sonja69

Hello. I am new here. I was diagnosed with IBS when I was 20. That was 12 years ago. The last few years I have been reading about celiac and gluten intolerance. I am thinking about being tested. Where do I start?

hi, forget about IBS and drs as well. as been said before, IBS is a diagnosis for drs who either have no clue or are too lazy or ignorant. something will irritate your bowel and it might be gluten. so, where to start is cutting it out of your diet, but be aware of all hidden sources and cross-contamination (you'll find a plenty of infos on this board)

But, I am tired of feeling so tired and having the stomach symptoms! I did feel good when I did Atkins, so I am thinking that maybe I do have a problem with gluten or wheat. I just don't really understand the difference from a gluten or wheat intolerance or allergy.

I will search around this site and read more to get more informed, but I would appreciate any advice. My husband thinks I am a little bit of a hypochondriac. I just think that I should feel better than I do. I have always had a problem with stomach bloating, cramping, and diarrhea. Plus, I am usually tired/foggy feeling, low energy, headaches, pms, and mild acne. I also have endometriosis, allergy and sinus problems.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you!

don't let yourself bringing down by other people, it's your body and you have to live with it. nobody can tell you what to eat and what not to eat. I also have bloating as main issue, conatntly pregnant, gasses, before going glutenfree I had murder headaches (they're gone now), skin problems, tinnitus, murder pain during my period, low energy, water stools, seldom diarrhea though...I worn out a lot of drs the last 4-5 years, and every dr came up with IBS, though they did not ask other thinks or testes for other things. try glutenfree, you obviously feel better!!

good luck and best wishes,

Sonja

hi again!

before all my problems got really bad (some years ago) I ate a various diet. now I am always afraid of eating something, I might react to something.

I mostly eat 2 hard eggs and 2 rice cakes every morning. coffee with lactosefree milk (but after today oatmilk)

meat and rice/potatoes/gluten-free pasta (rarely) and some lettuce, brokkoli, spinach for lunch

sometimes gluten-free bread or gluten-free oats with yoghurt (will change it to oatmilk now)

bananas as snacks

chicken/fish, veggies, rice or nothing for dinner.

dark chocolate, herbal tee, sometimes white wine and water.

not very various, I know, but I kind of lost interest in eating and cooking. I used to be a hobby chef and create the most delicious dishes, but it's kind of hard to deal with food now.

best, Sonja

hi nora, thanx for the wishes.

we'll see.

at my work place I cleaned up the desktop and keybord immediatly by going glutenfree.

I am glutenfree now for 48 days, and except the germany time, I feel like always. bloated, nauseuos. a little better, since now more headaches, but this might have other reasons, might be a coincidence. the nausea has actually got worse since coming back from germany.

could not find glutenfree catfood so far.

if you only eat meat and veggies, what do you have for breakfast?

from the age about 16 until a few years ago, when I was around 34, I managed to keep my stomach under control by eating as little as possible, since soon I ate something, my abdomen extended tremendously and I found/find it so embarrassing that I begin eating first in the afternoon/evening, especially in summer, when it was warm and I had not many clothes to cover. So as I got older and wiser (haha) I thought that might be unhealthy and changed my eating habitats, since I thought maybe after a while, it will be normal like normal people. but nope, as soon I eat something I swell up. no workouts for the abdominal helped during the years. now, I cannot and will not starve myself anymore, so I am bloated and pregnant most of the time, although I did not eat much. but the worst problem is the pressure on the upper stomach area, it feels like someone is pushing from inside. this is 'new', started a few years ago, along with the watery stool (which changed to fatty after cutting out lactose) and the wind. since autumn I am always bloated (without eating/drinking anything), and very often nauseous. I had bloodpressure and bloodsugar problems, which are better now since gluten-free.

so, is it possible that a lot of other intolerances developed within these few years only by eating as a normal human being and that the got actually worse since last autumn?

I told that since I have to go on elimination diet, I have no other chance, it will either be okay, i.e. I will finally find out what's troubling me or I'll give up.

do you or anyone else have some tips what one can eat in the morning?

thanks in advance and sorry for moaning, I feel very depressed and angry today, since I am sooo 'pregnant' again, although I hardly ate something yesterday and nothing today so far.

thanx and best for all,

Sonja

hi nora,

thanx for all answers and comments!

I just don not mind to cut out more food, I just cannot imagine, why I am good in germany, and as soon I am here, I am bad again. does not make sense unless there were some hidden gluten sources. i just could blame the grinded coffee, the rice cakes I ate before (the producer claimed that they have gluten traces) or the cat food. but these are only traces and why should it be in coffee??? and the cat food - only traces. I quit the rice-cakes a week ago, but still have problems. cannot think of other traces, I ckecked everything I eat and my cosmetics.

