My name is Ann and I live in California.
In March of 2012, my daughter started displaying strange psychiatric symptoms. C.J.’s personality changed suddenly and she had rage attacks, delusions, paranoia, hallucinations and demonstrated self harming and destructive behaviors.
C.J. saw dozens of Psychiatric Professionals from March of 2012, until stabilization around September 2012. These new behaviors have not been seen in family generations past or present, so we were in a new world. A new sudden relapse in March of 2013, after a lot of dental work (LYME bacteria hangs out in the gums) my daughter again became psychotic for the second time. She was hospitalized in San Francisco again, for the second time for 8 days. She seemingly stabilized, and I decided to send her to Therapeutic Boarding school in Utah so she could be safe from her prior bad choices and uncharacteristic behaviors. C.J. failed the Utah school program in the first 30 days, as she became increasingly psychotic as the medical staff increased her psychiatric medications.
C.J. was then admitted to the University of Utah Neuropsychiatric Institute as an acute patient for a complete assessment. C.J. remained there for 45 days (from 5/8/2013-6/22/2013) as a team of mental health professionals observed her through routes of extreme medication and therapeutic interventions. C.J. was eventually diagnosed with Bipolar Type I. She was on medications such as Abilify (up to 15 mg. per day), Zypreza ( up to 25 mg per day) and to this day, “ Lithium” ( up to 1200 mg per day).
Upon hearing of Adrianna Gutierrez’s story in of Psychiatric Lyme disease, I asked permission to make contact with Mrs. Debra Gutierrez on May 23, 2013 in Gilroy, CA. After speaking with Mrs. Gutierrez for several hours via telephone and sharing my story with her about C.J. being an honors student up to a few months prior to her mysterious sudden psychiatric illness, delusions and paranoia. Mrs. Gutierrez asked me dozens of questions about C.J.’s environment, home life, any drug use, etc. before she became ill. Once she began to listen to my experience with C.J., she learned that C.J. had spent the Summer of 2009, in Connecticut visiting her grandparents, which I later learned is where Lyme disease originated from. She encouraged me to have C.J. tested for Lyme disease immediately at Igenex Laboratory in Palo Alto.
I then contacted Columbia University, Stonybrook University and Yale University about C.J.’s case.
On June 22, 2013, C.J. was released from the hospital in Utah. She was weaned and taken off of anti-psychotic medication and put on Lithium, which a study was done to show that Lithium helps Lyme.
On October 07, 2013 it was confirmed that my daughter, indeed has Lyme disease.
Mrs. Debra Gutierrez and Adrianna’s story has saved my daughter, C.J. from being institutionalized for the rest of her entire adult life with a misdiagnosis. Had it not been for her patiently listening and counseling me through this horrific ordeal, C.J.’s life would have a different outcome today. She is at home now and recovering well with the antibiotic regimen.
Thank you,
Ann
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