I'm 35. I have always had "stomach problems," and was diagnosed with IBS as a kid. In high school, I was hospitalized for a couple of weeks with weight loss, diarrhea and abdominal pain so that I could be on TPN, but no diagnosis other than IBS was given. I continued to have problems off and on throughout college and career, but I was still able to get on with life. This changed in 2008.
Starting Spring 2008….
-chronic diarrhea (up to 10 times per day, though reduced greatly with cholestyramine)
-35 lb weight loss down to a Body Mass Index of 15.3
-nausea and vomiting
-severe stomach cramps
-bloating
-fatigue, malaise, weakness
-night sweats
Symptoms became so severe that I left my job, go on disability and move in with family.
The diarrhea has improved with daily cholestyramine, but I continue to have abdominal pain, cramps, discomfort and nausea and feel very ill when I eat anything other than rice or rice cakes or a few other foods. The fatigue is debilitating most of the time. If I feel a tiny bit better and try to clean a room or go for errands, I will end up spending the next 2-4 days in bed feeling like I have the flu. The latter has been diagnosed as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.
I have had 1 sigmoidoscopy and 4 colonoscopies (the latter just last week, after I ended up in the ER with severe abdominal pain, diarrhea and bleeding). All have been normal. Similarly, an upper GI series, CT enteroscopy, abdominal sonogram and stool tests have also been normal. An upper endoscopy showed only a hiatal hernia. I've been tested for celiac disease multiple times and have tested negative. Still, I tried going off gluten for 2 years to see if it would help; it didn't.
I have the following diagnoses:
-intestinal problems = IBS? Post-infectious dysmotility/nerve damage
-mild von Willebrand’s disease type I (just finished an 8-week course of Ferrlicit IVs due to severe iron deficiency anemia—hemoglobin was down to 7.1)
-Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
-Chiari Malformation type I
-hiatal hernia (also born with double inguinal hernias—repaired as an infant)
-osteopenia…getting worse and close to osteoporosis
-migraines
-night sweats
-autoimmune thyroid disease (started as hyper and then became hypo)
Any thoughts?
Starting Spring 2008….
-chronic diarrhea (up to 10 times per day, though reduced greatly with cholestyramine)
-35 lb weight loss down to a Body Mass Index of 15.3
-nausea and vomiting
-severe stomach cramps
-bloating
-fatigue, malaise, weakness
-night sweats
Symptoms became so severe that I left my job, go on disability and move in with family.
The diarrhea has improved with daily cholestyramine, but I continue to have abdominal pain, cramps, discomfort and nausea and feel very ill when I eat anything other than rice or rice cakes or a few other foods. The fatigue is debilitating most of the time. If I feel a tiny bit better and try to clean a room or go for errands, I will end up spending the next 2-4 days in bed feeling like I have the flu. The latter has been diagnosed as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.
I have had 1 sigmoidoscopy and 4 colonoscopies (the latter just last week, after I ended up in the ER with severe abdominal pain, diarrhea and bleeding). All have been normal. Similarly, an upper GI series, CT enteroscopy, abdominal sonogram and stool tests have also been normal. An upper endoscopy showed only a hiatal hernia. I've been tested for celiac disease multiple times and have tested negative. Still, I tried going off gluten for 2 years to see if it would help; it didn't.
I have the following diagnoses:
-intestinal problems = IBS? Post-infectious dysmotility/nerve damage
-mild von Willebrand’s disease type I (just finished an 8-week course of Ferrlicit IVs due to severe iron deficiency anemia—hemoglobin was down to 7.1)
-Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
-Chiari Malformation type I
-hiatal hernia (also born with double inguinal hernias—repaired as an infant)
-osteopenia…getting worse and close to osteoporosis
-migraines
-night sweats
-autoimmune thyroid disease (started as hyper and then became hypo)
Any thoughts?