Sunday, August 12, 2012

The Dream Remains

There has been much life changing events over the past couple of months.  Our land and cabin have been sold.  At the time I was feeling so much rage I was dangerous.  We spend so much money on medical insurance and place all our trust in our physicians and most of the time things go the way they are supposed to.

The land and cabin now belong to the people who were going to be our neighbors, we wish them the best of luck, it really is a beautiful place.  They have made alot of progress since they have been there.  I will try to get some pictures if they dont mind.  I saw on facebook that they had utilities ran and the driveway extended to the area we were going to build our house.  We found out that the cost for utilities was going to be very expensive, the area was out of the school district of our choice, and with me catching both Lyme disease and Rocky Mountain Spotted fever which nearly killed me I was reluctant to raise my children there.  In the end Gods plan for us wasn't what we thought it was.

I have been on Doxycycline since June 16 for the tick borne illnesses and according to my infectious disease doctor I will be on them for at least a year.  There is a huge public misconception about Lyme disease and Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever.  When I tell someone I have the typical reponse is "when were you in the Rocky Mountains?"

The answer is, I haven't been.  These illnesses are here in Missouri and Kansas.  The ticks which transmit these bacteria like to hang out in transition zones.  Those areas where woods or high grass and the yard meet.  You may consider treating those areas along with areas your family likes to hang out with a pesticide.  I also suggest you do a daily tick check on all family members.  If you find a tick remove it promptly and correctly.  Document the date the tick was found and save the tick.  There are labs out there that can perform tests on the actual tick.  Lastly, if you begin to have symptoms of a tick borne illness see your physicia at once and insist upon testing and treatment while awaiting the test results.  The test results are not reliable as not all physicians use the correct lab, perform the correct test, your body may not have created antibodies for the illness yet, and lastly your physician as in my case will not see or tell you the results or not order all the appropriate testing.  The one saving grace is that most if not all tick borne illnesses all respond to Doxycycline.

Tickborne Diseases in the United States:

1.  Lyme disease
2.  Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever
3.  Ehrlichiosis
4.  Babesiosis
5.  Tularemia
6.  Rickettsia parkeri Rickettsiosis
7.  Anaplasmosis
8.  Tickborne relapsing fever (TBRF)
9.  364D Rickettsiosis
10.  STARI (Southern Tick Associated Rash Illness)

Signs and Symptoms: Note I am Going To Give you the signs and symptoms of the two I have been diagnosed with and contracted in south-west Missouri near the Kansas border.  For further information please visit the CDC website:  www.cdc.gov/ticks/diseases

Lyme Disease:

Early localized stage (3-30 days post tick bite)

1.  Red expanding rash called erythema migrans (EM).