Ticked off

Thursday night the top of my left foot itched. Next day I wore mules to work. Saturday I noticed my #2 toe on my left foot was red and swollen. Got neosporin and sprayed it on several times. By Sunday when I went to Round Bay beach with my kids and grand kids, not only was the toe red and swollen, the top of my foot had what looked like a red rash. Megan and Dylan were insistent that I see a doctor immediately. Went to Righttime Medical and filled out forms to see a physicians assistant. He said it wasn't a tick bite that causes Lyme disease because wrong shape of rash. When he had me hop up on a table so he could inspect my toes, he said it WAS a tick. How can you be sure? I asked. He pointed to the sucker in between #2 and 3 toes. He had tenaciously held on despite my walking in sand and standing in river mud while playing with Tyler at Round Bay beach. After carefully removing the tick and sending it off to a lab, PA gave me 14-day supply of Doxyclycline 100mg (2/day) because my immune system is compromised. Have an appointment with my regular nurse pracitioner tomorrow morning to check it out; also e-mailed my oncology nurse to inform her. Luckily I'd gotten flea/tick preventer for dogs Saturday after they had been groomed on Friday. Hopefully, this will help keep ticks out of my bed in future.