February 22, 2026

Lyme Disease Can Make You Feel Older Than You Are Lyme disease can leave patients feeling decades older than their actual age—through fatigue, brain fog, and joint pain that don’t match where they should be in life. “I’m 36, but I feel 76. My legs are heavy, my memory’s a mess, and I don’t recognize […]

Anaplasmosis and Lyme Disease: Symptoms & Treatment After 37 years treating Lyme disease, I’ve seen how Anaplasmosis—a bacterial coinfection transmitted by the same ticks that carry Lyme disease—can transform what appears to be typical Lyme disease into an acute, severe illness with high fever, profound headache, and dangerously low white blood cell counts. Anaplasmosis occurs

Ehrlichiosis and Lyme Disease: Symptoms and Treatment Ehrlichiosis—like its close relative Anaplasmosis—can turn a typical Lyme disease presentation into a more severe acute illness requiring prompt recognition and treatment. The same ticks that transmit Lyme disease may also carry Ehrlichia bacteria, leading to co-infections associated with high fever, severe headache, and characteristic blood count abnormalities.

Babesia and Lyme Disease: Symptoms and Treatment Babesia—a malaria-like parasite transmitted by the same ticks that carry Lyme disease—is a common reason patients do not fully recover with standard Lyme treatment. :contentReference[oaicite:0]{index=0} It is one of the most significant Lyme coinfections, affecting an estimated 30–40% of patients in endemic areas. Babesia produces a distinct symptom

Lyme Coinfections: Babesia, Bartonella & More Comprehensive clinical guide to Lyme disease coinfections: Babesia, Bartonella, Anaplasmosis, Ehrlichiosis, and Powassan virus Lyme disease coinfections are common and clinically significant. The same tick bite that transmits Borrelia burgdorferi may also carry additional pathogens. :contentReference[oaicite:0]{index=0} When multiple infections are transmitted together, symptom patterns may become more variable, diagnostic

Bartonella and Lyme Disease: Symptoms & Treatment After 37 years treating Lyme disease, I’ve learned that some of the most disabling symptoms patients experience don’t come from Lyme at all—they come from Bartonella, a coinfection that produces neuropsychiatric manifestations, burning pain, and vascular symptoms that standard Lyme treatment doesn’t address. Bartonella is transmitted by the

Powassan Virus and Lyme Disease: Symptoms & Prevention After 37 years treating Lyme disease, I’ve learned that while Powassan virus is rare compared to other coinfections like Babesia or Bartonella, it’s the most dangerous. This tick-borne viral infection can cause severe neurologic disease including encephalitis, permanent brain damage, and death—and unlike bacterial infections, there’s no

Other Tick-Borne Infections: Beyond Lyme Disease After 37 years treating Lyme disease, I’ve learned that the ticks carrying Borrelia burgdorferi transmit far more than just Lyme disease and the common coinfections like Babesia and Bartonella. A growing list of emerging and rare tick-borne infections—Borrelia miyamotoi, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, Bourbon Virus, Heartland Virus, Borrelia mayonii,

Alpha-gal Tick Allergy (Alpha-gal Syndrome): Delayed Red Meat Reactions After Tick Bites Alpha-gal tick allergy, also known as Alpha-gal Syndrome, is a tick-induced allergic condition that causes delayed reactions to red meat and mammalian products. Unlike typical food allergies that occur within minutes, alpha-gal reactions develop 3-6 hours after eating beef, pork, lamb, or other

Night Sweats and Lyme Disease: Causes & Treatment “I wake up drenched every night.” “The sheets are soaked through.” “My doctor says it’s just menopause.” After 37 years treating Lyme disease, I’ve learned that night sweats are rarely “just” anything—and when they occur alongside tick-borne illness, they’re often the symptom that gets dismissed when it