Although I've had my current symptoms for about 3.5 years now, I've only recently gained the courage to really try and figure out what's truly wrong with me. If you could help point me in the right direction of possible things to ask my doctor about, that would be great (I have a GI who is not very helpful, unfortunately.)

Main symptoms:
-main symptom is chronic gas/flatulence (started suddenly 3.5 years ago and has gotten slowly worse)
-bloating & stomach pains, especially in the mornings and at night

Other symptoms I've noticed:
-in the last year I've noticed unexpected rashes, including eczema, and generally very sensitive, irritable, and dry skin
-last 2 years I've gotten acne, when that was never a problem before (face and body)
-in the last 6 months, I've had 2 UTIs and pain urinating(no STIs or STDS, I've been tested)
-bouts of fatigue, nausea (not very frequent)

Also, I have been diagnosed Celiac Disease and IBS. I've been on a strict gluten-free diet for years now, and an endoscopy has shown that I no longer have damage in the intestine due to gluten. So I've ruled Celiac out. I'm going on antibiotics soon to see if it's SIBO. But now, my lingering worry is if this is yeast overgrowth or something worse.... Any suggestions?

Welcome lightwithin,

I don't know if we can help you here, but we do care, and we've walked a mile or so in your shoes in one way or another.

I'm 5 years into my adventure with multiple chemical sensitivities and just over 1 year in remission. In this time, I've seen 2 toxicologists, 1 GP and a neurologist. My experience with doctors was disappointing, but you still need to keep going back, asking questions, and exploring their suggestions. At least Celiac's is a recognized medical condition, and much is known about it. I'm sorry that a gluten free diet hasn't helped you like it should.

Antibiotics are a dicey issue for GI symptoms, as most anti-Bs cause upsets to ones GI flora. As this is a gastro-enterologist prescribing these anti-Bs, I spoze you must trust him. I hope a follow-up probiotic treatment is part of his plan to get your intestinal flora back to normal once you finish your anti-B treatment. If he hasn't talked with you about this, I would ask him about it.

Unfortunately, there really is no substitute for doing your own research... I spent hundreds of hours on the internet before I learned what was really going on with me, and how to fix it. The upside is, once you break the code (so to speak), the satisfaction of solving the mystery is one of the best things I have experienced in my entire life.

As to \"pointing you in the right direction\"... The Life Extension Foundation www.lef.org has the best database of medical conditions, and the supplements that help them that I have found. Use the search feature in the upper right corner of the main page and sift through all the data there. Everything they report on is fully referenced and documented to do what they say it will do.

Learning how to search properly when you are doing research is the hardest part of what you are trying to do... One search leads to another... Most are dead ends, but then, all of a sudden, EUREKA! Best feeling in the world! Just keep trying different angles.

Good Luck and GodSpeed lightwithin,
Let us know how you're doing

Thanks for your reply.

I'm trying to research online (that's how I found out about SIBO and candida) but doing these online searches is just so overwhelming and depressing. It's difficult to sift through all the information and to figure out what really applies to me. I'll read things and have this moment when I believe, \"oh this could be it!\" and then I follow the diet, read the books, and take the supplements and it doesn't work. It's exhausting and my friends and family think I'm just falling into online scams. Because my doctor isn't very helpful, I feel like turning to him isn't the solution either. I realize that perhaps my only chance at feeling better would be to research online, but sometimes I feel so overwhelmed by it all that I have to stop my searching and forget about it for a few days. I wish there was someone out there who could sift through all the information with me and point out what actually applies. I seem to have developed a light case of 'cyber-chondria.'

That's why I decided to post here. By posting my symptoms, maybe someone will say, \"oh I had that exact thing! And this is what worked!\" Because the idea of trying all the supplements and all the diets for years sounds exhausting.

Also, my doctor said the jury's still out on probiotics. I asked him because I saw conflicting reports online.

Hi lightwithin,

Welcome to the forums (love the name - inspiring!).

From your symptoms it does sound like it could certainly be celiac disease as it often has manifestations such as skin rashes. Did your doctor run blood tests and do an endoscopy and biopsy to diagnose it? Celiac disease is considered a life-long condition so if you had a firm diagnosis it is likely the gluten-free diet is now preventing the damage but something else is going on. You may still have celiac as well though so don't go off the gluten-free diet.

As Bill has pointed out antibiotics can cause all sorts of problems with the gut microflora so using them to \"test\" if you have SIBO is not a wise idea. SIBO can be tested for using a simple breath test. You drink a lactulose (a sugar) solution which any bacteria present in your small intestine will metabolise to gases including hydrogen and methane. These are then absorbed from the gut and can be detected in the breath. If levels of these gases is high in the breath within a specified time after drinking the lactulose solution it is likely that SIBO is present. I would advise asking for this test before taking antibiotics. If this is not possible make sure to take a high quality probiotic any time you take antibiotics.

A couple of other tests I would recommend you have are the Comprehensive Digestive Stool Analysis (CDSA) and Intestinal Permeability Test. These will help to identify any problems in the gut such as Candida/yeast, bacteria, or parasite infection as well as any digestive and absorptive problems that could be causing your symptoms. You may need to see an alternative medical practitioner or a doctor who practices functional/integratve medicine to get these done.

Good luck!