It’s bad enough to get a tick bite. Not only is it gross to have a parasite feeding off you, but you’ve also got to vigilantly pay attention to the bite spot to make sure a Lyme disease rash (see these pictures) doesn’t form.
Some people experience another issue after bites: The tick bite itches like crazy. If you have an itchy tick bite and are worried that this is a sign of Lyme disease, here is what you need to know.
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Tick Bites Usually Don’t Itch…
If you’ve got an itchy tick bite, then it’s probably annoying that many major health websites say that tick bites don’t cause itchiness. EverydayHealth says, “Unlike the bites of mosquitoes and other insects, tick bites do not tend to cause itching or immediate skin irritation.” WebMD simply says that a tick bite “isn’t usually itchy” and Seattle Children’s Hospital bluntly states that “A tick bite does not cause pain or itch.”
Despite what these health websites say, itchy tick bites are common – especially if you get bit by ticks often.
What Causes Tick Bites to Itch?
Like with other parasites that feed on blood, ticks have chemicals in their saliva. The chemicals act as anesthetics and histamine blockers. Normally, these chemicals will prevent you from feeling any pain or itchiness so the tick can feed freely, but some people experience a reaction to the tick saliva which causes itchiness.
In some rare cases, an itchy tick bite is an allergic reaction to chemicals in the tick’s saliva. However, ticks have had millions of years to evolve their saliva to prevent reactions. Crazily, ticks actually adjust the chemicals in their saliva as they are attached, so your immune system (usually) won’t be able to detect them! ( 1, 2)
The More Frequently You Get Bit By Ticks, the More Likely It is to Itch
Here’s where things get really cool. If you get bit by ticks often, it’s more likely that your tick bites will itch.
After getting bit by a tick multiple times, your immune system starts to recognize proteins in the tick saliva. Even the tick’s cool trick of adjusting the chemicals won’t work anymore: Your body will realize that there’s a foreign invader in it and start mounting an immune response. That immune response can cause redness, inflammation and itchiness at the tick bite site. The clinical term for this is “acquired cutaneous hypersensitivity response.”
One study published in Emerging Infectious Disease (EID) found that the probability of itch doubled as the number of reported tick bites increased. After the first tick bite there was a 21% probability of itchiness. After the second bite, the probability increased to 46%. After the fourth tick bite, there was a 97% probability of experiencing itchiness!
Embedded Tick Heads Also Cause Itchiness
Another reason that your tick bite might itch is that the head broke off while you were removing it. Speaking from experience, a tick head stuck in your skin will cause inflammation and a lot of itchiness. If you see a little black dot in the wound, it’s probably the mouthparts. There’s no reason to panic. Here is how to remove a tick head stuck in your skin.
Is An Itchy Tick Bite a Sign of Lyme Disease?
If the bite site feels itchy immediately after removing the tick or in the days afterwards, there’s no need to worry: it is not a sign of Lyme disease. In fact, the study published in EID found that people who experienced itchiness after tick bite had a lower chance of Lyme disease. The researchers hypothesize that this is because ticks which cause itch will be noticed and removed sooner. The immune reaction which causes itchiness might also help prevent Lyme disease.
Important:
Having an itchy tick bite doesn’t mean you don’t have Lyme disease. It just isn’t a sign of Lyme. Tick bite itchiness is usually mild. If you have severe itchiness or it lasts for a long time, play it safe and call your doctor.
If you remove a tick within 24 hours of it biting, the chances of getting Lyme are very low – but you must remove the tick properly! I like these pointy tweezers shown below.
Also read:
What Can I Put on a Tick Bite to Stop It from Itching?
For itchy tick bites, I usually use an activated charcoal poultice. The activated charcoal (AC) pulls chemicals out of the skin. AC is very useful, so it’s something I always keep in my first aid kit anyway for things like upset stomach. You can buy it in bulk for pretty cheap here.
To make the poultice:
- Mix a equal parts of activated charcoal and flaxmeal in a cup. Add just enough water to get a gooey consistency. The flaxmeal is optional, but helps the poultice get a better constitency.
