Two summers ago, I awoke with a headache. By evening, I had a fever of 104 degrees F. I felt really rotten. I had no appetite. And, when I did eat, everything tasted metallic. I couldn’t get out of bed, thinking I had the flu or COVID. Four days of this, and then my fever hit 105 degrees F. I dragged myself to a mirror, and noticed big giraffe-like tan splotches on my torso. That was it. I went to an urgent care center. I was negative for the flu and COVID, so they did another test, and it revealed I had contracted anaplasmosis, a tick-borne disease. I was terribly sick for a few weeks, food still tasted like metal and I lost a lot of weight (down to 96 pounds from my usual 104!), my hair started falling out and I had that horrid “brain fog.”

I never saw the tick that bit me. Nor was there a rash.

People should always check for ticks on their body, clothes, kids and dogs after they have been outside in grass, the woods, in the garden, etc. Ticks can travel on wind-blown leaves, so even pavement isn’t safe. Some are no bigger than a grain of sand. So, buy one of those tick removers, and don’t let those little “suckers” win by getting into our skin.

Maureen Mathieu
Westbrook