So D1 and I just got back from a wonderful California trip together before she leaves to live in London. (Went to SF, Big Sur and Napa. H and other sibs were invited but could not go)
It was a wonderful trip. But the night before I left from upstate NY I was apparently bit by an insect. It was in my waistband area. I never saw the insect.
I got a big red rash about 7” by 21/2 “ that hurt. Then I got flu like symptoms with aches,chills and a fever. I went to an Urgent Care facility in San Fran and got a topical and oral antibiotic. But I was sick for several days and had terrible night sweats like I have never had.
Anyone had or know of a similar experience? Any ideas what bit me? Apparently not a tick and it seems it was not shingles. Any ideas?
I would suspect a spider bite. Ticks usually can’t transmit disease until they’ve been attached for 48 hours or so, so it’s unlikely to have been a tick bite in such a noticeable area.
All of your symptoms are included in the list of possible reactions from a spider bite so that seems most likely. If you still have symptoms, you might want to try antihistamines (oral and topical). I’ve had the occasional minor presumably spider bite that itches for a long long time and have used topical creams (Caladryl Clear since I have it on hand) to help.
Lyme disease and ticks are all over upstate NY. I would get tested for Lyme because if you have it you want to get treated. If you let it go it could turn chronic and that causes all kinds of complications.
Also, a case of Powassan virus was just confirmed in Columbia County in NY. It is also caused by a tick bite. It’s rare, but not something to be messed with. You might want to get tested.
I would guess a spider bite. I had something behind my ear once. First I got chills and fever. By the time I got to a doctor my whole neck was swollen and his first words were “I don’t think you’ll have to be hospitalized…” I was sent to the ER for intravenous antibiotics - for 3 days (I got to leave the hospital each night).
They weren’t sure if it was a spider, but that was the best guess. I will say that getting 3 days of antibiotics was like getting the oil changed in a car. Everything ran much better after that. I really felt great all winter.
Look for 2 marks in the area. Spider bites can have a bullseye. Use a topical antibiotic (walmart brand is fine and cheaper) along with the oral antibiotic. Dd was bit by a wolf spider when she was little. After topical treatments the ring continued to grow. Doc added an oral antibiotic and continued the topical. He also measured the ring and a week later measured it again to be sure that it was shrinking.
Yes, sure sounds like a spider bite. I’ve had some nasty ones that even required trips to the physician’s office. Never felt the darn spider(s) bite me and they got really nasty looking. I’ve been bitten by ticks, but for me they don’t “fall off” your body so hard to understand how you’d get a tick bite without the pesky tick.
I figured it was probably a spider. It is just so weird because I have never had anything like it. And I love to garden and have done a lot of camping in my lifetime.
I don’t think it wa a tick because it was not attached.There were two or three dark marks within the larger rash that formed little blisters. But I’m feeling better now. No more night sweats that went on for days.
I’m not happy to hear that Powassan virus was confirmed in our general area. Unlike Lyme, which isn’t transmitted until the tick is fully fed (36-48 hours), Powassan reportedly can be transmitted after just 15 minutes of tick exposure. It is
scary. We live/work on a property full of fields and forest… and a number of my colleagues and I have recently sent our ticks off to the tick testing facility at the Zoology lab at UMass Amherst. They test the ticks for a long list of bacteria/viruses, and send the results by email within 3 days. Most of us have been bitten by ticks that were carrying Lyme, ehrlichiosis, and anaplasmosis (no Powassan here yet.)
Hoping you feel fine soon and that it didn’t cause you too much discomfort on your trip.
Oh heavens now I something new to worry about. We have lots and lots of ticks. Usually I freak out so the idea of pulling the darn thing off me and preserving for lab testing is generally the last thing on my mind LOL. This year the first crop were so tiny that I could hardly spot them unless my old eyes were an inch from them. Miniscule little suckers.
With all the tiny critters around and all the diseases they can cause, it’s really important to put bug repellent on your body before you go anywhere wooded.
Thanks for suggestion Iamo. The odd thingi is I was walking on cement. Oddly, two weeks before, H and I went for a walk after dinner. Once again on sidewalks. I was wearing Keen sandals that cover most of the foot and long pants. A few hours after the walk my ankles and feet began to itch. I counted over 12 bites on each foot and ankle. I never experienced such a thing. The bites that occurred a week or so later trumped that.
I have become bug phobic. I have commercial bug repellent but am interested in natural repellent. I used to use Skin So Soft ( Avon) when my kids were young. It worked. Is it still available? Any other suggestions? I have seen stuff at a local farm stand. One has cedar oil. Will these work?
The bites on your legs after that walk were likely from “noseeums” which is a term used to describe a group of dozens of species of biting bugs. I always get those dang bites!