Hey Anna, actually yeah I have a pretty good CRS. I've been seeing two different ones, and I trust them both. If I do get LIS I'd probably just go to the one that's closer (they're about 60 miles apart, one's here in town and the other's in San Francisco).
The only reason I haven't gone ahead with LIS is really that I don't know if all I'm dealing with is a fissure. I'll admit that lately I've been obsessed with all kinds of things like the possibility of lung cancer or colon cancer. I've had chest pains since early 2009 that have been chalked up to costochondritis, abdominal pains of unknown cause lately, and blood-tinged spit that's been attributed to postnasal drip from chronic sinusitis for about the past 10 months. So I'm looking at the whole thing and am kind of a bit freaked out. But I've also been under a lot of stress lately due to the complications with my son, so I don't really know what to think. I was hoping the colonoscopy would give me a definitive yay or nay or whether as to there's anything more than a fissure to worry about, but the failed procedure was kind of just another disappointment. Man I'm whiny today and it ain't even Monday :)

NG,
You've had a lot to deal with lately--twins, your health issues, baby in ICU, etc. Have you ever considered going to the Mayo Clinic in Arizona? I'm pretty sure that they would use the "team approach' there with patients, just as they do in Rochester, whereby all of your symptoms would be analyzed and tested by their various specialty doctors. Once you put your mind to rest as to what you do or DO NOT have, I think you will feel a whole lot better both physically and emotionally!! Of course, I am a big proponent for Mayos as I went to countless docs in my area b/4 getting some real help and anwers for myself in Minnesota!

Hey CherylK, thanks for bringing this up. I just had a look at the Mayo Clinic website and it looks like a very novel (and smart!) way to approach diagnosing "mystery" illnesses. Right now I just get punted from one doctor to another. One guy will rule out one illness, another guy will rule out a different one, and so on. No one is really interested in figuring out what the problem is, everyone is just interested in ruling out one or two things and then moving on, because hey, their life is still dandy and mine is still slowly falling apart.
The part that annoys me the most is when doctors get cute and ask "well what do you think the problem is?" I always answer honestly and tell them that I have no clue, otherwise I wouldn't be seeing a doctor, and that I only fear the serious things like cancer. Then of course the response is "since you're only 31 the risk of cancer is very low." Well that's nice and all, but sometimes young people get cancer don't they??? And furthermore, so it's not cancer, well fine, then what the hell is it then? Of course the next step after that is "you look very anxious, I think you have an anxiety problem and it's responsible for all of your symptoms." Frankly if I have bloody spit, chest pain, and bowel problems for a year and I'm NOT anxious, that's what would seem odd to me! I don't know if they expected me to walk in with an ear-to-ear grin or what...
Anyhow I guess I've gone on a bit of a rant now, but I'm just tired of the whole thing. A year ago I was perfectly normal and now I've got discomfort everyday. Taking a more proactive step like going to the Mayo Clinic for a thorough analysis wouldn't be a bad idea to get things settled once and for while. I'd just have to figure out how to get my insurance to authorize it. I've already got something like 70 claims in the system right now from various office visits and diagnostic procedures so I'm sure they're not really in love with me right now :) We have some facilities like Stanford and UC San Francisco nearby that take more of a research-based approach to things that might be a viable alternative, but I have to say that I don't really have much faith in doctors anymore at this point. Either that or I just have ANXIETY

NG,
I don't have a lot of faith in doctors either except the Mayo Clinic docs, but that is just my personal bias. I like the joint way they approach problems/diseases. Jo has been there also with her son Jared.
Interestingly, my deceased father felt the same way about Mayos as I do now and had heart surgery there in the 80's. I think he liked Rochester best, but did see docs in FL as well as AZ as he traveled yearly in his trailer to always be where the weather was to his liking!

Yeah I'm reading more on their approach and it looks like they do have a much more sane approach than any other place. I hate the fact that doctors don't see the full picture (only their little piece of it) and always take the easiest explanation. IMO that's how you get a lot of late diagnoses of problems that could have been fixed had they been caught sooner. It's funny how the blame often gets put on the patient in those cases ("why didn't you see a doctor sooner?") when oftentimes the doctor just attributed the symptoms to something benign.
If the Mayo Clinic doctors actually speak to one another (wow what a concept!!!) that would be a huge positive. I guess now it's the insurance game where I have to see what my insurance will and won't cover. The good news is our free enrollment is coming up this February so in the worst case I can try to make some kind of change at that time that gets me in to Mayo.

NG,
I had to get a referral to go "out of network" in order to go to Mayos, but I was able to do that 3 times. The insurance run around is a real nuisance, in my opinion. I really think going to Mayos could put your mind at ease about many aspects of your health.

Yeah I think so too, if I didn't have terrible anxiety before all this happened, I definitely have it now. My colonoscopy and BOTOX injection claims both got submitted to insurance today and are in Pending status, I have reason to anticipate them having issues with one or even both of them, so if they do I'll talk to them about getting authorized for out-of-network treatment when I call to have the fun conversation about why I "medically needed" a colonoscopy, BOTOX injection, etc. At this point I just want to have a proper evaluation and some peace of mind, or at least a name for what's wrong with me. Every time I feel like I'm close to having an answer, something goes wrong, see Exhibit A. The Failed Colonoscopy LOL :)

Right. Not having peace of mind about one's health can definitely contribute to stress, added worry, and more physical and emotional problems. It can be a vicious circle. We are all one--body, soul, and spirit!