Mum diagnosed with multiple sclerosis discovers it was really parasitic tick bite

A mum treated for multiple sclerosis for two years was actually infected with a parasitic tick bite and cured herself with antibiotics.

Julia Marshall-Wessendorf, 37, was ­diagnosed with the potentially crippling disease after visiting her GP with a numb finger.

The mum-of-three had injection every other day to battle the MS, fearing she would end up in a wheelchair.

But when she started getting muscle pains, not symptomatic of MS, a friend told her to check for the tick-borne Lyme disease.

German-born ­Julia discovered she may have been bitten years ago.

She said: “Ticks are common in Germany. An untreated bite can lie dormant and if not treated can be mistaken for MS.”

Julia, of Bath, Somerset, took antibiotics and was cured within four days.

She said: “It is brilliant not to have MS. It was like a black cloud hanging over you.

"The medicine for MS is so expensive. I still have £2,500 of medication which has to be destroyed.”

Julia, whose children are aged six, four and two, is calling for better awareness of ticks.

She said: “It could save so much hassle, worry and heartache.”