- Spread the mixture on a piece of gauze. Fold it into a little packet.
- Place the packet on the tick bite site.
- Wrap some plastic wrap around the packet. This will help the poultice stay in place and keep it from getting messy.
No activated charcoal? You can also use these remedies for an itcy tick bite:
- Broadleaf plantain poultice: Plantain is a weed which is probably growing in your yard right now. You just mash it up before using it in a poultice. Don’t use the plantain which looks like a banana. 🙂
- Lavender poultice: I haven’t tried this but a lot of people say it works for tick bites.
- Tea tree oil: Just put a few drops on bite site.
- OTC hydrocortisone creams
- Baking soda: Mix some with water to make a paste and apply over the tick bite site.
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Do tick bites make you itchy? What do you do about it? Let us know in the comments section below.
Other resource for this article:
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0091674920324131
Title image credit: “Tick bite wound” (CC BY-NC 2.0) by rosaamarilla
54 Comments
Marley
June 8, 2021 at 12:43 amHey
I just thought I would add my two cents, last summer I got bit by a tick. I was only itchy after I removed the tick. The area was faint red in the mornings and got more red as the day went on. I had to see three different doctors before I was started on antibiotics (being 35 weeks pregnant). I had the blood test done finally and was started on antibiotics 3 weeks after the bite. I did have lab confirmed Lyme disease from that tick bite and never developed the typical bulls eye rash and the bugger itched everyday till I started the antibiotics.
Diane
June 8, 2021 at 9:37 amThat’s particularly frustrating to get Lyme while pregnant! Glad you caught it early. Thanks for insight to your experiences. Anyone in doubt about whether the itching is serious should just get tested, if they are able to. It can take several weeks for blood tests to be positive though (as it was when I had Lyme).
Joy
June 23, 2023 at 10:42 amI got bit by a tick this morning while I was sleeping. I felt stinging on my arm, so I woke up and saw a tick on my arm.
I didn’t remove it safely either, I kind of freaked out and just tried to kill it as fast as possible.
I squished it, while it was still biting me and kept crushing it until it stopped moving.
The bite is kind of warm, and itchy.
I am afraid, and going to the ER soon
Diane
June 23, 2023 at 12:13 pmThere’s not really anything the ER can do at this point. If you saved the tick, you could have it tested for Lyme disease. If you don’t have the tick, then you just need to wait to see if symptoms appear. If you are really scared, then you could do a Lyme blood test in a few weeks regardless of whether you have any symptoms.
Marisa
June 8, 2021 at 1:03 pmThis past weekend, I kept feeling stinging in my groin/hip area. Finally I found a tick at the side seam of my underwear. It was not engorged but obviously tried to. I think it bit me injecting saliva several times and it is crazy itchy.
I really hope that it didn’t have time to inject any bugs.
Last year, I had no itchiness and not felt or seen a tick on me but got RMSF.
Wish I could use Frontline Plus on me:-)
Thanks for the article.
Diane
June 8, 2021 at 1:16 pmYou can’t use Frontline but you can spray your clothes with Permethrin (wrote about it here: https://momgoescamping.com/permethrin/). It works really well. When not in permethrin clothes, I tuck in ALL clothes (including my pant legs into my boots, which looks super nerdy) and only wearing light-colored clothes. I then can spot ticks pretty quickly before they have a chance to get to any skin.
Keep an eye out on the bite spot and good luck!
Emily
June 30, 2021 at 6:41 pmI have a tick bite that I removed less than 24 hours after it bit me, it’s head broke off so I had to dig it out. The area is a red bump and it itches and it’s oozing. It doesn’t hurt and isn’t hot but I’m so confused and worried. Any idea what is up?
Diane
July 1, 2021 at 8:36 amHey! I wrote about tick bites itching here (https://momgoescamping.com/tick-bite-itches/). It’s perfectly normal for a tick bite to itch and it definitely can get even itchier with the head inside your skin causing irritation. As for the oozing, if the ooze is colored or thick, that’s a sign of infection. Clear oozing can just be your skin reacting to the irritation. I have mosquito bites which ooze a bit of clear fluid sometimes when I scratch them too much. See these answers: https://www.quora.com/Whats-the-liquid-that-comes-out-when-you-squeeze-a-bug-bite
Medical disclaimer: I am not a doctor and this shouldn’t be construed as medical advice! If in doubt, see a doctor.
