chronic diarrhea, weight loss

Hi everyone-

I need help.  This case is me.

29 year old male, student.  6'1" 165lbs

chronic diarrhea x 8 months.  25 lbs weight loss.  fatigue.  Stools have undigested particles,  sometimes a steatorrhea, with visible grease droplets.  Visible red blood in the stool on 3 occassions, but a very small amount.  no tenderness on stomach palpation.
HIV negative.

Vitals: normal ( i can give you numbers if you like, but no fever)

wbc 3.3  low
rbc 5.54  
neutrophils 1.5  low
lymphs 1.3
monocytes 0.3
eos 0.1
baso 0.0
rest of the panel, normal.

went gluten and dairy free for 2 months, no help, did an herbal parasite cleanse x 2 weeks

no smoking, very little alcohol, no drugs

have traveled to Ecuador(lived in the country for 1 month), Mexico, Puerto Rico

Symptoms that come and go, they seem to intensify while trying to get to sleep:  
a new headache within last 3 weeks(often), a fullness feeling in the ears, dizzyness(not often), a "grabbing" sensation in the legs(has been reasonably constant and around for about 8 months), strange transient feelings in arms, base of occiput and thoracic/lumbar spine kind of pulsing, throbbing, shaking, not really numb or tingling.  Sometimes visible muscle twitch.  Sometimes feel fine.


Expanded GI panel to "Diagnos-techs" was mailed in yesterday.  http://www.diagnostechs.com/main.htm

Condition seems to be worsening.  I have no insurance.  I went into county hospital, they want to start with colonoscopy, but this may take a while to schedule.  The first appointment they could give me with a gp is mid april.

1.  What are your differentials?
2.  What studies would you start with?
3.  Can you recommend a thoughtful GI doc in the Los angeles/orange county line area? Especially that might understand a student with no insurance's situation?  
4.  If this is a more rare condition like Whipple's...could someone in academia maybe get published or have an interest?  
  

[purplekoala543]

Go to acupuncturist that is licensed. It sounds like chronic Spleen Qi Deficiency and "wasting and thirsting disorder" according to TCM diagnosis and possibly something else. This condition is very common and there is treatment which should prove to be effective especially with Chinese medicine (in america it is called dietary supplements). With an acupuncturist who also know Chinese herbs there should be no problem at all getting you back to normal. Trust in the fact that hundreds of millions of people have used this type of health care for hundreds of years. You will have to go more than once at first. To change the patterns your body is giving you it is important to follow up and go as often as the acupuncturist says and take these herbs in order to become healthy again. Good Luck and you will be surprised!
-future acupunturist