lots of symptoms

[wmiller]

ive had some problems now for about 6 months.  problems started:-

-with pretty bad diarrhoea although my stools have changed since the start of my problems in that they are sometimes solid - I have had blood in them occasioanlly, they float 30% of the time I got to the toilet - sometimes they smell funny other times there is no smell, somtimes they seem to be coated in orange oil other times they seem normal.
- I get very tired sometimes having to sleep at 2/3 in the afternoon through until 8 at night - this hasnt happened in the last 8 weeks or so...
- I get very nauseas at times
- I feel very dizzy to the point where I have stumbled when walking - dizziness is not always there though
- I had stomach cramps near my belly button and up to the bottom of my rib cage.  pain is most severe, but comes and goes, at the bottom of my rib cage right in the centre and out to the right have side of the bottom of my rib cage.
- pain from the middle of my back up to my right shoulder
- sometimes I get very shivery and feel very cold
- I get a lot of indigestion just now after nearly every meal.
- somtimes get a feeling of very bad cramp in the tops of my leg muscles
- feeling of weakness in my legs and a general feeling of weakness all over
- sometimes I feel im a little short of breath or that something catches my breath every now and again.
- feeling of a lump in the back of my throat every now and again

doc has done lots of blood tests which have showed a slightly raised bilirubin level - he has suggested Gilberts but doesnt know for sure if thats the cause.  He said all other liver function tests are normal.  kidney function is normal - all other bloods are normal.

I have have had a colonoscopy during which 2 biopsys were taken, results came back to rule out colon cancer and IBD.  consltant said everythhing else was normal and there was nothing there to cause any issue.

chest x-ray which was normal.

ultrasound which was normal

CT scan which was normal - specifically looked at the function of my pancreas to see how it dealt with processing the dye - all clear for this.

I dont take any medicine or drugs, i dont drink a lot of alcohol - ive not touched any alcohol this year... I dont smoke, before this happened I would go to the gym 4/5 times a week to work out for 2 hours so was relatively fit - since this started though I cannot go to gym for fear of feeling dizzy.  during the first 4 months I lost 24 lbs in weight but have gained 18lbs of that back in the last 2 months.

not sure where to go now, doc says he is baffled because they have done all the tests he can think of... where can I go from here?

[wmiller]

hannahmoo i had an colonoscopy - the worst thing about it was the prep they gave me to drink, tasted like salt water and I had to drink 4 litres of the stuff - it was horrible.. but boy does it work, it cleaned me out good.  the actual procedure was not sure or anything, I cant really remember it as I was sedated and they took biopsies, I didnt feel any pain at all afterwards either - dont worry about it - the thought of it is actually worse then the actual procedure.

on tuesday evening I had an endescope and it was really uncomfortable until the sedative kicked in after that I dont remember anything, cant even remember the consultant coming to speak to me, which I believe he did. the only thing he found was i had a little scid reflux which he has given me some meds for, other than that I go back in 6 weeks time.

I did come across a site called www.badbugs.org which seeme do describe people who have the same symptoms as I do so have asked my doc to test me for the bugs mentioned, he hasnt tested yet but has said if things dont clear up in 6 weeks he will give me the meds which will get rid of these bugs...

let me know how you guys get on, best of luck to both of you!

[pixiemomma]

I have had the same symptoms as the both of you and still after months of test and years of the same symptoms still no answers for me. 3 years ago i changed my eating habits limited to no dairy, no red meat, no pork, vegs only if cooked well, no nuts or nut products. I had relief for about 2 years back in april i started having more problems much worse this time and now to the point i cant eat anything just had endoscopy done most they found was gastric petechiae dont know what it is or what causes it and havent gotten biopsy results yet. If you have any clues or answers please help i have lost 12 lbs in a month and have gotten to the point i cant drink coffee and ramen noodles are my main meal it still causes pain but not as bad however in order to work and my childerns afternoon activities i cant eat for the pain.  

[Hannahmoo]

sorry...I asked you if you had a colonoscopy...and I see now that you have. My apologies. Were you able to tolerate the prep?

[Hannahmoo]

HI, just read your post. I have very similar if not exact symptoms and my gastro had found nothing yet. I had a multitude of tests, blood and scans to no avail. I think the dizziness and weakness are the most upsetting symptoms besides the pain under right ribs to back. My pain even travels down into my hip area....does yours? . I have lost 13 pounds since April 27th. I know that Boron posted that the dizziness may be dehydration but I make sure I am well hydrated each day....so I don't think that's the cause. All my scans have revealed nothing except for a small liver lesion which they said was a benign hemangioma. I too, was rel;atively active and now have curtailed my activity (such as driving) due to the dizziness/weakness. I even have a brain MRI to rule out and abnormality and that too was normal. I am scheduled for an endoscopy and colonoscopy this coming Tuesday...and I have to tell you I don't think I can do the prep! Have you had either of these tests done yet? Are you seeing a gastro specialist? I see one at the University of Pennsylvania Hosp. and he is completely stumped. He hasn't mentioned gallbladder issues yet....perhaps boron is right and that's what this may be related to. Has anyone asked you about pancreas function? I'm a bit concerned about the possibility of pancreas involvment. Please let me know about your progress and I'll keep you updated on mine. I will add that since I have implemented change in my diet (ie: only organic fruits, veggies, brown rice/beans...no bad fats, no dairy, no carbonated drinks and no meat...only fish) I notice my symptoms are somewhat (very little) alleviated (less gas/heartburn/pain) except for the aching in right quad to hip and the dizziness. I hope you are able to find answers....Keep me posted!

[boron]

Pain under the right rib cage is probably related to gallbladder. Ultrasound is not very exact, so you might want to ask for HIDA scan.

Weakness and cramps in legs..it sounds like dehydration, which causes deficiency of sodium or potassium. If you often feel dizzy, dehydration is even more likely. Drink enough fluid.