In 2017 I got bit by a tick for the first time while working on a property in Dallas while working for a Lawn Service Company and had a reaction that was bad that I was hospitalized for two nights. I had significant swelling on my left temple and experienced pain worse than any injury I sustained playing football or doing anything else, I still remember the kid in the waiting room of the ER that had a stick completely impaled into his arm while riding a quad looking at me as I collapsed on the floor and saying “someone needs to help him first, he’s worse.” and then I rememberthinking “oh I guess this is that bad” before eventually only being able to think and quietly cry out “my brain hurts, help make it stop. Please make it stop.” They gave me a CT scan to see what damage the swelling caused and there was significant swelling in my nasal passages and the temporal area. Not exactly sure if the brain was actually swollen or not, they didn’t tell me or I don’t remember. I had no thought at all other than the experience of pain and wanting it to stop. They gave me an IV of steroids and antibiotics that helped bring the swelling down. After I was out of the hospital I completely lost feeling and motor function in the right side of my face, Bells Palsy, and when I went back to get that looked at they told me that “You may regain motor function in your face in 2 weeks or 6 weeks or you may never regain the ability to move your face.” I treated myself and I regained control and feeling in my face. I no longer test positive for Lyme disease but from what I understand it is a disease that I will never be cured of and it’s one that could eventually damage my brain and have unknown long term effects that could get worse with time, no doctor has explained it differently to me other than as long as you don’t test positive for it there’s less to worry about because I was able to get it diagnosed and treated within two days of getting bit. The ring around the bite mark didn’t show up for two days and I didn’t feel the tick bite me and I didn’t pull it off, I just felt sick while working and the ring appeared later. My primary care physician said that it could have been a mite that bit me and that tick mites can bite and feed on animals before fully maturing. He told me that getting Lyme disease the first time I got bit by a tick was like winning the lottery,