I was in germany in many gluten-homes, but I do not know if the problems I had there occasionally were trace-related problems. cannot remember.

today I cleaned the whole flat, washed the curtains and all textiles i could wash, because of the mold spores.

felt really bad the last days, bloated and always nauseous.

my husband lives in germany, so here in sweden I am gluten-kiss free )

thanx for the tip with the rice-cakes, I will try them!!

have a nice sunday,

best wishes,

Sonja

Im now up to plain meat, fruits, vegetables. Except for potatoes, tomatoes, berries, eggplant, melons, corn, nuts, carrots, dairy products, and all grains including rice. With trying to figure out what my intolerances are Im still having diarrhea and Im sure it might be related to my medicines Im on since I basically avoid most things in my diet.

hi autumn,

you may think about the possibility of being fructoseintolerant, which can cause diarrhea. you can test it by yourself with cutting out high fructose veggies and fruits and sugars of course. or dare to drink 25g pure fructose in water in the morning on empty stomach.

best wishes and good luck,

Sonja

hi nora,

th

sonja,

maybe there is something at your work that's making you sick.

Hi Jestgar,

yeah, I kind of suspect this, since I always feel worse there. but maybe it's because I am sitting there in tighter clothes, since at home I mostly have really casual comfort clothes due to my extended stomach.

I could not imagine what this can be, I have my own office, and I never drink water or coffee from there.

mysterious.

thanx, Sonja

hi nora,

I am cautious abot wheat starch too, so I do not eat it.

the dr called yesterday, the biopsy is fine of course and now I 'have' IBS (it's not the first doctor who said this after testing 2 or 3 things). I do not know what doctors do nowadays, they have no ideas. when there is aproblem it's IBS. whatever, I'll remain glutenfree for a while since I am afraid that things get worse.

the worst thing is, I can not concentrate on my work, on my carreer anymore. I have to find a new job soon, which is partly good, partly bad, but now I do not have the energy. I have this pressure in the upper stomach, which is so nasty and this prevent me from working since it's so annoying and exhausting.

Sonja

hi nora, thanks for your reply! I am sorry for you, I hope you can fix the problem soon. It's not that bad in my case I think, I did/do not smell the mold and bought something to dry the corner out.

I am posting this because it is probably mold-related.

Have you noticed any reaction to citric acid too?

no, I don't think so. since I almost never eat any fast food, prepackaged, but only pure foods, I seldom come in contact with this. so, I do not know.

gotta run now, good luck with the mold.

where are you from and where are you living? in the u.s.? or scandinavia?

best, Sonja

hi nora,

I know how to 'fight' against the mold. it's not my flat, I just rent it. and its not that bad that my clothes would smell, it's in one corner and I hope it's getting better now with all the actions, although I really do feel like crap today, again.

what article do you mean? I may have access to Lancet through work, so maybe you can post a reference?

thanx, Sonja

hi,

I did not have time to buy the bleach yet, I hope it is not difficult to find here. I used a spray for cleaning electrical contacts, it's very hazardous to aquatic biota, to get rid of the first mold and it worked fine. but I'll test the bleach too.

I also bought an air purifier, although it seems to make things worse, since now it's actually smelling worse in my flat than before. and today I'm feeling very bad again. but it has been running only one evening yet.

I bought also a water filter, since I found some literature about copper in drinking water making you ill with gastrointestinal symptoms. I have old copper plumbing in my flat and a lot of corrosion due to hard water. So, I hope this will help.

at least these things I can exclude as factors, when it's not going up.

best, Sonja

oh thanks so much guys, I really appreciate your help!!!!

vinegar (high concentrated 25%) was just a temporarily weapon, since I had nothing else in the house. and I read it somewhere, thats too acid for fungi.

but bleach? what kind? normal bleach for laundry? do anyone know a brand or where I should look for?

You and the forum is so much help. I felt so hopeful and now I was so miserably again the last days, since it felt hopeless again and I may never get any rest from worrying what and why, how...and time for healing. I actually cannot really afford to worry about that all the time, I will do other things in my life and now I have to find a new job soon and I must have time & energy for this.

It's strange but I often blame my body to let me down as soon I feel hope. Anyway thanks to you all I got some power again willing to fight again: water filter, air purifier and so on...

best wishes for you all!!

Sonja

hi ravenwoodglass!

