet). The lyme spirochete resembles the agent of syphilis. Lyme Borreliosis is very adaptable, and it consumes collagen tissue in the joints, the aqueous humor of the eyes, spinal column, brain, bladder and heart. They get all their nutrients and food from their host. Because of its shape it can travel more rapidly through tissue than blood. Traveling through blood vessel walls and through connective tissue very quickly. For this reason they invade tissue, replicate and destroy host cells by deeply embedding themselves inside tendons, muscles, heart, including the brain.
Other than not wanting those creepy crawly little arachnids crawling all over us and feasting on us or our family. We have good reasons to avoid getting bitten by ticks.
Lyme disease has become an epidemic, with the CDC reporting over 300,000 new cases diagnosed each year in the United States. This makes Lyme disease almost twice as common as breast cancer and six times more common than HIV/AIDS.
Most people with Lyme who are treated right away have a good prognosis. The harder it becomes to treat Lyme the longer it takes to get an official diagnosis. Which is why chronic Lyme disease can be so difficult to treat. Lyme is commonly treated with antibiotics, herbs, homeopathy, acupuncture and other modalities.
Lyme is divided into three categories: acute, early disseminated, and late disseminated. The progression of the disease varies by individual, and not all people go through each stage.
In the early stage you will often see a bullseye rash, erythema migraines, headaches, low grade fever, a stiff neck, muscle aches, and swollen lymph nodes.
In the early disseminated stage you might see things like Bells Palsy, traveling joint pain, numbness and tingling sensations.
In the Late disseminated stage you might see tissue damage, brain fog and confusion, severe fatigue, optic and audio neuritis, anxiety, depression.
Acute Lyme Disease is an infection of less than a year. Chronic Lyme Disease is untreated or under-treated Lyme disease, which can cause some people to develop symptoms that are hard to resolved. Early disseminated Lyme disease occurs when it is diagnosed and treated in the early stages. Late disseminated Lyme disease can occur months to years after the infection.
It is important to remember that the spirochete can disseminate throughout the body incredibly quickly. It can spread to the brain and central nervous system within 72 hours or even before the rash appears. Often called the “great Imposter” because it manifests such a broad range of symptoms that it is often misdiagnosed for other diseases.
Lyme testing
Lyme disease is a clinical diagnosis; so your medical history, symptoms and exposure to ticks are important in helping diagnose Lyme disease.
Typical diagnostic tests for Lyme are insensitive, a negative test result does not mean that you do not have Lyme disease. Lyme disease is known to inhibit the immune system and around 20-30% of patients have false negative antibody tests.
The most common test used is the Two-Tier test. It measures the patient’s antibody response to the infection, not the infection itself. The two most used antibody tests are the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay also known as ELISA test and the Western Blot.
It has been found that during the first 4 to 6 weeks of the Lyme infection, these tests are unreliable because most people may not have developed the antibody response that the test measures. Later in the progression of the illness, the two-tiered test is highly insensitive which means it misses roughly half of those who have Lyme disease.
The labs that perform the Western blot test use electricity to separate proteins called antigens into bands. The readout from the western blot looks like a barcode. The lab then compares the pattern by running the test with your blood to a template pattern representing known cases of Lyme disease. If the blot is in the right place with the right number of bands it is considered positive for Lyme.
The CDC requires 5 out of 10 bands to prove a positive test result. It is important to note that some physicians may decide you have Lyme disease if some of the bands are more significant than others regardless of whether the blot meets the CDC’s minimum of 5 required bands. And different laboratories will use different methods and criteria for interpreting the test.
Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test uses antigen detection and culture testing to detect the bacteria, not just your immune response to it. PCR multiplies a key portion of DNA from the Lyme bacteria so that it can be detected.
Although this test can by highly accurate when Lyme DNA is detected, it produces many false negatives. Since Lyme bacteria are sparse they may not be in the sample tested causing the false negative.
Antigen detection tests look for a unique Lyme protein in fluid. Sometimes people whose indirect tests are negative can be found positive on this test.
The culture lab test takes a sample of blood or other fluid from the patient and attempts to grow Lyme spirochetes in a special medium.
Thermography to help with Lyme Disease:
Limitations of current medical diagnostic methods; an MRI offers limited details; blood tests offer non-functional diagnostics; CAT scan’s are not comprehensive enough. Some of these tests require multiple invasive testing, they offer only a static view of one part of the body, and it can be expensive and time consuming.
Whole-body functional thermography gets an overall view of the dysfunction in the body, it helps pinpoint disorders, helps in early detection of the disease and root cause of the disease.
Thermography is non-invasive, dynamic(offering a whole-body view), helps save time and money by intelligently directing specific follow up tests and therapies.
70% of Thermoregulation of the skin is modulated by the local underlying organs and tissues.
In a patient with Lyme disease complains of chronic headaches you can see a red streak that extends up and down the neck over the jugular vein. Thermography of patients with no borreliosis usually shows no red streaking in the neck over the jugular vein.
