Those of you who see me frequently know that I have been having a hard time with my health lately. Beginning in late January, when I had a horrible tummy bug, I also had very weird symptoms--numbness and tingling in my hands and feet, going to the bathroom constantly (particularly at night), worsening heartburn symptoms (even though I'm on a very powerful reflux cocktail), etc. I went to the internist in Feb, as we thought I had diabetes. No diabetes, labs were very clear there. More labs were done to rule out auto-immune disorders, such as rheumatoid arthritis and lupus. All were negative except for one, which my doctor indicated was probably a false positive.
Last week I went to my gi doctor. She didn't have a lot of wisdom to share with me. She thought I may have a stomach disorder, gastroparesis, in which the stomach is slow to empty (resulting in vomiting the next day). The treatment for which is a low fiber diet. She didn't really address the meds I am currently taking, nor did she address the other symptoms, though she indicated an immune disorder was possible.
Today, I visited a second gi doctor, for another opinion. I feel so enlightened today and as if a huge burden has been lifted off my shoulders. He listened to my explanation of symptoms, looked at my hands and said, "I think I've heard enough." He proceeded to tell me that I very likely do have an immune disorder, which explains 90% of my symptoms, particularly the worsening reflux symptoms. He's sending me to a rheumatologist for further direction. He also suggested that eating a low fiber/low residue diet would minimize my reflux and possibly make it recede altogether (he even suggested taking a liquid diet for a week).
So that's the good news. The bad news, I could have an auto-immune disorder. The symptoms involved are described as the CREST syndrome, which is a connective tissue disorder with the following symptoms: calcified deposits under the skin (which I have and have had for nearly 10 years with no explanation); Raynaud's in my hands (basically signs of poor circulation and discoloration with very dry skin); esophageal problems--he indicated that my reflux was more due to inadequate esophageal muscle, meaning that it doesn't squeeze hard enough to move food along, so food sits in my esophagus longer, creating irritations. So I am going to see a rheumatologist soon.
You may also be aware that I have not slept well since before Christmas. I have been awake at night more times than I can count, sometimes waking as many as 5 times a night (worse than having a newborn!!). The second gi suggested that I am refluxing at night without real symptoms, causing me to wake up. He suggested simply raising the head of my bed by six inches. All of this together has made me extremely stressed and irritable.
I am so relieved to finally feel like I have a light at the end of the tunnel and that there is an explanation for all the crazy things that have been going on inside my body.