Have you tried eliminating the gluten-free oats for a month or two? I haven't read thru the whole thread so I may be repeating here but oats have a protein that is very similar to the one in gluten. There are many of us who will react to them.

yeah, I know, but I brought the gluten-free oats fro sweden to germany and ate them there, and as I wrote was fine.

the mold will be real problem, it's not my flat I rent it and might move soon. the mould patch is approx. 1 squaremeter big, I removed the wallpaper, scratched the mould and washed the wall with high concentrated vinager. I am going to be something against mould some fungizide and try to get an airfiltering machine (sorry, do not know the exact english word).

and hope I am getting better.....

thanks for all help,

Sonja

'Bloating, gas, gluten intolerance as well as other food intolerance, fatigue, brain-fog....they can all be caused by a yeast overgrowth. Exposure to toxic mold is a big trigger for causing problems with the immune system...and anything that weakens the immune system can trigger such things as Celiac and/or candida issues. Yeast overgrowth is quite common in people who are reacting to gluten.'

hi Rachel,

this seems likely and to my horrible surprise I found a big, fat mould patch in one corner. BUT I cannot imagine that immediatly afetr some hours expsoing I can get candida overgrowth. it might be the mould spores maybe which causes immediate problems. otherwise I would have had candida issues in germany as well. OR? but there noop, and it was xmas and sweets!

it's still confusing, but now I know that I am not hypochondric, hysteric or do need a shrink, since the mould can partly caused my problems so fast. BUT can mould spores in the air really cause bloating and this disgusting stuffed feeling.

I do not know how to get rid of the spores in the air. I have a one-room flat, so I have to sleep there. the mould on the wall, I can remove, but the air in the room will be full of spores for a long time,

Hi Rachel,

thanks for all hints, ideas, thoughts.

I often thought about candida and also tokk medicine against it for a while, but I do not really belive, it's candida.

as I wrote,I was so much better in germany, but being here at my home again, I was immediatly sick again. I did no change the diet, i.e. I ate the same food (like gluten-free bread, cakes) from the same companies in germany as well as here in sweden, albeit some exceptions as the rice cakes, the flavoured tea, the lactosefree milk.

I am a little bit better today concerning the stomach pain, but still not as well as before. maybe it will be harder and longer for the body to recover after a mistake....

I check my flat, there are no more signs of mold anymore. I fixed this problem around 1 1/2 years ago.

yeah, yeah,

best wishes,

Sonja

hi!

for me it's definetly loat and I am so sick of it!!!

on good days, it's better, after meals I am very pregnant.

I was away over xmas and my stomach was to 80% of the time flat. No 'stuffed-like-a-turkey-feeling'. this was a rare but happy time.

now I am home again - and bloated again. do not why, I did not change my diet.

you can observe your stomach or even measure it: mine will grow about 4 -6 cm in diameter depending on time of the day (before meals or drinking something) and after meals in the evening.

it's disgusting, I hate my body for this.

but do not give up, if you find your right diet, it has to go away!!

good luck,

Sonja

hi!

another update (I see this thread as my little diary):

still feeling not good. I am gassy as hell and I have water collected in my intestines, it sound like I am on the 7 seas... and my pregnant look is back. maybe I should buy other clothes. unfortunately it's not funny, I could cry...

some positive is that on thursday, we had a party at work and my boss arranged gluten- and lactosefree food for me (happy), and I think it was okay, since I did not feel worse on friday or today. Sweden is very straightforward concerning glutenfree food and lactosefree foods, in germany this food is not that common and if, very expensive. I have not being out for dinner since being glutenfree.

what me surprises are the gasses. a long time this was not that bad, also before going glutenfree. now I am really gassy, although I avoid also fructose to a great part.

I checked some things:

a) the rice cakes are not really glutenfree, the company cannot garantee it. okay, no more rice cakes.

I read about flavoured tea and one has to be careful. I had two big cups on tuesday of flavoured black tee. nothing about the flavour on the label so I'll throw it away. I felt really bad on wednesday.

c) I bought coffee beans from another company today, I'll test it. (I had nausea after the 'old' coffee this morning).

d) I also bought bottled water to drink and making tea/coffee (I like herbal tee in te evening especially against the gasses).

I read also about glutencontaining soap? I use soap of course, but have not the package anymore. should I get rid of it?

when I was in germany, a friend noticed that my skin was much better then before, I didn't really noticed, but now my skin is in bad condition again. that's only my face being the problem.

well, we'll or I'll see how it's going...

have a nice weekend you all!!

best wishes, Sonja

hi Valda,

thanx for reading and answering.