We offer Thermography screenings at our office in Windham, and offer clinics in Conway, NH at T. Murray Wellness Center, in Falmouth at Women's Willow Health, in Kennebunk at Aim to Be Well, and in Limerick, ME at Greenwood Herbals.
Herbalism for Lyme Disease:
Due to the complexity of treating Lyme disease holistically and allopathically it is recommended that you consult with a trained herbalist or holistic practitioner. It is important to match the right herb and group of herbs in order to successfully treat lyme disease. Because each case is different and herbs can interact with current prescription drug use please consult your local herbalist. During the healing process a large die-off of the bacterial organisms during treatment occurs. When the spirochetes die off their bodies fragment and parts associated with toxins cause temporary worsening of the symptoms.
The following herbs are commonly used in the treatment of Lyme disease:
Teasel, Ashwagandha, Eleuthero, Biden, Astragalus, Cordiceps, Japanese Knotweed, Cat’s Claw, Devil’s claw, Skull Cap, and more...
Many herbalists will also incorporate certain flower essences to help successfully treat Lyme disease.
A good practitioner will also recommend a good protocol that includes Grapefruit seed extract, turmeric, Vitamin D3, Collagen support, Vitamin C, Zinc Picolinate with copper, DHEA ALA, Selenium, Vitamin B Complex, Vitamin E, probiotics(5+billion), diet & lifestyle changes, herbs that treat Lyme and the co-infections, Supplements, and a number of other things to help improve your health and wellness.
What is homeopathy?
Homeopathy is based on the idea that “likes cure likes”. Homeopathy, or Homeopathic Medicine, is the practice of medicine that embraces a holistic, natural approach to the treatment of the sick and diseased. Homeopathy treats the person as a whole rather than focusing on just the symptoms or the disease.
When you first get a tick bite carefully remove the tick with a tick remover or tweezers. Save the tick by placing it in a covered jar with either 180 proof vodka or grain alcohol. Place a label on it, and include the date, who it was found on and where it was found on the body.
Then administer Ledum palustre 200c. Several homeopaths have different protocols regarding how frequently you should administer the remedy after the bite. But a good rule of thumb would be to administer the remedy after the bite, then once a day for 3 days. If the symptoms return repeat the remedy.
Other remedies related to Lyme disease are Aurum arsenicum, Borrellia, or the Lyme Nosode.
A nosode is prepared from a viral or bacterial culture. Nosodes are an effective alternative to toxic conventional medicines both for the prevention and treatment of illnesses without side effects.
If a patient is suffering from chronic Lyme it is recommended they see an experienced homeopath so the homeopath can determine the best remedy for that patient.
Prevention:
There are certain things you can do to decrease your chances of getting Lyme disease. Being outside, enjoying hikes in the woods, walks in the neighborhood, have incredible health benefits. Even if you do not spend a lot of time outside anyone can easily pick up a tick in their travels. Especially if you have pets and children in your home.
• Wear Dark clothes- Ticks are usually attracted to lighter attire.
• Lint brush - Using a lint brush when you return from being outdoors and in areas where ticks hide is a good way to catch ticks that have clinged on to your clothes.
• Thrown clothes in Dryer - Another way to clear your clothes of ticks is throwing your clothes in the dryer on high heat for about 10 minutes.
• Natural Herbal Sprays - You can buy natural herbal sprays or make your own. There are certain herbs that do a great job repelling ticks, fleas, mosquitoes, gnats etc. Ticks don’t like things like vinegar, so using white vinegar or apple cider vinegar in your homemade sprays can add protection.
• Kids & Pets - Make sure you check your children and pets for pests. Using the steps above will help protect your children and your pets.
• Homeopathic Remedies - Homeopathic remedies can be used as a profilaxis when preventing Lyme disease. They can also be used to treat chronic Lyme disease.
Interestingly a lot of people recommend applying Essential Oils to the tick or burning the tick to remove the tick. However, we do not recommend doing this. First, Essential Oils are incredibly strong and concentrated Oils and should only be applied topically using a carrier oil. Coconut, Almond, Jojoba oils are all good examples of a carrier oil used to dilute Essential Oils that are used topically. Second, when we apply Essentail Oils, try burning the tick or use any other method to try and get the tick to come out on it’s own we risk causing the tick to regurgitate or vomit on it’s exit. This increases the risk of getting pathogens and diseases from the tick. The best way to remove a tick is using tweezers or a tool designed to remove ticks.
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Note: Essential oils should not be used on cats. Cats cannot metabolize essential oils and it can be highly toxic to their liver and cause burns to their respiratory system. Hydrosols are a safer option to use around cats if you want to make a homemade bug repellent for your cat.
Rolling Paws Botanicals & Holistic Wellness offers a unique perspective and inclusive mind-body services. You will always be heard at Rolling Paws Botanicals and your plan of care will reflect your best health and healing interests.
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