Mourning Dove

I'm currently coming to terms with the fact that my entire nuclear family is sensitive to gluten. It's been a process of denial and acceptance for all of us. I think the kids are handling it the best.

During the summer of 2007, I knew something was very wrong with me. I felt terrible all the time and didn't want to accept that this was normal and set out do do something about it. I had already determined that I was sensitive to milk proteins a few years earlier, so it was easy to go on a vegan grain-free raw food diet. It was amazing how healthy I felt...the flat stomach, the energy, the vitality, the clear skin! No more mysterious face rash! I didn't feel this good even as a teenager! Maybe never!

Then winter came and I started to include whole-grain toast. I was craving warm foods and the smell of the toast warming was so good. But it wasn't long before my health took a nose-dive. I started feeling cold all the time...unable to warm myself even with layers of clothing. My guts gradually became irritated and bloated again. Soon my thoughts were increasingly foggy and I thought I would soon be unable to think clearly enough to care for my children.

One day, a miraculous light bulb turned on in my head: it may have been the toast! I was reading a library book titled "Dangerous Grains" in an effort to learn more about the condition of a relative who I would soon be visiting. It was a surprise to me to see that the symptoms listed in the book matched my own.

From that point on I knew I had to test to see if gluten was my problem all along. I went on a Celiac diet. It was only a matter of days before I started to notice my body start to return to a healthier state. The absence of a bloated stomach...something I'd had my nearly my entire life, was enough to convince me that gluten should not be in my body.

Now I'm starting to question the inclusion of any grains in my diet. I'm wondering if I should minimize or eliminate the complex carbohydrates all together. I'm putting on weight and my body is achy...after my raw experience, I know I can have it better than this...but I want the best of both worlds...the gluten free bread and cakes and glowing health. Is this possible?