By Ox Drover
As an advanced practice nurse, one of the things I did here in the rural area where parasites are common was warn people about the many diseases, several of them potentially fatal, caused by a common parasite, the tick.
Here on LoveFraud we often refer to psychopaths as “parasites” because, like a common blood-sucking tick, they feed off of a host, without giving any benefit to the host, or giving any more thought to the damage they do to the host than a common tick does as he burrows into your flesh.
In the warmer months of the year, the tick searches for anything that is warm and moves and can actually leap small distances to latch on to the host. They like to burrow into the skin in a “tight spot,” like under your waistband or some other hidden area. Frequently, too, they will actually group up in one spot on the host, and when you detach the biggest tick on top, you will find several other smaller ones hidden beneath who are also sucking blood from the same spot.
Parasites, just like the psychopath, take without giving. Sometimes the parasites actually do give you something, but it is usually in the form of some noxious, toxic and potentially fatal or debilitating disease. In the case of ticks, one of the more common diseases they pass on is Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, which is a disease caused not by their bite, but by an infectious agent in their feces which can actually pass through intact skin. A few days after the tick has either dropped off voluntarily, sated with the host’s blood, or been pulled off, frequently leaving behind both feces and mouth parts imbedded in the skin, the host will start to feel ill and run a fever. People with RMSF usually break out in a rash that resembles measles. Frequently the host doesn’t even realize what has happened, and may not actually remember being bitten by a tick. With prompt treatment, 93 percent of the victims will live, but without treatment, as many as 20 percent of the victims will die of either the disease itself or complications induced by the illness.
My bout with Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever
A couple of summers ago, I noticed that I wasn’t feeling well. It was during the worst of the fear and chaos of my experience with a multitude of psychopaths all at once, so I wasn’t thinking really clearly in any case. I attributed my “feeling bad” to the stress I was under for a couple of months until I became so weak I could not even climb a flight of stairs or stand up long enough to wash a small sink full of dishes by hand. I had noticed a tick bite, one that had been on me for at least 24, and probably 36 hours, before I noticed it and removed it.
When I became so ill that I literally was as “weak as a kitten” I finally decided to put a thermometer in my mouth and found I had a fever of 101 degrees, so I called my physician. He drew blood after I had reported to him the tick bite a couple of months before, and sure enough, I had Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, though I had not broken out in the usual rash. I was so ill however, that my physician scheduled a battery of other tests and an appointment is a blood specialist and an infectious disease specialist. It took me almost a year to regain my strength and to start to feel better, but fortunately I ended up not having any lasting effects from the disease.
Remove the parasite promptly
Like ticks, psychopaths usually take a little time to not only suck your blood, but to transmit disease. If ticks are removed promptly, even if they have bitten you, there is little likelihood that they will infect you with something fatal. If they have time to deeply burrow into your skin, the longer they are there, the greater the likelihood that they will leave something behind that will cause problems for you. It may only be a painful, red, itching lesion that seems to drive you crazy with wanting to scratch to the bone, or it may be a disease that will land you in the ICU or the morgue, or cripple you with arthritis later on, like Lymes.
Not all diseases passed on to humans or other mammals by ticks and other parasites are as easily identifiable as RMSF. Some diseases that are potentially fatal have no reliable blood test to indicate that they are present. The person feels bad, but there is no objective symptom that can be identified either by the victim or the medical practitioner until great damage has occurred. These occult (unidentified) diseases may go undetected for months or years, doing their damage to the victim that is irreversible.
The psychopath and the tick
There is so much similarity between the psychopath and the tick, as well as other parasites. They burrow into our flesh and almost, in some cases, become part of us, while they suck our blood, and infect us with their toxic waste. They may not even appear to be so evil. “It’s just a bug bite, get over it,” our friends and family may say. Though we may become very ill from our even short association with these creatures, the illness may not be apparent to the naked eye like, say, a broken leg would be. We may struggle with the itch, the fever, the weakness, and the general debility left behind and not even realize that we have been infected with pathogens that can ruin or end our lives.
