|
Post by to jwf from Guest on Apr 10, 2006 19:00:36 GMT -5
John,
Bare with me for one more. Did you ever at any time notice glitter particles and black specks?
Guest
|
|
|
Post by jwf on Apr 10, 2006 23:22:02 GMT -5
To Guest, I'm going to take a stand here. It's seems odd enough being questioned about particulars in my ex-environment by someone with no name- nameless. Even though most names here are just nom de plumes or monikers, it's helpful for me to know or have some history with someone asking detailed questions. As long as you are just a guest for what- ever reason, that history doesn't exist, therefore I don't have the benefit of knowing your past discourse with others-- I do manage to notice who is saying what and where they are coming from, if they at least have a stage name that stays constant. With ant, Hope, Jeff, taratula, Julie, Alison, spec, questionhair, and many others who are regulars here, it's a lot more fun to have two- way discourse. OK, my one demand has been made clear.
Blue Skies.....................John
|
|
|
Post by Guest on Apr 11, 2006 12:45:53 GMT -5
John,
Point well made and well taken. I will give needful consideration. Thanks for bringing your side to my attention. Guest for now
|
|
|
Post by specuelatin on Apr 12, 2006 4:47:10 GMT -5
That's funny, just as I was just opening this thread the very same thought was running through my mind, that I would ask the same as John just nowdid, when a "Guest-guest" may in the future wish to speak with me. John, you did an exceptional job of explaining how we, the regular posters, perceive and feel about this. The great advantage of being a member here, besides the abilities to send messages to other members privately and the use of other features on the board, is that no one can post using your unique member name that appears in yellow rather than white. Readers always know that the individual is signed-in in yellow, IS infact the person with whom they communicate. I genuinely feel close to many members here, and the ability to form those relationships is very much due to this stability. spec Go! Lymebusters!
|
|
|
Post by psychologist on May 12, 2006 19:40:08 GMT -5
On February 24, 2006 Questionhair1 as guest provided links to articles. One article mentions that no scientific evidence has been added to Ekbom's THEORY. The key word here is theory.
|
|
|
Post by psychologist on May 13, 2006 10:52:17 GMT -5
Yes...to the blood spots. Right in the very beginning when the biting first began.. Couldnt find any kind of bug.. but every so often I would find a tiny blood mark under where I slept... along with the salt like granules. My first thought was actually bed bugs.. thats when I first heard they were making a comeback and I ran with that idea. However, exterminators were here and could find nothing. As a matter of fact.. I had them here at least twice a week looking for the culprit. This went on for maybe 4 to 6 weeks? I made them spray with the strongest stuff which they do use for bed bugs.. Still, nothing helped... However.. you mention spiders. After months on the Lyme abx when the Morgellon symptoms stopped for me.. I did see what looked like a clear spider.. I mean spider body, very tiny, but see thru legs and body, come from the tub faucet.. Again.. this was a long time after my symptoms were gone... so I have no idea of its relevant. I know one thing.. that spider thing I saw... it was no kind of tick. Hope that helps you... Kerry Dear Kerry, How do you know the spider-like thing was no kind of tick? Thank you so much for taking the time to document so thoroughly and thanks to the others as well who carefully recorded experience and observation. Catholic4Life found about 50 (at least) tiny translucent things like you describe and thought it was a nest of spiders. Have you seen very many pictures of soft-shelled ticks (argas)? Different stages, different appearance. Just a thought. Thanks again, Psychologist
|
|
|
Post by Administration on May 14, 2006 15:47:21 GMT -5
Well.. at the time I did see the clear spiders.. I already had long been diagnosed with Lyme and of course, researched the disease and every type of tick possible in order to further educate myself.. Let me say this in a better way.. It was no kind of tick I have ever seen. Not only that.. but it wasnt even bodied and shaped as a tick. Now I know that the tick is indeed in the arachnid family.. but all ticks.. they have the shorter legs..rounded front crab like claws to enable them to "latch on". The spiders I saw..which I believe is 2 of them now that I think of it.. would remind one moreso of a tiny, tiny, daddy longlegger.. The body itself not black. but not clear... but the legs longer and dangling like you would see a