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Next week I am moving into a new apartment (in another state). It will be my first apartment on my own so I will be buying all new dishes/pots etc. I know that I need to clean the kitchen as well as possible to get rid of the gluten (and dining room table etc). Are there other things I should be doing in this new kitchen/house that will most likely have had gluten eaters in it before me? It will be the first time I have moved since I got diagnosed a couple months ago. Any advice would be greatly welcomed.

Thanks!

I share a kitchen with two roommates. I know that I am getting cc'ed there. I'm not quite sure by what though. But I do know that it seems to happen on Sunday (our kitchen cleaning day). Shortly I am moving into my own apartment so I wont have to worry about it as it will be gluten free.

I have been gluten-free for about a month and a half now. I still have days where I am exhausted and when I get home from work all I can do is fall into bed for two hours before I get up and eat dinner. It does seem to go in phases. Good luck with adding the vitamins, I hope it works. Have you had your vitamin D, folic acid and other vitamins checked to see if you need more than over the counter vitamins will provide?

Thanks for your experiences. My meds are an antidepressant and a mood stabilizer neither are extended release, I just take them twice a day. I can tell I am still getting some, I just worry that I'm not getting as much as my depression is raging back. The really complicated part about it right now is that my psychiatrist knows nothing about celiac disease. (though neither does my pcp or the nutritionist I saw). I will be forced to change docs as I am moving, but I don't know how much choice I am going to have since I have very limited resources and no mental health insurance once I move. My psychiatrist thinks that my reactions are just grief over moving. While I can see that some of it would be, the crying jags and extreme depression seem more reminiscent of past times when I've needed to adjust my meds. I can't really go up on one because I'm already above the recommended doses. The other one I have to be careful with because I have always been really sensitive to any increase in dose (which is totally affected by what I eat). So for right now I just feel overwhelmed by everything. Thank you for your input and examples and any others that people give.

I am on two medications that I have gotten used to the side effects from them and put up with them given the benefit I get from the medication itself. Latley I have noticed that I have been having less side effects, but it is also possible that my medication isn't working as well. I can't be sure because of all the other stress going on in my life right now if it is the stress or if it is my medication being metabolized at a different rate. My doctor doesn't know a lot about celiac disease so I'm not sure how to bring it up in the context of maybe needing my medications adjusted. However, I also am moving in two weeks and don't want to be changing my medications while that is going on. Does anyone have any advice? Have other people had to change medication doses once going gluten free? (I've been gluten-free shortly over a month.) Any advice would be helpful. Thanks.

Thank you all. My symptoms have mostly always been minor so I just wanted to check as I wouldn't necessarily know if I was getting really small amounts or not (I dont' know if I would respond with symptoms). It just worried me because I am sure I got cc'ed at a restaurant and so started having questions about my own kitchen. Your advice helps me not worry until I move and then have my own kitchen all to myself.

As to dealing with family I found it very hard at first and I'm living across the country from them (I just turned 26). My dad especially always wants to be right about everything. He wanted to be able to be right about this too. He did the whole "but a little bit will be okay". I had to be like, "well since I am the one reading about it this is what I'm finding." The next time I talked to him he had gone out a read a lot about it and had all these facts he wanted to share with me about it. Is it possible you could get your parents a book about it for them to read or send them to a medical website that has information about cross contamination and the strictness of the diet? I sent my dad to the Mayo Clinic Website as I felt it would be reputable in his eyes and goes over issues of lifestyle change and cross contamination. My mom was the other way. She was like, whatever you need is fine but I don't want to take the energy to know everything about it. If you can provide them with a source that isn't you (like other posters said it is hard for parents to hear this thing from their child) they might take it more seriously. Also, they may be in denial about your diagnosis. While changing the diet has (until recently) made you feel better, they might be in denial that their "little baby" has this disease that you will have to deal with for the rest of your life. Since it is genetic they might be feeling guilty also. (my family has a number of genetic disorders and I know my parents feel bad to a certain extent that they passed them on even though they can't help it). Good luck with your parents and university in the fall.

So I'm trying to figure this out in my head. My situation: I am living in an apartment type situation (complicated don't ask) with two roommates with whom I share a kitchen. I have made myself a small area to prepare food but share the sink, stove, microwave, dishwasher and fridge. I will also sometimes put my food/plates down in their section of the kitchen (though never something I'm going to eat off of- a spoon for example). Do I need to worry about gluten getting on the bottom of my plate from their part of the kitchen? There is no way for my cooking area to be beside the stove as there is a counter on only one side. What about touching faucets and door handles. If I am washing any gluten I may have on my hands before I eat then why can't I wash it off my dishes? It seems like a lot of advice is to get new dishes. I will probably be doing this when I move next month but I was wondering about details. I can't ask my roommates to be gluten free so I know the stuff is around. Thanks.

