I Need Help/advice!

[Bucsfan11]

I am new to the boards and I am really looking for some help. I will give you just a little background first because I think it might help. I am 21 years old (male) I have been dealing with stomach issues for almost a year now. I originally went to the doctor because of really bad diarrhea (about 10-15 times a day). It was almost always after I would eat. Anyway, I went to the G.I. doctor and had the colonoscopy, upper G.I. engoscopy, flexible seigmoidoscopy, all the blood work I could think of and tests for malobsorption. All came back fine. So after that, my doctor just said it seemed as if I just had IBS even though the diarrhea was not because of stress and it was constant, there was never a "good day" all just bad days. The stomach problems came out of nowhere. So I just figured I had IBS and went on with life, I started taking calcium to control the diarrhea which actually really helped. But about a month ago, more symptoms started to appear. I was extremly tired all the time, I always felt really fatigued and it seemed like I never felt refreshed in the morning. Also, my body was starting to really ache. My hips, knees, elbows, calf muscles, shoulders, neck, and trap muscles were achey for no aparent reason. So when I went back to him he said that it sounded like a gluten intolerance. Could this be so? When I had my colonoscopy they checked for Celiac, but they did not see any signs of it. I am not sure if they ever did any blood work for it or not, but the doctor said he could test for it over and over again, and it might never show up, so he told me to eat a gluten free diet for a month and see what happens. I have been doing it now for a little over 2 weeks and I really have not noticed any improvements. Does it usually take awhile for the aches and tiredness to go away? Like I said, I am pretty sure they never did any blood work to test for it. I was just curious if my symptoms really seem like a gluten intolerance or celiac disease or if maybe its something else. Thank you all for your time and help.

Sean.

[WW340]

It is very possible that it is gluten intolerance.

I noticed an improvement in the GI symptoms first on the gluten free diet. It was a couple of months, maybe even three or four before the aches and pains went away. It took the longest for the fatigue to improve, that just improved in the past month or so.

Are you sure you are 100% gluten free. I know I made a lot of mistakes in the beginning that delayed my progress. Cross contamination was a real issue for me. Some of us are even sensitive to items that are gluten free, but made in a factory that processes products with wheat. I had to stop eating out and get very basic with my diet before I saw the most benefits. If I ate anything that had the least amount of cross contamination, I had a return of my symptoms that would last 2 weeks or more.

To really make significant progress you will have to be truly diligent.

Have you checked your personal care products, vitamins, and medications?