New, Please Help!
#6650 - 04/21/03 04:41 PM
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SarahB
Reged: 03/18/03
Posts: 53
Loc: Cortland, New York
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Hello! I am new to this message board and thought that maybe you guys can help me?! This will be a long post but bare with me I want you to know all of the details. The problem that I am facing is that I am not sure what is wrong with me.
On June 1st I woke up feeling like I had the stomach flu (nauseas) and I haven't felt better since. I went to my doctors and they said that it was my gall bladder and I should have it removed. The told me that all of my problems would go away once my gall bladder was out. At the end of June I had my gall bladder removed. I felt a little better but still not back to normal.
Over the next 10 months I continuously went to my doctor and he prescribed a few more test and sent me to a gastroenterologist. The gastroenterologist said he was concerned about my weight loss (50lbs) and would like to do an endoscope. We did the endoscope and there was nothing going on so he said that I have IBS-C. I didn't think that I did because my symptoms were: nausea, dizziness, fatigue, chest pain, and headaches. He put me on Zelnorm and it seemed to stop the constipation.
My general doctor continued to tell me that I was depressed, I had obsessive-compulsive disorder, and I was a hypochondriac. He told me this was all in my head. But then he would send me home and not do anything.
Finally I asked to be referred to an endocrinologist for the dizziness in case it was my blood sugar. The doctor told me that it was not my blood sugar but he was concerned that there was something going on (finally!). He did a full exam (1st time in 10mo.) and ordered blood work, chest x-ray, and a CT scan. He told me to stop taking the Zelnorm and to start taking wellbutrin. All of those tests came back negative and I am still in the same boat.
At this point I am following the advice in Heather's book because I have to eat low fat to no fat in order to keep from feeling sick. Does this sound like IBS or not? I am so confused and don't know where else to turn. I am sorry this is such a long post but I really need some help.
Thank you,
Sarah
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Hi Sarah, welcome to the board! It seems as if your life as took a spin for the worst last june.My concern for you is that you seem to have alot of non-related ibs symptoms. Of corse, IBS does not mean that you Have to have eatheir D or C all the time- you can also have ibs with lots of pain and flatuence. It seems like youve got alot of problems here, so i would just not give up on finding a right doctor that can figure out a way to make you feel better. Trust me, when it comes to doctors, you really have to be persistant. I know this from expirience, as i am CONSTANTLY calling my doctor demanding more tests, meds, and advice. So far my doc has diagnosed me with acid reflux disease and she thought she was done with me... ha! yeah right. I called her day after day after day demanding some attention for my ibs.
Anyway, never give up hope! I hope you find friends and helpful advice here 
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-Angela
Healed in Jesus' Name
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Sarah,
The nausea, dizziness, etc that you described is something that I had gone through as well. I had gotten to the point where I was falling down, and finally went to my doctor. He ran tests, and found nothing. The severity of my dizziness passed, but I still get where I had to stop and hold onto something until it passed. I too was always nauseous, would have horrible pain in my lower GI tract, and feel sickly uncomfortable whenever I ate anything. It could be a piece of bread, and I would get sick. Anyway, after I couldn't stand the pain one day, I wrote every single thing I'd been feeling and went back to my doctor. He listened to this, things I had never mentioned before (I mean it's embarrassing), and he knew right away what it was. I don't know if IBS is what you have, but you sound just like I did. I'm so sorry you've had to go through all of these terrible things. I hope that you, too, will soon find your answers. Best wishes.
canyontinsley
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I often feel dizzy too. I was once even rushed to the ER because of this. My final diagnosis: My blood pressure drops easily.. lol... Make sure to get up extra slow like a sluggie 
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-Angela
Healed in Jesus' Name
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SarahB - you've gotten some pretty good insight here. Your doc sounds pretty quacky to me--that is the one who told you you were depressed, etc., etc.
Angela (Concrete Angel) is right about getting up slowly or turning your head slowly as that may prevent some of the dizziness. My husband gets vertigo once in a while and he takes Meclazine for it. Takes the dizziness right away. But yours might be from something different.
A lot of us IBSers have tendencies to be obsessive compulsive...like me for instance with TP. If you want a good laugh, go to SEARCH and type in toilet paper as the search string with no restricting dates and see what comes up. It's an absolute riot guaranteed to make you feel better. And, there are other obsessive compulsive things I do that we won't even talk about, but I notice as I get older, the worse I become. Wellbutrin is an antidepressant, right? Do you think you're depressed?
I'm sorry that you haven't been able to get your illness under control, but as Heather says, sometimes you have to do all the right things for a long time before they "kick" in. Patience is an important key for IBS. Try to look on the bright side of this--you're eating much healthier and will probably live a long and happy life once you get on the road to "better".
Did they really find something wrong with your gall bladder? Did you have gall stones or was it diseased? I had my gall bladder out about 4 years ago because I was getting attacks where I thought I was having a heart attack and when they did the ultrascan, they found a ton of stones. After it was out, I felt much better and no more of those awful attacks.
Keep posting and maybe you'll get some insight about why you feel the way you do. And, you're not alone--many others have been through the same thing you're going thru now.
Get well and stay positive.
Sharon
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Sharon
"Anything Chocolate"...that is all!
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Thank you for all of your quick responses!
Sharon – My doctor is a bit of a quack and I am going to find another general doctor. The wellbutrin is for depression. I do feel depressed because since I have been sick I have lost my job, lost so much weight, and worst of all I haven't been able to care for my 2 year old as well as I would like. The wellbutrin should also help with stress, which the doctor thinks could be contributing, to my problem.
