Posted by C, a resident of the Woodside: other neighborhood, on Feb 26, 2009 at 9:43 am

Many Old La Honda Road resident's in Woodside have Lyme disease at various stages. Please attend the "Lyme Disease Awareness Night" 7 pm Wed March 4th at Ladera Community Church.

Posted by Ticked off, a resident of the Atherton: West of Alameda neighborhood, on Feb 26, 2009 at 5:44 pm

A couple of years ago, my 30-something cousin was diagnosed with MS. More than a year later, she was in a wheelchair, unable to work, struggling to care for her children, when she discovered that she had misdiagnosed Lyme disease, not MS.

She's out of the wheelchair and doing much better now, but she couldn't convince her insurance company to authorize treatment for Lyme disease -- she had to pay for it herself, and even after treatments proved successful, the insurance company still denied that she had Lyme disease!

Posted by Otis Woods Family, a resident of the Woodside: Woodside Glens neighborhood, on Feb 28, 2009 at 9:00 am

We appreciate the communication and the meeting -- a much needed event--and will be sure to share these details with all friends and loved ones as well as our dental patients.

Regarding the comment about the insurance co. not cooperating--- with the re-vamping of how insurances will be required to perform, our hopes will be to have science and the health of our citizens at the top of the order for our New Administration in Washington. From preventative medicine to treatments for such illnesses as this.

Posted by Kris Newby, a resident of another community, on Mar 23, 2009 at 4:14 pm

There is a Lyme great support group that meets once a month at El Camino Hospital in Mountain View.

Kris Newby

Posted by Robin1237, a resident of another community, on Mar 23, 2009 at 11:08 pm

I'd like to know how much signage is up anywhere warning folks about the outdoor tick problem and what to do for protection. Perhaps this is an project that communities could work on together.

Here are some starter ideas:

CAUTION: ticks have been found in this area! They can transmit Lyme disease and coinfections, which can cause disabling neurological and soft tissue symptoms.

The public is encouraged to wear light-colored clothes to more easily see any small dark ticks. You should also wear shoes and socks, long pants tucked into socks, long-sleeve shirt tucked into your pants, a hat, and tick repellent.

Please stay in the middle of the path and do not touch vegetation unless you have tick repellent on. Your indoor/outdoor pets will also need tick repellent on. Do frequent tick checks on yourself, each other and your pets.

If you find any ticks on you or your pets, do not touch them with your bare hands! Use tweezers or a tick remover tool or go to a medical facility for immediate removal. You can save a live tick in a vial with a moist tissue and send it to the Sonoma County Public Health Dept for testing.

If you see an expanding bull's eye rash on you, that means Lyme disease for sure and you will need antibiotic treatment immediately. Other initial symptoms can include flu-like symptoms, numbness, or none at all. If you have a known embedded tick bite, it is suggested to get 6-8 weeks of a sufficient level of antibiotic treatment to knock out a possible infection. Signs of coinfections (babesia, bartonella and ehrlichia) can include fevers, chils and night sweats. They will need treatment too.

For further info/medical referrals/supportgroups, see www.lymedisease.org, www.lymediseaseassociation.org, www.lymenet.org, www.ILADS.org(doctors), www.IGeneX.org(testing lab; IgM and IgG Western blots recommended for Lyme testing), (maybe a neighborhood contact)

PS A tick repellent I like is TKO Orange, a nontoxic, essential oil from oranges (TKOOrange.com). You can put a couple drops in a spray bottle, fill it up with water and spray on your clothing. It can also be lightly misted on dogs and cats, it can be sprayed in the home and in the yard. It is a bug deterrent/killer. It's biodegradable and so would need to be applied frequently, probably at least every 24 hours. Ok to use as long as not allergic to citrus.

My email is sf_seal@sbcglobal.net if anyone wishes to contact me to discuss ideas for public protection/notification.