Got a Tick? Don't Do What Grandma Told You

Tick season is here. I’ve decided to write about it, because last week both my wife and I found ticks on our bodies and we hadn’t been in the woods…just in our back yard! So, I decided to look at the tick picture.

First of all, if you get a tick on you, somebody is about to suggest one of the worst pieces of health advice that just refuses to “die.”

"Put a match on it."

"Cover it with nail polish."

"Smother it with Vaseline."

"Rub it with soap on a cotton ball."

No. Just NO.

While Grandma may have been right about many things, these things are BIG mistakes. Why…they stress the tick.

And a stressed tick is the last thing you want attached to your skin.

When a tick gets irritated, burned, suffocated, or otherwise disturbed, it can regurgitate the contents of its gut back into the bite before it lets go. Think about that for a second. Lyme disease and other tick-borne illnesses are spread through the exchange of bodily fluids.

So instead of helping the tick leave, you're increasing the chances that it dumps potentially infectious material into your body on the way out.

Not exactly a winning strategy.

So, here's what actually works.

Get a pair of fine-tipped tweezers.

Grab the tick as close to the skin as possible, right where the mouthparts enter the skin. Not the body. Not the swollen abdomen. Right at the head.

Then pull straight up with steady pressure.

Don't twist.

Don't jerk.

Don't try to rip it out.

Just pull steadily.

The mouthparts are barbed, so it may feel like the tick is hanging on. That's because it is. Keep the pressure steady, and it will usually release within a few seconds.

If part of the mouthpiece breaks off and stays in the skin, leave it alone.

Most people immediately reach for a needle and start digging. That's usually a mistake. Your body is surprisingly good at pushing tiny foreign objects to the surface on its own. Digging around often causes more damage than the leftover fragment ever would.

Once the tick is out, wash the area with soap and water or clean it with rubbing alcohol. Then wash your hands.

Simple.

But here's the part almost nobody talks about.

Don't flush the tick.

Don't throw it in the trash.

Save it.

Take an index card and tape the tick to it with a piece of clear packing tape. Write down the date and where on your body you found it.

Then stick the card in a drawer.

If you develop unusual symptoms over the next month, fever, fatigue, joint pain, headaches, a rash, or that weird "I think I'm getting sick" feeling that doesn't quite fit, that tick could become important.

Some laboratories can test ticks for disease-causing organisms. Tick testing is not a substitute for medical care, and a positive or negative result doesn't automatically tell you whether you've become infected. Still, it can provide useful information for your healthcare provider and may help paint a clearer picture if symptoms appear later.

A taped tick with a date on it may end up being one of the most useful things you can bring to a doctor's appointment.

There's one more thing people need to know.

If the tick was engorged when you removed it, and you can't honestly say it was attached for less than 24 hours, call your healthcare provider that same day.

Don't wait for a bullseye rash.

A lot of people assume they'll know they have Lyme disease because they'll get the classic target-shaped rash. The reality is that many people never see one. Waiting for a rash can mean waiting too long.

In some cases, a healthcare provider may prescribe a preventive dose of doxycycline if treatment begins within 72 hours of removing a deer tick. That's a conversation worth having sooner rather than later.

The bottom line is simple.

Forget the matches.

Forget the nail polish.

Forget the Vaseline.

Forget the soap tricks.

Use fine-tipped tweezers. Pull straight up. Clean the area. Save the tick.

Sometimes the best medical advice isn't complicated at all. It's just the stuff that actually works.