daddy longlegger.. and having no color? The strange part is.. I did go looking as well to research spiders just out of curiosity since I had never had spiders in the house.. I did want to know what kind it was.. and yet couldnt find it anywhere... I found many normal house spiders.. wolf spiders etc that might resemble how this creature acted... it even dangled from a thin strand like spiders hang from a web.. It was definately in the arachnid family.. just not tick-like.. And again.. as curious as I was.. I didnt put much relevance on it as Morgellons was over for me.. and I saw the spiders after the fact.. not beforehand and I can tell you I literally ripped my home apart looking for anything that might be relevant when I did have Morgellons.. It even occured to me that perhaps it was a common house spider.. that was just born... and I did research which spiders as birth might have that clear look to them.. but could find none. And again.. during the time I did have Morgellons.. this house has no bugs in it.. nothing.. nothing visable to the eye or any magnifying glass anyway.. However.. and again.. this may not be relevant either.. Before Morgellons started for me.. I did have a box of that condensed evaporated milk under one of the cupboards.. And at that time.. I did find bugs in that box.. not spider or ticks.. I forget the name.. is it sow bugs? Pill bugs? But they only seemed to be IN this cardboard box of evaporated milk and no where else? You can see I am throwing out bones here of any possible thing I can think of from back then.. and as much brain fog as I did have back then.. some things you dont forget.. and this is and will always be one of those things.. Im hoping anything I say here will jar someones memory and they will remember having something like this too?... Perhaps something that feasts on these sowbugs came in... and decided I was a better treat... What bugs would be attracted to yeast and sweets, but would infest the body and be invisable to the naked eye?
Kerry
|
|
|
Post by Administration on May 14, 2006 15:51:03 GMT -5
Is there anyway you can post pictures.. not microscopic.. but what we as people would see with the naked eye what you are talking about? I will know this spider thing as soon as I see a picture of it.. In the meantime.. I will google soft bodied ticks and take another look at their stages.. Kerry
|
|
|
Post by ANTHILL on May 14, 2006 15:59:05 GMT -5
Hi Kerry You have to first have the picture hosted on the web by a server Get a free account at www.simpload.com/then upload your picture copy the direct URL that they give you and paste it in your post between the two ubb code boxes like this no spaces [img src="http://s2.images.proboards.com/grin.gif"] The result will be this
|
|
|
Post by psych doc on May 14, 2006 16:10:30 GMT -5
TESTING THE DOP HYPOTHESIS:
Could someone check out the website what'sthatbug.com? Has anyone had an experience like those who consulted this site? DOPdx should be grounded in many contacts such as those documented on this site where the person receiving such esoteric diagnosis has insisted that something is indeed a parasite despite all clear and conclusive evidence that it is not. Experience thus far is that DOPdx is assigned without benefit of microscope or any actual investigation. Is there anyone out there who received the degree of consideration and assistance afforded those contacting this site?
|
|
|
Post by Administration on May 14, 2006 16:33:29 GMT -5
No.. definately no kind of soft bodied tick I looked at even in its larval stage... Moreso like this?.. www.pestcontrolcanada.com/Questions/What%20i956.jpg .................................... I hope this pic shows up.. even tho it isnt the best quality.. its off a pest identification site.. again.. the one I saw, its actual body was tiny.. but the legs were like the one in this pic.. only translucient? Just imagine the bod itself very tiny.. And here is what was next to the pic from the guy who took it............................ "found in Hotel in Shanghai. Also found were many small red itchy bumps on legs and arms. Any connection?? Thanks for your help."...................... Although I cannot identify this spider from the photo, it does not appear to be a species known to be medically significant, and likely did not have anything to do with the skin condition you noted. Unless one actually catches an arthropod in the act of biting, it is very difficult to assign 'blame' to a particular species. Also, there are many other conditions that can cause skin blemishes similar to arthropod bites. Ed Saugstad, retired entomologist; Sinks Grove, WV
|
|
|
Post by Administration on May 14, 2006 16:56:58 GMT -5
Ant? Cant you see the pic I posted?
