Ugh, what's wrong with me?

[Blake777]

I'm a 17 year old male from England. For about a year now i've been suffering from an unknown bowel illness and last week was told by my doctor that he can't diagnose me. My illness basically makes me feel as though I need to go for a poo all the time when I don't. As a result of the illness I had to drop out of college and am now just sat around at home all day. My other symptoms are on off diarrhoea, mucousy stools, abdominal pains (mainly in my left-hand side), rashes on my fingers and a constant bloated feeling. I also sometimes lose my appetite and I lost alot of weight in the first few months but have now put it back on again. I have had several tests done, a colonoscopy, an endoscopy, a blood test, a capsule test/examination thing, a stool sample, an ultra-sound scan and a berium meal x-ray. The only test that came up with something was the stool test where I was a 350 and the doctor said a 50 was normal. After my last test (capsule examination) he told me he could not find anything wrong with me...

[malik0000]

Hi Blake,
I am not a doctor. but you may be suffering from 'Proctitis'. I hope you get well soon.

[jambmom]

Hi Blake,
Again, I'm not a doctor either, but here's a few thoughts. My daughter suffered occasional bouts of Ulcerative Colits over 6 years.  It was only after being hospitalized during the horribly active 4th episode that we found out what was going on.  She would 'heal' within a few weeks, so that by the time all the tests were run and she saw the specialists, there was no sign of the UC.  Other things to look for are Celiac disease (this requires a genetic test for full accuracy), and Lactose Intolerance.  Please don't give up. Because no one had ever been able to figure out what was wrong my now 16 y/o, she argued with me until we walked in the specialist's door, that she didn't need to see another doc, because they just treat us like we're crazy and she was anorexic/bulemic. That's when we were escorted to the hospital and stayed there for 5 days while she was tested, treated and stabilized.

Keep trying and looking for answers.
Jan

[missmetal]

Hi Blake - I'm no doctor, but have had Crohn's and IBS (diarrhea-predominant) for a really long time - and was just diagnosed with a moderately active flare of the Crohn's this week, too.  In my "professionally uneducated" opinion, maybe you are suffering from something Crohn's Colitis, or maybe severe IBS (I know some doctors just really do not take IBS seriously - which is a shame, because it can be so devastatingly debilitating).  Anyway, back to Crohn's Colitis, it is very possible for the Crohn's to appear anywhere in the digestive tract (mouth, esophagus, stomach, small intestine, large intestine, etc.) so maybe you could suggest this to your GI doctor?  And it is also very possible to have some symptoms of Crohn's while having some symptoms of IBS (welcome to my world).  By all accounts, you HAVE to continue to find out what this is - you CANNOT give up - I can't even tell you how many doctors I had been to before FINALLY being diagnosed with Crohn's - have you talked to your doctor about different medications to help alleviate your symptoms?  I can give you a list of pharmaceuticals to inquire about.

I'd be happy to share some tips on how to try to deal with every day life, if you're interested...and believe me, I still learn new things every day from people on the message boards and from reading A LOT.  If you're not already a member (it's free), maybe you'd be interested in signing up for the message boards on the Crohn's and Colitis Community (it couldn't hurt)...their address is ccfacommunity.org

I really hope you find the answers you so desperately need.

Karen

[Blake777]

He was originally looking for Crohn's disease but said he couldn't find any signs of it. As a result of this he now thinks i'm suffering from constipation and has started me on some laxatives. Now I wake up every day at 7am with violent diarrhoea and almost unbearable abdominal pains. My main problem has always been when I leave my house I always feel as though I need to go for a poo. I still get the feeling at home but just ignore it as i'm about 10 feet away from a useable toilet. I can't sit in public places for very long and its hard to ignore it as it's all I can think about. I really need a diagnosis soon as I can feel my future slipping away with every day I have to stay at home from college.