BRUMI1968

I've found it next to impossible to stay 100% paleo in the wintertime. I now eat some rice, some rice pasta, and some potato. But not much. I've also added rice milk (in the form of tea lattes), and that is helping me keep the weight on.

Okay...TWO MONTHS ago I caught a cold thing that was mostly this horrible DRY itchy hamburger feeling sore throat and spastic horrible coughing that didn't produce anything. My lungs were fine. Well, this went on for a month and a half. Then I got laryngitis for four days. That was fun. Then I sprained/cracked/broke/bruised a rib - I think sprained - from coughing. Finally, about a week ago, the coughing got better so the rib started to get better too. Wake up today and I'm sicker than a dog with this cold -- now mostly in my schnozz.

So, I decide, this is a long illness. I'm going to the doc. So I went and she prescribed some antibiotics -- thinking the almost cured then suddenly worse thing sounded like a possible case of bacteria taking advantage of my lowered system and the nice warm mucousy nose of mine. So, rather than do what I normally do (read the inserts of drugs then refuse to take them), I came home, took the pills, then read the insert. HOpefully she's right, because I'm desperate for some relief.

But now to the crux. I'm sitting in a big overstuffed chair with the dog - so I'm sitting a bit cattywampus so he can be comfy - and I lay down a huge sneeze. OUCH! This made my right lower abdomen - above my hip really - hurt like the devil. Every step I take makes it hurt worse. By now, my back hurts too, and my neck, and I'm just a wreck.

Could I have gotten a hernia from sneezing? If so, should I be able to see a lump, or is the lump internal where the intestines poke through the weak abdominal wall.

Any advice?

-Sherri

I was having trouble keeping weight on. I added two or three tea lattes a day. I make them with loose black tea in a pan with rice milk and hazlenut mik (mixed), with nutmeg, cloves, cinnamon, and some agave nectar (a great sweetener). Once I started doing this, I gained about five pounds. And I haven't kept gaining...I'm about 130 now at 5'9 (I was down to 120)...and that works for me.

Also avocados. I don't know where you live, but if they are any good right now where you live, they are high calories and full of good fat.

Sweet potatoes and squash are good.

Anyway, good luck. Try the tea latte. You could make it a regular latte too, if you drink coffee (I quit), or you could make it a matcha latte if you drink green tea, or a decaff chai latte. You get the drift.

My grandma gave me a box of stuff to sell. The drama here is that some of it is collectable stuff that I don't know anything about. So I've had to look up what the stuff is...for example...some metal military ship toys. Some of it has value, some not. But they are little tiny bits and pieces, so I'd have to run 30 auctions to get a pittance.

I've sold things successfully online. I've sold DVD's and clothing. Clothing can be a pain if the person wants massive measurements of everything. Be sure to post the measurements of the clothing, especially if adult clothing. I sold a motorcycle helmet for five hundred bucks to Italy -- no problem with shipping.

My biggest problem was underestimating shipping. i always add a dollar or two to what i think it is, to pad it, and to pay me back for the gas to the post office.

anyway, mostly, it's fun. good luck.

Sherri

I can tell you that when I would eat gluten, I would get anxiety attacks to varying degrees. Sometimes they would be full blown - I'd get tingly, clammy, feel like I needed to poop quite suddenly, wanting to throw up, nevous, shaking, scared, sometimes mentally disoriented, always dizzy. Sometimes they would just be mild - and what I noticed most was the dizziness -- or more a feeling of disconnectedness from the world altogether. When I quit gluten, this went away. This, canker sores, and itching are ways I tell if I'm getting mild glutenings. (Severe glutenings I usually tell by my running to the bathroom and barely making it there before bad bad things happen.)

What you've described could very well be celiac. I don't get those symptom myself, but I recognize them from other folks' posts.

Good luck to you. If you are able to keep on the diet, it is certainly worth a try. You should know, though, that if you do go on the diet and are on it for some time, any tests you take for celiac will come back negative. If you're interested in getting tested, you should keep eating it long enough to get the test. it's a blood test, so it's not too difficult. If you try the diet itself as a test, that's great. If you feel better, stay on it. It is hard at first, but eventaully it becomes easier.

You should also know that lots of folks with celiac are lactose intolerant, at least at first. And soy is difficult for many many people. Peanuts are related to soy, and should be avoided by everyone really since they're riddled with mold.

Take care.

Last time I checked Bobbi Brown still needed to be checked product by product. The line "smashbox" is entirely gluten-free, and has some great stuff in it. They sell it at Nordstrom, and I'm sure other places. I don't know about drug store lines.