CD
September 1, 2021 at 2:12 amEverything itches to me. Doesn’t matter what darn thing bit me.
Itchiness is how always I find ticks. I swear I went to bed clean but then wake up the next day and feel a bump as I scratch an itch. Gotta run to grab the tweezers first thing in the morning.
Worst thing of all my bites continue to be itchy for absurd amounts of time. WIll talk to my doctor about this when I get the chance. DIdn’t have these issues as a kid but now a single mosquito bite can drive me borderline insane. Won’t notice how you get them but they’ll drive you mad not healing.
Diane
September 2, 2021 at 9:09 amI am also pretty sensitive to insect bites. I can’t control my itching with mosquito bites and often scratch until they are bleeding (which gets them to stop itching but leaves some scars!). Toothpaste is one of the few things that helps. I oddly find it more effective than anti-itch creams, which do next to nothing for me. Zeolite clay also helps a bit too. I feel for you!!
Cindy
July 11, 2022 at 4:04 amI think we must be related. I’m still itching from tick bites from 2 months ago. I ride horses and those dang deer flies get me too and I react crazy. Ugh
Ha! My kids call me CD
Tina Roller
September 1, 2021 at 7:37 amI got bit by a tick months ago. I had the tick removed. I had the bullseye rash. I took two weeks of antibiotics. The rash slowly faded. Now all of a sudden the same spot is insanely itchy again. Any clues why?
Diane
September 2, 2021 at 9:06 amThat is very weird. I would definitely check with a doctor in case it is some other infection. Lyme shouldn’t cause itchiness, so it isn’t likely that.
Ed
December 8, 2021 at 7:36 amGoing to the same here, got a tick bite in August, got a week of antibiotic and went away, now it come back and itches like crazy, and does have a sort of a pimple like in the spot. For what I read, it can itch for months even years if you are allergic or got too many tick bites, the more bites you get…the more itch you will have because your body start detecting more the tick saliva…they can change the chemistry of their saliva accordingly with the body they are attached to .
Anita
September 8, 2023 at 5:21 amHi everything you described happened to be. Did you end up getting checked? I don’t know if I should but it’s itchy again even after antibiotics
Diane
September 8, 2023 at 9:52 amMy bites usually stop itching after a few days (though some people’s bites itch for weeks). You were taking antibiotics because of confirmed Lyme disease? If it still itches and you know you had Lyme, I’d definitely follow up with your doctor!
Beth Concaugh
October 30, 2021 at 5:52 amI get crazy itching almost immediately after a tick attaches, so I tend to find them pretty quickly. I walk my dog in the woods in the late afternoon and will find them (even after checking the night before) attached in the shower the next morning. I Have had 4 so far this year alone. I have not yet tested positive, nor developed any symptoms in the past, but the bites have hung around and itched like crazy for up to 9 months!
Diane
November 1, 2021 at 11:51 am9 months? My bites sometimes itch for two weeks or so but never that long. I’d go crazy! 😀
Barbara
April 30, 2022 at 12:48 pmI have had a tick bite 3-4 years ago and it still itches me. It’s a spot on my back so I can’t look at it but it has driven me insane for a long freaking time. Thanks
Barbara
April 30, 2022 at 12:52 pmI recently found another tick in between my toes. I’m sure due to the size it was either what we call a deer or turkey tick. I have a huge blister since I removed it and it is swollen. I’ve been soaking it in apple cider vinegar and so far only itches for 2 days. The blister is still on it and it is oozing some clear liquid. If it’s not better by Monday I’ll head to see the doctor.
Joni
May 23, 2023 at 2:14 amI was bit 15 years ago and the Dr. didn’t get it all out and I’ve been itching like crazy every day in a place on my back that I can’t reach. Have you had any luck with anything to help??? I’m going crazy here!!!!
