Tick removal - efficiently remove the tick and apply treatment

Tick removal can be easy or difficult, depending on how deep the tick has penetrated the skin.

Ticks attach with their mountpieces that have little hooks on them. This provides for firm attachment to the host's tissues.

Before you start removing the tick, wipe off the spot using either alcohol or using a few drops of tea tree oil. Don't apply both. Either is highly efficient but has a different purpose.

Rubbing alcohol with immediately disinfect the spot and decrease the chances of further infection.

Tea tree oil will help soften the skin and make the tick removal easier, or if applied after the tick has fallen off, will soothe the tick bite site. It smothers the tick so you need less effort to pull it out. In case you decide to treat it with tea tree oil, you need to apply it 3 times a day for a few days.

How to remove a tick?

Here is the best way to remove ticks:

• Wash your hands and use disinfected tweezers. Disinfect the tweezers by rubbing them with alcohol pads or cotton balls dipped in alcohol.
• Don't use needles or even worse, your nails for this purpose. People actually do this, and it is highly not recommended as it provides a perfect way to iniciate an infection.
• Make sure you grasp the tick as close to the skin as possible.

You can either:

• Pull upwards
• or
• Twist the tick clock-wise until you feel it is loosen up

Either way is good, as long as you remove the mouthpiece or the tick's head.

Once you remove it, apply alcohol or topical antibiotic on the spot.

Tick removal using soap

Dampen a cotton ball with water. Rub regular hand soap into it. Place the cotton ball on the tick and rotate it in counter clock direction. After a few rotations, the tick should be on the cotton ball.

When done, apply some alcohol on the spot; clean thoroughly.

After the tick is removed

If you notice any of the tick bite symptoms, seek medical help immediately.

When seeking medical help, be sure to take the tick with you so that lab tests could be performed, and any possible bacteria discovered. Preserve the tick by either placing it in a bottle filled with alcohol (which will kill it), or a jar in which you placed a leaf in (will keep the tick alive).

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