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Questions To Ask Doctor

sunnybabi1986

By sunnybabi1986
in Coping with Celiac Disease

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sunnybabi1986 Contributor
sunnybabi1986
Posted

The last week has been rough. I've been getting sick to my stomach after nearly every meal and I'm having a hard time eating anything. I'm nauseous all day and the past couple days I think I've started having anxiety attacks. I go to bed with my husband and turn out the light, but when the light goes off, I start panicking. It's the most terrifying experience I've ever had and I can't get my heart rate to drop. My hands shake, I get dizzy and I can't think straight. I turn the light back on and it barely helps. I hardly slept last night.

This morning I actually woke up the same as when I went to bed :( My hands are shaking and I literally feel like I've been drugged. I feel like I'm losing my mind and it's scaring me to death. I got an appointment with my doctor tomorrow (if I can make it that long without losing my mind) and I need ideas and questions to ask her.

I know that vitamin deficiencies can cause some serious neurological symptoms and I'm kind of suspecting that's the culprit. I really don't eat well and I can't stomach multivitamins often enough. My typical "glutening" symptoms are stomach cramps and nausea, but this really feels different. I've never ever had neurological symptoms in my life. I'm actually having trouble typing because I can't read the screen right and I feel like I'm walking in a haze.

Any ideas or suggestions on what to talk to her about?

Thank you so much!

-Janie

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beefree11 Newbie
beefree11
Posted

Hi. So sorry you are going thru this. Did you find any relief with the no dairy? Are you still no dairy? Have you done anything with your diet to elim those more allergic items: soy, corn, wheat, gluten? To see if there were reactions?

Have you been tested for pregnancy? Anemia? When was your last big blood work done? Is it time? Ask for ferritin, Vit B12, the whole thyroid panel, allergy tests, Iron, Vit D, to name a couple off the top of my head. I am going by what my daughter has been tested for. She has Hashimotos, is hypothyroid, has polycystic ovarian syndrome, is gluten intolerant and tested positive for Epstein Barr. I hope some of this is helpful.

( I had symptoms that you described, and was put on iron for anemia.) Please be sure to list all the symptoms and perhaps she can prescribe vitamins or supplements that you can take without problems.

sunnybabi1986 Contributor
sunnybabi1986
Posted
  • Author

I saw my doctor today and she is referring me to a GI doctor since she is just family medicine and admitted that I know a lot more about celiac and relating problems than she does. She strongly believes I have an ulcer, though.

She decided to run a huge panel of tests to make sure I'm not deficient in anything, though, and they ended up drawing a LOT of blood. I mean a lot. And I'm tiny, so I nearly passed out after they took it, from losing so much blood. I ended up drinking a massive amount of orange juice to replace to fluids I lost and realized after the fact that this was *terrible* idea, since I likely have an ulcer. I ended up nauseous, with my stomach burning and could barely stay awake. They then brought me Mylanta, which I downed to reverse the effect of the orange juice. Another bad idea!

Turns out Mylanta has saccharin and sorbitol, so now I'm at home, dizzy, running to the bathroom every few minutes and feeling like I'm dying (I have serious artificial sweetener problems). To make matters worse, my panic attacks are coming back, my stomach is cramping from the stress, and I'm exhausted.

I didn't know where else to turn and I know so many of you have had similar experiences, so I guess this is an okay place to vent :( I'm just so tired of being sick and the thought of eliminating more foods from my diet might spiral me into a worse depression. I'm having a hard enough time on the gluten free/lactose free diet as it is.

Anyway, sorry you all have to hear all this, I just need someone to talk to right now who understands...thanks for listening!

-Janie

Skylark Collaborator
Skylark
Posted

Ugh, ouch. What an awful day. ((( hug )))

Betcha you're low B12. You can get a sublingual at the health store that won't cause you any tummy issues.

A trick to tolerating vitamins is to buy powder and put it in smoothies. Make a smoothie with a little Lactaid milk, a handful of ice, and half a banana in the blender. Add berries or other fruit. Protein powder is good too, if there is one you like. Add the vitamin powder to the smoothie. Having the vitamins spread out in the smoothie makes them much easier on the stomach than swallowing concentrated pills. B)

Another great B and C supplement is Emergen-C. You can make up a glass and drink a little at a time. The company has tested all their flavors independently and they are gluten-free.

sunnybabi1986 Contributor
sunnybabi1986
Posted
  • Author

My husband actually bought me a blender for Christmas, so I've been having smoothies and never thought of adding the vitamins that way! I'll head out to the health food store tomorrow and see if I can't see if I can pick something up...are there any specific vitamins you all can suggest? It'll be a little while until I can get into the specialist and/or my test results are back, so I'm kind of on my own until my doctor tells me what's going on.

This may sound silly, but what does sublingual mean?

Thanks for the help, Skylark! I so appreciate it :)

jerseyangel Proficient
jerseyangel
Posted

This may sound silly, but what does sublingual mean?

It means that it disolves under the tongue. Vitamin B12 is better absorbed that way.

Skylark Collaborator
Skylark
Posted

My husband actually bought me a blender for Christmas, so I've been having smoothies and never thought of adding the vitamins that way! I'll head out to the health food store tomorrow and see if I can't see if I can pick something up...are there any specific vitamins you all can suggest? It'll be a little while until I can get into the specialist and/or my test results are back, so I'm kind of on my own until my doctor tells me what's going on.

This may sound silly, but what does sublingual mean?

Thanks for the help, Skylark! I so appreciate it :)

:) How perfect! I can't believe you just got a blender. That's really funny.

The supplement I take comes as capsules or a smoothie so that's what I started with when my stomach was torn up. I had to start with half doses. Open Original Shared Link is almost more of a "medicine" that's formulated to fix mental health problems. It costs a lot but it saved my mind.

I'd say to go with a complete multivitamin powder. Sometimes you can get the in the "sports" section. Also you can grab some Tums for calcium. Tums should sit OK in your stomach or even be soothing. I looked on Google real quick and it looks like Vitamin Shoppe makes a powder, and there is a brand called All One that looks like it might work. They have a gluten-free, sweetener free rice base powder. The folks at your health food store may have other suggestions. I'd also start with just a little and see what you can tolerate comfortably.

Also check the Emergen-C and see whether you can tolerate the sweetener in it. It's awfully nice stuff and you can't take too much of the B-vitamins or C. All their flavors are gluten-free now. I like the orange.

Once you get the Dr. results back, you can add anything that she tells you to take to the multivitamins.

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