You Probably Get A Lot Of These, But I'm Lost

[Future-MrsCornell]

I know you all probably get a lot of the newbies wondering if their symptoms are indicators of Celiac's Disease, and I'm sorry I'm adding yet another, but I've hit a brick wall here.

I am 24 years old and have had digestive issues for as long as I can remember. I was diagnosed as having IBS when I was 4 due to malabsorption and another doctor when I was 6 recommended my avoiding certain carbohydrates as well as drinking Ensure (wretched stuff, that is).

I seemed to get my diet in order and was actually putting on weight, height and muscle mass once I was in high school. I went from being 4 feet 5 inches and 85 pounds my sophomore year to 5 feet 6 inches and 125 pounds by my senior year. All seemed to be well until I was in the military. My diet changed. I started feeling fatigue, my joints and bones ached and my weight became a roller coaster again. I thought it was just the rigorous physical routine I had, but my problems didn't change once I left the Army. They seemed to get worse.

I have had sever lower abdominal pain for over a year now. It is constant at a 7 (scale from 1-10) and can escalate to a 9, robbing me of sleep (Which may explain the fatigue). My joints still ache and I feel the stress fracture pain that I was assured would heal once I returned to civilian life. I do have muscle aches, but usually write those off being that I live in Arizona and can possibly be dehydrated. My pinkie and ring nails are detaching from the nail bed, I have pin point blisters on the knuckles and between my fingers. Most fun of all is the constipation. (I know how you love to study stool) WHEN I DO void, there is a white sheeth like substance that is currently blood red. Fun Fun.

The worst symptom of all is my mood. I work in a K-8th school and love my job. I've always loved working with kids, but as of late I am considering a field change. I get tired and irritable and fear that it interferes with the occupation I adore so much.

This is so stupid. I am crying to write this. I do that so much now. I used to be so strong, but this pain and irritability overwhelms me. If anyone knows anything that could help, I would appreciate it very much.

[key]

It definitely sounds like you could have celiac disease. You have alot of symptoms. I would try and find a good GI doctor that is up on the latest research with celiac. It says that constipation is definitely a symptom in some people. In the past they thought you had to have severe diarhea. I am sorry you have suffered your whole life so much. I hope you get some relief soon. If a doctor won't diagnose you, then you can simply go gluten free on your own. It would definitely benefit you to have the blood work and biopsy before going gluten free. There are many of us here that didn't have conclusive results. I had borderline blood tests after two months of being gluten free. I chose not to have the biopsy. My son that is 2 also has celiac.

Take care and welcome to this board. If you stick around you will learn alot.

Monica

[Guest nini]

I sent you an e-mail. Welcome to the board and good luck!

[Future-MrsCornell]

Thank you both very much. I am contacting my doctor tomorrow to request the referral. He's a pretty good guy and said he would write one up for me even with just a phone call. My fiance said he would eat his @** hole if I was diagnosed with Celiac's. I invision a gluten-free cake in the shape of a butt with strategically placed brown frosting in the future. LOL I told him later that that hurt. I know I seem to be grasping at straws, but I just want to know why I'm hurting. If I know the why, then I can know the remedy. He apologized cuz he's nice like that.

[nettiebeads]

Thank you both very much. I am contacting my doctor tomorrow to request the referral. He's a pretty good guy and said he would write one up for me even with just a phone call. My fiance said he would eat his @** hole if I was diagnosed with Celiac's. I invision a gluten-free cake in the shape of a butt with strategically placed brown frosting in the future. LOL I told him later that that hurt. I know I seem to be grasping at straws, but I just want to know why I'm hurting. If I know the why, then I can know the remedy. He apologized cuz he's nice like that.

Oh yeah, celiac is quite an education for those who have it and those who live with them. My husband is great like that too. Loves figuring out how to make regular foods gluten free for me (he's an ex-sous chef)

Anyhow, see the dr, get the celiac blood panel done, and the biopsy if ordered, then go gluten-free right away and see what happens. You might want to go dairy free right now as that won't skew the results and if it is celiac, the damage done to the villi will keep you from digesting dairy until they heal. Please keep us posted as to your progress. There's lots and lots of good info and experience on this board.

Annette

[Guinevere]

sounds exactly like celiac, you've come to the right place. keep browsing through this site and you'll get lots of info. you can also check out another site that i have found to be very helpful:

Open Original Shared Link

[tarnalberry]

you absolutely need to follow up with a doctor, particularly with blood on the stool. it could be celiac, though it could be a number of other things. I would encourage you to insist upon the celiac panel during testing, due to the malabsorption and IBS diagnosis early in life and difficulty maintaining weight, but do pursue a full workup.

[Future-MrsCornell]

Thank you! I have an appointment with a gastroenterologist next week. He is the gastroenterologist that wanted to discuss Fibromyalgia when I did not respond well to the IBS medication Zelnorm, but I'm hoping if I go in there determined to get this fixed and not be a push over when he suggests that it's the "vapors" then I can finally get the treatment needed. Thanks again!

[Future-MrsCornell]

Thank you all! I have an appointment with a gastroenterologist next week. He is the gastroenterologist that wanted to discuss Fibromyalgia when I did not respond well to the IBS medication Zelnorm, but I'm hoping if I go in there determined to get this fixed and not be a push over when he suggests that it's the "vapors" then I can finally get the treatment needed. Thanks again!

[Ursa Major]

In case you wonder why the initial post is doubled now, I merged the first post with it's duplicate. Future Mrs. McCornell, when you don't see a topic you started right away, that is because a moderator has to approve and 'pin' it to appear at the front of the appropriate forum first. If you don't see it immediately, please don't just post it a second time, be patient, somebody will see it soon and pin it. You can always find it in 'view new posts', when you click on it, even before it's pinned.

You got good advice here, and I am glad you're seeing a gastroenterologist. You need to insist that he test you for celiac disease as well as everything else. When I was so ill last summer, my doctor had me tested for everything under the sun (everything came back negative), except for celiac disease, because 'I was gaining weight, instead of losing it', so my doctor thought that celiac disease wasn't a possibility. Too bad that she was wrong. We need to be our own advocates here!