My doc informed me Monday that she finally got the results of my intestinal cultures from LAST JUNE. Apparently some arrived, and the rest never did, supposedly they were stuck in the damn mail room? Not her fault technically, but I'm still pissed off right now. I stopped complaining to her about my digestive system because she kept acting like I was depressed or crazy, or just didn't have the "right attitude." Doctors have tried to label me with fibromyalgia, IBS, & interstitial cystitis, all of which were ruled out. The one lingering symptom of hyperthyroid I can't match up with my TSH level has been digestive.
The answer: basically, I have, and have had for a long long long time, an infection called Dientamoebiasis. Sigh...I know it's been there for years because my son came home with it, in 2004. And since the entire family wasn't treated, and it is extremely communicable, (among family who live together, not average people we meet) we seem to have been passing it around for the last 3 years.
I can take the medication, (it's safe for TTC and pregnancy) my kids will take whatever I make them take, but the real challenge is Mr. Cotta. Adults can be asymptomatic, but carriers. And diagnosing them can take up to ten different culture samples, or one insanely expensive blood test that no one would order unless it was critical. So the policy is, treat the whole family for ten days with medication and be done with it. But my husband hates seeing docs, and hates taking any medication, ever. So this drives him nuts. But he has to take the medication, or we'll all be sick again soon. I know he will in the end, but the fight along the way....sigh.
Anyway, wanna hear the symptoms? (from Wikipedia and emedicine, my link thingy won't click)
- Weight loss
- Fatigue
- Nausea and vomiting
- Fever
- Uritcaria (skin rash)
- Pruritis (itchiness)
- GI Pain
- Headache
- Malaise
- Bloating - (Maybe why my stomach sticks out weirdly, always pleasant for the IF)
- Diarrhea & constipation alternating
- Irritability
And no we're not going there.
I just can't.
Charming. Well... I'm glad you have a diagnosis, and I'm sure you can fight the good fight against Mr Cotta. And we'll just keep fingers crossed about that repro system one.
ReplyDeleteBea
Holy crap - no wonder you're pissed off right now. I too am glad that you have a diagnosis, and hope that you get it resolved sooner rather than later.
ReplyDeleteEwwwww, poor you!
ReplyDeleteI'd scream blue murder at the person losing the results!
Hope the treatment works fast and I certainly hope it hasn't affected your "system"!
XXX
You don't have to go there...because that's where my mind went immediately at the beginning of this post.
ReplyDeleteAre you ok?
Feel better soon. Do you really think you've had this for 3 years? That is so horrible.
ReplyDeleteThanks guys.
ReplyDeleteCatherine, physically I'll be okay; emotionally, I don't know. I'm sad, angry, feeling a bit defeated.
Meg, I have no idea if this HAS been going on for 3 years and maybe I'll never know, but I've symptoms on and off, so it's possible.
Oh man, that's awful. Internetty best wishes winging towards you.
ReplyDeleteResults hung up since June ...!? Needless to say, hoping the meds for the four of you clear this up.
ReplyDeleteAAAGH. I, too, would be "going there". Bah.
ReplyDeleteWow. That is awful. I hope you can somehow force it down Mr. Cotta's throat. Can you bribe him somehow?
ReplyDeleteI hope you all get cleared up quick. As for going there, it would be making me insane.
Oh, this is so not good.
ReplyDeleteHope the treatment works fast and thoroughly.
And BTW, love patronizing doctors. Just love them.
Oh my gosh. That is awful! I am thankful you finally have a diagnosis, and a treatment, but still... it really, really sucks.
ReplyDeleteYeah. You just do whatever you have to do to get Mr. Cotta to take that medicine. Grind it up and put it in his Cheerios if you have to!