ok so yesterday afternoon, i went boating with my family at tablerock lake in missouri, it was a warm day… the water was warm… and i only jumped in 1 time, in open water about 40 ft deep… for like 5 seconds then got back on
but now im constantly worried about getting this brain eating amoebia… its constantly on my mind
no symptoms… but just the thought of it
I don’t blame you, dude. Fresh (and by that I mean stagnant) water that’s just been sitting there warmed by the sun? At a resort lake that likely has human waste from leaky septic systems leaking in to it?
Yeah, I’d be freaking out too.
Watch out for a headache that’s just behind one eye and not the other. That’s the first sign.
oh god… im scared now
Is this a pun thread?
Anyway, there’s not much to worry about. The amoeba only infects 83% of people in those lakes, so you have at least a 1 in 6 shot of being totally fine. Even if you did get it, we have good enough drugs that you might only be out of commission for a month or two…it’s like mono but with mild spells of unconsciousness. But you’ll recover.
actually, the brain eating amoebia has like a 99 percent fatality rate… their has only been like 2 surivors of the 130+ cases the cdc has recorded
does anyone know if this amoeba is located in shallow or open water
I’m not certain we’re talking about the same thing
Although, we can tentatively bump that up to three, now. The little girl in AR was taken off the vent, yesterday!
Thanatic, did you snort a bunch of water up your nose? That’s it’s entry point, I’m given to understand.
where does it reside in shallow or open water
There are about two cases of this a year in the entire USA. I think you’re safe.
Of course, Bullwinkle is safe also…
From the CDC website I linked above-
They make no mention of depth of water.
As DrDeth said, infection is rare. I understand being freaked out, though. Some people are afraid of spiders or dogs or heights. Brain-eating Amoeba is why I only swim in the ocean or well maintained pools.
I have an irrational fear of it. I know it’s irrational, but…eh. I enjoy pools and the ocean! 
Warm water. But it’s rare, so I wouldn’t check into the hospital right away. Was it reported for the particular lake you swam in?
I windsurf in lakes in NC, have taken a few snoutfuls, and am still alive. YMMV. Good luck.
Look at it this way: if you get the brain eating amoebia, you won’t be thinking about it for long.
the lake was Tablerock Lake in Missouri
I remember when I was a kid, I had read about this creature, probably a Rockfish or something, that had a venom so strong it could kill you in minutes. I was in Half Moon bay walking around tidepools barefoot, and stepped on something spongy, then had an absolute panic attack because I was convinced I was going to die in 3 minutes.
My dad (probably bullshitting just to get me to calm down) convinced me that Rockfish don’t live at our latitudes, and I probably just stepped on a scrunched-up Sea Aneneome. 5 minutes later, when he asked “Are you dead?” I said cautiously, “Not yet…” which helped convince me I wasn’t going to die.
The Moral of the story is: The ocean is an asshole.
Don’t forget about the college girl, zip lining, fell into a pond. Whatever was in that pond, slowly ate her arms and legs. Brain was fine.
And just because it seems topical:
Willow Springs Water Park closed after second child contracts rare brain-eating amoeba
interesting
Just go ahead and think you’re safe then one day… WHAMM!
Brain-eating-Amoebanado out of the blue.
2 cases in three years at Willow Springs. They probably had maybe 300 to 400 visitors a day during the summer. Just imagine the tens of thousands of visitors since it opened in 1928.
We live with the chance of getting hit by lightning, or getting hit crossing the street every day or our lives. But 2 cases of an amoeba brain killer and a 80 year old water park has to close.
Heck the odds of some random stranger knifing me in the back while I buy milk at Kroger are probably greater than me dying by swimming in that water park.
btw, the little Arkansas girl is improving thanks to an experimental drug that killed off all traces of the Amoeba in her spinal fluid and blood.
So far her signs of recovery seems very encouraging. She still has a long way to go.
The best thing to do is pray the sick away. That is probably why the survival rate is 2% instead of a more realistic 1% that you would expect without the power of prayer.
Your chances of being hit by lightning is higher than catching the brain eating amoeba. I remember when neti pot users freaked out because 2 people in Louisiana got it. But the odds are millions to one, probably a lot less if you don’t live in areas like Louisiana.