Diane
May 23, 2023 at 10:32 amIt sounds like you need to find a dermatologist to extract the parts which were left in your skin. I definitely don’t recommend cutting into your skin and digging it out yourself!
There are natural ways to extract things from your skin (various poultices, for example). But, if your body didn’t push the tick mouth parts out by now, it’s probably never going to come out on its own without professional extraction. :/
Julia
November 12, 2021 at 3:07 pmVery helpful post. Thank you! I have a suggestion for itching relief. It works on any skin irritation–poison ivy, mosquito bites, etc. The itching is caused by the histamine in the skin cells. If you immerse the affected area in hot water (as hot as you can stand) for about 10 minutes, the heat depletes the histamine from the cells, and it will take 10-12 hours for the histamine levels to replenish. So you will have relief for 10-12 hours. Then repeat the process. I currently have a tick bite on my abdomen that has been driving me crazy…soaked in a bathtub of hot water this morning…relief.
Diane
November 16, 2021 at 10:08 amCool tip — thanks. I’ll have to try that the next time I get a tick bite.
ed
December 8, 2021 at 7:40 amfunny, for me…the heat causes more itch, a bag of ice calms it down
Luke
January 6, 2022 at 2:25 amNeat article… I’ve been bitten more times than I ever care to think about lol. Recently I started trying to not get bit.. and went and got tested because I was sure after thousands of bites… I had to have lymes. To my surprise… I didn’t. What was interesting about the article is I typically notice I’ve been bitten right away… within minutes not hours.. I wonder if that’s because they can’t trick my system anymore lol.
Diane
January 6, 2022 at 2:16 pmI also found that I notice them pretty quickly now. I don’t know if it’s because they can’t trick my system, or if I have actually learned to feel them on me. It’s subtle but I can sometimes can feel them before they’ve bitten. Though, as soon as I find one tick on me, I freak out and feel like something is crawling over me for hours. The same thing happens after get spiders on me too.
Catherine Madrid
March 4, 2022 at 11:23 amMy first tick bite was about 14 years ago was on my butt cheek I removed it not really sure if I got it all since I can’t see that area. About 3 or 4 years later I scratched the tick bite area and my entire stomach broke out in welts. This happened three or four times. Been few more years down the road I had a tick bite on my head and it took as well as everyone after that months to heal I lost Tufts of hair from the area and by the time they’re healed they look like cigarette Burns in my skin. About a year after the one on my head I got one of my leg. One night I scratched my head where the tick bite was and my leg broke out in welts. Then I got five or six of them all over my midsection and just last night I discovered one of them was huge dime size welt within 5 minutes it turned into a quarter size welt and then I saw a tiny little red bump starting itch under my skin and that turned into a dime size welt. I know it was the tick bites because of the cigarette burn scar that is left on me when they finally heal the healing process takes so long and they ooze an itch and it is horrible. And yes I too can feel a tick bite immediately. I’m very happy to be found this article because people think I’m crazy. But noticing that the welts and itches move to directly my last two bites and seem to cancel out the other ones as far as itching and welts it is very strange but I don’t have symptoms of Lyme disease.
Diane
March 4, 2022 at 2:18 pmGeez — that is insane! Sorry you have to deal with people thinking you are crazy. 🙁 I wonder if the tick was stuck in your butt for all 3 years? Butt skin is pretty thick, so scratching could have caused it to finally get into your bloodstream and cause a reaction.
I would check out this research paper which goes over some of the rashes (has nasty pictures too) that occur from ticks. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0365059620304062
You might have a non-Lyme infection that could cause you serious problems later on. Hopefully it is just an insane immune response which is causing your welts, but you still should probably be tested (disclaimer that I’m not a doctor).
Btw, it sounds like you need to invest in some permethrin for your clothes to get the little f-ers to stay off of you. And maybe carry tweezers around with you so you can get them off before their saliva is in your blood.
Bec
June 21, 2023 at 3:53 pmNext time you get a tick bite, follow the poultice advice. The charcoal or plantain weed literally pulls toxins out! It’ll probably speed healing and reduce reactions, too!
