Replies to 'When a Family Member Gets Sick'

Hi my name is Tammy I have a 22 year old daughter, who has been Miss diagnosed since she was 12. We  have seen Dr after Dr. She also has been in the hospital 7 to eight times this past year. she a couple of OK years were her symptoms were mild.But last year things got real bad ,she was working full time and last DEC she was put on disability I'm glad to say at the moment she is her health seems to be a little better,Until the pain returns. I understand what you are feeling, my daughter has also has spent many weeks depressed closing herself off from everyone ,telling me just cant do it any more .Its one of the hardest things to have to hear when your child tells you they dint want to be here any more. Or when they turn to you for answers and you dint have  one For years the Dr's couldn't figure out what was wrong with my daughter  she has had operation after operation,they took her appendix out,did several exploratory operations they have given us some really silly reasons for all her problems .she has been told by some she just wants attention,she has a mental disorder,what ever is going on they cant really seem to give me any really sound answers .Now she is on several meds,that do help her in a sense get through her days some days are worse than others I was told these meds will cause her organ failure if used over a long period time.Her newest Dr informed us that she we have been dealing with a long history of connective tissue disease. ?????? this is the first we've heard of that. They  say her test show no activity but shes still unpin with more than a handful ofttimes that she deals with on a daily basis.On top of all this my daughter has a beautiful little girl,who is now 4. Its taken a toll on my daughter she cant be the same a she use to be with her little girl my granddaughter thinks the hospital is her Mommy's second home.Anyway I could go on and on but what it comes down to at least for me is Ive learned not to solely depend  on the Dr's .I do alot of researching on my own and try to put the pieces of the puzzle together . Istill dint fully understand I'm not a Dr but in some ways Ive been able to explain why certain things are happening that the Dr's dint take time to explain to us and the more I learn the better prepared  i am when it comes dealing with the Dr's.And always remember no matter what the Dr's may tell you,You know your son better than any of those Dr's,keep trying other Dr's till some one will listen,Is your son on any meads at the time??I hope he is doing better,There are so many other s in the same situation being strong for them is what they need from us and know you cant get through this alone keep asking God to give you strength he really helps.My best to you and your son dint give up!!!!!  Tammy and Jessica

Hello Sharon.....I am sorry to hear that your son is so ill.   Has he ever been tested for celiac disease?  It's an inherited auto-immune disease in which the body can't tolerate gluten.  For a person with celiac disease, gluten causes problems in the small intestine that can affect the whole body, including symptoms such as depression, malnutrition, abdominal swelling, vomiting etc. etc.  The website www.celiac.org has more information.  You can also go to Google and put in celiac disease to find more websites.  I hope you find an answer soon.  God Bless You......Claudia 

  

  

The high white cell count indicates infection and the low potassium indicates possible autoimmune issues. Because it has been intermittent I would say that an allergy test would be a good start. Whatever cannot be tested with an allergy test can then be removed to find out if that is the culprit. slow introduction of each of these items one at a time and for three days is the answer. Should there be a negative response to an item remove all of it immediately. Allergies can be deadly and should be carefully monitored. Consult a specialist if a general test shows some allergies. Shots are available and can help to a degree. I fully expect you to say that the doctors have checked for this already, but with such severe symptoms they may have thought it was something more serious and deadly in nature and overlooked the possibility of this. I hope this helps.