Found a dead Rat buried in garden while gardening will I get a disease? Panicking [Archive]

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Nighttime pacer

23-02-20, 19:53

Hi all,
I was gardening earlier today and digging a hole to put a new plant in and came across something which I thought was the root of a plant or something I dug around a bit more and discovered it was a buried dead rat! I freaked came back inside put all my clothes in the washing machine and then jumped straight into the shower. I'm really worried that I'll get some sort of disease from it. I was wearing gloves while I was gardening though and the ground was really wet so I'm not worried about dust. I had gardening gloves on with disposable latex ones underneath, I know it's a bit O.T.T but I just feel safer gardening like that. I've even thrown my old gardening shoes away in case they were contaminated. I contacted a local pest control man who's coming round tomorrow to get rid of it and also supply me with a bait box which will apparently kill off up to 50 rats if there are more in the area. He said it was probably buried by a fox. I never leave food in my garden and don't even put out food for birds so don't think I'm doing anything to attract them.
I realise once I think logically about it that I've probably not put myself in any real danger but can't stop worrying!
Thanks for reading my latest ramble!
Nighttime Pacer

Fishmanpa

23-02-20, 19:57

:doh::whistles: Ok then.......

Positive thoughts

Nighttime pacer

23-02-20, 20:13

Thanks Fishmanpa but it doesn't stop me worrying.
I guess I'll be better after it's gone.

Fishmanpa

23-02-20, 20:34

You do realize you come in contact with more germs going to the grocery store don't you? :whistles:

Positive thoughts

Phoenixess

23-02-20, 20:43

I really doubt you have caught a disease, the diseases rats have come mainly if they bite you or somehow your ingest their faeces! I’m pretty certain your safe! Can you retrieve your shoes?

Are there cats in your area? Cat probs brought it as a present

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Nighttime pacer

23-02-20, 20:44

I guess that's true, although due to coronavirus I did wash my hands as soon as I got home from the supermarket today!

pav1984

23-02-20, 20:44

You are more likely to get an illness from a live one. They reckon in the uk you are no further than 6 ft away from a rat. Which means you have come across them without knowing and you have been ok so far.

ankietyjoe

23-02-20, 20:45

The soil you're digging in is (de)composed of centuries worth of dead things.

Unless you chewed on the dead rat, the chances of you contracting a disease are absolutely zero.

This is simply a matter of choice, do you imagine something that isn't happening and worry about it, or laugh it off and get on with your day. There is no more to this, than that.

Phoenixess

23-02-20, 20:56

I guess that's true, although due to coronavirus I did wash my hands as soon as I got home from the supermarket today!

Who in the supermarket had coronavirus?
I knocked my coronavirus fears out the park I wouldn’t let that get to you

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Nighttime pacer

23-02-20, 21:40

Thanks everyone, I feel so supported and calmed down by you all. Thanks so much for all replying it really means a lot to me. I know I just have to let it go and I gradually am.

Phoenixess

23-02-20, 21:49

Thanks everyone, I feel so supported and calmed down by you all. Thanks so much for all replying it really means a lot to me. I know I just have to let it go and I gradually am.

I think the reality was when my step dad went all the way to Taiwan via Germany and back again and he didn’t catch it I began to believe I was safe. And also when I found stats of people with it and without it got to keep a realistic perspective on things. I believe you can do it! I can’t believe I managed to do it

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WiseMonkey

24-02-20, 00:20

You do realize you come in contact with more germs going to the grocery store don't you? :whistles:

Positive thoughts

Yes indeed, apparently supermarket trolley handles carry more germs than a toilet seat!

Nighttime pacer

24-02-20, 02:09

Hi All, I’m still sort of panicking a bit about the rat and diseases. I realise I didn’t touch it with bare hands but my brain is still doing a “what if there was something that flicked out of the rat when I touch it with the trowel? What if it wasn’t properly washed off when I showered”. I get so annoyed with myself about it all but also find it so exhausting when my health anxiety kicks in. I have s counselling session on Weds, I’ll have plenty to talk about!
Thanks,
Nighttime pacer

jules321

24-02-20, 02:51

Please do reconsider using poison bait. It kills so many other animals like owls, dogs, cats who happen to get a poisoned rat.

pav1984

24-02-20, 08:23

Did you eat the rat or any of it's poop? I am guessing not. If you did you would have bigger issues that the rat 😂. I used to work in a place infested with rats and didn't get I'll. Please dont stress.

