Need Advice

I’m a 21 year old male and when I was around 9, I started having Crohn’s disease symptoms. It took almost 2 years for the doctors to be able to diagnose me and they only said it was crohn’s because it showed I had inflammation at the ilium. I was then put on steroids and a few other medications that I ended up not taking anymore and stopped going to the doctors for a few years because I developed a really horrible anxiety condition. I’ve been in therapy for years and psychiatry, i’ve also been seeing a G.I. doctor since I was 16 and this entire time it’s just been a back and fourth of ordering tests and them maybe showing inflammation markers. My fecal tests would show inflammation and then my bloodwork won’t or I have a colonoscopy and there would be absolutely no inflammation just irritation and a year later the next colonoscopy would show inflammation in random spots all over. I have felt exhausted ever since I was diagnosed, i’ve had constant pain, avoiding “certain foods” doesn’t help, I have cramping, diarrhea, i’m using the bathroom atleast 6 times a day, I have urgency and my anxiety condition is intrinsically tied to my ibd and ibs. I haven’t had a definitive diagnoses because I guess the doctors are stumped and because i’m not showing inflammatory markers consistently they act as if there isn’t anything they can do. I’ve tried so many different medicines it makes my head spin and the only medication that kinda worked was Xifaxan, but my insurance won’t cover it and it’s thousands of dollars out of pocket. It worked for a little bit but then all of my symptoms returned and I felt so fatigued while taking it, my doctor said usually you would do another 2 week dose if it kind of worked but not fully. Anyways i’m seeing a new G.I. doctor this month but i’m afraid it’s just going to be more of the same, has anyone been through anything similar or have any advice? These doctors act as if they don’t know what to do or that they aren’t even sure if I have crohn’s disease when I have a history of it.

Posted Jan 7, 2026, 3:05 PM UTC

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