In addition to ticks attaching to us as we walk through grass or brush, ticks may also latch on to our pets or other family members, and thus gain entrance into our homes and lives by hitching a ride on our friends and pets. The tick may not even attack the pet or family member, but instead jump off on to our skin for his blood meal, using the intermediary only for transportation to get to us.
Look out for parasites
As I told the patients in my clinic, you need to be on the look out for ticks. If you or any member of your family, or pets, go anywhere in the summer time where there is grass, you should do a complete daily check for ticks, and carefully remove any that you find. Immediately wash the area and mark the date on the calendar, so that you can be on the look out for any sign of disease from even a short association with these creatures. If the symptoms of any kind of disease show up, seek medical attention immediately.
I think that same advice is useful for people who don’t live on a desert island alone, but live in the real world in which they may encounter psychopaths. I suggest that we all do a daily check of our lives to see if anyone we are dealing with even looks or acts at all like a parasite. If we see a parasite, quickly remove that parasite from our life. Wash all traces of them off of us. Then keep our eyes open for any covert damage that they have done to our life so that we can seek proper treatment as soon as possible.
Read two articles of LoveFraud, and call me in the morning!
Done,
“I wonder if the family members have found any literature on Ps or if they are still struggling to try to understand it.”
Good question~
Yes, It makes me sick to watch it!
Being a Christian it hurt to the core whenever a manipulator will use the church and Christ’s teaching to get away with a crime.
Guess it workd on the jury because he only got the min sentence plus it took so many years just to get this one to trail.
Yeah, I was surprised they even convicted him…it sounded like they were really falling for his ‘charm’. And yeah, in my book it is in the same category as crimes on children/animals when someone takes advantage of someone’s faith.
Y’know friends,
Sometimes when I see people fouling up their lives, I want to scream with fury. WTF are you thinking?!
Jeff Foxworthy has his “There’s your sign!” series of jokes about how to identify a redneck. They’re cute. I’m a redneck, and I don’t mind. They’re funny.
W oughtta have a “There’s your sign!” series of jokes about sociopaths and other cluster Bs.
I gotta say ladies, that if you’re a married mother with several children having an affair with a married man who also has kids, and he says “I love you and want to continue messing with your emotions and ruining your reputation, but I’m planning on staying with my wife whom I don’t love and and frankly enjoy humiliating with our affair, because if I leave her she’ll get sole custody of our children.” “THERE’S YOUR SIGN!!!”
Further, if he delivers this bombshell after you’ve already confessed the affair to your husband and explained that you’re running off with him, then “THERE’S YOUR SECOND SIGN!!!”
If you do not go “no contact” with this person and work your arse off to repair your marriage, then you’re a blankety-blankety-blankety-blankety…
…much profanity later – DRAMA ADDICT. You don’t want me to fill in the blanks.
Will one of you mental health professionals please explain to me why women do this sort of thing to themselves? I need some insight into this personality type.
I’ve got one of these silly broads crying on my husband’s shoulder at work, and it makes me nervous. I hope she realizes that I’m not as understanding as the other man’s wife. I hate dysfunctional drama with a grim, intolerant passion, but an ax murder can be good exercise.
ROTFLMAO!! Elizabeth that is a fantastic post. I cant wait to read the responses! 😀 xx
Elizabeth Conley-“I hate dysfunctional drama with a grim, intolerant passion”
I feel your pain. I got a phone call from an acquaintance (not a close friend) about a month ago…sitting in a lawyer’s outer office…her husband filed for divorce after 20 years of marriage. She told me a brief synopsis of his “affairs”, lies, and “hiding money”. Then…”I’ll call you back later.”
So, a few days ago, I’m sitting at a light…a horn honks behind me…she leans out the window…”I’m going to call you!”