Nighttime pacer

25-02-20, 00:38

ankietyjoe

25-02-20, 08:26

Hi all,
I’m so frustrated with myself. I had the rat removed by the pest control guy today. He said in 25 years he’s never been infected by a rat and he’s only had one customer who was. I read on the NHS website that to get Weil’s disease you need to touch the dead animal and for some secretions to get into your skin or mouth. The fact I was wearing gloves and only my trowel touched it (I asked the pest control guy to get rid of the trowel) means I’m pretty safe. Also even if a small amount of infected soil touched my clothes they were washed straight away and also I showered straight away before eating or drinking. I also read that once any area infected dries out that’s it the bacteria is dead so I know my patio slabs are safe.
I just wish I could shut the anxiety up. I think I need to see my GP to talk it through.
Nighttime pacer

Do you think these things are connected? Reading about things and anxiety?

Hint - they are.

Stop reading, stop researching, stop checking. Health anxiety is not an affliction that comes TO you, it's a behaviour you repeat.

Dont reply 'it's hard', we all know it's hard. Just stop doing it and practice not doing it until you get it right. It's the only way. It'll take months, at least.

Phoenixess

25-02-20, 08:33

I once had suspected Weil’s disease I was in a canal with a massive open wound on my leg and the hospital put me on strong antibiotics and I was fine, as far as I can recall it was suspected or confirmed and I was absolutely fine I’d never heard of it until they told me so I think it’s rare to catch. I wouldn’t worry.
Yes talk about your anxiety with gp explain what’s going on

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Nighttime pacer

25-02-20, 11:56

Phoenixess

25-02-20, 20:54

Thanks Anxietyjoe & Phoenixess, I realise you’re quite right about the checking online which only adds to the anxiety. I’ve got an appointment on Thursday to see a GP at least I’ll be able to discuss it with him. I’m hoping by then my anxiety will be much lower anyway.

Good luck write stuff down if you need to so you don’t forget and know your options xx

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Nighttime pacer

25-02-20, 22:42

Hi all,
Well I ended up having a private GP appointment today. I explained everything that had happened and the doctor said she thought I had nothing to worry about because I was wearing gloves and didn’t touch the rat anyway. She said I probably have a 0.000001% chance of getting Weil’s disease and that’s only because medically they can never say there’s absolutely no chance but not to be worried.
The trouble is I still am! I feel like I’m a ticking bomb and need to be on red alert for the first sign of any symptoms.
I really hate my life sometimes!

ankietyjoe

26-02-20, 08:21

H
The trouble is I still am! I feel like I’m a ticking bomb and need to be on red alert for the first sign of any symptoms.
I really hate my life sometimes!

Then take some responsibility for your own wellness. Don't ask strangers on the internet for reassurance and don't go running to the Doctor every time you have a completely irrational fear.

You say you hate your life, but it's your thought patterns creating your reality. You are the one focusing on the unlikely, you are the one repeating self checking and online research. You have to stop doing those things. If you have been given 0.000001% odds and STILL worry, what does that tell you?

You have to take charge of your mind. It's not a complicated thing to do, it's just a hard thing to do. So better get started today right?

Nighttime pacer

27-02-20, 12:07

Hi Anxietyjoe,
I realise you’re right. I spoke to my therapist yesterday and she said spending any more time thinking about the rat only escalates it in my mind and won’t change anything. I know she’s right and I know this is a well worn path for me as every episode of health anxiety I have follows the same pattern. I’ll try and stay off here and stop wasting my life obsessing.

ankietyjoe

27-02-20, 14:43

Try and paint this little picture in your mind.

Your subconscious is the part of the brain creating the fear response. It's really very good at making you feel danger, because historically it's needed to be there to save your life in times of mortal danger. It's an autonomous response that you absolutely cannot control. The fight or flight response is immediate and unstoppable.

However, how you react to a trigger is absolutely in your control.

The thing about the subconscious is that it's a caveman/woman brain. All it understands is that sex and food are good, and tigers and fire are bad. If YOU spend time researching worst case scenarios, the subconscious cannot tell the difference between you reading it and it actually happening. You are visualising the worst, and the cavewoman inside you is reacting to what it perceives to be imminent danger, that's how it works. That's also how horror movies work. You know it's a film right, so why is it scaring you? You are effectively creating your own horror movie 24/7. This is how it works. This is how health anxiety works. You feed your subconscious problems that aren't really happening, and it reacts...immediately. So stop feeding it!

Iwant2bhealthy

28-02-20, 21:50

Health anxiety is not an affliction that comes TO you, it's a behaviour you repeat.

This will be my mantra!

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