In The Beginning...

The following is a letter I wrote in 2005 to a doctor who works in the same hospital as my mother. This was less than halfway through my first year of Crohn's. I was incredibly disappointed with the doctors I had seen but had already spent a fortune and didn't want to find another doctor. If I had had any idea what was to come...

Regular Symptoms

A few months ago (somewhere between 2 and 3) I started to have frequent diarrhea. I think, at first, it started out once a day a few days a week. It progressively became much more frequent. Toward the end (last Friday) it was happening 4-6 days each week. Each day a specific chain of events would occur. After I ate I would first get sharp pains in my stomach and/or nausea. This was followed by cramps in my lower abdomen which led to a sudden urge to run to the bathroom. My stool became watery.

Resulting Symptoms

Eventually I became exhausted, apathetic, and (some may say) irritable. My nails became brittle and I had circles under my eyes like never before. They actually extended to the inside corners of my eyes at one point. I never had a problem with sleeping or waking up in the middle of the night because I had to go to the bathroom. I’m not sure if I lost weight as I haven’t weighed myself in quite some time, but I have noticed ribs and collar bones that haven’t caught my attention in the past.

Patterns

I tried to find patterns: did certain foods trigger a reaction, certain times of day… I couldn't find any patterns. Some days I would be at work late because I was stuck in the bathroom hours after I had eaten lunch. Some days I was in the bathroom shortly after eating a plain bagel for breakfast. I tried not drinking coffee, nothing really helped.

Less Regular Symptoms

I find myself clenching my teeth. (I also read that this could be a symptom of allergies.) One day I had a metallic taste in my mouth. Two or three times, I skipped lunch. I’m not sure if I was not hungry or just so nauseous that I couldn't eat. Toward the end I also had some heartburn, but that was only after I began taking the “antispasmodic”.

Self-Medication

I started taking Imodium shortly after the diarrhea began. I later began taking a multivitamin. Neither of these seemed to have an effect.

Dr.s

On Monday April 25^th, I finally saw a Dr. He thought that it was either IBS or Crohn’s Disease. He did blood work and prescribed Hyoscyamine Sulfate. The blood work came back. It was mostly normal except for “NEUTROPHILS, ABSOLUTE” were 8500. He referred me to a Gastroenterologist. He also told me that he felt something on my thyroid which led to an expensive ultrasound that came up completely normal.

I saw the Gastroenterologist on Friday. He listened to me ramble on for a while. He did not have much to say until I told him that I promised my mother that I would tell him that I eat sushi about once each week (he replied with, “who doesn't”) and she is convinced that I have a parasite. He said that it could be true and let me ramble on for a while longer. When I told him about the metal taste in my mouth he said that it sounded like a parasite. He said that it might be Giardia and that he wanted to send in a stool sample to rule out a parasite before he resorted to a colonoscopy. So, that same day I dropped off the stool sample (3 separate tubes from the same sample). I waited 10 days until I finally got the results which were negative and delivered via telephone by the receptionist who refused to let me speak directly with the dr.

Antibiotic

After waiting for three days beyond the day the dr. told me to call back for the results, I decided to begin taking the antibiotic he had prescribed. He told me that I could take it as soon as I dropped the sample off and it would't hurt me if I didn't have a parasite. I waited anyway to try to avoid spending money that I may not have to spend. After hearing for a week that they didn't have my results, I decided to get the prescription, Metronidazol (Flagyl). I began taking it last Friday, May 6. Since I began taking the antibiotic, I have had some light-headedness, a few minor headaches, and a persistent and unpleasant taste in my mouth. I also am having “hot flashes” that last for a few minutes and leave me flushed. I had one bout with nausea, but I haven’t really been plagued by it.

I have dealt with some constipation which is unpleasant but not painful, and some gas.

I have, since first taking the Flagyl, had a bowel movement either once or twice daily. Although soft, none of these have been watery or could even be classified as diarrhea.

Frustration

The Gastroenterologist has told me (through his secretary) that I need to come back and have a colonoscopy. He has come to this conclusion without following up. He has not spoken to me directly, he does not know that I have been taking the Flagyl, and he does not know that I haven’t had any diarrhea in the past four days (a record).

In an attempt to cure my feelings of hopelessness brought on by a lengthy wait for test results, I began doing my own research. I looked up Giardia on several websites and have consistently read that this particular parasite is difficult to diagnose. I read that the symptoms are difficult to diagnose and that the cysts left in stool by this parasite are very small and sometimes not numerous enough to be found in a sample. I read that often several samples must be tested before any evidence is found.

Conclusion

I’m unsure if I have convinced myself that my symptoms are a result of a parasite because I am not particularly excited about spending the end of next week prepping for and experiencing a colonoscopy or because it is a good possibility. I feel like I am not getting a fair amount of attention from the Gastroenterologist.

Basically, my mother and I would like an attentive and objective opinion.

Thanks for your time.