[Richard Kimball]

A friend of mine had the same problem, except he didn't know he had Lyme until it had secured an excellent foothold. The doctors kept telling him it was (a) in his head, or (b) arthritis. Unfortunately, to get effective treatment for Lyme, it must be treated early, very early.

He was an excellent finish carpenter, but had to give it up because his hands swelled so badly he couldn't hold his tools. Here in Texas, it's out there, but not endemic. However, our doctors have finally gotten to the point that a tick bite gets an automatic Lyme test now.

[RightOnTheLeftCoast]

"However, our doctors have finally gotten to the point that a tick bite gets an automatic Lyme test now."

Good, but the notion that only ticks transmit the disease is an urban legend.

IMHO, a blood test for Lyme should be part of the routine annual checkup roster, along with cholesterol, HIV or whatever else is part of the routine annual checkup roster nowadays. It may not be endemic to certain areas, but people travel and move around, so that matters less than it would in an agrarian age-- I'm an example of that, having picked up the bug nine time zones from home. And anytime there's a bulls-eye reaction surrounding an insect bite, a two-month course of doxycycline should be started immediately, no waiting for tests.