Difficulty with a diagnosis

[vocalartillery]

For two years I have been struggling with being "sick". I have had every diagnosis from cancer to Crohn's thrown at me, but no one can definitively give me an answer, or help with my symptoms.

My family history leans very heavily on Crohn's, as well as my research into my symptoms. My father's side is riddled with Crohn's and UC, an aunt who passed away 4 years ago from Crohn's, with two of her children that have it, as well as their children. Another of my aunts has UC.

Roughly two years ago, I started with what seemed like the flu, but wouldn't go away. I recently experienced, what I'm assuming was remission, and now I am heading back towards full blown attack. Couple this with Polsystic Ovarian Syndrome and crippling Bipolar 2 disorder, I'm a mess.

For two years I have had diarrhea, heart issues, fluctuating white blood cell count and general stomach issues, as well as many other things.

I have an appointment Monday, the 4th, with a new Dr....and I could really use some advice on how to approach this. I can't keep up this life.

 

[DJW]

Hi and welcome. Sorry you're having such a hard time. There are a lot of people here who are undiagnosed. I'm sure they will be along with some great advice. Getting properly diagnosed can take a long time.

Is this doctor a GI specialist? I think you should push for a full workup. Blood work, colonoscopy and upper GI series to start.

Sending you my support. I hope you get some answers.

 

[InkyStinky]

Hi there! So sorry about your struggles! Like DJW said, a GI specialist is the type of dr you need.

This forum has a great wiki - if you read through the entry on Crohn's Disease (which is hopefully going to be magically linked here ) it will give a great overview of the types of diagnostic tests. (Apparently didn't get linked, so here it is: http://www.crohnsforum.com/wiki/Crohns-Disease )

If you haven't already, start writing down everything you want to discuss with your new Dr. - speaking for myself, I would forget most of what I wanted to ask if it weren't for my notes!

 

[UnXmas]

What tests have you had so far?