Help Please! Symptoms pre-diagnosis

[HunterMillerAZ]

Hello all. I have not been medically diagnosed with celiac disease yet but I am almost 100% I have it. Yellow fatty stools. Diarrhea. Extreme bloating and belching. Fatigue that hits me out of nowhere can causes me to be more tired than I ever have before (I am a very active person). And oh yeah 10lb weight loss (from 165-155) and not being able to put back weight on!!! Also recently my pointer finger joint has starting hurting so bad and now I have a rash on my knee. I ate a lot of bread and noodles and drank a bit of beer this week. I’m feeling. Please does this sound like the disease or something else??

[trents]

All the symptoms you describe align with Celiac Disease but could be due to other things as well. Sounds like you should get a blood antibody test for diagnosing Celiac Disease. May we ask what age group you are in?

[HunterMillerAZ]

I’m 26

[trents]

I wouldn't think at 26 the pain in your digit would be arthritis. Can you post a pick of the rash on your knee? Something called Dermatitis Herpetiformis is a classic expression of Celiac Disease.

[HunterMillerAZ]

It’s minimal but just noticed it today. About 8-9 individual little red bumps on my knee. Thought it was a pimple breakout or maybe even bed bugs or something at first but I just started putting the puzzle pieces together. Just itch and are small and red 

[trents]

I don't have DH but there are those on the forum who know what it looks like so that's why I asked for a pic. Or, you can google it.

[Scott Adams]

DH looks like tiny clear blisters that are super itchy, and usually surrounded by redness. If you can't get to a doctor and get a celiac disease blood panel, another option is ordering an online test kit, but keep in mind that to be tested for celiac disease you must continue eating gluten daily until your tests are finished.

[HunterMillerAZ]

5 hours ago, Scott Adams said:

DH looks like tiny clear blisters that are super itchy, and usually surrounded by redness. If you can't get to a doctor and get a celiac disease blood panel, another option is ordering an online test kit, but keep in mind that to be tested for celiac disease you must continue eating gluten daily until your tests are finished.

Oh that almost makes me not want to even do it. I’m going on about 30 hours without gluten and feel 10xs better already. 

5 hours ago, Scott Adams said:

DH looks like tiny clear blisters that are super itchy, and usually surrounded by redness. If you can't get to a doctor and get a celiac disease blood panel, another option is ordering an online test kit, but keep in mind that to be tested for celiac disease you must continue eating gluten daily until your tests are finished.

As far as the DH. That’s what these look like. Clear heads (thought fire ant bites or something) super itchy and red. 

[Scott Adams]

Although the standard spiel from medical doctors would be to recommend getting a formal diagnosis, having DH I can fully understand why you might not want to go that route, due to the fact that DH symptoms can be unbearable for most. In the end it is really your call on whether or not you need a formal diagnosis to stay gluten-free.

[trents]

I agree with Scott's advice, Hunter. We advise getting a formal diagnosis but the delay in scheduling testing combined with severity of symptoms makes that impractical sometimes. Our concern is that people with a formal diagnosis are less likely to rationalize and cheat on their intentions to eat gluten-free. There may also be some advantages to a formal diagnosis when it comes to medical care down the road.