Gee, golly, and wow! You guys really know your stuff! Thank you very much for inviting me here, Cara.

First, I probably should mention that I'm a guy, forty-four years old. The point where the irritation first started was just inside and an inch or so below the top of my left hipbone. The fact that it start so small, has been so persistent, and has continuously spread over the years keeps making me think that it has to be some kind of infection, or a progressive disease.

It's very interesting that you mention h. pylori, Cara, because just a few months ago I had an endoscopy which showed an extremely bad case of it in my stomach. The GI said he had never seen any worse, as the entire lining of my stomach was pretty much eaten away. But they have filed this as just a complication. I was given a ten-day regimen of strong ABs and they haven't retested for it since. Is it possible for h. pylori to spread outside the stomach?

Several times I've been misdiagnosed with diverticulitis, but after two colonoscopies, four CT scans, and three MRIs they have pretty much ruled that out. Plus the GE says that the center of pain is in the wrong place.

Kozz, I do have periodic problems with pain and seizing of the psoas muscle, which makes walking and maintaining my balance quite painful. But again, no one can figure out why. I develop pressure points that come and go.

As far a GI involvement goes, it seems mostly to affect my lower GI tract. Except for the ulcers from the h. pylori, I've had very little stomach problems. But three times so far I've exerienced flares where my whole lower gut seems to just "die". It feels like a lead weight inside of me, and there is no sign of life or activity. No gurgling or rumbling or anything. During these times it is very hard for me to eat, and anything I consume comes back up a few hours later. It's a very frightening experience. The first time I went to the ER. The second time I went to my doctor. The thrid time I just toughed it out at home. It lasts for about ten days, and makes me thoroughly miserable. No sleep, awful sweats and chills, extreme abdominal pain and discomfort.

I've had so many strange symptoms, and they always seem to last for three to four weeks before disappearing. Muscle spasms of the abdomen. Once I had body-wide muscle spasms that occurred every three to four seconds. It affected every muscle in my body, but it was only minor twitching, so no pain or real discomfort.

I have had so much bloodwork done that I really can't remember it all. I've had CTs, MRIs, x-rays, a complete bone scan, an EEG, psychological evaluations, a bone core biopsy, bone marrow aspiration, two colonoscopies, barium enema, an endoscopy, a laparoscopy, and have been used as a guinea pig for dozens of different meds, none of which have helped.

The truth is that anxiety is starting to get the better part of me. This just keeps getting worse, with no end in sight. It seems to me that there is something in my abdomen in a very strategic location. It aggravates my psoas muscle, abdominal and back muscles, my colon very often and my lower GI periodically. When it first began I would actually have abdominal spasms on my left side that felt exactly like my wife's belly did when she was pregnant and the baby started kicking. I could lay my hand across the left side of my abdomen at night and feel them.

The pain that I feel is most sensitive to pressure, motion and vibration. I can poke my side with my finger and it barely hurts. But if I push lightly with the finger and hold it there for a minute, the demon starts waking up.

I've studied the problem so hard for so long that my head is awash with too much data. I can't look at it objectively any longer. Right now I'm scheduled to see another rheumy and neuro in January, and if that shows nothing they are considering referring me to the Mayo Clinic in Illinois. That sounds fine on the surface, but what if I go there and they can't find the problem, either? I think I would go insane!

So to wrap this up, what I personally feel is that there is some kind of object inside of my left abdomen that is aggravating everything within its reach. Except that during this last flare, the pain went all the way down to my ankle. These flares are so agonizing that I'm driving myself crazy anticipating them every time I feel a twinge. And I live in dread that the condition might spread to the right side of my body.

Every single test I've had has come back PERFECT. The docs say I have the body of thirty-year-old. But if so, it's a very unhappy thirty-year-old.
I'm so sorry this post is so long, but I'm hoping desperately that you smart folks can help me come up with an avenue that I have explored already. Something I haven't though of. Bless you all for your help in trying!

Oh, BTW. What is a DAN doctor? And I've never heard of probiotics before. What is their purpose?

Thank you all very, very much!

Idealist