After a very long time of just not feeling well with a lot of different symptoms over the years - I think that I finally have found the answer. I believe that I have Celiac disease or at the least I high intolerance to gluten.
I've suspected for a long time that something I was putting into my body was making me sick...not "Oh - I'm going to throw up" sick...but a whole hosts of symptoms that led me to just not feel good. Months ago when I brought my suspicions of my possible gluten intolerance to the attention of my doctor, who was treating me for a Vitamin D and recently a Vitamin B12 deficiency after my complaints of how I was feeling, she shrugged me off with "if you don't have diarrhea - you don't have Celiac Disease." She's the doctor - so I shrugged my shoulders and let it go.
But many times as I was online (and anyone who knows me even a little knows if I'm not working - I'm online doing something) I would find myself googling the disease. A nagging voice just kept putting it back into my mind. I tried to talk myself out of it...but then would think of all the times I just felt horribly bloated after eating - especially wheat products. After eating even a slice or two of bread at a restaurant I felt as if I had already consumed a Thanksgiving meal - yet with the hunger still there. I couldn't ever understand how Chuck or the kids could eat multiple rolls or a stack of cookies. I just figured that full uncomfortable feeling was normal - since I always felt it. I continued to eat the things that made me feel bad telling myself "well I already feel bad -so I might as well have more and enjoy the taste."
Friday night after a day of food full of gluten rich food, I opened my laptop before going to bed and again went to search gluten sensitivity or intolerance. The list of symptoms stared my in the face and it just hit me - "I think this is it and I can't let it go." So as Chuck settled into bed I told him that I think I have this problem and I should go gluten free. Well...once my wonderful husband hears of some issue he will attack it...researching to find out all he can. By Saturday he had done some digging on is own and agreed that this seemed to answer so many of my problems. As I type this right now - he is reading a book on the subject we picked up today.
However...this is not going to be quite as easy as just not eating wheat, barley, and rye. Unfortunately the more we research it...the more we find that gluten is hidden in so many things. And cross-contamination from things can cause a problem. So we have begun to read, research, and prepare ourselves to go gluten free. Tonight I made a yummy pasta dish made with a corn and quinoa pasta. Tasted great...so we know that there are alternatives out there. Chuck is going to join my on this life-style changing journey. At first I thought that I would continue to cook and bake like normal for others and just make sure I wasn't eating any of it - yet I know that this will just not work for me. So I've decided that anything that I cook or bake will be gluten free. This a bit of a bummer for me since I love to bake...but I will learn to create yummy gluten free goodies. My three teenagers may cry out a big "OH NO!" at this...but I must do what is best for myself. They can bake their own goodies if they don't like what I come up with - but it must not contaminate my food and supplies.
It's going to be a bit of a challenge and we have a lot to learn but hopefully this will be the answer to living a better feeling life.
No comments:
Post a Comment