I went to a week long night camp and came back and found a tick on my left hip. The longest it could have been there is 1 1/2 days. It was really really grey and tiny and I had a family member take it out w/ tweezers and my dad was sure it was all out. There was no redness, but the day after it started to get red around it and a few days later it was itchy and the redness spread. About 3 weeks later it started peeling and it still is now. The circle of redness is about 4 inches in diameter, and looks sorta like sunburn and peels like sunburn. It doesn’t look like a bullseye rash either. It itches just a little bit and I have been putting hydrocortisone and neosporin on it. Do you think I am allergic to tick bites or what? Should I go to the doctor?

I haven’t had any lyme-disease symptoms but it is hard to tell for joint soreness because I have mild juvenile arthritis. I feel fine otherwise. I take multiple medications for that and I have been on antibiotics for an infected ingrown toenail, but I am off of it tomorrow.

I have been to more doctors than I can count and have decided to post a question here to see if anyone recognizes what I describe. Approximately 9 years ago, I noticed a decreased ability to squeeze the shampoo bottle, do anything strenuous with my left hand. I am a left handed individual. I began to experience pain and swelling in my left forearm (it was visibly swollen and had redness where the swelling was). I went to my PCP and he referred me to an orthopedist. The orthopedist tested me for MS, lyme disease, and Sleep Apnea. We had the nerve conduction test on my arm and hands. All negative. He referred me to a muscular specialist, neurologist, and hematologist. All tests came up negative for any known disorder. The hematologist suggested it was a psychosomatic illness. This happened over the course of a year and a half. By that time, my left arm, leg, and calf had swollen and eventually had atrophy. My left hand is is in a permanent claw like state from the compression on the tendons in my arm. When the "illness" is at its worst, I get muscle spasms on both sides of my face. I have the appearance of very slight palsy on my right side from the "contractions" I would have in my face. My speech gets affected as well. Extremes of any temperature affect it also.

I have been taking Skelaxin for all these years. In 2003, my right side started to manifest the same symptoms as my left side. The welling had travelled to my thighs and bicep on my left arm and started swelling in my right forearm. This was when I began to suspect an autoimmune disorder. I went BACK to my PCP and asked him to re-look at all my symptoms and see what we could find. We went thru all kinds of tests again and the only thing we came up with was that I have psoriatic arthritis — which is not related to this disorder. He has been patient and kind with me. I asked him if he thought it was a psychological illness of some kind and he emphatically disagreed with that concept. I saw the top neurologist and muscular specialist @ YAle New Haven Medical Center. They have chalked it up to being an autoimmune disorder of some kind and he just doesn’t know what it is. When I became pregnant last July, I was concerned that going off meds would make my muscles work. He said it would be one more way to confirm this was indeed autoimmune. According to him, autoimune disorders take a leave of absence most times during the pregnancy, but come back with a vengeance post delivery. He was correct. My son is now 8 months old and I have serious concerns about how long I can go on like this. I have fallen twice with him — once while he was in the carrier and recently while he was in my arms.

I know this is lengthy, but if you recognize these symptoms or know of someone I can see, I’d greatly appreciate it

Starting when I was about 12 years old, I have occasionally had bouts with a strange, unidentified illness. It starts with a little bit of stiffness in the mornings, and progresses over a period of days until the joints are VERY swollen and aching in the mornings, along with a raised, reddish colored rash over each of the affected joints. The raised welts fade down as the day progresses, but the redness and itchiness over the joints remains, along with stiffness and joint pain. Each morning, the joint pain, stiffness, and rash over the joints is worse than the day before.
It usually starts with the knuckles and wrists of both hands, and progresses to include the elbows, ankles, toes, knees, and even the jaw. Each time the illness has presented, I have seen a doctor who has been completely mystified. I am usually prescribed an anti-inflammatory medicine of some variety to alleviate the symptoms. Once I take a few doses, all symptoms disappear. After the first onset, the length of time between symptoms has been longer each time. As a teenager, it would be a few months apart, and as I got older, more and more years pass between symptoms appearing. The only symptoms are the joint pain and raised welts over the joints – no fever or pain anywhere else.

Due to the fact that the symptoms are the worst when I first wake up and fade some during the day, along with the fact that all symptoms disappear once I take any medications to alleviate the pain and itching, no one has been able to diagnose it. When there are no symptoms, doctors can’t find a thing wrong with me. Does anyone have any idea what this could be?

(I am familiar with lupus, lyme disease, rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, etc. Doctors have all told me that my symptoms are atypical for those diseases.)
A point of clarification – I haven’t had a flare up with this in years, so I’m not looking for a way to treat it. I just want to know what it could be, or if anyone else has experienced the same symptoms. A number of doctors and specialists have told me they’ve never seen anything like it.

I have had severe joint pain and fatigue(along with other symptoms) for two years now. i feel like NO ONE is listening to me. I think i have an auto immune disorder that no one has diagnosed yet. I have high WBC counts, very high C-reactive protein levels, and very high sed rates. my ANA was negative, lyme disease neg, celiac disease neg, sjorgens syndrome neg, rheumatoid arthritis neg….I do have a strong family history of psoriasis and arthritis though. does anyone know about psoriatic arthritis? or have any other ideas about other auto immune disorders that i might have? i saw a rheumatologist and was treated horribly. i am never going back. i feel like the doctors are missing something. i would be eternally grateful if someone in the medical field could help me with this. thank you

I’m a 22 years old male.

Two months ago some of my joints started cracking and hurting, and now it had spread to nearly all of my joints.

There is no swelling, redness or tenderness.

There’s pain and cracking.

Is there anyone here that had had Arthritis in such an early stage of his life?

Thanks!
Its not Lyme disease and not Fibromyalgia, thats for sure.

All of my joints are cracking.

My knees and wrists hurt most of the day when I exerts them.

There pain in other joins, but its less dominant.