There are stages of Lyme. Local, early, and dissemated or late stage. Sometimes the early stage is called Acute. There are other books and info out that says there are four stages--I was considered four (neurolyme) I can't remember if each of them had a name or not. It depended how widespread your symptoms and how many there are of them.

At the onset, there is usually what they call an erythema migrans some say it only shows up about 50% of the times other say 85% within the first few days up to 10 days after the bite or removal. The symptoms usually are fatigue, fever usually low grade, stiffness of large joints (arthralgia or myalgia), headache, stiff neck,

Only about 5%, give or take depending where you get your info get it in a type of lymph form (lymphocytoma). It's more common in children than adults. It's like a tumorlike nodule that is usually found on ear lobe, nipple or scrotum. It looks like a dense lymph or dense tissue. It is said that it's hard to distinguish from lymphoma. You'll probably have to look into this further as I'm not being very technical. Oftentimes, a PCR is used to to assist in this diagnosis.

The symptoms can range from loss of hair, dizziness, palpitations, dyspnea, chest pain, syncope, peripheral neuropathy, intermittent joint swelling and pain, althalgias, migrating arthritis, chronic arthritis, usually the knees but other joints can be affected, fibromyalgia, and the other symptoms mentioned before.

In the Late stage or chronic Lyme it has been found that the central nervous system and peripheral nervous systems are affected. It is said the the Bb invades the nervous system early in the infection. Many of these people complain of headaches and migraines, stiff neck, experience meningitis; painful radiculitis numbness, tingling, burning; cranial neuritis, alone or a combo or all of these. That is why some people experience Bells Palsy(peripheral neuropathy). Some even experience ringing (tinnitus) , eye problems, i.e., pins and needles, light sensitivity, eye twitching, loss of vision, etc.

Other symptoms are short term memory loss, poor cognitive functions, loss of motor functions, inability to control bowel/urination, etc. There are so many because each person is different and their immune systems are different.

I myself have had a lot of the symptoms that I listed above. Your welcome to read my story on my profile page. Many of the young neighbor kids thought I was dying of cancer because I was so ill that I had the gray chalky pallor and lost quite a bit of my hair. Others thought I have aids.

The key is that the testing needs to improve greatly and early detection and diagnosis.

As far as the treatmen goes, well that IS a BIG can of worms. The IDSA and CDC say one thing while other more informed groups like the ILADS say another. I will let you go to there sites and check that out. Until this big controversy is resolved, many of us will still need to travel to other states and hours to get treated. Doctors are afraid to lose their licenses if they do not follow the IDSA and CDC guidelines. This is not a "one size fits all" illness. Until these groups and docstors get this resolves, many of us chronice Lyme or late stage Lymies will continue to suffer.

Good luck on your paper. This is a very BIG and controversial disease.

I forgot to mention that Lyme has been found in all 50 states.

Also, many times there are co-infections found w/Lyme, i.e, Ehrlichia, Babesiosis or Babesia, bartonella, which also accounts for many of the symptoms I listed already.

Hhmm...seems like if you are doing a research paper for school, you are going to have to be able to back up your research with a bibliography. In which case you're going to have to do alot of googling on here to find what you need so you have valid references. A couple days ago a guy posted from Canada that he was in second stage lyme and he had a link to an article on the different stages. If you could look through the posts here and find that, it woudl help you. Good luck!

im actually doing this just because i want to. im home schooled and i actually like doing big research papers, even though im dyslexic, funny ik lol thanks for all the info!!!!!!!!!!!!1

Here is a protocol list from Lyme Disease Foundation in CT:
1. unexplained fevers, sweats, chills, or flushing
2. unexplained weight change-loss or gain
3. fatigue, tiredness, poor stamina
4. unexplained hair loss
5. swollen glands
6. sore throat
7. testicular pain/ pelvic pain
8. unexplained menstrual irregularity/milk production
9. breast pain
10. irritable bladder or dysfunction of
11. sexual dysfunction or loss of libido
12. upset stomache or abdominal pain
13. change in bowel function, constipation, diarrhea
14. chest pain or rib soreness
15. shortness of breth, cough
16. heart palpitations, pulse skips, heart block
17. any history of a heart murmur or valve prolapse
18. joint pain or swelling
19. stiffness of the joints or back
20. muscle pain or cramps
21. twitching of the face or other muscles
22. headache
23. neck creaks and cracks, neck stiffness, neck pain
24. tingling, numbness, burning or stabbing sensations,
shooting pains, skin hypersensitivity
25. facial paralysis-Bell's Palsy
26. eyes/vision: double, blurry, increased floaters, light sensitivity
27. ears/hearing: buzzing, tingling, ear pain, sound sensitivity,
increased motion sickness, vertigo
28. lightheadedness, wooziness, unavoidable need to sit or lay down
29. tremor
30. confusion, difficulty thinking
31. difficulty with concentration, reading
32. forgetfulness, poor short term memory, poor attention,
problem with absorbing new information
33. disorientation: getting lost, going to wrong places
34. difficulty with speech or writing, word or name block
35. mood swings, irritability, depression
36. disturbed sleep-too much or too little, fractioned, early awakening
37. exaggerated symptoms or worse hangover from alcohol

I can add these I've experienced myself:
1. no face recognition
2. mummy feeling hands
3. drooping things or falling down out of nowhere
4. hypnogogic nightmares
5. alien hand
6. mini strokes/ petit mals
7. burning/ forgetting food
8. laundry doing itself without soap or clothes
9. Going into rooms and not remembering why three times in a row
10. calling your children by their wrong names for yrs
11. watching a movie and not remembering after that you even did
12. wanting to throw up every time you try to bend
13. extreme insomnia
14. head wont shut up/shut down
15. panic depression out of nowhere when happy
etc, etc, etc......

Hope this helps! I myself had/have all these at the same time! Varies little from day to day, until recently subsiding some due to proper treatment lately, and now there is hope of remissing again for me! I wont count my chickens before they hatch, cause once of of the abx, it can and will come back, sometimes fullblown and some say even some yrs inbetween! Good Luck!

P.S. CYSTS RUPTURING IN YOUR BODY or you feel like something is trying to eat its way out of your bones, oh, yeah, the athritis when you've been told you dont have osteoporosis or arthritis at all...thats a good one I forgot, Oops!
P.P.S. What about all the misdiagnoses!

Oops! 4-5 more w/ weird reasons for/no explanation....
1. PVC or unexplained heart problems, etc, like slowing down and stopping while asleep or awake
2. your kids getting it in-vitro from you
3. your pets giving it to you from their saliva or eating deer meat, or other insects having it, or water now.....
4. weird bruising, peteciae (red little dots of blood under skin trying to come up through it), or 20+ dif rashes from 3 dif co-infections

6.stupid diagnosis of pre-diabetes (after them telling you theres no way you have any type of) and then it mysteriously disappears when they do tell you you have full blown diabetes of some sort...
7. toes feeling like they are going to fall off, and without treatment eventually can!
Sorry, venting again too......