Although it's great that you want to find gluten-free soda's and not risk the gluten, you might want to rethink these sodas alltogether. They are extremely destructive to our health, especially as pertains to blood sugar fluctuations, diabetes, etc. I drink a lot of tea, and lots of folks like fruit juice (I don't, for some dumb reason). Or even carbonated apple cider, especially if it does not contain high fructose corn syrup.

Good luck to you.

Oh yeah, as for face cleansers and the like, I use MyChelle. They also have some lip/cheek colors. They are entirely gluten-free. I buy it at our food co-op, or online at mychelle.com.

Was she eating corn prior to that? Or is adding the tortilla's the same as adding corn?

I'm pretty sure that St. Johnn's Wort thins the blood - which is fine for most folks, but dangerous for some. Just thought I'd pass it on, being in the "some" category, and knowing how important it is.

Walnut Butter and Cashew Butter and Pecan Butter from ARTISANA. IT'S RAW, which is important, and it is entirely peamut, gluten, and dairy free. I think the Walnut one is FANTASTIC. They are not cheap, though.

www.premierorganics.org

I am one who gets anxiety and, to a lesser degree, depression from gluten.

Before I was gluten-free, (I was sick, but undiagnosed for 20 years) I would get panic attacks out of nowhere. These almost always occured at restaruants.(!)

It's gotten somewhat better--I've been gluten-free for a year and a half. I still get anxiety and feel very sad and even paranoid when glutened.

I did try an antidepressant, but the side effects were too much. I'm holding off on trying another--I may try St. John's Wort first.

I had anxiety attacks for nearly 30 years, almost always after or during eating. Haven't had a single one since going gluten-free. It makes me want to join support groups for anxiety depression long enough to tell each and every person there to consider going gluten-free.

I've always had very light periods - I mean stupid light, which i've always appreciated. since going gluten-free, they've gotten much more "normal", I think since my hormones have been straightening out.

I've done some reading on the subject, and one theory is that women should not eat the reproductive byproducts of other animals: eggs, milk. You might give that a shot. Lots of women, upon quitting those things, can find improvement in PMS, heavy flow, cramps, etc...as well as cysts and the like. I'm sure the gal I'm thinking of also suggested you stay off soy and other estrogenic foods.

Birth control pills can't be good for you, can they?

Which reminds me -- aren't some folks taking BCP and NOT taking the placebos -- in this way they never have their period. Once or twice a year maybe. this started because it has been noted that if you never have children, your chances for reproductive cancer increase. They've decided this is because you have periods all the time -- if you were to have babies, you'd be without your period for various times.

Anyway, I know I just wondered if the BCP were terrible for you, but this might be an option - the periodless lifestyle. It was a couple years ago that this was the rage, so I don't know how it ended up.

I feed by dog a grain free raw diet, with a few kibble chunks in it. The Kibble chunks are also grain free -- they are INNOVA. The raw food is Prairie. He does really well on this diet - no more stinky farting, clear eyes, nice coat, and great health overall.

Once, we ran out of raw food and had to feed him just kibble again for two days. His farting was intense...and that's when i realized that he had been odor free since we'd gone raw.

As to "fountain" drinks....I read on here at some point not to drink stuff that came out of the gun in the bar, as it might be contaminated with, for example, root beer or something. So I don't. I have no idea if it's true.

My nutritionist, a great guy named Tom Malterre, is publishing a cookbook that is mostly gluten and dairy free. He teaches classes on gluten free dessserts and the like at our local food co-op. Anyway, here is the website to preorder his book. I'm going to get it and will be happy to post a review once it arrives.

Open Original Shared Link

I disagree. I made our household gluten free except for pizza (from a parlour) and beer. These two things are very easy to keep track of. the pizza box never leaves a particular counter, and we have a mudroom sink where plates that have touched gluten get prewashed before going into the dishwasher.

Gluten isn't good for anyone. Bread ins't good for anyone. I bet your husband will be healthier eating the way you do. He will still be able to eat gluten when he eats out - and getting a scone and coffee at Starbucks can solve that craving. How hard is that?

As to it being "fair"? I think that's an oddly American idea - that our households need to be fair. Your household is a community that supports one another. Your husband does not NEED gluten; you NEED to be gluten free. Thus, your need trumps his desire. He can achieve eating gluten in his private time or in space that is not YOUR HOME. Communities sacrifice things for one another. I bet you sacrifice for him.

Anyway, that's my two cents. My husband and two friends (both who eat over a lot) have handled it gracefully.

-Sherri

I haven't been able to drink for years, even before diagnosis. I get shaking that i can't control (and a terrible stomach ache, though usually no vomiting). So I just don't bother. People are always trying to get me to sip their stuff, and even though it probably wouldn't send me into the shaking fits, I still say no thanks.

