Sicko

A short while ago I noticed a bite on my leg. Bites aren't that unusual, but this one caught my attention because it was somewhat swollen, yet still completely painless. I showed it to a few people; they all dismissed it as harmless. I ignored the bite for a time, but noted with increasing interest that each time I saw it, rather than appearing a bit fainter, the bite was actually getting larger! A week later, when the bite had swollen to 5 inches in diameter, I started to get a bit uneasy.

I told Joelle about it on the phone, and she was the one to actually to suggest that it might be lyme disease. We googled images of 'lyme disease' and sure enough, they all looked exactly like the strange, bulls-eye rash on my leg. The girl at the doctor’s office agreed with our diagnosis but explained that they can't be sure until the disease has been percolating in your bloodstream for 6 weeks, at which point they perform a blood test that yields only shaky results. They normally just diagnose it symptomatically, which is why all she did was glance at the bite before giving me my prescription and sending me on my way.

So, I can't be certain, but apparently I contracted lyme disease. I took the round of medication for three weeks, and the rash faded almost completely away. All I can see now is the small red mark where the tick got me.

I didn't know much about the disease to begin with, but have now learned enough to be deeply grateful for that nasty rash. Had it not shown up, I never would have been able to diagnose the disease so quickly through the other, more ambiguous symptoms. My friend Michelle never had a rash to help her identify her lyme disease, and so it had advanced so far before being treated that she will be experiencing the effects of it for the rest of her life.

I assume that I am completely whole at this point, although when I struggle to wake up to my alarm I am very tempted to blame it on the lyme disease and use it as an excuse to sleep another hour. This could be a useful scape goat.