What Are the Signs & Symptoms of Lyme Disease?

Symptoms of Lyme disease may include ongoing fatigue, pain, increased sensitivity to light and sound, difficulty remembering things or concentrating, fevers or sweats that come and go, sensitivity to chemicals (of all sorts), and depression or anxiety. Lyme disease almost always occurs with a co-infection, and the symptoms that present themselves are often due to the other bacterial, parasitic, or viral co-infection(s) and less from the Lyme Disease.

The real problem is that all of these symptoms can change on a weekly — or even daily — basis, making diagnosis challenging. Most physicians look only at what is presenting itself right now, and that can lead to a misdiagnosis. Some of the ailments Lyme disease can mirror include chronic fatigue syndrome, autism, fibromyalgia, arthritis, autoimmune disorders including lupus, irritable bowel syndrome or disease, depression, multiple sclerosis, chronic headaches, Parkinson’s disease, stroke, and even hormonal issues. Worse are the people who don’t even go to the doctor because they think it’s all in their head — or fear the doctor will tell them as much. There is hope!

General Early Signs and Symptoms:

Erythema Chronicum Migrans (EM), also called the Bull’s Eye Rash, may be seen at the bite site. However a rash (of any kind) is only found in ~25% of patients, making initial diagnosis challenging for conventional doctors. The bite may have come from a tick, mosquito, flea, or mite making identification even more challenging. Other Types of Rashes anywhere on the body may also occur (rash at other than bite site signals disseminated disease).

• Fever and Flu like Symptoms/Illness.
• General: unexplained fevers (off & on), chills, sweats, weight change (loss or gain), fatigue, tiredness, hair loss, swollen glands, sore throat, difficulty swallowing, swelling around the eyes.
• Cardiac/Pulmonary: chest pain or rib soreness, air hunger like shortness of breath, heart palpitations, pulse skips and/or heart murmur.
• Gastrointestinal: nausea or vomiting, difficulty eating, change in bowel function, constipation, diarrhea, gastritis, abdominal cramping, irritable bladder, bladder dysfunction, or cystitis (irritable bladder).
• Musculoskeletal: joint/muscle pain in feet, swelling in toes or balls of feet, ankle pain, burning in feet, shin splints, joint pain and/or swelling, stiffness of the joints, neck or back, muscle pain or cramps that may migrate, neck creaks and cracks, neck stiffness, TMJ/Jaw Pain (Temporomandibular Joint). Classic diagnostic sign is muscle and/or joint aches that wander/travel around from site to site.
• Neurological: twitching of the face, eyelids, or other muscles, headache, tingling, numbness, burning or stabbing sensations, facial paralysis (Bell’s Palsy) dizziness, poor balance, increased motion sickness, light-headedness, wooziness, difficulty walking, tremor, confusion, difficulty in thinking or with concentration or reading, forgetfulness, poor short term memory, disorientation (getting lost, going to wrong place), difficulty with speech, double or blurry vision, eye pain, blindness, increased floaters, increased sensitivity to light or sound, buzzing or ringing in ears, ear pain, deafness, seizure activity, white matter lesions in brain, low blood pressure.
• Neuropsychiatric: mood swings, violent outbursts, irritability, depression, disturbed sleep (too much or too little, early awakening), personality changes, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), paranoia, panic anxiety attack, hallucinations.
• Reproductive: testicular pain or pelvic pain, menstrual irregularity, milk production (lactation), sexual dysfunction, loss of libido.

These medical conditions may in some cases be caused by or related to Lyme Disease and co-infections: