Most horrifying thing I have heard. Not Joking

[spearmint]

What about the fibers coming out? Can this be imaginary?

[trisho.]

Like ztirffritz, I am very afraid to click that link. That would be one of my worst nightmares. I'm already really creeped out by bugs using humans as a host and whatnot. There are too many stories to tell from experience.

Okay, here are a few:

1. My mom always told me this one. One of the first times she was living in Nigeria, she felt herself bit by something but couldn't find the bite mark. About a week later it grew and when my dad popped it, a larvae came squirming out. The insect had laid a freaking egg in her. UGH. This happens way more than people realize...ask an EMT worker.

2. When I was 10 years old & half asleep in bed in Orlando, a fly flew into my ear. Freaked out as I was, I tried to get it out and ended up cutting the blasted thing in two...I had to dig out a fly head and a fly body from my little 10 year old ear. UGH again. I couldn't fall asleep for another hour.

Don't even get me started on when I thought my ex had bedbugs...

[PeterB]

Minty, it's liable not imaginary, but the implication is that the patients might be doing it to themselves (e.g., faking it, self-mutilation), or that one of the other diseases mentioned in the wiki could be causing it. However (and this is why I say I'm not convinced), these sorts of things CAN be caused by various types of infections-- so I myself would say that they shouldn't draw any conclusions until they've looked at the fibers, etc.

[incognegro]

http://www.museumofhoaxes.com/hoax/weblo...ents/2459/

[PeterB]

incog, I didn't see anything there that really either proves or disproves it...

My feeling is that it's *something*, just because they haven't found a causative agent yet, doesn't mean it isn't a real disease... it might turn out to be delusional, but as I say, that 50% of them really have Lyme Disease makes me think there may be some basis to it. Possibly the Lyme makes them more susceptible to other parasites, and they've caught something else? Who knows...