I checked the computer while at the courthouse in early May…the only “fact” I know is he filed for divorce. Third hand, I have heard accounts of his telling people of her “affairs” and drinking.
So why pick on me? Am I supposed to expend energy to figure out if there is a smear campaign and a valid “side to the story”?
I’ve had my fill of drama. That’s why I no longer go to a local website I’ve termed “Narcissist Theatre” where I first became acquainted with this couple.
I can’t help them.
“Will one of you mental health professionals please explain to me why women do this sort of thing to themselves? I need some insight into this personality type.”-Elizabeth Conley.
Oh, and then there was one of my ex-tox’s best friends…we’re talking in the school parking lot a year or more ago, and she starts to tell me her husband will be out of town this weekend and she needs to “go out and have some fun”? Well, I looked at my watch…oops, “gotta go!”
I guess what I hear is “I want to feel loved”. That’s what my ex-tox said, devaluing and discarding me, anyway.
Not my job.
Can’t save the world.
Elizabeth…let me know if the professionals have an answer.
Dear EC and Jim,
I’m a retired professional, but that doesn’t mean I “Know MORE answers” it just means that I have more QUESTIONS.
MY OPINION is that to a great many people “real life” is BORRRRRING. There is an “old chinese curse” which goes “May you live in INTERESTING TIMES.”
War is “interesting”
Drama and homicide are “interesting”
Cancer is “interesting”
infidelity is “interesting”
Stirring up trouble is “interesting”
etc.
Why do you think Greek tragedy is “interesting” or why do so many people watch SOAP OPERAS, or Jerry Springer, or the nightly “news?” Or Crime TV? Or why do people “gossip”? Because it takes the BORING daily stuff to the back burner and something exciting and “interesting” to get our adrenaline flowing and “perk us up.” Give us something to think about or do that gives us some kind of “emotional reward” either positive or negative.
Beating your wife gets teh juices flowing, but BEING beaten also gets the juices flowing and gives you some excitement.
Mankind’s ability to stir up trouble and keep life “interesting” is well recorded in history. It isn’t like we don’t have enough troubles in this earthly life like plague, cancer, hurricaines, tornadoes, floods, etc., without man-made trouble like wars, murder, infidelity, etc.
We’re here in this site because there was an abuse of our lives in some way by someone(s) who had a personality disorder…we are also here because we didn’t fully “get it” about what was going on, and we didn’t get the heck away from these people after the FIRST time they did something to “show their colors” (even the first TINY sign they weren’t what we thought they were.) Some of us were programmed from childhood to accept this “less than stellar” treatment as “normal” so that we didn’t spot it as “abnormal” or even entirely “undesirable.”
Abusers can’t be abusers without victims. Victims can’t be victims without abusers.
At least NOW we have decided we don’t want to be victims, and we have extricated ourselves from the abusive relationships and the abusive people to the extent that we can do so (my prayers for those that have to co-parent with these monsters and others who can’t fully extricate thermselves yet for one reason or another).
ALL abusers I think are “dysfunctional” and some of us victims are not as functional as we should be, just in a different way are we dysfunctional than they are. We are TOO CARING, among other things, and sometimes also WE are addicted to the “feel good” chemicals our brains put out by associating with the psychopaths and get “hooked” into the addiction just like a coke addict or an alcoholic. We KNOW it is bad for us but we fight the addiction and lose because the high (though never as good as it was at first) is soooo good, even if we must pay with the painful lowwwwwwws.
I’m beginning to think that more people than not are living lives of “quiet desperation” and that a good many of the people we meet who appear to be “doing fine” are really NOT doing all that “fine”–they’ve either got a kid or a brother-in-law, or a nephew or someone in their circle who is a Psychopath or close enough to call it “adequate for government work” that is keeping their lives stirred up and somewhat in chaos.
The more well-to-do people just live in “better housing” to do their “drama” than the crack addicts and the street walkers, but it is all the same “dramarama.”
