Introductions
ilookthetype
Posts: 3,021 Member
My name is Elysa. I found out I was gluten intolerant (probably Celiac) over a year ago. I had the classic gastro issue and a lot of neurological issues (brain fog, depression, ADD), and joint pain. Since going GF it's all cleared up.
Since going GF I've also figured out I'm casein/soy intolerant and I can only eat eggs when they're in baked goods.
I swear by Easy Gluten Free Baking by Elizabeth Barbone.
Since going GF I've also figured out I'm casein/soy intolerant and I can only eat eggs when they're in baked goods.
I swear by Easy Gluten Free Baking by Elizabeth Barbone.
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Replies
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I am a self diagnosed celiac. I went gluten free in January, then a bunch of other food issues began popping up.. I am GF, Soy free, sunflower/safflower free , extremely low grain and dairy free except for raw grassfed cream and butter is the only dairy I can tolorate.0
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'ello, the name's kate.
i've got a sister who is a diagnosed celiac and after years of migraines and digestive issues and chronic fatigue... head scans, blood tests, and being told i was an all-around hypochondriac... my sister recommended going gluten free. and i haven't looked back since.
i was on topamax and maxalt for my 3 or 4 migraines a week. i am no longer on either and only get a migraine when i slip up - proof enough for me.
i love the kitchen and think the best gatherings happen there. i am on a constant mission to make the foods i love healthier and gluten-friendly. my future sister-in-law is also a celiac. so even though my fiance's family thinks im being ridiculous, they have to cook gluten free for her so its a win for me. suckas!
my fiance grew up on sandwiches, chicken and macaroni and cheese. i am in the process of expanding his horizons one recipe at a time.
i refuse to believe that cooking gluten free has to be difficult or tedious or ridiculously fancy and outrageous. it is and can be just like cooking any other non-gluten free meal - and it should be that simple. i rarely buy or use the specifically labeled "gluten free" items and just focus on what naturally comes that way.0 -
I was diagnosed 5 years ago, and decided the doctor was a quack. Then 2 years later for my wedding I did Atkins for 6 weeks, on my honeymoon I ate half a dinner roll and spent hours curled up in a ball and decided the doctor wasn't a quack. Almost 2 years ago I was pregnant and decided that I'd build up my tolerance. When my son was born I EBF'd and he had 5 weeks of bleeding diaper rash, after week 2 I cut out dairy, after week 3 I cut out soy, after week 4 I cut out wheat (but kept eating quaker old fashioned rolled oats). It got mostly better, after week 5 I cut out the oats (which were not certified gf) and it went away entirely. He is compltely gf and I'm mostly gf with a little cheat meal here and there.
I do a lot of cooking and baking to make sure that he doesn't know the difference. At 2 you can't explain to him why he can't have the cupcake when all the other kids are having one, he just knows he likes a cupcake so we keep emergency stashes of everything in the deep freeze for such an occassion.0 -
Hi I'm Angela
I'm not terribly gluten intolerant, but after cutting it out I've noticed when I do have anything with gluten (wheat especially) I feel horrible. I also had this small rash on my arm for a year or so and the only thing that has worked at keeping it away is cutting out gluten. And if I do "cheat," the rash comes right back. It's strange...