Thank you both for your responses. I'm feeling a little overwhelmed with just the basic moving stuff so your advice is much appreciated.

When I was first diagnosed I had nightmares about eating gluten. Finally they went away after a couple of weeks.

I am going to be moving from Boston to Michigan next month. I will be driving with my dad (who is not gluten free.) Does anyone have suggestions on hotels or restaurants to eat at? All I know about the route is that it takes us through Buffalo NY. Any suggestions? This will be my first trip anywhere after diagnosis and stressful enough with the moving part without having to worry too much about food also. Thanks. Is there somewhere I can get a list of restaurants that have gluten free menus?

Hi,

I am going through the same thing you are. I was just recently diagnosed (three weeks) and in my twenties. I also survived on pasta and don't really cook. The shopping guides are a life saver. When I first got mine I went through and found all of the foods that I was used to buying so that I knew what I was used to eat that I could still have. (there was more than I thought). Don't be surprised if you don't like everything that is gluten free that you try. I had to get rid of two boxes of crackers after I got them because I thought they were awful. My suggestion is to find some basic food that you can eat and then build on that. Don't try to figure out every meal. I find that I am still eating the same food for breakfast and lunch each day since I came up with a basic lunch when I first started. Eventually I will probably start to change those around but it makes it easier when I am just trying to figure out what to have for dinner each night instead of each meal each day. Since you are finding that your boyfriend isn't supportive, you might want to ask around and find other supportive people. I have found a lot of people (many more than I expected) around even though they don't have celiac, know someone who has celiac or other issues with gluten or food allergies. You should also see if your area has a support group. I was excited to find that Rice Chex and Corn Chex had gone gluten free. I dont' know if you like them but they taste the exact same as before. (I have found they are a good fall back when I can't figure out anything else) Two other things that I have noticed is that I am hungry a lot of the time (so make sure you take food with you when you go places), and that I have been feeling tired (though that is going away). Know that these are not unusual. I was worried when they first happened, but people say it often happens. Take care.

The only treatment for celiac is the diet. Your health center should be notified of your postive diagnosis, you can have copies of your records either sent to them or you can get them from the doctor's that did the diagnosis and give them copies. There are some tests that should be done, you should have your antibodies rechecked at 6 months to a year, if they were part of the diagnosis, and it is a good idea to check your vitamin and mineral levels to make sure that you are absorbing your nutrients after you have healed. It is also reccommended that you have an evaluation and testing for osteoporosis or osteopenia as these are often found in even very young celiacs.

I was using the word "treatment" in its most broad sense in any time I need to visit the doctor for medical tests to check vitamins and blood levels, especially when I would otherwise not need to.

Hi,

My GI put through the referal to this nutritionist so I'm hopeing that she will know about celiac disease as my GI seemed to know about it. I'm moving in a month to graduate school and there I will go to the health center. I will have to find out what they know or if I am going to have to go some where else for treatment of this. Thanks.

I am going to a nutritionist for the first time on Tuesday (I was diagnosed about two weeks ago). From what information I got from my PCP I know I need to ask about multivitamins and Calcium and Vitamin D suplements. But this is about all my PCP knew. I know that I only know a very little amount. I was wondering if people had questions that I should ask the nutritionist when I see her. I feel like I don't know what to ask, but do know that there is a huge amount I don't know. The GI doc just gave me the diagnosis and asked it I had any questions then (over the phone), I didn't because I was too overwhelmed. The seems to be the last chance to ask questions. Help? Thanks.

Thank you for your imput. I had a bad feeling that was what the answer was going to be. I just want life to be simple again. Or at least not for everything to happen at the same time.

Hi,

I'm on Effexor with wonderful results for my depression. I have never heard it being used to treat celiac disease specifically. The one problem with it is that it has a very short half life so when you go off it it is processed out of your body very quickly. (this is what sounds like happened to you) This is what leads to the extreme withdrawl effects. I get the effect of it if I forget it once and then have the side effects by the next time I should be taking my meds (i take meds twice a day) No one mentioned it effecting my blood work when I was on it. The only thing you will want to check is with your pharmacy to make sure it it gluten free. A couple of years ago Effexor went generic and so now it can be made by any drug compnay. When I was diagnosed with celiac I call my pharmacy and they said they would have to check every time I ordered for a refill (this and my other meds) because the compnaies can change the inactive ingredients in their medications at any time without telling the pharmacy. Good luck with your medication.

