Sick And Tired Of Being Sick

[justme77]

I am sorry to take up your time here, but I would truly appreciate anyone with any information on the following symptoms, which may or may not be related to Celiac Disease.

First of all, I am 31 years old. I have ALWAYS been extremely picky as to what I eat. I was forced to eat many things growing up and noone ever seemed to understand that they made me sick. I was simply not believed. There are MANY vegetables which make me sick.

My primary symptoms are as follows: I have to use the stool 6-7 times per day. Usually just after and about one hour after I eat. It is absolutely impossible that I can put this off, no matter how much I may want or need to.

I have constant aching of my joints throughout my body. I also have had spots that were extremely tender on my lags. I get rashes on my elbows, knees and hands, as well as my back.

Wheat bread effects me much more seriously than white bread; white bread makes me feel slightly nauseous and tired; wheat bread makes me dizzy and seriously sick.

I have always loved potatoes, in almost any form; they now make me sick every time eat them. It is not that I really FEEL extremely sick though; I just can't hold them down. I will vomit after eating them almost every time. This problem has gotten worse and worse. They used to be one the primary staples in my diet and now I cannot eat them.

Tomato products have recently started making me feel dizzy and nauseous, with occassional vomitting and severe heartburn. I have never been able to eat raw tomatoes without getting sick; even the smell of them being cut could sometimes have this effect, but now the cooked forms are having the same effects.

Almost all other vegetables will give me the runs. I have NEVER been constipated in my entire life, but I have to go to the bathroom immediately if I eat most vegatables.

Spices: I can eat salt, but almost nothing else. I can tolerate garlic. Pepper in VERY small quantities is ok, although too much will cause me to vomit very quickly. Middle Eastern, Indian and Some Oriental foods will have the following effects: I get extremely dizzy, I have trouble holding my bowels, I get itchy on spots and have cold and hot spots all over my body, but especially on my back. The problems are somewhat alleviated by using the restroom, but will take many hours or days before going completely away.

Fish and Seafood make me feel very sick to my stomach and give me the runs. I have also been dizzy after eating some of them.

I can eat corn. My diet now consists almost exclusively of pork and beef (with no spices, grilled), plain white rice (occassionally with Country Crock Margarine, which in small quantities doesn't seem to bother me) and corn (cooked fresh at home, not out of a can).

I used to be able to eat a lot of other foods, but I most assuredly cannot eat ANYTHING that has recently changed to 0 trans fats. KFC chicken especially will make me very sick now. Canola oil makes me think I'm dying.

I also have a hard time breathing sometimes. I quit smoking because I thought that some, if not many, of these symptoms migh be related, but have had little to no change in the way I feel (except that the constant overall pain I have is actually harder to handle and I am more fatigued and have a harder time staying awake.).

I can eat organic fruits and really enjoy a lot of them.

I also have some other allergies (like carpet powders which give me severe problems) and almost all of the artificial sweeteners. Splenda doesn't seem to make me sick, although I don't like the flavor. If I eat Aspartame, I have to use my inhaler (over the counter, epinephrine) repeatedly to breathe. I will also get severe rashes from this.

I DO NOT have the dry skin that many people talk about; my skin is rather oily if anything, but I have noticed that I will get itchy bumps if I eat the wrong things and some things will make me break out in severe sores.

I used to have a lot of heartburn, which the doctors diagnosed as a hernia and acid reflux, but I started taking digestive enzymes and this problem went away.

The doctors act like none of my symptoms even matter. They seem happy to give me some loricet and an antibiotic and send me on my way, although I have been diagnosed with any number of things (most of which didn't make any sense). I know that I don't have the majority of the symptoms unless I eat specific things. I get the effects even if I don't know the substance is in the food until later and I don't want to feel bad.

It is so hard to eat anything anywhere and people consistently get upset when I can't eat the food they offer. Does anyone have any idea what the most likely cause of my specific problems might be?

I want to point out that I have plenty of strength (I'm far stronger than most people), my teeth have practically all rotted out despite every attempt to save them, I have constant fatigue, my joints hurt all the time (although they don't swell a lot), I am almost completely immune to most pain medications, I only really feel rested after 12-16 hours of sleep and I have a lot of sensitivity to heat (I feel the best in around 50 degrees, over 70 and I feel very weak and sick). I do drink too much soda, but I have done without it for months without feeling better. I sweat 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, no matter what the temperature is (even when I'm cold). My ankles and knees hurt all the time.

Thank you.

[Amyleigh0007]

Have you been tested for food allergies?

[ShayFL]

It is time for some testing!! Do you have Naturopaths in your area? That would be a good place to start.

[justme77]

I went in as a teenager and they tested me for allergies with a ton of patches that they put on my arms and back and then stuck with needles with all sorts of things. They found me to have a lot of allergies; everything from pine trees to coconuts, various grasses, etc. I can't remember everything, but it was a lot of things.

I can remember them saying that they thought I might be allergic to so many things because of possible intestinal lesions caused by extreme fevers when I was very young (I had seizures from these fevers when I was younger). I also received severe brain damage to my cerebellum from these fevers, although I doubt that this is related.

I have been to SO MANY doctors over the years (they thought I might have had spinal mengitis among other things) and no two ever say the same things. I've been on countless drugs for different things, almost all of which made me feel worse. In my blood tests, I have low LDL, High HDL, low blood sugar, extremely high iron/ red blood cells, elevated liver enzymes. I monitor my blood sugar regularly. I can eat a full meal and drink two liters of soda and my blood sugar will be around 92-98. If I don't eat something with sugar within the first hour or so after I wake up, it will be around 65. I was prescribed several drugs to lower my insulin activity or levels at one time, but those all made me VIOLENTLY ill, so I self treat my hypoglycemia with sugar products, which I know is a bad idea, but I have bad reactions to most of the things that I'm "supposed" to eat.

I have contacted several natural remedy/homeopathic/etc. groups and individuals. I've taken Black Walnut extract (which made me violently ill, but which did make me feel better for a little while after) and several other things. I've tried part of the diets some of them have recommended, but they don't seem to listen when I tell them that I CAN'T eat a lot of what they want me to. I am considering ordering Threelac or some other such product to see if they have any effects, because I've been reading about candida yeast infections and the symptoms are almost exactly what I feel, but I want to hear what other people think; I'm open to anything to feel better.

[justme77]

I meant to say thank you in that last posting.

[gfpaperdoll]

Since you have high iron, please get tested for Hemochromatosis - it is also a genetic illness & goes along with some people that have celiac - well I think that the way it works is that if you have Hemochromatosis - chances that you also have celiac are like 90%. the only people that I know that have Hemochromatosis also have celiac.

It is important to get tested, untreated hemochromatosis will damage your organs & ultimately kill you. the treatment is to give blood under a doctors care. drugs do not help.

You really need an allergist & a very careful diet plan & supplements.