I’ve been bitten uncountable amounts of times, and I recently developed dramatic reactions to ticks, spiders etc. Good article. Thanks! I’ll be buying the book, too. Sounds great!
Tyler
April 5, 2022 at 1:17 pmOh wow, I’ve been googling like crazy and hadn’t found anything like this til now. I had one bite nearly a year ago on the back of my ear lobe, and it has never stopped itching, being red, and oozing clear. It’s usually only itchy at night. Driving me insane!
Diane
April 7, 2022 at 10:46 amThat’s really strange that it would itch that long. Maybe the tick’s head is stuck in there. Can you see a tiny black dot at the site? Ears have tough cartilage and other crunchy tissue. If the tick head is still in there, the skin might not push it out like it (eventually) will in other parts of the body.
Carol
April 6, 2022 at 11:11 amI was able to remove the tick that was just embedding itself yesterday. I actually felt the bite! Ouch! I got rid of the tick easily enough but yes- the bite is swollen and red and very itchy. Using tea tree oil on it after the initial dab of oregano and taking my lyme blend tintures. I did have Lyme disease a couple years ago and spent a year on a special AIP diet and other supplements to rid it- so I’m very cautious about ticks. Yes- they definitely itch for those of us sensitive to insect bites. My mosquito bites well up to the size of quarters and ooze too so that’s the way it goes with some.
Pam
April 7, 2022 at 11:42 amI tested positive for Lyme disease 4 years ago and have been working hard to heal from it with some definite progress.
Then 4 days ago while working in the yard I noted about 2 hrs afterwards that something felt odd on the outer side of my hand,,, I immediately swiped/scraped it off. Since then it has been red with a hole in it but it diminishes each day. I am so torn with whether to take the early abx treatment just in case which I wasn’t able to when I got it 4 years ago. (Had no awareness of Lyme possibilities at that point.)
Carol- curious what the AIP diet is and what supplements you took?!
Diane
April 7, 2022 at 3:48 pmAIP diet basically involves almost no carbohydrates. It helps treat Lyme disease because many “bad” bacteria (including Lyme bacteria) feed on sugars. So, cutting out carbs will help starve Lyme. It’s defintely not a substitute for antibiotics though! Another benefit of AIP is that it helps offset side effects of antiobiotics. You probably know that antibiotics also kill the “good” bacteria in our bodies. Since those “good” bacteria help keep the bad ones in check, you can end up with yeast infections, SIBO, IBS, psoriasis, autoimmune issues, etc. from taking antibiotics. Basically, cutting out the carbs ensures your good bacteria are able to repopulate and stay in balance with the bad ones despite the antibiotics. There are lots of gut-friendly supplements you can take. I was on very good quality probiotics when I had Lyme and was taking antibiotics. there are plenty of natural plants which support healthy gut bacteria too.
*Carol — feel free to add to this! 🙂
Brenda
April 29, 2022 at 7:30 pmI have a dog that goes in the woods a lot but I usually have to check her and this year these ticks I’ve seen are not much bigger than a flea and are very hard sometimes to get off my dog I have had 4 on me so far this year and I have scars where they have itch so bad from last year I hate these things but my dog sleep with me so that’s how I’m getting them on me but anyone who says they don’t itch are crazy everyone I have ever had on me has itched so bad but it does help if you get a really how shower it helps with itch just wondering why these ticks are so small this year 🙂
Diane
May 2, 2022 at 8:04 pmIt’s because ticks are still nymphs (babies) in early spring. They will get bigger! In the nymph stage, they are often in trees and not in tall grasses. They fall from the trees onto your body as you hike through tree areas. They suck and are soooo annoying to remove. You’ll need some good needle-nose tweezers. I use ones for ingrown hairs and they work well on nymph ticks.
Angela
May 2, 2022 at 12:24 pmI had a tick bite me on my small toe, underneath. I don’t know where I got the tick from must have hitch hiked with my dogs. It was super itchy while attached and painful. Now I have a bump on outside of toe, joint pain and the itching is unbelievable. How can I stop this?
