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lradtke

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lradtke Newbie
lradtke
Posted

Hello everyone,

I am new to this site and now sure if I am posting in the correct area, however here is my story, hope someone can help?

I have never had any health problems except the one surgery to remove my tonsils and adnoids when I was in the 5th grade. Over the course of the past 10 years (I am 39) I have had Vertigo, which came out of nowhere, severe bouts of "food poisening" or so the Dr.'s thought. And ongoing severe cramping, diahrea (sp?), loose stool and with this comes a seizure like reaction which I end up fainting. It only happens when I am going to the bathroom and after writing down everything I ate for a month there was never any one thing we could pinpoint this reaction coming from. One time I passed out and broke the front teeth out of my mouth (2 months before my wedding, nice) another time I was home alone with my 4 year old and passed out off the toilet face first onto the ceramic tile floor and looked like I had been in a bar fight. I also get lightheaded and dizzy if I sit too long getting up and walking around seems to help. I have no other pain, no joint pain, a little arthritus in my knees and the occassionaly achy bones feeling but it goes away and isn't occuring enough to cause me any issues.

I recently changed Dr.'s and my new Dr. found that I have tested positive for an auto - immune disease. Which one is the question. I had a positive ANA blood test which led him to this conclusion. Now I have been referred out to a Rhuematologist. We live in a small town and we only have one Rhuematologist and I can't get in to see him until the end of September. I have had a CAT SCAN, MRI, EEG, EKG, and loads of bloodwork. The positive ANA blood test was the only thing to turn up. My Dr. said I am in for a load of more tests because it is so difficult to diagnose auto immune diseases. A friend suggested I check into Celiac Disease or having an allergy to wheat. My symptoms sounded similar so as I have researched online it does seem to have similarities. I was hoping someone out there might have some of the same symptoms or be able to tell me how to get tested for Celiac Disease and do I have to wait for the Rhuematologist or is this something my family practioner can handle? Would love any input anyone could offer, thanks for listening.

Northern Michigander

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CarlaB Enthusiast
CarlaB
Posted

You can get a celiac panel done by your general practitioner. Be sure he does the whole panel, not just the IgA.

Also, you may want to get a Lyme test (because of the knee pain and vertigo). Be sure it's done by IGeneX. I had the test kit sent to my house, then took it to my doctor so that I was sure it was done by this particular lab (www.igenex.com).

I'd also have them test your B12 levels.

Have you had your iron levels checked?

darkangel Rookie
darkangel
Posted

Crohn's or ulcerative colitis are also a possibility. Have you had a colonoscopy done?

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