|
|
|
Post by ANTHILL on May 14, 2006 20:34:39 GMT -5
Kerry --If it's an invisible picture I am suppose to be able to see well no' I cant see It That would be silly for me to be able to see an invisible picture ---naturally If it's a picture that I am suppose to be able to see no I cant see that ether LOL" ;D
|
|
|
Post by psychologist on May 14, 2006 21:17:56 GMT -5
Kerry,
Thank you for investigating. Soft shell ticks are associated with Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, Relapsing Fever, Gas Gangrene, other disease. There is not an abundance of info and pics on them. Psychologist
|
|
|
Post by millenium on May 28, 2006 12:48:04 GMT -5
[quote author=patti board=lyme thread=1140797762 post To the previous guest, I can tell you that I still have the white floaties. My guess is they are a number of things.....tiny specks of dead skin from the "fibers" exiting our body; tiny pieces of clothing from the same "fibers" moving through it (and making minuscule holes which get dispersed as we move around); perhaps even tinier pieces of the "gel-like" substance that hardens as the fibers punch through it to exit our skin; and then the mostly microscopic "fibers" Of course I'm just guessing from personal observations but these have been ongoing observations for many years now. You will notice that when wiping up this "white dust" with a damp cloth, it appears to be more like dryer lint than regular dust....that is why I'm sure that bits and pieces of our clothing are involved, and it does make sense. As these things move in and out of what we're wearing they have to be making holes in it, which is why we notice so many of "our" garments wear out faster. " I too have the white floaties. They almost always float UPwards and straight out at times, and sometimes at a rapid speed. I have the whitish linty dust in my home. Have to dust everyday or it really builds up. I had lived with my mother and daughter when all this started years ago. First in 96 I was bitten by at least one tick in a field temporarily empty of cattle that normally lived there. The ticks- with little white spots or star shapes on them- were ravenous, almost running up our legs and arms.We must have killed ten or so just on my daughter and I. Later at home I noticed that the house was always dusty- always. I attributed it to her having cats - you know the fur attracting lint, dust etc. We also had had as a visitor that year, an old friend of my moms from college; an elderly retired chemical engineer who stayed at our house for several days. I washed his clothes for him. He was from Beaumont Tx and was rather ill, very puffed up looking, looked like his hands and feet were swollen. He was sick man and during his visit had to go to the hospital with respiratory problems. I just remember how unusually puffy he looked- like a doughboy. It was around that time I noticed that something was itching and stinging me and our cats also started scratching themselves raw. Vet said it was some kind of skin allergy. It looked like there were tiny tufts of fur everywhere attached to black granules. I thought it was from the cats- from all the scratching. The cats had granules in their fur and salt and pepper looking things and their skin was getting raw in places.Wherever they sat they left a coating of this stuff.It was everywhere all the time. The stinging for me was almost unbearable, but nothing seemed to stop it- these no see ums.I used all the remedies for fungus - itching etc I could find. Later I had some bites from a horsefly type thing that never healed up well at all. In fact years later at this same site I had a nest of some kind of larva in my foot . Don't know if the Morgs had est. themselves before I got the bite but I would bet on it. My daughter and I moved out and our new place would get just as dusty as the other. Our dryer lint was always blue even though we didn't always have blue items in the dryer. I noticed that the soap in the bathroom was covered with blue 'lint'- the sink, everything, and with it a tannish slime or film.I just thought it was from traffic exhaust since we lived so near a major freeway. So here we are years later and the Lymes/Morgs is very well established. Mu mom is in her at least fourth year of Multiple Myeloma.Two of her cats died in a weird way; one with a seizure and the other in her sleep. This one had been having seizure like activity for years. One cat died with cancer of the cheek. My daughter has the skin tracks on her face and the lesions, her doc calls it acne, but we haven't been able to get rid of it. She has the migraines that I have had with the crawly squeeaing sensation and the pain behind one eye, and it feels like behind the eye and in the sinuses. No migraine meds will work for her.The all white sinus secretions with wormy oblong lumpy things in it.Not normal secretions. I am ready to get some darn treatment if I could find a doc who believes either in Lymes or Morgs. Am still working on it. Millenium
|
|
|
Post by psychologist on Jun 4, 2006 10:49:32 GMT -5
An Open Letter From a Psychologist
Dear Healthcare Provider,
I am a doctoral level psychologist and have prepared diagnostic psychological evaluations in a forensic capacity in the public sector for more than twenty years. I have conducted many psychological workups within the context of my private practice as well throughout these years. I began research involving parameters, resilience, interventions, roadblocks to treatment and a number of variables relevant to chronic, debilitating illness about three years ago. It was this initial investigation, a preliminary search of the literature and delving into extant data which led to my current research with sufferers of what is called Morgellons Disease. One important area of investigation in the research I am presently conducting and in which I am directing the research of others is iatrogenic effects of contact with healthcare providers. Dr. Randy Wymore at the Oklahoma State University's Center for Health Sciences has warned that, "Morgellons sufferers are viewed by most health care providers as having no physical ailment" (Wymore, 2006, p. 1). Other clinicians and researchers have voiced similar concern (e.g., Matthews, 2006).
