Here's the first update on what we've been doing...
In September, Dirk saw our family doctor. He got 5 referrals for 5 different doctors for 5 different issues to be looked into. The most pressing is what we started with & are still working on...the chronic diarrhea! Poor guy couldn't keep anything in longer than 10 minutes. As if he needed to, he lost about 15 more pounds...without trying! I'd be all over that, if it weren't for the diarrhea part!
Colonoscopy - They checked for prostate problems, diverticulosis, polyps. Everything came back normal.
Upper GI - They checked his pancreas, stomach, & other stuff. The only thing they found was a small hiatal hernia, which finally explains his heartburn & acid reflux, but that's it.
Ultrasound - They found a small cyst on one of his kidneys but nothing to worry about right now.
CT Scan - They found another small cyst on the same kidney. Again, nothing to worry about. They'll check them both again in a year.
Blood Work - They did so many tests I can't remember them all. They checked for hepatitis, stomach cancer, parasites, copper disorders, thyroid disorders, colitis, ulcers, pancreatic cancer, blood disorders, Crohn's Disease, & a bunch of other stuff. All normal!
Dirk now takes an over-the-counter fiber pill that seems to be helping quite a bit. Strange that a fiber pill doesn't make it worse, huh? The doctor ordered another parasite test & a lactose-intolerance test, but he hasn't gone in for those yet. The doctor told him that if these come back normal, there's nothing more but to put him in a general category of Irritable Bowel Syndrome. That's what they do when they can't figure out what's wrong with you. So I can't seem to motivate Dirk to just finish it up & get these last 2 tests done. He's convinced they won't find anything.
Gettin' old ain't for sissies!!
4 comments:
Poor Dirk,
Ryan has issues with that occasionally too! Not fun, but if he eats 6 healthy meals a day and plenty of fiber and water it really helps.
it would be great to have there metabolisms though.
My friend was just talking to me about the same thing today. When she was younger she went through the same thing and lost a lot of weight. They found that she had Graves Disease. It is actually a thyroid disorder, but they didn't find it by checking her thyroid. Her mom has it and so does her Grandpa. It is pretty dangerous because it can attack the muscle in your body and eventually goes for your heart. She said that she takes Thyroid meds and that helps.
A little research in that department might not hurt.
Keep us posted!
I had a lot of stomach trouble a few years back. I was on every acid medicine and it wasn't even helping. I would swing between constipation and diarrhea, but mostly diarrhea. I was diagnosed with IBS and nothing the doctors were doing was helping. I finally went to a holistic doctor and he put me on good bacteria and digestive enzymes. I have been prescription free ever since. I took (and still take occasionally) Jarro-Dophilus EPS good bacteria twice a day. It's a room temperature stable Probiotic with 4.4 billion organisims per capsule, and I just bought the local store brand of digestive enzymes. I took the digestive enzymes with lunch and dinner. I did that for two weeks and then I didn't need anything any more. I take a dose now and then if my stomach isn't feeling right or if I take antibiotics. They kill the good bacteria in your system too.I think we get way too many preservatives in our food and it messes with our stomachs. I take fiber every day to help. The holistic doctor said fiber is the great regulator... It fixes problems either way. It can't hurt to try this stuff. It's at the health food store and it worked miracles for me.
Hope it helps...
Sondi
Oh my gosh! Poor guy. I have heard IBS is awful. Hopefully he starts feeling better soon.
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