Sort of new- looking for advice??

hi!! i've been reading a lot of this forum lately and have recently decided to get an account so that i can post on here. everyone here seems really great and i'm so thankful that i can just read some of your guys' stories.. i'm currently anxiously waiting to have a colonoscopy in a few weeks; my doctor told me he suspects it's crohn's, and i'm just wondering if anyone has had the same experience as me?

i'm a 20 year old college student and have led a pretty active, healthy lifestyle.. i used to be a runner but have given that up since my symptoms have become more apparent. have always had a 'sensitive stomach.' when i was in high school it was bad, but i just ignored it and chalked it up to anxiety. then this past summer, i started having more noticeable symptoms.
i have a lot of heartburn and reflux (always have), and within the past few months i have been having bouts of diarrhea alternating with constipation. it's really painful, and sometimes there is a decent amount of blood. i also get extreme nausea a few hours after eating every now and then for no rhyme or reason. i have lost about 15 pounds since august, and i can tell that i'm not absorbing nutrients because i get a lot of foot cramps and always feel very tired. i also get joint pain sometimes.. it's worse in the morning?
i have been anemic in the past, and my blood tests show that i have a positive ANA, although i'm not sure what that is, my GI said it was pretty high. i think 1.128? or 1.1280? i'm not sure. i've had an endoscopy which showed i had chronic gastritis.. but for seemingly no reason, as i am very healthy and don't smoke, drink, or even eat anything that's the tiniest bit greasy or fatty.

these past months have really taken a toll on me, and if the colonoscopy doesn't reveal something, i'm not sure what to do. i would love to go back to running and having a normal life. has anyone had similar symptoms? is this all in my head- am i going crazy????

Hello Paches
I don't think it is all i your head at all.
Is your GI aware of the blood loss?
Usually they attend to this symptom quite rapidly and they could bring forward the colonoscopy .
Colonoscopy is the gold standard in diagnosis of IBDs , crohn's etc.
Sorry you are having a bad time
Feel better soon
Hugs and best wishes
Trysha

yeah, i went to him about a week ago and told him about it for the first time because i was kind of embarrassed before.. i was kind of stupid about it to wait. the reason why i have to wait a few weeks is because i'm away at college, and i want it to have as little impact on my studying as possible.oo:
thanks for the reply!!!!!!

Hi Paches, I know exactly what you're going through, I had similar symptoms that lead to a colonoscopy that found my Crohn's Disease. The forum wiki has a very nice article on common problem foods for people with Crohn's Disease. I'd suggest keeping a food diary to try and figure out what foods make your symptoms worse, it can really help with managing this illness for some. You're seriously not going crazy, even if they don't find anything on your colonoscopy.

thank you!! i'm sort of discouraged that it will come back as just IBS, because i'm not as physically ill as other people on here. is crohn's a very obvious thing, like a definite YES or NO if it's not severe? or can it just be bad enough to affect my lifestyle without any hospitalization or very serious illness?

I agree with the above posts.