I love elanaspantry.com
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Hello! I'm Sam/Samantha from CT. I never understood why I always had "brain fog" among other issues. I thought I had all of these problems - ADD, insomnia, asthma, among many others. I decided to go paleo/primal after being a vegetarian and living on grains for 4 years. I immediately felt insanely energetic, clear headed, etc. I started adding grains slowly back into my diet, not realizing what a gluten intolerance even was at the time. Then I noticed all of the symptoms were coming back. I cut the grains back out and felt wonderful again! I now realize how strongly they affected me! Now when I have gluten, I end up with a crazy hangover feeling the next day and am sick and very crappy feeling the entire next day - I believe the symptoms have worsened since I had cut the grains out for so long. I gain quite a bit of weight instantly from it and feel insanely bloated the day of and the days after. I also notice when I even have a small amount of gluten I will feel the same as if I had a ton of it
I do believe the symptoms are worsening too, when I do have it accidentally, as I have it less and less. It kind of sucks having to live gluten free but I am so happy to know that that was the sole issue!! And it is helping me have a muchhh healthier diet, along with my family and friends too. I have now added gluten free products back in, though I usually stick to meat/veggies/fruit/nuts/etc, and I still feel great, so I know for a fact it was the gluten! I am still learning about this so I joined the group to get ideas and learn more about how to live gluten free. It can be tough going out to restaurants, which my friends and family do a lot, so I am trying to learn how to cope with that and find restaurants that cater to gluten free diets. P.S. I say "diet" -- to me this means for life though, not a short phase!! :P 0 -
It can be tough going out to restaurants, which my friends and family do a lot, so I am trying to learn how to cope with that and find restaurants that cater to gluten free diets.
It's really hard. You have to learn how to be one of those "annoying" customers who asks a lot of questions and makes substitutions. It gets easier the more you do it (but I still hate it because I feel like I'm being a pain). I end up just ordering meat with extra veggies.0 -
Hi!!
I'm Piper and I have been gluten free for 5 years. I spent my early 20s asleep due to anemia. This went on for 6 years; I had all sorts of tests run, from leukemia to enlarged heart, internal bleeding to sickle-cell anemia. I took 6 iron pills a day and got my blood tested every month. Nothing ever raised my blood levels. My ferritin level was a 3 on a normal range of 10-12. My doctor said that if I was in a car accident I'd bleed to death before an emergency team showed up. Then, a hematologist prescribed iron infusions. I had 3 six hour infusions of iron and my red blood count/ferritin levels FINALLY went up. This doctor recommended I get this infusion every year, and when I chose to get pregnant.
Oh, and I was on Depo-Provera to prevent blood loss. For 8 years.
I thought this was the end of my story: mystery iron deficiency. I ate REALLY well, lots of lean meat, dark leafies, etc etc. No reason to be so deficient. I also had bad migraines. My theory for a few years was that I had a huge tumor/magnet in my brain that was sucking the iron out of my blood and storing it in my brain.
Fast forward two years to me getting ready to go on a college study abroad program. I needed a basic health waiver signed by a medical professional. So I took the form into the health clinic at Portland State University ( I was a student there.) The nurse, who I'd NEVER EVER MET BEFORE saw my intake form where I'd listed "anemia" on my ailments. She suggested the antibody test for Celiac. Totally positive. Celiac diagnosis.
I went on my study abroad, Semester at Sea (100 days on a cruise ship, stopping at 12 ports, eating everything I saw!!) and from my first bite back on American soil, I've been gluten free.
I slip up every once in a while. Eat contaminated food or take a bite of something I THINK is GF only to read isn't. It took me till last year to discover my shampoo/lotions/products are gluten-full. Every day I learn something new.
I get a rash on my scalp when I eat gluten that I think is DH. Now I'm dairy free to avoid iodine, which keeps the DH from healing. I also avoid other high-iodine foods (egg yolks, carrageenan, asparagus, fish, iodized salt.)
Because of my own limitations, I kinda eat "paleo" except I do have brown rice often. Occasionally I make GF baked goods but I over indulge and eat the whole batch, so that's not a frequent thing. I used to be a HUGE baker, and always wanted to open my own bakery, so maybe one day I'll do a GF one:)
I'm glad to have this new group where we can support one another, and share discoveries of GF products, as well as struggles and successes. I always wonder if my celiac effects my weight loss. I don't think my body processes nutrients the same way as other people.0 -
Hi I'm Angela
I'm not terribly gluten intolerant, but after cutting it out I've noticed when I do have anything with gluten (wheat especially) I feel horrible. I also had this small rash on my arm for a year or so and the only thing that has worked at keeping it away is cutting out gluten. And if I do "cheat," the rash comes right back. It's strange...