I’m watching a DVD series from BBC America called HOUSE OF CARDS, about a psychopath played wonderfully by Ian Richardson, who was a British politician who wanted to become Prime Minster, I’m only half way through all of the shows and he has already covertly destroyed the lives of half the cabinet in order to make himself PM, but has murdered two people as well, in his quest for POWER. He is now out to bring down the monarchy because the “king” is interfeering with his POWER and control by wanting to take care of the British PEOPLE instead of line the pockets of the rich. His wife has complete knowledge of his behavior and apparently approves of it, including his two (so far) affairs with other women. The woman he is currently (as far as I have watched) is also apparently a psychopath too, so I am interested to see how this series plays out. I love British television! I highly recommend this series if you haven’t seen it. It is pure PSYCHOPATHS AT WORK.
I guess maybe I am “becoming cynical ini my old age” but “man’s inhumanity to man” seems to be the NORM not the exception. All about DRAMA and keeping things “interesting.”
After the character in the show became PM, he became bored because he had no more “mountains to climb” and that was when he decided he needed the challenge of bringing down the king. GOT TO KEEP BUSY! CAN’T BE BORED! The mantras of the disordered and dysfunctional.
I am learning that BOREDOM is WONDERFUL! It is called PEACE when it is quiet and productive. So BOREDOM TO YOU! Keep your life BORING and UNEVENTFUL and never “interesting.”
Jim,
“I want to feel loved.” means “I don’t want to behave in a lovable manner, or to behave in a loving way. I just want to be sure that you’ll put up with me no matter how badly I treat you.”
I know enough bimbo-doublespeak to interpret that one for you.
They don’t know what they mean, because that kind of introspection is uncomfortable, and they don’t do “uncomfortable”. There’s no point in being sharp with these whiny bed-wetters, they’ll just dribble salt water all over you. Back away slowly, and you won’t be drowned in impending histrionic crying jag.
“I want to feel loved.” means “I don’t want to behave in a lovable manner, or to behave in a loving way. I just want to be sure that you’ll put up with me no matter how badly I treat you.”–Elizabeth Conley
ROTFLMAO…Now that I have been on Lovefraud…I have the answer…”Leave me alone. Get a dog!”
…and “bimbo-doublespeak”…that’s a classic!
Oxdrover,
I think you just pegged it:
“MY OPINION is that to a great many people “real life” is BORRRRRING. There is an “old chinese curse” which goes “May you live in INTERESTING TIMES.”
War is “interesting”
Drama and homicide are “interesting”
Cancer is “interesting”
infidelity is “interesting”
Stirring up trouble is “interesting”
etc.”
I guess deep down inside I knew this, so the idea of the silly git drizzling on my husband’s broad shoulder made me anxious. She’s due to move on soon (job change), hopefully she won’t do any damage on the way out the door.
My husband is one of the most sensible men in the world. He’s also one of the kindest. I guess I’ll have to have faith in his common sense.
Hey Oxy and All–
“We are TOO CARING, among other things, and sometimes also WE are addicted to the “feel good” chemicals our brains put out by associating with the psychopaths and get “hooked” into the addiction just like a coke addict or an alcoholic. We KNOW it is bad for us but we fight the addiction and lose because the high (though never as good as it was at first) is soooo good, even if we must pay with the painful lowwwwwwws.”
Could you please quit picking my brain and childhood apart?OUCH@.......! It hurts! :-). Brain Surgery by Oxy.
As for the boredom…..I have a terrific personal example of my own addictive nature, and how I am not fully embracing ‘non-drama’ yet. I recently forgot to get my professional license renewed until the very last effing second, giving my boss reason to talk with me and dock my pay. How embarrassing and needless. Sure did make for some good conversations with girlfriends, some missed sleep– some good old guilt and drama. Course I still feel like an ass****.
When will I get it? As the Buddhist proverb states: Chop wood, carry water. Why make it more dramatic, and suffer?