Diane
May 2, 2022 at 8:01 pmThe itching isn’t something to worry about, but joint pain is a bad sign. I’d get tested for Lyme!
Gwendolyn Stone
May 17, 2022 at 1:21 amI have a lot of experience with tick bites and itchy welts! I haven’t seen anyone here mention the STARI rash. (https://www.cdc.gov/stari/index.html) It often blisters in the middle and oozes a clear liquid. I’ve been getting these this year now about 8x. These are from Lone Star ticks (adults or nymphs). A huge blister forms and then makes a wound. This lasts for weeks on me (and itches for longer). I went to a DR and he said it’s just an immune response but I think it’s the histamines. I have a lot of allergies.
Diane
May 17, 2022 at 11:34 amThanks for bringing that up. I’ve been meaning to make a post with pictures of common tick bite rashes that aren’t Lyme. There’s an insane amount of diseases that ticks can carry though – it’s definitely a bit scary and makes it hard not to freak out after getting a tick bite (which, for my family, is a fairly regular occurance!). :/
Sarah
May 24, 2022 at 4:56 pmThanks so much for this info. I got a bug bite on my wrist a few days ago while I was doing some yard work. It initially seemed like a normal mosquito bite, I never saw the insect and there was no discernible bite wound, just a typical raised itchy welt. The bite calmed down for a couple of days but then flared up yesterday and became way more itchy, and now this morning I have a developing bullseye. It’s unfortunate that so many reputable web sites tell people that tick bites aren’t itchy or that no bite causes a bullseye rash except a tick bite. If I was bitten by a tick then my tick bite IS itchy, very itchy. And if it wasn’t a tick then something else caused the bullseye. Either way the info on those web sites isn’t accurate and they should clean up their language. I don’t object to them saying “usually” (e.g., “tick bites usually aren’t itchy”) but they should add a note for the other case as well (e.g., “but sometimes they are”). It makes me wonder how many tick bite victims did not seek medical attention because their bites were itchy, and now they have full-blown Lyme disease. Thanks again for the info!
Diane
May 24, 2022 at 7:22 pmGlad you found the info helpful 😀 I hope the rash doesn’t end up being Lyme (my daughter once had a mosquito bite which ended up looking exactly like a Lyme bullseye – but do see a doctor, Lyme is serious!). If it does end up being Lyme, find yourself some good probiotics and lay off sugar/carbs during the antibiotic treatment and it should go over smoothly.
Ashley
May 25, 2022 at 3:27 pmJust thought I’d share my 6 year olds experience with Lyme.
She was bitten by a nymph and we very promptly removed it (maybe only 2 hours on her). We get ticks all the time so we did our usual ‘wait and watch’. She didn’t develop any of the first stage symptoms of Lyme. No flew like symptoms; no rash; no headaches. About 1 month after the bite she started to develop second stage Lyme symptoms including Bells Palsy in her face and trouble focusing. She was prescribed 3 weeks of antibiotics and is completely Lyme free today.
Ticks and Lyme are scary but we know a lot more than we used to about the disease and it is very treatable.
Diane
May 26, 2022 at 9:23 amGlad your kid is okay! Thanks for sharing — it’s a good reminder that a lot of people don’t have any stage one symptoms
Nikki Capone
June 8, 2022 at 1:14 pmWhen my 2 year old nephew had no reaction to being bit, yet I’m in itchy agony for weeks, I thought something was seriously wrong with me. Knowing that itch comes with age and exposure has really helped to ease my mind, thank you 👍
Cindy
July 11, 2022 at 4:23 amWe bought some acreage and it is infested with ticks. Last year we were poking around and I picked up a turkey feather and put it in my pocket. Then I took it out after a while deciding not to keep it. About an hour later I just knew something was crawling on me as we drove home. Finally I saw some black specks moving on me. They were the size of a piece of dirt. Almost invisibly small. They were all over my leg and stomach on the side where that pocket was that I put the feather in. My husband had to use duct tape to get them off. Some were already imbedded and had to be tweezed out. It was insane. We took a marker and pin pointed each bite the next day counting 107 bites on my leg and a few other places. Those bites itched like fire. I used Benadryl cream and lidocaine cream every day for a couple of weeks.