No, unfortunately I cannot stay with a friend, but I will find what's the problem is. I might move soon from here anyway.

today it's a better day. at least a little bit. I thought more deeply and think it was the chicken, the handling of the wheat flour, the catfood, or maybe the rice cakes. they are different from them in germany. or there's something with the water, I can borrow a water filter from a friend to test it.

I am married and my husband lives in germany, therefore I was in germany. the kissing obviously was no problem

I hope I will be better now, it's weekend soon, and I can maybe recover also from the flu I have.

thanx, best wishes,

Sonja

Hello,

So I'm very confused about this. I've been sick for as long as I can remember with various stomach issues. I've always been told it's just IBS, but it's increasingly gotten worse over the years. I went to a new gastroenterologist who did the blood tests for Celiac and they came back positive. So he had me do an endoscopy back in December. I started the gluten-free diet the day after, and have been on it since. I haven't really notices the IBS like symptoms getting any better (mostly diarrhea), but I have noticed that I haven't had any migraines (which I would get weekly), my face has cleared up, I'm sleeping better and I'm not having the night sweats like I used to.

So this weekend I finally got a call back from the Dr. with the results from the endoscopy and it's normal. No flattening of the villi or any damage. So he told me that doesn't necessarily mean anything, as it could be a false negative and that I should remain on the gluten-free diet for another 2 months and then go back again for blood tests.

I'm so confused! I have an appt with a nutritionist next week, she specializes in people with gluten intolerances/celiac. But I just don't know if I should stay on the diet or not. It's so frustrating since my IBS symptoms haven't gone away!

Thanks for letting me rant a bit. Anyone else go through this?

Jen

Hi Jen,

I have also a negative diagnosis. I have bowel troubles since two decades and they turned into real problems a few years ago. now I am on a glutenfree diet,since doctors seems to unable to help me,I took things in my own hands. you already have some positive effects, so I recommend you to keep on eating glutenfree and try an elimination diet to rule out diary and soy and also fructose. I also have somepositive effects through the glutenfree diet, so I hope the problems will eventually disappear.

the problem with the endoscopy is that results are dependent on the location where the sample was taken, the damage in the intestine can be patchy and how expereienced the analyst is.

I had/have some serious drwbacks this week, since it is very difficult to maintain a normal life and being gluten- and lactosefree, you have to check every label and being careful and alert all the time, at least in the beginning. and, in the healing process, the body might be more sensitive to disturbers, since now the body can really take care about the real prblem. at least, that's what I believe and now, when you're feeling better you might be more sensitive, since mistakes, or other culprit foods will be like s sledgehammer. that's my experience: I had never stomach pain and nausea, could eat what I want, drink what I want (alcohol), and did not notice because I always already felt crappy anyway, so I did not notice 'outliers'. but now I feel them very hard with stomach pain and other issues.

keep on being glutenfree, be patient (I have to learn this too). a trial can't hurt!

good luck,

Sonja

yes, Valda you are principally right.

but still it's confusing. I was not really well in germany, but much better, although I lived in a glutencontaminated home. as soon I come back to my flat here in sweden, I have the old symptoms as ever, and the most bothering is the bloating since I am feeling stuffed and full all the time although I am hungry and did not eat something. in sweden I am 'pregnant' again. this I had only occasional in germany. thus I am a little in doubt: I went glutenfree on december 6th and only the headache went away and the stomack shrunk a tiny bit. I flew to gemany on dec. 21st and a few days after my stool is not fatty anymore. stomach is flat. no more bloating, no fullness, only occasional nausea. So I have first a magical healing and then I go back to old symptoms as soon I am here in sweden, although my home here isn't as contaminated as that in germany and I did not change my diet very. this is weird and very confusing.

I can live without a diagnosis, but what I wrote above let me doubt if this is the gluten at all. maybe it is the mold problem. on the other hand, I had stomach issues forever, not that bad though, but anyway. and I found out on xmas vacation that my cusin has problems with diarrhea too, and my mother has stomach issues, and partly my halfsister as well. so weird.

(so now the title of my thread has become true again).

sorry, I had some mental breakdowns yesterday and today, because it's so hopeless.

thanks for listening/reading and for your support!!

