I have had a very long year of being diagnosed, undiagnosed, and painful symptoms. Here is an overview (I hope I can get some help here):
I have had bloating, cramping, 15-pound weight loss, and constant diarrhea (5-6 BM per day), joint pain (3 times a week or more) for almost a year now. I had a colonoscopy and was told that the biopsies were positive for ileitis. My doctor diagnosed me with Crohn's at this point. After budesonide did not provide me with any relief for a couple months, my doctor sent the biopsies to a larger hospital, where they came back negative for ileitis. After this, I got a SBFT (inconclusive) and a CT scan which came back normal. All my blood tests and stool samples came back normal. My doctor then reversed my diagnosis and told me I have IBS. I have, however, tried many different diets (gluten-free, lactose-free, low FODMAP, etc) and none have helped at all. I am taking an anti-spasmodic which has helped some with pain but not with the number of bowel movements I have. I am getting a capsule endoscopy next week as a final measure to rule out Crohn's.
My most recent investigation, however, has been with my stools. For as long as I can remember now, a lot of my stools are loose and have what looks like coffee grounds in them. I drink a cup or two of coffee each day, so I thought maybe that was where these black speckles were coming from. Because of this I have never felt that this is relevant information to tell my doctor. After finally googling "coffee grounds in poop" earlier tonight, I realized that this can indicate blood in stool. I do not normally eat food with seeds in it, so I don't think this would be the cause of the black specks.
I guess I am asking the members of this forum if this new discovery should cause any urgency? I will inform my doctor of this at my next appointment, but should I notify her of this sooner? I thought that blood in stool would always be found in a stool sample, so I did not think this could be a possibility.
Any thoughts?
Thank you,
Frustrated
I have had bloating, cramping, 15-pound weight loss, and constant diarrhea (5-6 BM per day), joint pain (3 times a week or more) for almost a year now. I had a colonoscopy and was told that the biopsies were positive for ileitis. My doctor diagnosed me with Crohn's at this point. After budesonide did not provide me with any relief for a couple months, my doctor sent the biopsies to a larger hospital, where they came back negative for ileitis. After this, I got a SBFT (inconclusive) and a CT scan which came back normal. All my blood tests and stool samples came back normal. My doctor then reversed my diagnosis and told me I have IBS. I have, however, tried many different diets (gluten-free, lactose-free, low FODMAP, etc) and none have helped at all. I am taking an anti-spasmodic which has helped some with pain but not with the number of bowel movements I have. I am getting a capsule endoscopy next week as a final measure to rule out Crohn's.
My most recent investigation, however, has been with my stools. For as long as I can remember now, a lot of my stools are loose and have what looks like coffee grounds in them. I drink a cup or two of coffee each day, so I thought maybe that was where these black speckles were coming from. Because of this I have never felt that this is relevant information to tell my doctor. After finally googling "coffee grounds in poop" earlier tonight, I realized that this can indicate blood in stool. I do not normally eat food with seeds in it, so I don't think this would be the cause of the black specks.
I guess I am asking the members of this forum if this new discovery should cause any urgency? I will inform my doctor of this at my next appointment, but should I notify her of this sooner? I thought that blood in stool would always be found in a stool sample, so I did not think this could be a possibility.
Any thoughts?
Thank you,
Frustrated
