A 99% diagnosis

I talked with my GI doctor this morning. After reviewing results of all my tests, he is 99% sure I have colonic inertia along with my small intestine bacterial overgrowth. The bacterial overgrowth will be fixed with the antibiotic. Because the colonic inertia is a nerve/muscle issue, I will probably spend the remainder of my life on some sort of laxative treatment. He said the colonic inertia doesn't have a known cause, but usually has some sort of trigger to worsen the nerve/muscle issues, leading to nearly no contractions of my intestines. He feels the bacterial overgrowth may have been the trigger. Like I said, I'll be treated with medicine for quite some time. He said if the medicine doesn't fix things, the next step would be to remove a portion of the colon, attaching the small intestines directly to the rectum and that would fix it. Thankfully he's not in a rush to cut me open. He said surgery is intended for people who have bowel movements once a month or are in great pain.

I'm glad to have an actual diagnosis with actual test results to prove it. I hate that limbo period where treatment fixes nothing and you start to think you're crazy.