It’s every parent’s worst nightmare. Something terrible happens to your child and you’re not even sure what actually wrong with your child or how to help.
But for Karen McGregor, this nightmare became an horrific reality. One day, she discovered that her 2-year-old son had a strange rash spreading across his body — and her motherly instinct immediately told her that something wasn’t right.
Then Karen remembered a Facebook post she saw a few days earlier… and rushed her son straight to the doctor.
At first, Karen McGregor thought her son’s rash was from playing in tall grass.
But soon, she remembered a post she saw a few days earlier on Facebook.
It was a warning about Lyme disease and what the symptoms looks like.
Lyme disease is spread through ticks, and Karen had never noticed a tick on her son.
But she still decided to play it safe and go to a doctor.
This decision would turn out to be worth its weight in gold.
Doctors told Karen that her son suffered from Lyme disease after getting bitten a few weeks earlier.
But thanks to Karen’s rapid response, her 2-year-old was able to get the help he needed.
His doctors gave him antibiotics and he soon felt much better.
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After the event, Karen decided to warn other parents about the situation.
She thinks that it was a Facebook post that might have saved her son’s life, or at least saved him from a very different life. So now, she’s encouraging other parents to look for Lyme disease symptoms on their children.
“Had it not been for the post I read, I never would have known it was something more than a simple rash caused by being the long grass!” Karen McGregor writes on Facebook.
Hundreds of thousands of people have shared Karen’s post on Facebook — and even doctors have shared the pictures of her son’s rash.
“Feel free to share this post — I would love nothing more than to have our scary situation educate others about what to look for this summer,” Karen writes on Facebook.
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About Lyme disease
Lyme disease can be very dangerous if not treated. The infection can cause, for example, meningitis, arthritis and, in the worst cases, paralysis. However, if you remove the tick immediately, chances are, you won’t get infected, writes the Center for Disease Control in the United States.
The first sign of Lyme disease is usually a bulls-eye shaped rash called an erythema migrans (EM) rash. It usually takes one to four weeks after the bite to appear and can grow to 12 inches (30 cm) across. The skin might feel warm to the touch, but it won’t be itchy or painful.
According to the CDC, these are also common symptoms of Lyme disease:
- Fever
- Chills
- Headaches
- Muscle and joint aches
- Swollen lymph nodes
Now that summer is almost here, tick season is upon us. Keep an eye on your children and always check them for ticks after they’ve spent time outdoors. Make sure they always wear long pants, long-sleeved shirts, shoes and socks when they’re out in nature.
Please share this important message with all your friends on Facebook.