I love elanaspantry.com
Hi Angela,
Look into DH. It's a rash that celiacs get when they eat gluten. Iodine keeps it 'flared up.' There is a lot of info on the celiac dot com website about it. I've self-diagnosed myself with it.
P.S. DH stands for dermatitis herpetiformis.I know, it sounds like herpes but it's NOT! That word means something like 'looks like herpes.'0 -
It can be tough going out to restaurants, which my friends and family do a lot, so I am trying to learn how to cope with that and find restaurants that cater to gluten free diets.
It's really hard. You have to learn how to be one of those "annoying" customers who asks a lot of questions and makes substitutions. It gets easier the more you do it (but I still hate it because I feel like I'm being a pain). I end up just ordering meat with extra veggies.
More and more restaurants are creating gluten free options, always ask for a gluten free/allergen menu, I've worked in all kinds of restaurants all over and they MUST have an allergen menu.
I always tell my server it's an allergy, they tend to understand that better than "gluten intolerant"
My standard if I'm not sure is unseasoned steak and steamed veggies.0 -
I'll preface this by saying I am not gluten free...however my little sister has Celiacs (really bad...like minute cross contamination sets it off) so I joined to get recipe ideas so I can still cook for the family (especially for the Holidays). I've been looking for some GF recipes myself so I'll be more than willing to share those as well! I won't be of much help as far as advice goes because I don't have a gluten intolerance, but I'm willing to do some research if there's questions!
But I'm Carrie. I'm 21. And I run a lot. That's basically it!0 -
I'm glad to have this new group where we can support one another, and share discoveries of GF products, as well as struggles and successes. I always wonder if my celiac effects my weight loss. I don't think my body processes nutrients the same way as other people.
I can't imagine our bodies do, what with the damage done to our GI.
I need to spend some time looking on celiac.com and other places to confirm this though.0 -
I'm Becky, and have been trying to be GF all this year after getting very sick over the holidays last year. I struggled with accepting it, till a couple months or so. Now I get anxiety at the thought of accidentally having it. I also have found that sugar is not good for me, so have to try and stay away from that, so working on learning about baking gf and sugar free, wanting to use other natural sweeteners. I also think I have some sensitivity to milk, I do fine with cheese and things like that, but straight milk or ice cream seems to be a bit of a problem.0
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My name is Cory and I just went gluten free a few weeks ago.
The doctor said I exhibited all of the signs/symptoms of a gluten intolerance but, because I don't have insurance, they didn't run tests at this point and just advised me to go gluten free. So far, it has helped a little with my tummy issues (I have a pathological gastric hypersecretory condition, so my tummy always seems to cause me problems of some kind) and I am hoping that it will improve my other symptoms over time.
Because I'm allergic to milk and am used to scouring the labels and making a lot of foods from scratch to avoid getting sick, it hasn't been all that hard to adjust to going gluten free. I think it will be hardest for my family to adjust, since I am the cook in the family and the way they eat will have to change along with me.0 -
Hi all! I am so excited to have a Gluten Free group here. My name is Cheryl and I was diagnosed in August 2010 with Celiac and have been gluten free ever since. I found out quite by accident after having an endoscopy done (because of a stomach bacteria I contracted) and they found substantial damage to the villi. Then a blood test was done which confirmed what my doctor suspected. I've never had major symptoms but no doubt I would have somewhere down the line. Like many others, I spent a few days in shock and grieving over the loss of food but at the end of the day I feel very lucky to have found out when I did. I've made mistakes since going gluten free (thinking something was gluten free then finding out it wasn't) and I'm sure at some point I've had cross contamination but I've never intentionally consumed gluten since my diagnosis. I'm looking forward to meeting new friends and getting new ideas for gluten free meals.0
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I'll preface this by saying I am not gluten free...however my little sister has Celiacs (really bad...like minute cross contamination sets it off) so I joined to get recipe ideas so I can still cook for the family (especially for the Holidays). I've been looking for some GF recipes myself so I'll be more than willing to share those as well! I won't be of much help as far as advice goes because I don't have a gluten intolerance, but I'm willing to do some research if there's questions!
