Hi Desperate Mama!
Welcome to our little community! I'm so sorry to hear all that you've been through to get here, but I'm sure glad you found us!
First of all, you're not crazy- LOL! - although I no longer live in Idaho, I had Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever at the age of 7 while I & my family lived in Cataldo, in the northern portion of Idaho. That was 42 years ago!! And who knows what else I picked up while living there, as I have had all of the "common" tick-borne infections.
If you haven't already, it would be helpful for you to start with reading through the thread at the top of the forum titled,
"New to Lyme?...Start here!!", as it is packed full of important information, symptom lists (as Lyme rarely occurs by itself), helpful links and pdf's, how to detox when one has these infections, and a list of questions that you can ask any doctor that you are seeking treatment from!
We also have a pretty good search function on this forum to help you narrow down your search for information from past posts. We must be our own health advocates now and the best thing to arm yourself with is knowledge about
our infections and the different ways to treat them!
Do you have a specific doctor in mind when you get to the Utah University Hospital? (Please don't post their name on the forum!) or are you going there in hopes of getting treatment? Chances aren't very good that you will find adequate treatment in a hospital as they will direct you to an Infectious Disease doctor (ID doc) who will likely only follow "party lines" and will only treat for 6 - 8 weeks with enough antibiotics to keep the bacteria from replicating rather than with doses strong enough to actually kill the bacteria. Although all rules are made to be broken, this is generally the case.
I do have the name of a Lyme Literate medical doctor in Boise if you are interested. Just click on the little blue envelope under my name and send me an email. Please include your screen name, as I'm careful who I give names and contact info out to.
The birth of a child often brings in new mothers who have had Lyme disease undiagnosed and/or untreated. The stress on the body is enough to lower the immune system so that the bacteria can then get the upper hand.
Try not to let this all overwhelm you completely! I raised (only) two children while quite ill and the things they remember most is that I was involved with them as much as I could be even though I was so ill. Children are truly amazing in how they adjust and overcome things!
If you will get started detoxing - as described in our "New to Lyme?" thread, you should begin to feel your symptoms ease up soon. Some more really good reading on how toxins cause a lot of our symptoms can be found here:
www.encognitive.com/node/5768 Also, just so that you know, for many the 'damage' isn't necessarily permanent. Many find that as they get the infections under control that the symptoms generally go away as well - including the cognitive issues.