Remember that song “It’s a Family Affair?” It, for my family is Lyme. Both my husband and I both love the outdoors, walked, hiked, and gardened ourselves into tick-borne illness and coinfections. Unfortunately, Lyme infects families, and will often show up in more than one family member with different symptoms.
I was speaking at a Lyme support meeting recently about selfcare for recovery. I met a mom, dad, and daughter, all fighting tick borne illness. They set up a Lyme support group to help others find answers. So much serious illness is a devastating hit for a family to deal with energetically and financially. How does this happen?
Lyme Infects Families More Often Than You Think
Despite growing awareness about the tick-borne illness, I am sad to say is not that uncommon that multiple people in a family end up diagnosed with Lyme disease. What I do know is that if you are the first member of your family diagnosed with a tick-borne illness, you may not be the last. Join a support group. Help your family members learn how to protect themselves. Look out for early symptoms and encourage sick family members to get tested and treated.
In my house, I was diagnosed first and was much sicker than my husband. My recovery has been slower. We discussed it and decided that even though he was not super sick, he should get tested for Lyme and other coinfections. When his Western Blot for Lyme test came back positive, he started treatment right away.
4 Factors Promote Multiple Family Members With Lyme
Four main factors promote the spread of Lyme disease within a family group. Understanding them and taking preventive action can help you stop the spread of tick-borne illnesses within your family group.
Families live play and relax together
Families often live, play, vacation, and share a biome. Some families are hiking camping picnicking or gardening kind of people and others not so much. If your family lives in a Lyme endemic area, and you love outdoor activities, the chances that one or more of you will get a tick bite and tick-borne illness go way up. Tick-borne disease is spreading across the United States, but the most saturated areas are in the northeast and northwest. Teach your family to minimize tick exposure when outdoors in nature.
Pet Vector
Pets go outside and acquire ticks. Ticks partially feed on Bella, the dog, then drop off. They look to finish their blood meal in your den on your pet’s bed or in your bed. They can find you and bite you or your family members and pass on Lyme and other tick-borne illnesses. We made the hard decision to keep our cats indoors after our diagnosis. If your cats and dogs, go in and out, protect them, and inspect them regularly to reduce the likelihood of them bring ticks into your home.
Born with it
Many people believe that they were born with tick-borne illnesses. Doctors support their belief. The science shows that Lyme disease hurts pregnancy, with increased risk of miscarriage, and congenital disabilities. The possibility exists for blood born bacteria to pass through the placenta to the unborn child. If the Mom’s immune system weakened from long term infection, that weakness hurts her ability to protect her unborn child from any pathogens she carries. The CDC suggest women with Lyme disease need to be under the care of a doctor who has expertise in tick-borne illnesses as soon as they understand they are pregnant. Your doctor can tailor active treatment to support the health of you and your baby.
Sexual Transmission
Sex is all about the exchange of bodily fluids, saliva, sweat, semen, and vaginal secretions. Data shows that Lyme lives in saliva and blood. The CDC states that Lyme is not sexually transmitted But live spirochete bacteria have been found in saliva, urine, and blood. Based on this, some Lyme literate doctors dispute the CDC’s conclusions and suggest that sexual transmission is possible between an untreated infected person and their partner.
If Lyme is present in one or more of your family members, pay attention. Don’t take symptoms for granted. Understand that Lyme infects families and do what is prudent to prevent anyone else getting sick. Talk to a Lyme literate doctor. Ask if additional testing or treatment for other family members is a good idea. Work to up-level self-care and wellness routines for your family to help them build health and resiliency.
“With Lyme disease information is power, get informed get tested get treated and get better.”
This blog is not a substitute for professional medical care, treatment, or advice. All the material here is for learning purposes only. Always share strategy and work with your health care team.