kbtoyssni

its really hard for me to get to my dr. i have a dermatologist who is closer- do u think he would know?

we moved to a house in august that backs onto woods and we saw deer the other day. i go into the backyard to walk the dog so i supposed i could have gotten a bite. i havent had any flu symptoms. i'm always tired though but that is not new....

Could you take a picture of it and email it to your doctor? My doctors are very good at returning my phone calls when I just have a quick question so maybe yours will be, too?

Even if your doctor doesn't think it's a tick bite, you could still request that you get tested for Lyme Disease. It would probably make you feel better if you had the test done. I think it's just a blood test because I know I've been tested and don't remember anything out-of-the-ordinary, so a dermatologist could probably do it for you.

Corn gluten is ok. Gluten is used to refer to the protien in a grain so you've got wheat gluten, corn gluten, rye gluten, etc. Only the gluten in WBRO is harmful to celiacs, although I agree that it's a bit unsettling when someone refers to corn gluten

Welcome! Things will be tough for a while, but it gets easier. Now I eat everything I used to eat pre-gluten-free, I just have to watch the brands I buy and make some substitutions for things like bread and pasta. It is a lot of work in the beginning to figure out the safe brands, but in a few months you'll be a pro. I don't spend any extra time grocery shopping now than I did before. Check out Nini's beginners kit - it will have lists of safe brands.

And Christmas can easily be made gluten-free. Turkey and ham are natually gluten-free (just check that there's not broth added to the turkey), you can make you veggies without gluten-toppings, stuffing can be made with any gluten-free bread. The only thing I have had to alter the recipe for in my Thanksgiving and Christmas meal is the stuffing.

I found the site by googling celiac.

My worst symptoms from gluten were psychological, too. I've been gluten free for over a year now and it doesn't bother me that I wasted 10 years feeling sick, but it does bother me that I waste 10 years feeling depressed. When I get glutened now there's nothing I can do about it. I just have to wait it out. So I make sure that I read every label before I eat anything. If I'm not sure (even if it's something that I'm 99% sure is gluten-free), I won't eat it. I keep enough gluten-free food around at work, in my car, at my friends' houses that it's not like I'll starve. And I would rather go hungry than deal with the side effects. It's up to you to be in charge of your diet. It looks like you will have to work with your parents to make sure you're gluten-free. Maybe you can go shopping with your mum, help her plan dinners, suggest gluten-free options for the whole family when possible, get your own condiments because it's just too easy for them to get contaminated.

Most personal care products you just have to read the label and it will list the gluten. Personal care products usually aren't as ambiguous as food can be with things like "modified food starch". The gluten is usually pretty obvious.

Congrats!!!

Welcome! Vlasic pickles are gluten-free (and so are Milwaukee's because they're owned by Vlasic). Most pickles are gluten-free, you just have to call the company and confirm.

It's really hard to do something that people don't expect of you. You know it would be best for your health to take some time off of school, but it's not the norm so you're trying to stick it out. I was in grad school when I got really sick from celiac. The brain fog and fatigue made it impossible to get to class or think to study. I dropped out and it was the best decision I've ever made. I came home, got well and now I am healthier than I've been in years. I probably wouldn't be in such a good place right now if I hadn't dropped out. Don't let anyone make you feel guilty if you need to take time off to get well. This is about you and your life and you have to do what's best for you, not what everyone else thinks is best.

Oh, and the pizza factory??? Can you find a different gluten-free job?

Welcome! We need more people like you in medical community!

I also replaced all my gluten-free chapsticks and lipsticks that I used before I was diagnosed. I worried that I'd eaten, put on chapstick and gotten crumbs in it. My theory is that I'm better to be safe. It's hardly any extra effort to buy gluten-free personal care products, and if it prevents me from getting sick just once, it's worth it! Not to mention that my anxiety level about gluten is nearly zero because I know everything in my apartment is gluten-free. When I lived with my parents I had a constant nagging feeling that I might get glutened at any time... Not having to worry at home means that when I do have to deal with gluten for things like going out to eat, it's not such a big deal for me.

I've also found that it's the more expensive shampoos that tend to have the all-natural gluten-y goodness in them. For once, using gluten-free products might actually be cheaper than the gluten alternative!

I feel like I'm the queen of bringing my own food to restaurants. Most of the time people go out to eat to socialize. Going to a restaurant isn't about the food to me anymore, it's about the people and hanging out. Sometimes people try to accomodate my dietary restrictions and I really appreciate it, but some days I'm just not in the mood to deal with eating out and I'd rather they pick some really gluten-y place so I have a good excuse to bring my own food.

Yes, it may be inconsiderate about them but the point of the get-together is to celebrate the holiday so I'd go.

If it were me, I'd make the meal completely gluten-free. I don't cook with gluten so if people want to eat what I make then they eat gluten-free. No one ever seems to mind and everything I make looks pretty much "normal" to them. They'd never know it was gluten-free if they didn't know I had celiac.

