Indroduction

[no-more-muffins]

Hi, I guess I should have started here with my intro before I started posting on other message boards but I started there instead of here.

So, I'll introduce myself properly.

I am a 33 y.o. woman with a husband and 4 kids ranging in age from 9 years to 20 months. I started having symptoms in January (insomnia and anxiety to start and then depression, nausea, loss of appetite and weight, frequent poos, joint pain, hand tremors, fatigue.....) When I first started feeling badly my gp tried some anti-depressants which didn't do squat. I decided to have some hormone testing because I thought I was going through early menopause (lol). All the tests came back normal. I am sure you know all the testing.... I had a ct scan.... a pelvic u/s, blood tests, pee tests...

Finally I went to an internist who suggested I get tested for celiac (and go to a psychiatrist as well to take care of the anxiety and depression). My blood tests came back negative for celiac and I wasn't anemic. My dr. ordered an endoscopy and colonoscopy and the GI docs were almost not going to do it for me. They threw a packet about IBS at me and I had to practically BEG to get the endoscopy (because "younger" people generally don't have intestinal or bowel problems especially when all the celiac tests came back negative). My endoscopy results were normal but the sigmoidoscopy showed MC. I had never heard of this but I had decided BEFORE my endoscopy that I was going to start on a gluten free diet because I was convinced I had a gluten intolerance at the very least. I started eating GF the day after my endoscopy. The only reason I know my diagnosis is that I called the medical records dept. at the hospital. The GI docs actually still haven't called me and my endo was a week ago. I got the results four days ago (but I digress... this just pretty much sums up the whole process for me though... waiting, waiting, waiting, frustration...)

I have already noticed an improvement since eliminating gluten. I know I have a long way to go but I am so relieved that I have a direction now and I can prove that I am not just making all this up.

This forum is great. I have already received a very warm welcome from many of you. It is great to be among fellow MC sufferers.

[tex]

The only reason I know my diagnosis is that I called the medical records dept. at the hospital. The GI docs actually still haven't called me and my endo was a week ago.

Good for you. Most of us have found that our GI docs usually allow a couple of weeks before getting around to telling us about anything they might have found. Many of then consider MC to be "just a little diarrhea", (since it's not normally a fatal disease), so I suppose they figure it's nothing to get excited about, anyway.

I love that avatar.

Tex

[JLH]

NMM, we're very happy you found us.

I LOVE your avatar.