Lyme Time with Paula Jackson Jones

Author:  Paula Jackson Jones Orig Published:  07/28/2017 This is the number one question that I get on a regular basis, via phone call, email and in person. People who have had a tick encounter struggle to find the next step.  It’s easy to become overwhelmed and disoriented by all the information you find on the internet, which is why when people reach out to me, I give them options.   Bringing down the fear factor is my main concern and giving people options gives them back control over their own health concerns, a potentially unnerving situation. The most common advice I give: 1) If you still have the tick, get it tested! Know what you’ve been exposed to. Without symptoms, if you test too soon and your body has not begun to produce antibodies, testing can be unreliable, give a false negative. And many providers will not treat with antibiotics without symptoms. 2) While you wait, boost your immune system. There are lots of homeopathic remedies that are safe and

                                           Photo Credit: Insect Shield's Lifestyle Collection                                 offers a range of every day basics including shirts, pants, hats,                                  and accessories for men, women (including maternity), and kids. Author:  Paula Jackson Jones Orig Published: 07/21/2017 With the rising level of tick infestation here in Maine and current reminders for prevention practices, wouldn’t it make sense to have a product that is safe and effective against the onslaught of ticks so small we can’t even see them and friendly for the environment we live in? The good news is that we do and it is available in many forms for both people and pets! Insect Shield (IS): In 1996, Insect Shield researchers began development of the process of bonding a proprietary repellent to consumer apparel which they had completed by 2001 with the development, manufacture and distribution of Insect Shield Insect Repel

Author:  Paula Jackson Jones Published:  07/15/2017 “But I never saw a tick” and “I never got a bullseye rash” are two very common comments I get when I talk to people who tested positive for a tick-borne disease. So why is that? The most simple and straight forward answer would be that most tick-borne diseases are transmitted by ticks in the nymph stage, which are no larger than a poppy seed and not all tick-borne diseases produce the bullseye rash, in fact most do not. Photo: Tick Encounter Resource Center My 2009 tick bite looked like someone took a paintbrush and painted the side of my torso. Nothing even remotely close to a bullseye! The Maine CDC reports that over 50% of all ticks in Maine carry a tick-borne disease and only 50% of positive reported cases recall a rash. Should you find and remove a tick from your body, you cannot tell simply by looking at that tick what it is carrying.  You can identify the species but there are no indicators wh

Author:  Paula Jackson Jones Published:  07/13/2017 about my 04/27/2014 life changing event "Given your latest test results and how you are feeling, I would say that you've gone into remission" Those were the words I heard my Lyme literate provider speak to me through the phone. I think I was in as much shock as I was the day I had received my diagnosed ~ but this felt so much better. And the first thing I did as soon as I hung up? I registered for the Jimmy The Greek 5K Walk/Run for Lyme Disease. I told my husband as soon as he got home and I think he thought I was nuts because I had less than 3 weeks until the event and I had never ever trained for a 5K before or any K event.  Ok, I'll admit, I'm not a very athletic person, not even before I got sick.   But something told me that I had to do this. That small inner voice that vaguely reminded me of the voice I heard the night I laid on the bathroom floor, in the midst of treatment, conv

(Photo credit:  Beth Birmingham) Author: Paula Jackson Jones Published:  06/18/2017 Thank you ~ Kim Lincoln, editor of the Camden Herald ~ for interviewing me and for all your support over the years. You can check out the interview here and it also appeared in print in the 06/11/2017 Midcoast Weekender insert ~ Paula

Author: Paula Jackson Jones Published:  08/29/2014      (A letter I wrote to my former self on the verge of illness after when I went into remission) Dear Paula 2009, I know that this is going to sound strange but in just a few short months something is going to happen to you, something that you are not expecting, something that you didn't ask for or were even aware that could happen ~ your life is going to change in ways you never fathomed. I am writing this letter in hopes to prepare you, to bring you some comfort, for what lies ahead is not pretty or easy. I know that you consider yourself a strong, resilient woman. I know what you've been through, what you've survived. I am here to remind you that all that strength will be needed, will be used. All those coping skills will become an asset in ways you never thought you'd have to use them. I am here to assure you that you will survive it even though there will be times that you will cry out to GOD to

Author:  Paula Jackson Jones Published:  07/09/2017 The 4th of July holiday brings back many of our seasonal residents and many more visitors to our wonderful state and Midcoast Lyme Disease Support and Education wants to make sure that you enjoy your stay and partake of all the outdoor activities that Maine offers. This weekly column is to remind you of the simple solutions that you can do to enjoy your summer and remain tick-free! PREVENTION PRACTICES ~ Skin, Clothing, Pets, Home and Yard are all important areas to focus on as these are areas ticks come into contact with us. What you chose to put on your skin is a  personal preference whether its Deet, Picaridin, Essential Oils or other natural repellent balms and salves, there is no wrong answer.  But there are some products safer than others (for children and pets) so carefully consider before purchasing.  Wearing white clothing and tucking shirt into pants, pants into socks does not repel ticks, it only

Author:  Paula Jackson Jones Published:  06/29/2017 MidcoastLyme Disease Support & Education (MLDSE) is a nonprofit 501c3 charitable organization that serves the needs of Maine’s Lyme community through awareness, education, advocacy and support resources. But what does that mean and more importantly, how can we directly help YOU? We run year-round active support and educational meetings , always free and open to the public (Brunswick, Wiscasset, Damariscotta and Rockland) where we bring in expert guest speakers to help those afflicted with tick-borne disease find ways to cope and manage while on their journey towards health and wellness. Tick-borne disease is often misdiagnosed and complicated at best and hard for someone to find their way through to wellness. We have been there and we do our best to shine a ray light on someone’s path as a beacon of hope, providing what they need. We help people connect to licensed medical doctors who are well educated a

Author:  Paula Jackson Jones Published:  06/26/2017 There is a right way and a wrong way to removing a tick from one’s body or pet and choosing incorrectly can result in exposure to tick-borne disease. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) warns us to avoid “folklore remedies” such as “painting” the tick with nail polish or petroleum jelly or using heat to make the tick detach from the skin.  The goal is to remove the tick as quickly as possible and without irritating the tick. Applying petroleum jelly or any other wet substance such as an essential oil only makes the tick slippery and more difficult to grasp in the removal process. Many methods of tick removal have proved to be unsatisfactory in controlled studies, some even cause harm by inducing the tick to salivate and regurgitate into the host. Ticks are best removed as soon as possible as the risk of disease transmission increases the longer the attachment. Antibiotic prophylaxis following tick removal is a ho

Author: Paula Jackson Jones Published:  06/16/2017 With Lyme, Anaplasmosis and Babesia on the rise here in Maine and the two recently reported cases of Powassan in the Midcoast region, how are we to know and understand what tick-borne diseases we have (potentially) been exposed to if we don’t become symptomatic right away (if at all) and the classic “bulls eye rash” doesn’t appear?  We’re probably safe, right? WRONG! A 2015 field surveillance done by researchers from Maine Medical Research Institute, found that over 50% of Maine’s tick population carried Lyme Disease. In an August 2016 article in the Bangor Daily News titled ‘Maine Records Spike in Diseases carried by ticks, not just Lyme’ referencing Anaplasmosis and Babesiosis (Lincoln County had the highest rate of incident of both in 2015). Both Anaplasmosis and Lyme are transmitted by the eight-legged deer tick, which also carries Babesiosis and Powassan virus. The Maine Centers for Disease Control was quoted in t