Celiac Disease Diagnosis

Gluten Free Diet......

Going gluten free has been a big adventure for me. When I finally had a diagnosis, it was the greatest feeling! Prior to the Celiac diagnosis, I was put on antidepressants (because, I suppose my symptoms pointed to anxiety---it must be all in my head, I guess they thought) and I was told I had fibromyalgia. I took medication for the fibro for only a few days and then stopped, because the side effects were so unpleasant, and did not help any other symptoms. It was encouraging to hear that what I needed to do was simply to eliminate gluten from my diet. It all sounded so easy. I can now say, about 18 months in to the diagnosis that I make very few mistakes now and have very few setbacks.

In the beginning, I was constantly taking two steps forward and three steps back. Celiac Disease is an Autoimmune Disease, I can't just cut back on gluten, I must eliminate it completely out of my diet and around even items like lip balms, creams, lotions, toothpaste, etc can all be hiding gluten containing ingredients.

Gluten, if I consume it, or if anyone with Celiac does, attacks the lining of the intestine, kills the villi and it can take up to a year and a half for villi to regenerate and grow back. This means that your body is literally fighting and attacking itself. This causes a host of unpleasant side effects, which for some, can be silent, and for others living with Celiac Disease can be very disruptive to their lives.
For me, it is incredibly not worth it to sneak gluten in to my diet, or to take any chances when eating outside of my home---which I still do, but I am incredibly vigilant on the restaurant and the way food is prepared there. I have found my voice and will not risk a cross-contamination setback

My symptoms can last upwards of a week, even up to two weeks, I have noticed. For me, it starts with a fuzziness of my mind, a cloudy feeling, where it is hard to focus, I have noticed myself bumping into the wall walking to the bathroom, so not like a drunk feeling, just a very tired grogginess that comes over me within hours or less of the gluten exposure.

I then usually develop a headache that usually does not go away. It usually calls for a nap or early to bedtime sleep kind of night. Then the next symptom will last for several days, and that is leg pain and restless legs. I notice discoloration in my toes and feet and that my feet will feel much colder than the rest of me. And then finally the last symptoms that take effect are gastro related, and comes in the form of distended bloated belly for a few days followed by unpleasant almost food poisoning type symptoms. And then I am usually just not up to my higher level of energy for several days, into weeks.

So that is the journey that I am on. These setbacks, though awful when they occur, by following a careful, vigilant, Gluten Free diet, I live basically the same as everyone else.

It has become the new normal to live gluten free. And honestly, it is a healthy way of living anyway, if you can avoid a lot of the prepackaged Gluten Free junk that's out there. For me, it has challenged me to cook more for myself, to cook better for my family, and to be aware and conscious of everything that I eat. It makes me realize how unconscious I was before my diagnosis. I barely missed an opportunity to eat gluten before. Now I come prepared to family functions. I am constantly looking up and trying new recipes and have tried some fantastic gluten free bakeries and restaurants that are very conscious and safe