In the absence of diagnostic evaluation whether the presenting complaint be cutaneous, systemic, or even of paralysis, amazingly a psychiatric diagnosis which is at best dubious is often assigned. Initially this diagnosis is in all likelihood that of Delusions of Parasitosis (DOPdx). It is very often changed many times: usually in accordance with the number of times the patient continues to seek medical help. Typically they have been labeled beyond the initial DOPdx to include somatization disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, psychosis not otherwise specified, bipolar, personality disorder nos, panic disorder, or some such combination of name calling sans psychological testing.
This labeling which is soon attached by history as part of the individual's permanent medical record is often initiated by a dermatologist or infectious disease specialist. Often these "specialists" are self-designated, not board certified. It seems that violation of practice boundaries is not even on their collective radar screen. If they tire of practicing dermatology or infectious disease with no special preparation they simply practice psychology with no special preparation.
If you would like to speak further about this alarming situation and how you can be part of the solution as opposed to part of the problem please have your patient pass your contact information on to me. This initial letter will very likely undergo revisions until such time as sufficient funds are secured for proper drafting and dissemination of information and research updates.
I do not have the affiliation that Dr. Wymore has and until I secure funding it is my preference to remain anonymous. As a private practitioner, deeply involved in the scientist--practitioner model, working from a public health perspective I have a strong preference not to waste time in childish confrontation. Moreover, valuable time and energy, precious resources would be drained off in efforts to ward off attack from the DOPdx invested community and this would be a scientific setback.
Sincerely,
Psych Doctor (psychologist) References:
Matthews, J. (2006). To healthcare providers. Public communication, doctor's letter.
Wymore, R. (2006). To healthcare providers. Public communication, doctor's letter.
|
|
|
Post by specuelatin on Jun 4, 2006 16:28:03 GMT -5
|
|
|
Post by psychologist on Jun 4, 2006 23:01:42 GMT -5
Thank you Mari for publicly offering feedback. This is an opportunity for you and everyone to put up a rough draft--maybe outline several main points. For instance: research has shown and your last post supports an important finding to be that the misdiagnosis of psychotic assigned by someone unqualifed and not licensed to practice psychology is one of the main things to address in a letter as a psychologist. Is this correct? Can you and some of the others say in this public forum how you want me to address that? Psychologist
|
|
|
Post by psychologist on Jun 4, 2006 23:44:33 GMT -5
Please post suggestions for revision of my lettter to healthcare providers.
Please post a brief account of how you were harmed by seeking healthcare. Even if you have told me on the phone or in a PM already please post briefly for the benefit of others. These are the iatrogenic effects we are researching and they must be documented. Thank you, Psychologist
|
|
|
Post by psychologist on Jun 5, 2006 0:17:23 GMT -5
To Specuelatin,
Thanks for your work and your input. You mention that I am a member. I would simply like to clarify this as best I can. I originally approached people on this board as part of research into debilitating illness which I was already doing. My letter to healthcare providers gives some detail on this research.
The data collected lend strong support to claims of iatrogenic effects as a result of diagnostically impaired providers slinging psychiatric diagnoses like so much corned beef hash. I would not want to give the false impression that I as a member make this claim when in fact I as a researcher am simply citing the evidence. Psychologist
|
|