JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Diseases spread by ticks and mosquitoes are on the rise, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Rebecca Downey said her son hasn’t been the same since last fall.
“It was terrifying. We had no idea what was happening," she said.
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According to the local mom, prescribed treatment for 6-year-old Charlie’s gastrointestinal issues seemed to make things worse.
She told Action News Jax: “The symptoms exploded. After that, he started wetting the bed, he had huge, swollen lymph nodes in his neck, he has an enlarged thyroid. He started having seizures.”
Several doctors later, he was diagnosed with Lyme disease.
MORE: Jacksonville family shares daughter's 9 month diagnosis of rare disease | University researchers find ways to battle Lyme disease in Florida
Downey and her 9-year-old daughter, Norah, have also tested positive.
“How is this not on the radar of every doctor in America? It’s not, and it’s being missed, and people are suffering, and they’re getting sicker,” she said.
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The CDC warned that diseases linked to ticks and mosquitoes have tripled since 2004.
Data from Quest Diagnostics showed Florida with the largest increase in people testing positive for Lyme disease from 2016-17.
Downey said: “I did not do tick prevention before. Like I said, it was not on my radar. We aren’t campers, we don’t hunt, we don’t spend a whole lot of time outside.”
She said her goal is to make sure every family knows the danger.
Cox Media Group