Sonja

Hi !

thanks again. it's all so confusing and today I really feel like crap. it's getting worse and worse...

no, of course I'll never leave my cat...He's my everything I bought some gloves to handle the catfood and triy to remember washing my hands after cuddling.

yes, I had a mold problem, but I think I have fixed it and find it hard to believe that bloating and gasses comes from mold.

and it does not seem to be the problem, since I got originally the idea of having problems with gluten through cutting out carbohydrates from my diet when I tried the Atkins diet. I felt really fine everytime I cut the carbs out (3 times), although I ate lactosefree cheese, milk, yoghurt... So, everytime I cut them out I felt fine but after reintroducing them, the problems were back. after some research I tried it with glutenfree.

in germany, I was 80% better, but I had bad days too, of course. but I thought I am on the right track but no I am a little in doubt, and I don't have a diagnosis either.

I got more and more sensitive, so I think I have to cut out diary, and these glutenfree surrogates like bread, pasta etc. and hope it'll be better.

this is so tricky, you have to be careful about everything, how can I ever be sure, that there are no traces of gluten in e.g. buckwheat or millet or rice. or teabags, can they contain gluten?

best, Sonja

Hi all!

thanks for your comments. glutened by the cat food, I cannot imagine that, but it seems that everything is possible with this desease. it's really hard to get cat food without wheat contents or other grains. but I can try to handle it more carefully.

other things I checked in my head: I use lactosefree milk and oatmilk sometimes (brand oatly, should be glutenfree says the producer). the lactosefree milk I cannot imagine how gluten can get in there...

I bought new bowls and pans...

I brew my coffee by myself every morning and take it with me to work. maybe some producers powder the beans before roasting and graining? I do not know.

the only thing I can imag

Hi all!

thanks for replies and for all support!!

I think I will keep this thread as a diary, it's good for me too.

I am back from germany since sunday night and I am bad again. cannot figure it out, maybe I was too happy too early. almost every 'poop' is back, really have no idea why. bloating, gas, big belly, nausea...thank god not the headache, but still...

I had lactosefree diary in Germany - it was okay. I have lactosefree diary here in sweden and it's bad again. the only thing I could imagine is that I got glutened by throwing away the few gluten food I had still at home, that was on monday morning. I was very careful with the the wheatflour, but still... tuesday was quite okay, but today on wednesday, I am really bad again. I am so angry, will this never stop?

can one be glutened by glutencontaining catfood? I of course do not eat it but I am handling it....

sometimes I think, there's something in the water...but this cannot be, or? I only drink tap water.

Or the coffee, can it contain wheat?

I have no idea, but I am feeling so bad and hopeless again, I don't understand....

but I have to keep going, must not give up.....

best wishes, Sonja

Hi all!

I thought of giving you an update and take the opportunity to thank you all for your help.

I am at home in Germany for xmas (I live in Sweden) and went through a glutenfree xmas time. I am gluten-free since 6th december and feeling better every day. at least in general, there were some mistakes (like crumbs from normal xmas cakes), but everything was very easy. I took with me my own food when visiting friends and family or invited them to my home.

the bloating went away very soon, I am only bloated after meals, but this do not persist the whole time as it used to. my stool is not fatty anymore (sorry), and I maintain a quite normal stool now for 2 weeks, this has not happened for the last 4 years!

I have some winds occasionally and some nausea, but this might be due to some glutening by mistake, which happened the first week here in germany. also here, gluten-free-food is available which makes everything easier.

I do not feel to miss something, when people sitting at the coffeetable and eating creamcakes and I sit there with my gluten-free crackers. at least, I am never going to be 'fat' this way. I hope, everything will be fine and I am motivated to get my body in shape (my belly is quite 'outworned' from the bloated-pregnat-look).

I did/do notive that I became more vulnerable and sensitive to distinct food (fatty, too much) and I am sick for the second time within two month (flu). I hadn't a flu for years. I cannot take much alcohol anymore (I used to drink wine quite often) and I am tired and energyless very often. but I am very optimistic and the light feeling after meals and not feeling stuffed like a turkey afterwards is just a great feeling. I feel very optimistic to become healthy again, a normal person without anger about my stupid body, without depression, without this energyless attitude.

NOw my life begins!!

there's still some work to do: testing if I will feel even better without milk and fructose to get rid of these small symptoms (winds, light fullness after bigger meals), but I am sure, everything will be better.

I hope for everybody that it will be better for them too, with or without gluten-problems.

of course, I sometimes think that life won't be easy, when its coming to travelling etc., but I can prepare and cope for it. I lost years with searching for reasons why I am feeling so awful and why I am getting this stupid bad belly after meals. I got eating disorders and mental problems and now I can see light at the end of the tunnel (and I hope its not the train ).

So everybody out there, do not give up!!!!

I wish you all the best for 2007!!

greatings,

Sonja

Hi all!!

happy new year and thanks for all answers!!

Sonja