I have been feeling extremely depressed. I suffer from depression, and aside from getting diagnosed with celiac disease my life is really stressful right now. Is getting really severly depressed normal after diagnosis? My psychiatrist and I are trying to figure out how much of this is the diagnosis and how much of it is my regular depression. As a psychiatrist he doesn't know much (if anything) about celiac disease. But since I am moving it seems a little rediculous for him to learn everything abou it. The problem is that my PCP is a resident and doesn't know anything either. Anyone have any advice or knowledge? I've been doing a lot of reading and am going to a dietitian next week. I know I have pretty much no vitamin D in my system and my doc said I problably don't have any of the other fat soluable vitamins either. I am getting those tonight. The GI doc who diagnosed me pretty much said "go at it" you should find someone to check in with once you move. Help please. Is this normal? Thanks.

I've been gluten free for about 2.5 weeks. RANT: I have decided that for the time being I'm going to be disgruntled with food. I keep trying new things, and as I find more i like I'm sure I will become less disgruntled but right now that is what I have to do to keep from exploding about this whole thing. I feel like my body has betrayed me. I have enough other problems. The one thing that I was able to depnd on not causing me problmes was my body. Now I have to deal with everything else and this. I'm sure this is a process but right now it sucks! I want my pizza I can order from the delivery place. I don't want to have to think about every thing I put in my mouth. I don't want people who have been told that I have this disorder offering me food I can't eat. (however well meaning) I've never been one to do a lot of complicated cooking. Now it seems like that will be the only way I can eat something that doesn't taste like cardboard. Working two jobs makes this very hard. I feel like no one understands. The support group in my area seems to take a hiatus in the summer so no help there. I'm moving next month and then starting grad school. It's just too much at one time. When this was first suggested as a posibility I asked my PCP (before I saw the GI doc) how much of an adjustment it would be, and how hard it would be. She said it would be no problem just a little adjustment. WHAT? It seems like people who know this other person who has Celiac disease/doctor tell me that it's no big deal. That the person they know says it's no big deal. While it may be no big deal for them at the point they are at, but it is a big deal for me. I feel like my challenges are being totally invalidated. The challenge that I had to go to three different stores to do my shopping (all on public transit). That I have spent more money on food in the last two weeks than I had in the last two months. I feel like no one understands and there is no one who can help becasue no one knows anything about it (even my pcp). I was diagnosed over the phone with no followup by the GI doc except to ask if I had any questions. Being a little overwhelmed did not lead to questions right then. But she didn't suggest we set up another appointment to talk about it. What is it that they give you a life changing diagnosis, but are unable to do it face to face. I know they are busy but would a little consideration be too much to ask? Ok, end of rant.

Thank you all for your advice. I don't know when exactly I will be able to visit friends, but want to be prepared.

Thanks for that, but I guess my question was more about how do I deal with eating when I visit? Do I buy and cook all my own food? That seems like it would be awkward. But if I was visiting for a couple of days or more I would need to eat.

A lot of my good friends live in other states. I want to be able to visit them, but how do I do that with Celiac disease? Do I bring my own food? Do I only invite them to my place? How do I explain it to them? How do I explain it to new friends when I move next month?

Thanks

I am having cravings for my favorite foods that I used to eat, especially cinnamon rolls. I know that there are probably gluten free cinnamon rolls, but right now I'm not in the place to search them out and make them. Is there a point that they will go away? I also suffer from depression and sometimes all I want are my breads. Will this become less over time? And I don't think potatoes and rice will be able to fill that desire. Thanks.

Thanks everyone. I seem to have been able to work out the amount I need to eat better. Though still find late afternoon challenging. I just need to take more snacks to work.

Since your son is living on his own, has he done a lot of his own shopping before? Does he know what to lookout for and what is available? If you did a lot of his grocery shopping when he was growing up he might not know what to look for. Before I was diagnosed I had been doing my own shopping for a couple of years and am finding it challenging to find what I can/want to eat. Does he have one of the books that lists gluten free foods? I found that a life saver when I got one as I was better able to shop for the specific types of foods I wanted (for example chips and soda). While I would have been able to find them eventually checking each one to find what I could have eaten would have been torture. With the busyness of school I would have felt overwhelmed. I found that besides the food that was gluten free being more expensive, the first ones I tried tasted like cardboard. Are there any specific foods he liked when he was growing up that you could create a grocery list with for him to start with so that he could get back on the diet easier? The other thing that I found was hard was that i was used to cooking things like pasta and sauce that were really fast, but now when I look in the gluten free recipes seem complicated. Could you provide him with the recipes you (assuming you did the cooking) made when he was a kid that are gluten free? Take these with a grain of salt as they may or may not work for you and him. Good luck!