The Quest for Dante's Diagnosis....

Is an ongoing saga, as is Ravens.

Our GP hadn't rang about the results of his latest stool sample (if he still carried the intestinal parasites) even today, even though its nearly been 10 days. We even got the pathology bill on Tuesday, but still didn't know. Now my memory is still shocking and I'm coming off anti-depressants cold turkey (headache and nausea city), so these things didn't help. I remembered on the way home today after searching after the question of what to buy Kai for his birthday next week (which still remains a mystery.)

So I rang but of course he couldn't take my call and the admin staff said he'd call when he got a moment. He called back around 7:30 this evening. So the verdict after 10 days? A broken promise. The stool sample came back negative to infestations of aliens in his intestines. The promise was he'd was simply going to refer him directly to the hospital. Now he says to wait and see what happens with Raven on the 16th. Maybe, as Andrew pointed out, there may be some reason for this, if in fact the results on Thursday for Raven say X then it can fast-track a diagnosis for Dante. Where is House when you need him? Either way, we still don't know what's going on and to date its been over 18 months of this pussy footing around. What a hassle if it were life threatening conditions.

As for personally, I haven't gotten any better since going GF. Yes, it was a rather dramatic life changing couple of months, then its no changes. I don't think it is the whole story, I need to be off dairy, but is there more? Is it a true diagnosis since I never had that biopsy? Maybe I should have it, but I know I can't tolerate Gluten, and it does horrible things to me if I as much as smell it...

Oh, it is hopefully going to have some confirmation one way or another come Thursday - we do have the confirmation of a autoimmune disease of some variety, but have you seen how many/how very scary some are? I mean he does have eye symptoms, they are huge and heliosensitive, that might lean him towards something else, but checking over again and knowing my own positive response to a GF diet I am fairly certain it will be Coeliac's Disease.

Wish us luck, will us the best case scenario or pray for us or whatever it is you do if you feel for our cause,
Good Night, Q.

Raven and Dante, a bit of Labyrinth

Just a small post here.
I'm so annoyed at our GP, it took about 18 months from when he decided Raven needed observation and yesterday's phone call from the Paed at the hospital. He's tested a strong positive to an autoimmune disease. He's needing to do more tests to get an exact diagnosis. This is all under the month we finally got in to see him and all the screwing around GP did before referring him. Obviously suspecting Coeliac's Disease, I certainly don't want him to have something worse and yes, came as a shock.

I was expecting it, but it still comes as a complete shock. It totally meant I couldn't concentrate on the lessons I was currently doing with the children, I was really upset.

I'm annoyed at my GP for wasting time with Raven... I'm more annoyed about how he's handling Dante. He said to us if he's still got the big D after settling down after Flagyl, he'd get the blood screening tests done for Coeliacs. Dante is bleeding from the bottom and he tells us he wants to put him onto another form of antibiotics, he's just not sure which ones and he might have an answer next week and he doesn't want to the do the blood tests til after that.

I know and see how Dante is suffering. He's lost a whole lot of weight it's frightening. He's started to avoid eating. He has black circles under his eyes and he appears pale often. This is not right, and the advice I've recieved from other people is go to another GP and fast! I'm swayed. I wonder if I can sway Andrew too, he's already annoyed about the way he's handled my anti-depressant/forced weaning. Neither Monika and I are ready, but he is trying to push me to stop. I've decided not to on the grounds neither of us want to, and I'd rather go off anti-depressants than give up breastfeeding just because my GP finds it unnatural and unnecessary.

Then there is Labyrinth. She's begun to see a psychiatrist for her behavioural issues. He's only taken her background so far, but through the extensive research I've found on the net, it seems she could have coeliac disease too, just manifesting it completely differently and without the gastrointestinal symptoms. The ones that fit are: pyschosocial underdevelopment, her insatiable appetite, fatigue, depression, frustration, low self esteem, anger, academic problems. Obviously it could be pointing to another problem entirely, but its hard to know at this stage, the psychiatrist seems pretty good and he is aware that I believe it may be organic in origin.

As for myself, no change. I've got the flu but that's about it. Brain fogs and memory problems plague my life.