May Be Celiac?

[firefly07]

Hi! I just discovered this site and I'm hoping I can get some help, as through my research, I've started wondering if I may have Celiac disease.

For the last few months, I have been really suffering. I have been feeling so awful that going out is a struggle. My initial problem was frequent urination. Sometimes several times an hour, I'd have to pee. I quickly went to a doctor about it and they tested my urine, but no bacteria was found. I was given antibiotics for a UTI anyway. After that didn't help, I went to another doctor, who did the same thing (again, no bacteria), and again I saw no improvement. Around this same time, I'd started having diarrea and constipation...when I wasn't having one, I was having the other. These were mild compared to the frequent urination, however, so I didn't mention them to doctors.

I saw a Naturopath next, who suggested that I may have interstitial cystitis. She gave me foods to avoid and teas to try, but none of it helped, and I did research on that condition and realized it came with a lot of pain...and I had no pain. I saw a Urologist as well, who decided that I must have had a UTI (despite the urine tests saying I didn't) and that I was just still recovering from the damage it did. My next thought was that I may have diabetes, so I had myself tested for that. Blood tests showed that I didn't have it, however, I did have a severe iron deficiency. I wasn't anemic, but I could not go on with iron levels that low.

By this time, I'd lost a lot of weight, and I was tired all the time. If I didn't get about 11-12 hours sleep every night, I was exhausted. I was also having frequent episodes of minor headaches and vision problems, such as sensitivity to light and blurred vision. Several times, I had severe dizziness and could not stand up without falling over. I also developed a rash that only lasted one day. It was just below my jawline on the right side.

The next time I saw the Naturopath, she checked my ears and said the insides were very inflamed, and that I probably had a sinus infection. I told her about the diarrea and constipation, and the fact that, depending on what I ate, I sometimes didn't have to pee so often. She suggested I get checked for food allergies and go on an allergy elimination diet. I started the diet and had a scratch test done, and have about 18...one of which was oats, but wheat was not one of them. I told my doctor that I would eliminate the foods I was allergic to from my diet, but she said that what effected my skin on the surface may effect me differently on the inside, so there could still be problem foods that I'm unaware of and I should stay on the elimination diet.

I didn't really listen (unfortunately) and got worse when I simply cut out the foods the scratch test said I'm allergic to and nothing else. I'm now having diarrhea about three times a day, along with painful stomach cramping. My mother suggested I cut wheat out of my diet, and in one day, I've already seen improvement in that I don't have to pee as often.

I've done quite a bit of research through this ordeal in hopes of finding answers the doctors haven't given me, and I read somewhere that Celiac disease can sometimes cause frequent urination along with the rest. So, I am wondering what others think, if they have any opinions. I'd also like to add that my mother was diagnosed with IBS years ago, but no treatments have ever helped her in the slightest, so I have some suspicions that she may have it too. She also has an iron deficiency and has trouble absorbing iron.

[mushroom]

Hi! I just discovered this site and I'm hoping I can get some help, as through my research, I've started wondering if I may have Celiac disease.

For the last few months, I have been really suffering. I have been feeling so awful that going out is a struggle. My initial problem was frequent urination. Sometimes several times an hour, I'd have to pee. I quickly went to a doctor about it and they tested my urine, but no bacteria was found. I was given antibiotics for a UTI anyway. After that didn't help, I went to another doctor, who did the same thing (again, no bacteria), and again I saw no improvement. Around this same time, I'd started having diarrea and constipation...when I wasn't having one, I was having the other. These were mild compared to the frequent urination, however, so I didn't mention them to doctors.

I saw a Naturopath next, who suggested that I may have interstitial cystitis. She gave me foods to avoid and teas to try, but none of it helped, and I did research on that condition and realized it came with a lot of pain...and I had no pain. I saw a Urologist as well, who decided that I must have had a UTI (despite the urine tests saying I didn't) and that I was just still recovering from the damage it did. My next thought was that I may have diabetes, so I had myself tested for that. Blood tests showed that I didn't have it, however, I did have a severe iron deficiency. I wasn't anemic, but I could not go on with iron levels that low.

By this time, I'd lost a lot of weight, and I was tired all the time. If I didn't get about 11-12 hours sleep every night, I was exhausted. I was also having frequent episodes of minor headaches and vision problems, such as sensitivity to light and blurred vision. Several times, I had severe dizziness and could not stand up without falling over. I also developed a rash that only lasted one day. It was just below my jawline on the right side.

The next time I saw the Naturopath, she checked my ears and said the insides were very inflamed, and that I probably had a sinus infection. I told her about the diarrea and constipation, and the fact that, depending on what I ate, I sometimes didn't have to pee so often. She suggested I get checked for food allergies and go on an allergy elimination diet. I started the diet and had a scratch test done, and have about 18...one of which was oats, but wheat was not one of them. I told my doctor that I would eliminate the foods I was allergic to from my diet, but she said that what effected my skin on the surface may effect me differently on the inside, so there could still be problem foods that I'm unaware of and I should stay on the elimination diet.

I didn't really listen (unfortunately) and got worse when I simply cut out the foods the scratch test said I'm allergic to and nothing else. I'm now having diarrhea about three times a day, along with painful stomach cramping. My mother suggested I cut wheat out of my diet, and in one day, I've already seen improvement in that I don't have to pee as often.

I've done quite a bit of research through this ordeal in hopes of finding answers the doctors haven't given me, and I read somewhere that Celiac disease can sometimes cause frequent urination along with the rest. So, I am wondering what others think, if they have any opinions. I'd also like to add that my mother was diagnosed with IBS years ago, but no treatments have ever helped her in the slightest, so I have some suspicions that she may have it too. She also has an iron deficiency and has trouble absorbing iron.

Welcome to the forum, Firefly.

Those of us who know we are celiac, whether officially diagnosed or self-diagnosed, often tend to see celiacs under every bush Having said that, some of your symptoms are definitely suggestive of celiac. I don't know about the frequent urination without UTI. I do know that celiac can give you frequent UTI's which often don't respond well to antibiotics.

Diarrhea, constipation and stomach cramping, and improvement with elimination of wheat is definitely suggestive. Weight loss, tiredness, vision problems, sensitivity to light and dizziness are also suggestive. Your mother with so-called IBS and iron deficiency is also a clue because if you have it you inherited it from one of your parents, your mother being the most likely with those symptoms, it would seem. I do think you should ask your doctor to run a full celiac blood panel to rule in (but not necessarily out) celiac disease, because the blood test often gives false negatives, but never false positives. Do be sure to continue eating gluten up until the time of your testing or you will skew the test, because if you eliminate gluten you will start to heal and produce fewer antibodies, which is what the blood tests measure.

I do hope you can get a diagnosis.

[RollingAlong]

What sort of blood test did you do to rule out diabetes?

You can have blood sugar issues short of full-blown diabetes anyway, see bloodsugar101.com for details.