But I'm Carrie. I'm 21. And I run a lot. That's basically it!
Wow... your sister is one lucky girl to have someone as supportive as you! You go girl!!!0 -
Hi Angela,
Look into DH. It's a rash that celiacs get when they eat gluten. Iodine keeps it 'flared up.' There is a lot of info on the celiac dot com website about it. I've self-diagnosed myself with it.
P.S. DH stands for dermatitis herpetiformis.I know, it sounds like herpes but it's NOT! That word means something like 'looks like herpes.'
I can't believe I didn't think to google it once I figured out how to get it to go away. doh. Thank you!0 -
My name is Jennifer. My family, with the exception of my dh and oldest son, are all gluten, casein & soy free. I found that all of my kids, including my teenager who is sure he knows best, react in varying ways. Once eliminating problem foods from our diets, we have no more problems with eczema, potty training, digestive issues, etc. Behavioral problems have also been greatly reduced. Trying to find recipes that everyone will eat that don't take forever to cook is my biggest challenge. Homeschooling, taking care of my parents and just life seem to take a lot of my time. Anything that appeals to adults, very picky grandparents, and children ages 17, 8, 6, 5, 3 and 11 months would be awesome.0
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Hi everyone. I honestly don't know if I have gluten intolerance but I do know this:
1) Eliminating grains, legumes, and dairy seems to calm down my skin issues (acne rosacea, I think)
2) My cycles aren't normal and my doctor suggested going gluten free for a while
So, hello!0 -
My name is Kellie-Anne, and I'm a self-diagnosed Celiac. I've been living GF for about 3 months now. Not very long, but I've noticed that all of my issues that I was having (brain fog, restlessness, extreme stomach discomfort) all went away after I cut out Gluten.
Hello!0 -
Hi there, my real name is Margie. I don't have Celiacs or allergies, but I have a few friends who do, so I thought this would be a great place to find recipes that I can make for when they come over. If I'm making GF food, I'm always a little paranoid that I'm going to somehow poison them through cross contamination. For example, my flour bin and sugar bin are beside each other, so if I'm making a dessert, should I be concerned that a bit of the flour might have gotten into the sugar? I have limited space but I'm trying to keep a GF cupboard organized.
How comfortable are you with eating what someone else prepared for you?0 -
Hi!
My name is Carrie and while I'm not gluten intolerant, my husband and 3 of my kids are, so we are a completely gluten free house hold. I figured it out for them a little over a year ago. It took a bit to convince my husband that gluten might be his problem, but after we were gluten free for a couple weeks, he was convinced. Our daughter had PICA and extreme emotional issues, and once we removed the gluten, her PICA went away, her belly went flat, her digestive issues went away, and she became a happy child. Our youngest son has only had gluten once while the other kids were out of town. He got a piece of a pizza crust and ended up with a bad diaper rash that lasted 2 weeks, poor thing. As a side effect of removing the gluten from the household, I lost 45 lbs over the course of a year before joining MFP between being gluten-free and never eating outside of our home and removing most all processed foods.
I have a very supportive family. Last year, most of the holiday dinners were gluten free, but my mom has decided that this year, everything will be GF, and every cookie she makes will be something that ALL of her grandkids can eat. Every get-together any one in my family has, they always think of my kids and my husband. My husband's family however refuse to care or think about it in any rational manner, despite the fact that they really need to look into it because we don't believe he magically developed this and passed it on to the kids. 0 -
Hi there. I'm another gluten free member (also dairy free and low sugar and grains). Have had various health problem since i was a little tacker but wasn't till a few years ago that i made the connection between gluten and the constant tiredness, brain fog, cramps, bloating, nutritional deficiencies (despite eating quite healthily), etc. I thought it was because i occasionally had small amounts of dairy (was diagnosed with dairy allergy at about 2yrs old), however i didn't get much better when i cut dairy out completely.
