Test Or No Test?

[TashaJe]

I have recently found out that more than half of the family members on my mothers side has celiac disease, and because it's hereditary I would think it's safe to say that I might have it as well. I want to set up an appointment with my Doctor to get tested but from what I have been told it's hard to diagnose. Even with the Test. I have had issues all my life with my digestive tract, I don't remember the last time I had a solid stool. My doctor has tried working with me to figure it out but nothing has really helped. I am Very Lethargic especially, and when I wake up in the morning I often feel like I have a hangover with no drinks in me. I have had a fear that I might be anemic for multiple reasons which also apparently could be a "symptom"... the list goes on and on. I actually honestly fall under more than half of the possible symptoms from eating gluten.

So My only question is, should I waste more time and money getting tested or should I just go gluten free and go with my gut? I suppose that I should get tested anyways for peace of mind but I think regardless I am going to give the gluten free thing a try anyways just to see how I feel.

And most important question of all, does everyone get ill after cutting out gluten in the first few weeks? I get sick VERY easily and I have a feeling I am going to be miserable.

[mushroom]

You have nothing to lose at this point in being tested, except for some out-of-pocket expenses, whereas if you decided you wanted to be tested later after being gluten free you would have to suffer through a gluten challenge which you might find very painful. Nevertheless, your testing could be negative and yet you still could have a problem with gluten - you would find this out by eliminating it and seeing if you felt better. If you are the kind of person who needs certainty then you should get the testing; if not and you would rather save the money you could skip it, but don't try to second-guess yourself later.

As for feeling worse after eliminating gluten, some people find that they go through a withdrawal period similar to quitting smoking, for a couple of weeks or so, and even wonder if gluten could be the problem, until the withdrawal period ends and the benefits set in. But it does not happen to everyone, did not to me

[sa1937]

Welcome, TashaJe! I agree totally with what Mushroom said. And if you want further testing, this is definitely the time to do it.

I didn't go through withdrawal either when I went gluten-free.

[The Horticulturalist]

  On 8/19/2011 at 5:41 PM, TashaJe said:

I have recently found out that more than half of the family members on my mothers side has celiac disease, and because it's hereditary I would think it's safe to say that I might have it as well. I want to set up an appointment with my Doctor to get tested but from what I have been told it's hard to diagnose. Even with the Test. I have had issues all my life with my digestive tract, I don't remember the last time I had a solid stool. My doctor has tried working with me to figure it out but nothing has really helped. I am Very Lethargic especially, and when I wake up in the morning I often feel like I have a hangover with no drinks in me. I have had a fear that I might be anemic for multiple reasons which also apparently could be a "symptom"... the list goes on and on. I actually honestly fall under more than half of the possible symptoms from eating gluten.

So My only question is, should I waste more time and money getting tested or should I just go gluten free and go with my gut? I suppose that I should get tested anyways for peace of mind but I think regardless I am going to give the gluten free thing a try anyways just to see how I feel.

And most important question of all, does everyone get ill after cutting out gluten in the first few weeks? I get sick VERY easily and I have a feeling I am going to be miserable.

I'll echo what everyone else has said. I went gluten free before I realised that I should have been on it for accurate testing, now I'll never know for sure whether I have celiac although I have a severe GI response to gluten.

So go ahead and get the blood test and let us know what that says.

[JoshB]

Get the blood test. It's fairly cheap and easy, and then you'll know for sure.

Going gluten free is hard. It's expensive, and you'll desperately want things you can't have, and (if you're like me and others I've talked to) you may find that going gluten-free is physically painful. I was depressed and energy-less and felt like I was bruised all over for a couple of months. It was awful, and you don't want to do that unless it will benefit you. Also, you don't want to back out and decide that you'll eat gluten for a couple months and then get tested to know for sure; you don't want to do it twice.

If you don't take the test you'll never really know. The symptoms you're dealing with could easily be something else, and you could just be delaying a proper diagnosis.

Eating gluten-free you're going to be a pain in the ass for family and friends, and you owe it to them to know for sure. It's also your defense when uncle Frank complains that you don't just eat the stuffing at Thanksgiving like everybody else. Could also be your defense against the IRS if you want to try to claim the difference in food cost as medical expenses.

[beebs]

i would test. I went Gluten free without testing & now I really wish I had just had the biopsies and be done with it!

[love2travel]

Ditto on the above. I am glad I got tested because I am one of those people who just need to know. I was also in denial so bloodwork and subsequent biopsies were ample proof for me to go gluten free once and for all. Far better to do it now than go off gluten for a year then go on a gluten challenge only to feel ill.

Though gluten never has made me feel sick, I did have several withdrawal symptoms after going off it for about three weeks including headaches, nausea, intense carb cravings...not incredibly thrilling but bearable. Three weeks is not very long in the grand scheme of things!

[pain*in*my*gut]

  On 8/19/2011 at 11:37 PM, JoshB said:

Get the blood test. It's fairly cheap and easy, and then you'll know for sure.

Going gluten free is hard. It's expensive, and you'll desperately want things you can't have, and (if you're like me and others I've talked to) you may find that going gluten-free is physically painful. I was depressed and energy-less and felt like I was bruised all over for a couple of months. It was awful, and you don't want to do that unless it will benefit you. Also, you don't want to back out and decide that you'll eat gluten for a couple months and then get tested to know for sure; you don't want to do it twice.

If you don't take the test you'll never really know. The symptoms you're dealing with could easily be something else, and you could just be delaying a proper diagnosis.

Eating gluten-free you're going to be a pain in the ass for family and friends, and you owe it to them to know for sure. It's also your defense when uncle Frank complains that you don't just eat the stuffing at Thanksgiving like everybody else. Could also be your defense against the IRS if you want to try to claim the difference in food cost as medical expenses.

Josh...your post cracked me up!

I agree with everybody else. Get tested now. It's worth it to know, for so many different reasons!

Good luck!