You can still make stuffing. Last year was my first gluten-free Thanksgiving and we used all our failed, crumbing bread experiments for breadcrumbs. Most of my meal is turkey and veggies which are naturally gluten-free. I'm lucky that my family has never been big on adding things to the veggies so the only subsitution we had to make was the stuffing.

So does it really not matter if you just cut back a lot? I use to eat tons of gluten I'm trying to stop, but it still is REALLY hard. BUt does cutting down help at all or just as pointless as eatin a lot?

Cutting back is a good start, but you really need to work towards being 100% gluten-free. It is a lot of work in the beginning, but eventually it becomes second nature. Are there certain foods that are really hard for you to give up? Maybe we can help you figure out gluten-free substitiutes for them.

We tried a couple different brands of diapers, but I could not find chlorine free ones...where do I get these and are they clearly labeled as such...is there a specific brand/type that I should be looking for?

The ones I saw were at the Fresh and Natural Food store where I get all my specialty gluten-free products. I have no idea what brand they were, but they came in a green package. I bet you could find them in an organic/natural type store.

Before I went gluten-free, pizza was the only thing that noticably made me sick. I diagnosed myself through an eliminated diet. When I added gluten back in pizza still made me sick, but wheat bread never did. I wonder if it might be the combination of the wheat, lactose and acidic tomatoes in the pizza.

Is there a local farmers market (or even just a farmer) that you could get your chicken from? They might have organic options and it's usually cheaper than the supermarket.

You could also get some of these toaster bags:

Open Original Shared Link .com/Toaster-Bags-Set-of-...;s=gourmet-food

They're great if you want to make toast in a hotel toaster. Or if you want to make a grilled cheese sandwich. I've taken them to restaurants before and handed them a cheese sandwich in a bag. I ask them to toast it or put it in a toaster oven, just DON'T TAKE IT OUT OF THE BAG!!! This might be an option if your husband wants to eat at a local place that you're not comfortable eating in.

And you could try the foreign language celiac cards. I think you can order them through this site.

I don't know where we will be staying but it may be with family for the wedding and then on the move through Europe. So, biscuits will be available but I can't really eat just fruit and biscuits for a month .... And even the plane flight is 24 hours and that seems a long time to eat sugary food. I am Insulin Resistant and am supposed to eat meat and protein.... This is starting to stress me !!! In my comfort zone here I am coping well with Celiac and have lovely meals - but - to go a month without decent food ...OMG !

That is tough that you don't know where you're staying. Did you contact your airline for gluten-free food? I've flown American Airlines once since being gluten-free and they have gluten-free food. I still read the labels, though, because they did try serving me crackers with oat in them for one of the meals. Luckily they were individually wrapped so it didn't contaminate the rest of my food. I think I read on their website that they will heat up food for travelers with food restrictions that they cannot accomodate, but when I asked them to heat something for me they said no.

I agree that your insurance should pay for this. But if they won't pay, you do have the option of not getting a biopsy. Your signature says that you have positive blood work and dietary response so a scope wouldn't confirm anything.

Thanks for the tips. To make matters worse I will be in a foreign country ( Eng ) and don't even know what snack bars will be suitable. With Customs at airports so strict now I don't think I can carry that much food with me ( for 4 weeks ???) so its going to be areal challenge. Its next year - but am already starting to be scared.

How can I cope for 4 weeks w/out homecooked meals ????

England is much more celiac-friendly than the US! You will be able to find gluten-free bread and pasta and cookies in a regular grocery store. Food there actually has gluten-free labeling. And I find that gluten-free food in the UK tastes much better. Everything I buy tastes fine. The first time I went back to England after going gluten-free I was super nervous about the food. I'm leaving for England again on Friday and food is the least of my worries.

I am bringing food with me for the plane ride. You can bring food as long as it's not fruit/veggies. I think meat might be a no-no as well. I bring sealed packages of crackers, etc. I will bring some fruit and sandwiches for the trip - you just have to eat them before you get off the plane. I also bring homemade cookies with me, and I've never had a problem with them. It's sortof like my comfort food

Here's the story... I had dropped down about 25 pounds in 4 months, so I went to my family doctor who in turn tested for everything under the sun from my thyroid to leukemia to diabetes, etc. Anyways, after three weeks of having some form of blood test about every other day I decided to just quit going (I wasn't getting anywhere). Well, all of my test came back fine and she attributed it to my generalized anxiety disorder and the Adderall for ADD that I was taking. So, I went off the Adderall to try to gain back my appetite. Nothing happened and I continued to lose weight.