Now this year I’ve been bitten 7 times. One has been 3 months ago and I thought it was gone but out of nowhere it just started itching like fire. Then pretty soon the other old bites from 2 months ago started itching again. I just got my most recent bite from 2 weeks ago to calm down- that bite might have been a mosquito or who knows but my arm muscle swelled up and the itching was insane. Again, Benadryl and lidocaine.
How am I going to make it? I love being in the woods either hiking or horseback riding or clearing trails.
I’ve started taking garlic pills. Hey, if it works for vampires 🤷🏼♀️ I also got the stuff you spray on your clothes.
I wish there was a way to get rid of them.
Diane
July 11, 2022 at 9:27 amIt is possible to control ticks on your property. It’s obviously a big challenge on large acreage – but even a lot of National and State parks are successful doing it. Basically, MICE are the main problem. The ticks feed off of mice. One solution is to use permethrin tubes to kill the ticks which are on mice (read about that here https://momgoescamping.com/tick-tubes/). There are also chemical sprays you can apply to your entire property to kill ticks. My neighbors next to my cabin do that.
When hiking, you probably need to go hardcore on the prevention methods: only wear LIGHT clothes so you can see them before they bite, tuck your pants into your socks (super dorky but it works)… Check out this post for ideas: https://momgoescamping.com/natural-tick-prevention/
You can also apply permethrin to your clothes (read: https://momgoescamping.com/permethrin/). That definitely keeps ticks away, but it is pricy long-term.
Hope that helps!
Evelyn
August 17, 2022 at 4:55 pmMine and my kids are incredibly itchy from tick bites. My husband says before me he never met anyone who had itchy blisters from tick bites. Funny though, the couple of times i had tick bites before i met him they didn’t itch either. I have definitely had them develop that black spot from itching the blister even when i know for sure i got the whole tick out. I have found that Redmond clay applied to the bite helps, as well as homeopathic ledum, apis and/or rhus tox.
Diane
August 18, 2022 at 9:18 amYou aren’t the only one who gets tick bite blisters. They likely form because of a reaction to the tick’s saliva or from fragments of the mouthparts left in the skin. There surprisingly isn’t much research on it though. And good tip about the Redmond clay! 🙂
Kayleigh
September 18, 2023 at 4:42 amCan one tick bite multiple places? Also, why am I severely itchy all over in random places if I only had one tick to remove? Is it possible to be itchy where I wasn’t bitten?
Diane
September 18, 2023 at 3:08 pmIt’s possible for the same tick to bite multiple times, but ticks usually bite just once and hang on for approx. 3 days. However, I’ve heard of people feeling itchy all over their body from a single tick bite — it’s basically the immune system going crazy as a response to the bite. If you have a rash all over your body though, then you should definitely worry. That could be a sign of rocky mountain spotted fever (don’t worry if you have itching and no rash though!)
Side note: In the past (before I got used to them), every time I took a tick off of me, I’d get a feeling like somethiing was crawling all over my skin. The same thing would happen after walking into spiderwebs while hiking. Basically, my brain would freak out and create symptoms. I’m not trying to imply that your itchiness is in your head – but it is definitely normal to have weird feelings after dealing with something gross like ticks. 🙂
Peter
March 26, 2023 at 5:17 pmMy small tip, when you realize you’ve got a tick on you, pull it out in whichever way you think best, but when you’ve got it, take the time to see if it’s still alive, at least if it’s still alive you know it has’t left its head in you. Also you can see if it’s full of blood, that gives some idea how long it’s been attached to you.
And yes, my bites itch for months after.
Rosemary Huebner
August 20, 2023 at 6:17 pmDo be very careful using permethrin spray on clothes to keep ticks at bay. When spraying definitely use gloves and wear a mask. My doctor sates that this chemical spray can get into the bloodstream from applying on the skin and cause blood cancer.