Besides, women have an increased incidence of cancer if they drink alcohol.

Sorry anyway to hear about your horrible visits to the kamode. Maybe it's something else. What exactly are you drinking, anyway? (and does it involved getting anything out of the fountain at the bar -- water, coke, etc.)

I think often "smoke" flavored things have gluten. I use Beelers or a local brand, Hemplers, and do just fine.

No. That's a good point, about them washing their hands. I'll do that. Thanks for the advice.

Well, it's been about six months or so gluten-free. About a month ago, my itching came back. I've never had a rash or anything, just intense itching, mostly on the back of my head, on my shins, on my spine, and on my left hip area.

Potential culprits: too many hot showers (sometimes I get inconsolably cold, and take a hot shower), winter.

BUT, it feels just like the itching I had before going gluten-free.

I've got a gluten-free household (except beer and pizza -- easy for me to keep track of, never cooked here, and they have their own sink in the laundry room to handle scrubbing their dishes). I KNOW my shampoos and soaps are gluten free.

I have been eating tea lattes (okay, drinking them) and they have some spice in there - cloves, nutmeg, and cinnamon, and I'm never sure with spices.

But otherwise, I'm having a hard time finding this elusive gluten. Any ideas on sneaky hiding places for such things?

p.s. I don't take any meds, but do take some herbal supplements -- I'll look into those.

-Sherri

Can you share the 3 ingredients in the pb cookies? I've not heard of this.

One diet to look into is the paleolithic diet. Lots of folks have had very good luck with it. It can be hard to get used to (especially for breakfast), but I think if you can keep up your energy, it's a healthy way to live.

Not that it is as good as going natural, but colace liquid is gluten free according to the web.

I had this problem a bit (though without ever having the D) -- I used to eat oatmeal for breakfast almost every day; and when I quit doing that, I got some pretty serious C...I mean serious.

You would be surprised to know how much fiber is in fruits and vegetables, really. Figs are really great, if you don't have blood sugar problems. Dried figs have something like 8g of fiber each. And, they're yummy. Prunes also help (again, if you have even blood sugar), both from fiber, and from some magic prune property.

I would look up high fiber foods on the Internet, and stay away from grains of all kinds for a while, and see if that helps. What finally got me better was ZERO DAIRY (dairy will constipate me in an instant - even a teaspoon of butter), and extremely limited grains. Now I eat rice milk (as a tea latte-yum!), and some rice tortillas, but mostly veggies, fruits, nuts, seeds, and lean meat.

Good luck. Oh yeah, imortantly, I think it takes a spell for the system to work out the kinks. It took me about four months to find a good poop - and right now that's gone because I tested out dairy again so I'm constipated again. It'll take a while, but if you focus on it, and keep an open mind about what it might be, you'll find that balance.

-Sherri

Yeah, I spent most of my childhood and early teens and twenties and heck, half of my thirties doubled over in pain. Glad that's gone.

Bloating has been the bane of my existence. I've always had C and bloat for my celiac, which has been active since I was two or so.

Since going gluten-free, I've struggled with it less (at least less pain), but it has not disappeared entirely. Here is what I've gone through with it.

1. Quit wheat 2-1/2 years ago; this made small difference in lots of things

Quit dairy 2-1/2 years ago as well.

2. Quit gluten 6 or 7 months ago; this made big difference in everything but bloating

3. Quit potatoes; this imporved the poop quality, which had been being very weird

4. Quit soy (no obvious imporvement right away)

5. Quit all grains and beans.

Now, here is where we finally got some relief. I quit all beans and all grains. I was eating a Paleolithic diet - seeds, nuts, meat, vegetables, fruits. No potatoes (can't be eaten raw) or nightshades.

I extended this for a little while to the Body Ecology Diet, which has you go for a spell without any sugar at all, including fruit. This made the bloat entirely disappear. However, I ran out of energy really quickly.

ideas:

Yeast. If you have yeasties farting in your system, you will be bloated. Possibly the reason I got so tired was yeast kill-off.

Dairy. Don't do dairy. It's not good for you anyway, and most Celiacs are intolerant.

Lectin intolerance. Glycoproteins (or lectins) are foods that are both protein and carb, like beans, grains, dairy, eggs, and nuts to some degree. they can mimic antibodies, and some new theories believe that they may get into the blood stream through leaky gut, and set off our immune systems, creating autoimmune responses, especially to food.

Exercise: usually helped my bloat to some degree.

Food combining: eat fruits alone; don't mix carbs and proteins (this leaves sugars for the yeasties to eat).

I hope this helps. I still get bloated now and again. In fact, now I'm bloated. I've been eating some cereal that has corn in it, and that might be doing it. Good luck.