Victims from southwest Manitoba share their struggles with Lyme, a disease transmitted by ticks causing paralysis and heart problems, in a new documentary film showing in Virden on June 21.
"The doctor said, 'I have no idea what's going on with you and I'm afraid it's going to kill you'," says Ted Turnbull, a honey farmer from Elgin featured in Tick Tick Tock - Lyme Disease in Manitoba.
Blacklegged ticks, often as small as a pencil tip, infect an estimated 300,000 North Americans each year with Lyme. Early symptoms include chills, muscle aches and a distinctive bulls-eye rash where the tick bite occurred. Untreated, Lyme can lead to debilitating joint pain, paralysis and cardiac issues.
“I couldn’t breathe,” says Brynn Mayo, struck down in her teens by Lyme that was undiagnosed for several years and left her fighting for air and confined to a wheelchair.
“It progressed and got worse to things like full amnesia, where I don’t know my parents. I don’t know my home,” recalls Mayo, infected while living on the family farm near Mather MB.
Tick Tick Tock - Lyme Disease in Manitoba is produced and directed by Glen Kirby, a filmmaker and publisher of the Southwest Post.
"I wanted to increase awareness about Lyme," says Kirby. "The ticks are here, the disease is here and we need to protect ourselves."
The Manitoba Lyme Disease Support Group reports that many Lyme victims don't realize they are infected because the symptoms mimic other diseases. Accurate testing has also been problematic.
"You might get sick right away. You might have seen the tick. You might never see the tick. You might get sick three months from now because your immune system might be able to keep it down," says Jan Cmela, a Lyme victim and advocate. "It can be dormant in you. So, doctors aren't recognizing that some people who get sick in the middle of winter, or have been sick for years, could have Lyme."
Strong and fit from daily workouts and careful menu planning, Bryce Pettinger from Brandon suffered muscle twitching and partial paralysis traced to Lyme, despite initial testing that came back negative.
“I can’t compete in bodybuilding anymore,” explains Pettinger, showing the dozens of pills he was taking each day to combat Lyme and the side effects from treatment.
Not every tick carries Lyme and not every tick bite will transmit the disease but Manitoba Health says the highest risk period is May to July, when ticks are most active in grassy areas.
"Our data has shown that only 30 per cent of people recall getting a tick bite," says Dr. Richard Rusk, medical officer with Manitoba Health, "so you could potentially have this rash and these fevers and you're not really sure why."
Tick Tick Tock - Lyme Disease in Manitoba is being shown at theatres in Souris, Melita, Deloraine, Boissevain, Glenboro, Virden and Brandon.
Showtime is Thursday evening at the Derrick Theatre.
