Mum’s urgent warning after shocking discovery on her daughter’s ear: ‘She thought it was a pimple and obviously, it was not!’

Mum’s urgent warning after shocking discovery on her daughter’s ear: ‘She thought it was a pimple and obviously, it was not!’

By Jesse Hyland For Daily Mail Australia

Published: 00:47 BST, 27 September 2023 | Updated: 00:53 BST, 27 September 2023

A mother is urging parents to carefully examine their children’s skin after she initially mistook a spot behind her daughter’s ear for something minor.

After discovering a tick behind her daughter’s earring, mum Megan Sullivan warned parents to ‘thoroughly check’ areas on their kids’ skin they might not think to look.

‘So ticks are out,’ she said, in a post that has resurfaced on social media.

‘I know many parents check their children, but there’s one place I’ve never checked before. If your child has earrings, please check behind the backings.

A social media post from a mother who discovered a tic behind her daughter’s earring has  resurfaced – as Australia enters tick season

After discovering a tick behind her daughter’s earring, mum Megan Sullivan is warned to ‘thoroughly check’ areas on their kids’ skin they might not think to look.

‘(My daughter) thought it was a pimple and obviously, it was not! I took the earrings out before the pics. Check thoroughly!!’⁠

The warning serves as a reminder to parents that ‘ticks can be anywhere,’ and to be especially vigilant during the spring and summer months when their activity is at their peak.

Ticks, which are tiny spider-like critters that vary from reddish to black in colour and can be the size of a poppy seed or a baked bean.

There are over 70 different types of ticks in Australia and they are most common on the east coast of Australia

Australia’s tick season has taken off this September, with the arachnids coming out in force during the country’s warmer months. 

A species of paralysis tick called Ixodes holocyclus can be found along Australia’s east coast and can cause tick paralysis, tick typhus and severe allergic reactions – which can be deadly.

While there is no evidence that Lyme disease is caused by Australian ticks, there may be other infections carried by Australian ticks which may cause an infection which is similar to Lyme disease. These infections remain poorly characterised. 

Signs of illnesses caused by ticks include rashes, headaches, fever, flu-like symptoms, tenderness, unsteady gait, intolerance to bright light, increased weakness of the limbs and facial paralysis. 

Experts say he best way to remove a tick is to freeze the area with an ether-containing spray which can be bought at a pharmacy.

‘We need to remove ticks without squeezing or irritating them,’ Australian safety & first aid service page CPR Kids explained after sharing Ms Sullivan’s post on Monday.

‘If you are using tick forceps, metho, tea tree oil, or other tick removers that might get the tick out, but they inject allergen-containing saliva when removed that way.

‘Removing the tick without freezing the area risks people developing a condition called mammalian meat allergy, whereby people bitten by ticks develop serious allergies to certain types of meat.’

Parents who find tics to freeze them first with ⁠ether-containing spray, which can be found at chemists

Tick bites are most common during the warmer months when conditions are hot and humid (stock image)

Dr Mualla McManus told Daily Mail Australia that people often didn’t realise they had suffered a tick bite at first, as the bugs are extremely small and release an anesthetic when they bite.

‘If you see little black dots on you, get a magnifying glass if you can and take a look – it’s like the dot of a pin,’ she said.

‘You may not even be aware of it.’

She said tick bites were often suffered by people spending time near the coast or in areas with dense bush nearby.

Ticks can sense when humans are nearby by sensing carbon dioxide, she added. 

Dr McManus advised wearing light-coloured clothing when at the beach or going for walks near bushlands order to easily spot ticks – but warned there was no guaranteed way to avoid them. 

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