I'm a newbie.

[Guest guest]

Greetings everyone.

My name is

I've been through a roller coaster of life the past two years trying to find a

diagnosis.

My first dr. who I started seeing when my health started declining was an

internist.

I started losing weight without even trying.

I had attacks of stomach upset after eating certain foods but never related it

to my

pancreas. I went through bottles of pepto bismal and still it never occured to

me.

I didn't realize how difficult of a disease it is to diagnose.

this first dr. did all the normal and routine blood tests that were coming back

normal, yet I

still was losing weight. I smoke cigarettes unfortunelty and this dr. made me

feel even

guiltier, saying I wanted to lose weight, othewise I'd quit smoking immediately

when told

to do so. she then told me it was all in my head and that I was suffering

anxiety.

she told me she didn't want to continue giving me medicine that the reps give

her but that

I should go and see a therapist. I was insulted! she was making me feel like a

hypochondriac.

I actully believed my mind was doing this to me.

I fired her after being accused of causing my own weight loss.

I went to a therapist and a psychiatirst to be evaluated. I was willling to go

on medicine if

need be to get my health back again.

My psychiatrist said she's never seen any of her patients lose so much weight

from anxiety

and that something else medically was going on and that I needed to go and see

an

endocronologist.

the endocronologist then referred me to a gastroenteroligist to be evaluated for

maladsorption. she thought that's what I might have but didn't have all the

symtoms that

go along with maladsorption.

so from there I saw an old dr. of mine that I hadn't seen in yrs. He's also a

freind to me so

was able to see and remember what I was weight wise before what I look now.

he saw the seriousness of my weight loss.

He told me he will stop at nothing to find out what is going on with me.

he did the stool test to test for fat in it which came out positive.

he then went on to diagnose me with chronic pancreatitis saying that the

maladsorption is

being caused by this.

he put me on enzymes to take with every meal, which I find doesn't help me much

but

made me lose more weight because the pills upset my stomach further.

I've only been on them for about 4 weeks so far.

I'm not sure if I trust his diagnosis of chronic pancreatitis without him even

had done any

type of tests yet for it.

he wanted to order an MRI with a special test to be performed at the same time,

but the

insurance company wouldn't approve it and said he has to order a Cat Scan first.

so he made me wait two weeks to see if the enzymes work before he ordered the ct

scan.

I'm going for one this coming wed. with oral contrast.

I heard this is the chosen modality of choice to check for pancreatitis. and it

can see cysts

plus calcifications on the pancreas.

I'm beginnning to get very frightened because none of my wardrobe fits me

anymore.

the few garments that did fit, is now large on me.

I'm not able to eat as much as before either.

yesterday I had hot pastrami sandwich and paid for it dearly the rest of my

afternoon.

I wasn't able to do anything like planned for the day other than lay down in

pain and

nauseua, hoping that a nap would cure it.

it did.

but I wasn't able to eat any dinner. I had only one full meal in the day. I

can't afford to

miss anymore meals.

I don't know anyone else to talk to about my medical condition and typed in

support

groups for pancreatitis and I chose this group.

I'm hoping to learn some valuable information plus support at the same time from

everyone here.

I'm wondering what others have gone through before they're diagnosis, plus what

to

expect further on from here.

how to get through the symtoms, what types of foods to eat, etc.

A very frightened newbie,