As for my gallbladder, I was told that I had sludge (not stones) in my gallbladder. They also said that the injection factor was 10%. I myself am beginning to wonder if that was an unnecessary surgery.
Angela – Did your doctor think that it was a problem that you blood pressure was dropping and making you dizzy? My doctor has mentioned this too but I wasn't sure if this is normal or if it is something that needs to be dealt with.
Thank you all very much,
Sarah
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Sarah - I don't mean to appear dense, but what is the injection factor of 10% mean??? Let's get you on the road to feeling better so you can look after that 2 yo of yours! Keep us posted. Hope you start feeling better soon.
Shron
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Sharon
"Anything Chocolate"...that is all!
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Hi Sarah,
Welcome to the board and hope you feel better soon.
I get dizzy from a drop in my sugar level and shaky. All it takes is a glass of orange juice to get back to normal. If your Doc feels it is a drop in your blood pressure - shouldn't he/she explain why?
Barb
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Sharon
The Ejection Fraction is how much of the bile in your gallbladder is ejected when a fatty substance is introduced. The way the gallbladder is suppose to work is that when you eat a fatty meal the gallbladder contracts and releases concentrated bile to help digest the fat. From what I have found anything above 35% is considered normal and mine was only 10%. Hope this help clear things up.
Sarah
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I'm so sorry you're not feeling well. If I were you, I would consider finding another doc. This one seems like he/she's out of touch with reality. I have obsessive-compulsive disorder and IBS, and I'm confused by your Doctor's "diagnosis". If you have any questions about obsessive-compulsive, feel free to ask. As for the IBS thing, read the beginning parts of this website. There are other things that mimic IBS symptoms, ie. problems with the uterus, Colitis, Crohn's disease, etc. Has your Doc considered those???
Let us know how it's going.
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Formerly HanSolo. IBS, OCD, Bipolar, PTSD times 3.
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Sarah,
Firstly,
Welcome to the board!
Secondly,
I know exactly where you are coming from when talking about 2 year olds. My son, Harrison, was 2 last December. There sure is something about the guilt you feel over lost time you would rather spend playing with them, taking them to the park etc rather than dealing with pain and illness all the time.
Sometimes Harry is my absolute saviour. I can be completely down and miserable when he says something funny, or says "love you Mummy" or "some medi to make Mummy feel better". He even brings me my heat pack when I have a pain! It's then that things get back into perspective for me.
Don't get me wrong, if there is ever a cure for this condition I'll be the first one to sell the shirt off my back to get it, but I guess we have to look a little harder for the silver lining than some others.
Anyway,
you'll get heaps of support here and having Heather's books is a good step in the right direction.
All the best,
Kerrie
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What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.
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According my doc, sarah, the blood pressure thing is "nothing to be concerned about" He said lots of people get this and you just have to get up more slowly,drink plenty of water, and make sure you get plenty of salt of your diet. I have actually passed out because the dizziness got so severe on a number of occasions, but the doc thought nothing of it
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-Angela
Healed in Jesus' Name
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Sarah,
I too had my gallbladder removed, but my symptoms started back again in a few weeks. I was told my gallbladder was only functioning 8% and they said anything below 36% is not good, so I probably needed it out anyway, but sure hated to go through surgery and then still feel bad. Anyway, I too had several other tests run because the doctors thought it could be pancreatitis because my pancreatic enzymes were elevated, but after all tests came back normal, my doctor told me that vomitting can make the enzymes go up and I was doing that. I have IBS D&C, so there's really no meds out there right now for me, but my gastronologist told me that anti-depressants sometimes help better than the meds do. I've been on Wellbutrin for about 6 months now and have never had a bad flare-up since I started taking it. I'm a believer that it really does help IBS or it does help mine anyway. Hopefully you will see an improvement soon. Just wanted to share that info with you.
Hope you have better days ahead~
Joy
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SarahB - thanx for the explanation. My doc never even mentioned this to me, but I guess the stones spoke for themselves (via pain!!)
Sharon
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Sharon
"Anything Chocolate"...that is all!
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Hi. What anti-depressant are you on? Can you eat "normal" foods too? My IBS-C still occurs even tho' I follow the diet.
Thanks! Lisa.
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My doc said the same thing--she said I'll live longer than those with high blood pressure, as long as I don't crack my head open falling out of bed one morning!  At least for me, my low blood pressure symptoms have improved with age. That is, my blood pressure is still low, but I don't pass out from it anymore like I did in middle and high school.
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Lisa – I am on Wellbutrin. I have only been taking it for a little over a week so I am not sure if it is helping yet. I have heard that it may be helpful for IBS so we will see.
I am not quite sure what you mean by normal foods. Do you mean foods that are not in Heather's book. I do eat some things that aren't in her book but it is all trial and error.
Sarah
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Amelia,
I havnt "Passed out" in a long time, lol. so thats good.. I just wanted to thank you for lettin' me know that this has happened to you too. It makes me feel so... so not alone! Thanks again ((HUGS)) It really means alot to me that I can relate to others. 
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-Angela
Healed in Jesus' Name
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Kerrie,
I know what you mean about a two year old be you savior. Sometimes my son is so companionate even at that age.
I wanted to tell you that besides IBS and 2 year olds we have a third thing in common. My son who was 2 in November is also named Harrison. I though that it was funny that you son has the same name. Harrison is still a pretty rare name.
Sarah
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