DEAR DR. GOTT: My daughter is sick all the time and has been for more than six years. She will be 22 this August, has had several live-in boyfriends and is currently living on her own with a dog in a mobile home. She cannot hold down a job or stay in school. One doctor she has seen seems to think she might have Crohn’s, but nothing shows up in blood tests when seeing other doctors. Is she using this as an excuse? She will catch any flu or cold bug that comes around, and it will knock her out of commission.

She has at least 20 body piercings and multiple tattoos, to boot. So, with all of the body piercings, could her immune system be compromised to the point that there is nothing left to fight off everyday germs? I also wonder if depression could cause any of her symptoms such as diarrhea, vomiting, fatigue, fever and an occasional kidney stone. [Read more...]