Although Babesiosis will make you sick, it is readily treated with doxycycline, like most tick-borne diseases. Folks that really need to be cautious of this disease are people who no longer have a spleen. Folks who are asplenic can get messed up badly with Babesiosis for some reason. A former co-worker of mine caught it working in NJ back around 2000-2001. He spent 3 days in ICU drowning in his own fluids.

Also, don't succumb to the false narrative that essential oils are safer than DEET because they are "natural". The cyanide in cherry pits is natural, but it will still kill you. Essential oils can be somewhat effective as insect repellants. The only problem is, since they are all aromatic hydrocarbons, they evaporate very quickly, requiring repeated applications to maintain effective protection. Also, since they evaporate more quickly, the person wearing it will believe themselves to be protected when they really aren't.

DEET has developed a bad rap lately, due to incorrect, naturapathic presumptions. It's been around since 1948, and is safely used something like 80 million times/year. When used on the skin, with permethrin on the clothing, you are about as protected from tick bite as you can get.