My mom read an article about celiac disease and many of the symptoms seemed to match up with mine. I went on a gluten free diet and felt better. My weight went up five pounds and stabilized. My family doctor swears up and down that you can't develop celiac disease as an adult. I read that you could develop it after trauma to the abdomen. I had a laproscopy two summers ago and that's when my symptoms started (don't know if that's related). I tried to eat some bread one day and got really sick. So I went back gluten free.

However, lately I have been having night sweats and breaking out on my arms when I am accidentally glutened. My mom thinks I need to go to the doctor so that I don't have to do this alone and have some additional guidance. She also (and so do I) would like to make sure that this is definitely what is wrong. Now, who do I call?

Thanks for all of your help!

My celiac disease was triggered by the flu. I figure it was immune system overload and I never got better. There often is a trigger for the disease and it sounds like your laproscopy could have been it.

The problem with conventional testing is that it won't come back positive it you are already gluten-free. So going to a GI again may or may not be beneficial. I am highly skeptical of doctors. I diagnosed myself and figured everything about the diet out on my own. A positive dietary response is a positive diagnosis in my mind. If you want futher testing while staying gluten-free, I think Enterolab is your only option.

If you do decide to go to a GI, I'd call and ask how many patients they have treated or diagnosed with celiac disease. There are doctors out there who "get it", but you have to search for them. My friends are always telling me I should go to the doctor, but I don't know what a doctor could do for me. I've already got my diagnosis so I feel like I know more about this than the doctors because I live it everyday.

Awww, that is really sweet. I have some amazing coworkers myself and I feel so special when they think of me and my food. Them telling me about seeing something gluten-free at the store means more to me than just taking an interest in my life. Probably because food is such a huge part of what I think about everyday and you know no one else thinks about it as much that's it nice when the realize what a big deal it is to you.

The two weddings I've been to recently were both good friends who knew about my celiac and they talked to the chef beforehand about my meal. I offered to call and talk to the chef myself, but they did it themself. If it's not too ackward to ask, you could find out who the chef is and give him a call. Otherwise I'd bring a plate with food and I'm sure the kitchen can heat it up for you in the microwave. Maybe bring something in covered tupperware so the lid stays on and they can't contaminate.

Welcome to the forum! It sounds like you've been through a lot, and I'm glad that you may have finally found some answers. I also agree with you that IBS is a "easy" diagnosis that should require futher investigation to find the root of the problem.

1. She wants to give me a biopsy now... I don’t see the point, I am not eating gluten. Could this mean she is testing for something else? Should I refuse and do Enterolab instead?

You have a positive blood test; therefore you have celiac. You do not need any further tests because it's pretty clear you have it. As for the biopsy - it is unlikely that it will show any damage since you've been gluten-free for three years already. And no matter what the result, you still have celiac. It is possible that your GI wants to look for something else, but you should ask her about that. I remember someone on her saying their GI found something else (ulcers maybe? I can't remember) when they did the scope, but I think that's pretty rare.

2. She is sending me to get an ultra sound of my abdomen... too look for "growths and rule out anything else it could be" (we all know what that means )

Hmmm, I'm sorry. I guess maybe get it done just in case? I don't know much about this...

3. She said if I don’t start feeling better or gaining weight she was going to put me on steroids?!?!!??! WTH?! Has anyone heard of this before??!?!?

Also not sure on this one. I would think it might be better to work on the root cause of the weight loss or failure to gain unless your weight it dangerously low, but that's just my thought and not based on any fact.

4. And, if all those don’t work she is going for the thyroid.

A lot of people on here have thyroid problems so this might be good to look into.

5. I have started having tingles in my legs... MS!?

Gosh, once again I'm not sure.

6. I have never been fully diagnosed as celiac… or have i?

Well, you do have the positive blood test. Most doctors are hesitant to make an official diagnosis based on a blood test, though (scope is still considered the gold standard). It's possible you "just" have gluten intolerance which I feel is the same thing as celiac, just not as advanced in the damage done to your body. Either way you still need to be on a gluten-free diet. I diagnosed myself based on positive dietary response, and I always tell people I have celiac.

7. Is there something they aren’t telling me?

I don't think so. Sounds like a typical GI experience to me. A GI who is slightly out of touch with the realities of celiac and still working off an outdated definition of the disease. I say stick to the diet. And don't let them force you into any testing you don't want to do.

My mom rolls her eyes at me when i tell her that there is no point for the biopsy now. She says to "trust the doctor and stop reading the internet"

You might want to get her a book like Dangerous Grains to read. Books don't have the same stigma the internet has about truthfulness of information. I would also still be very sick if it weren't for an internet friend on a message board mentioning she had celiac one day. If I hadn't heard of it years ago, I probably never would have figured out my problem.

Good luck and please post again if you have any more questions.

Are you thinking of the Health Valley Rice Bran crackers? I think that is what they are called!

Ooooh, I have some of those! They're so boring and plain that I find them super yummy They might make a really good crust, though, once you put a ton of butter and chocolate and peanut butter all over them.