Just Not Sure...any Suggestions

[Shifty]

Hello everyone,

I just found this forum and thought I would get some feedback before I see a Gastro next week. I really don't know what is the root cause of all my symptoms but things seem to be pointing in the direction of gluten intolerance or something along those lines.

About five months ago I began a few new drugs for my Tourette Syndrome. Then, four months ago, everything happened at once. My stomach bloated, horrible abdominal pain from gas, diarrhea, low back pain, bone/joint pain (especially in my feet), and exhaustion/fatigue kicked in. I did not gain any weight but went from a 30" waist to a 32" overnight. I stopped the medicine as I figured that was the culprit but everything remained the same. I have been off the medicine since.

Just over a month ago, I started getting a lot of bladder pain and the urgency to go a lot. I went to my urologist who wasn't interested but got a negative urine test for UTI and he put me on Cipro. Needless to say, the cipro has done nothing for my issues and the abdominal pain seems to be getting worse.

I am sore across my abdomen right under my belly button and I get sharp stabbing pain on both sides about three inches out (think these are gas pains). Also, my intestines feel like they do when you wake from surgery and you try to have a BM, they just feel asleep if that makes sense.

Lastly, I have always had a somewhat sensitive stomach but now things seem to aggravate it worse. The one thing I know that gets an almost immediate response...Pizza = diarrhea in less than one hour.

So, if anyone has any ideas what they think this could be related to I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks a ton.

[eatmeat4good]

It certainly sounds like gluten intolerance or Celiac.

Even if you do not test positive, you should try the strict gluten free diet because it may resolve your symptoms. Abdominal pain and D are very common Celiac/Gluten Intolerant symptoms. Personally, I had UTI's for years and they suddenly disappeared when I went gluten free. I don't understand it, but I have read of several others who had the same happy result regarding the UTI's.

The bone and joint pain and fatigue are very indicative of Celiac/Gluten intolerance too. I hope you are able to go gluten free soon to see if it makes a difference for you.

Good luck and Welcome!

[Skylark]

Welcome. That sure sounds uncomfortable. Yes, you definitely need a celiac workup. Don't stop eating gluten until all the testing is done as you'll get false negative results.

Then as eatmeat4good says, give the diet a try no matter what the results are. A lot of people with GI problems are gluten intolerant even if they're not celiac.