Madison Area Lyme Support Group

Today I want to talk with you about something that is often misunderstood and more common than most people realize: tick-borne illnesses.

When most people hear about tick-borne diseases, the first thing that comes to mind is Lyme disease—and usually only in the context of the northeastern United States. Maybe you’ve even heard about the “classic bullseye rash” that’s supposed to make Lyme easy to recognize. But the truth is much more complex—and more concerning.

Tick-Borne Illnesses Are Everywhere

One of the biggest misconceptions is that tick-borne diseases are only a problem in New England or a handful of rural areas. The reality is: ticks are found in every state in the U.S. They thrive in woodlands, grassy fields, parks, and even suburban backyards.

As our climate changes and animal populations shift, ticks are spreading into areas where they weren’t as common before. That means people all across the country—from the Pacific Northwest, to the Midwest, to the Southeast, and yes, the Southwest—are at risk of exposure.

More Than Just Lyme Disease

Yes, Lyme disease is the most well-known tick-borne illness. But ticks can and do carry and transmit many other infections, including:

• Babesiosis

• Anaplasmosis

• Ehrlichiosis

• Rocky Mountain spotted fever

• Bartonella

• And other infections

Each of these can cause significant health problems, and in many cases, people may not even realize that a tick bite was the original cause of their symptoms.

The Bullseye Rash Myth

Let’s talk about the rash. We’ve all heard about the “classic bullseye” rash that’s associated with Lyme disease. But here’s what most people don’t know:

• The majority of patients never develop a bullseye rash.

• Some might get a rash that looks nothing like the pictures online.

• Others may not have any noticeable skin reaction at all.

That means you can still have a tick-borne illness even if you’ve never seen a rash.  (See link for article)

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**Comment**

Good article except for the climate change bit.  I won’t pontificate but if you are unfamiliar with this, please read:

• https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2018/11/07/ticks-on-the-move-due-to-migrating-birds-and-photoperiod-not-climate-change/
• https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2018/08/13/study-shows-lyme-not-propelled-by-climate-change/
• https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2019/06/17/ontario-public-health-officials-called-out-on-shoddy-biased-research-utilizing-an-erroneous-climate-change-model-to-program-a-futuristic-tick-problem/
• https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2023/07/26/how-the-media-is-using-corrupt-climate-change-data-as-the-next-pandemic-like-story-that-they-will-beat-to-death/
• https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2024/03/07/in-the-eye-of-the-climate-change-storm-data-causes-scientist-to-do-about-face/
• https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2023/10/20/new-papers-completely-undermine-the-so-called-settled-science-on-manmade-global-warming/
• https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2023/11/09/science-tribalism-has-led-to-mass-climate-censorship-big-business/
• https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2022/10/14/more-experts-climate-change-is-a-lie-a-scam-green-energy-policies-have-made-the-climate-worse/