Tick bite awareness, prevention important this spring, summer

When Reece was 9, her family finally found out what had been causing them significant medical problems for years. Mom Monica White, a former wildlife biologist and wildland firefighter, was diagnosed with chronic Lyme disease, which was passed to her two children in utero.

"I had no idea, and that is a huge problem because a good portion of women are now recognizing that their children have been sick from birth," Monica said Tuesday at the Steamboat film screening. "Women who are infected with Lyme prior to pregnancy have that risk of transmission to their children, and they have no clue."

Lyme disease is the most common tickborne disease in the U.S., and most Lyme disease infections occur from May to August, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Lyme disease is a bacterial infection largely acquired from the bite of an infected black-legged tick, also called deer ticks. The disease commonly is contracted from the blood-feeding parasites in the northeastern, upper Midwest and Pacific northwest states in the U.S., but cases of Lyme have been reported in all states.

Multiple people living in Routt County battle chronic Lyme disease, although several said they prefer to keep their health struggles private. Considering increases in outdoor recreational travel, more people from out of state moving to Steamboat, and the possibility for Lyme to be passed from a pregnant woman to a baby in utero, patients with Lyme disease are becoming more recognized in Colorado.

According to the International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society, Lyme infection can lead to severe illness and disability in some people. Patients with Lyme disease frequently are misdiagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis or depression.

The impact of chronic Lyme disease is the reason Reece, 20, is studying nursing in Steamboat and will graduate with an associate's degree in May. Reece may enter the field of infectious diseases, and plans to earn a bachelor's degree in nursing from CMC.

"My childhood with Lyme disease is the reason that I have a passion for health care," said Reece, who watched nurses provide patient-centered care.

"There are over 20 tick-borne diseases or conditions currently known to occur throughout the U.S. and that may impact Colorado residents and their pets at home or through travel," Monica explained.

Specific medical care for Lyme disease is difficult to find in Colorado, but treating Lyme is one of the specialties of Clark resident Elizabeth Kirt, a family nurse practitioner. With a master's degree in nursing, Kirt's practice LifeSync Health can be found online at ElizabethKirt.com.

Kirt sees hundreds of patients throughout the nation, including from Routt County and Colorado, through tele-health visits. Her Lyme patients are generally suffering from the chronic condition that show up after unusual symptoms, fatigue or mental health issues cannot be explained by other illnesses.

Kirt's strongest recommendation after tick bites is to save the tick for testing and to seek medical treatment from a Lyme literate provider as soon as possible. She said testing a tick for Lyme is easier and more effective than testing the person bitten. People can save the tick in a plastic container to send for testing at companies such as the lab Ticknology in Fort Collins (online at Ticknology.org.).

Kirt also recommends Lyme disease specialist Dr. Daniel Kinderlehrer in Denver, who wrote the book "Recovery from Lyme Disease."

Reece said her biggest message to Colorado residents is to learn how to prevent Lyme and other tick-borne diseases, whether on outdoor adventures near home or traveling to other states.

"The population of Steamboat and other Colorado towns need the resources to know about prevention techniques," Reece said. "I think that could have helped our situation if it had been known."

"The bite of a single tick is a life changer," said Monica, who has lived in Salida since 2001. "Nobody realizes that until they are impacted. So, prevention is the key to avoiding tick-borne diseases."

In 2013, after years of undiagnosed illness in their family, the Whites were alarmed to learn the degradation of their health was due to multiple tick-borne infections, including Lyme disease.

"As soon as I got my diagnosis, the lightbulb when off because we had been putting out medical spot fires for years with both children without a clue how we were all connected," Monica said.

In 2016, Monica co-founded the nonprofit Colorado Tick-Borne Disease Awareness Association, with information at ColoradoTicks.org.

"We discovered that the issues surrounding Lyme and other tick-borne diseases affect far too many Coloradans and that risk, prevention and recognition of these diseases is not common knowledge in our region of the country," Monica said. "This lack of knowledge led to years of pain and suffering that changed my life and the lives of my husband and children. We are determined to make a difference for others."

If a tick is found biting a human or pet, prompt and proper removal is important. Use fine point tweezers and grasp the tick by the mouth as close to the skin as possible and pull gently straight out. Clean and wash the bite site and hands. Never put any substance or heat on the tick as that can increase the risk of infection.

"The earlier a tick-borne disease is diagnosed and treatment initiated, typically the better the outcome for the patient," Monica said.

May is National Lyme and Tick-Borne Disease Awareness Month, with more information available at LymeDiseaseAssociation.org, LymeDisease.org and ColoradoTicks.org.