A couple of years earlier my mum was diagnosed with Celiac disease so she suggested I try a gluten free diet and see how i felt. SOOO much better, although i wasn't heaps diligent and still had a few digestive problems and tiredness. Went and saw Dr's (plural) and had blood test after blood test. Long story short I eventually had the genetic test done and it came back positive. Tried doing the gluten challenge (introducing moderate-large amts of gluten for 4-6 wks) to get the endoscopy done. I lasted 2 days with moderate gluten intake before i gave up because i felt so sick. This was evidence enough for me that gluten was definitely the problem. It took 3 weeks till my energy returned and the bloating, etc subsided.
I have been gluten free since and feel so much better. I have my occasional slip up but then i'm only human. I try to avoid too much processed gluten free products and limit my intake of starchy grains, beans and refined sugars because i've noticed that these have similar (but milder) effects. Eating out is getting easier because many restaurants now have gluten free menus and if i think they'll be nothing i can eat at parties/outings i'll take something along or have a stash of raw nuts or fruit in my bag.
I've gotten used to the lifestyle change and really enjoy natural healthy foods. I'm working on building up my immunity by making sure i get enough important nutrients (through foods or supplements) and probiotics in my diet.
So glad this group has been started :-)0 -
I am going gluten free to support my significant other through his dietary change. His body is covered nearly head to toe with plaque psoriasis and we heard that a gluten free diet can be extremely helpful in clearing it up. We have been gluten free since October 28th of this year (about 2 weeks now) and have not noticed a significant change in his skin as of yet but we are hopeful! (He does claim to be less itchy, though.) We are going to give it at least a 6 month run to give it a fair shot. A group on MFP for sharing recipes and tips will be extremely helpful to me as I do the grocery shopping and the cooking! I'm glad this group is here!0
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Hi everyone. I myself am not gluten free, but my husband one our of our daughters both have celiac disease so I do have to cook for them. I love my bread and pasta way too much to do gluten free myself, because all of the gluten free bread/pasta I have tried I find really nasty. My husband and daughter don't seem to mind though.
So while it sucks to make 2 seperate meals most of the time, I am learning to deal with it. I hope I can find some great recipes from all of you here to make things a bit easier and maybe I will even learn to like some of them so I only have to make one dinner!0 -
Hi,
Wow! So happy to have found this group. I have been GF for one year. No diagnosis but have some autoimmune issues so probably have celiac. I was sick for several years and realized that the last time I felt decent was when I was nursing my second child. I had to do an elimination diet because he was miserable. The last thing I eliminated was gluten. He was better in a week! He out grew the intolerance or so the Dr said and he went on table food and I resumed a normal diet. After that I slowly became sick. I was under lots of stress. 2 kids, job, elderly parents, lost both parent, sexhausted and always sick to my stomach. It took me 2 years to realize it was gluten! I feel so much better but still struggle with fatigue due to other autoimmune issues (sjogrens).
I can't stand even the smallest exposure to gluten now. It still seems crazy to me.
I am just getting into baking and am so excited! Hope that doesn't slow my MFP progress!!! I will share some of my favorite recipes and links when I have a chance. maybe some more experienced cooks can share some thanksgiving tips here.
be well everyone!0 -
Hi, I'm gluten free since January 2009. I am allergic to wheat and assume I am also allergic to other glutinous grains. It's pretty easy to live without flour since it makes my physically ill to consume it. I don't know if I have Celiac but don't see the point of diagnosis since I'm already taking the treatment. I avoid most all dairy products as well. Looking forward to the discussion here.0
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Hi!
I've been doing the no-wheat thing for about 13 years. While I don't wish this lifestyle on anyone, I'm decidedly glad that there's been so much progress with wheat-free alternatives in the last two years. The stuff available even 5 years ago was dry, gritty, and just gross.
Since removing most of the wheat from my diet my allergies and overall health have improved. I've tried doing the gluten-free vegetarian thing, but that's almost impossible, since many of the veggie substitutes use wheat gluten. I'm looking forward to being a part of this group!0 -
Hi everyone!
My name is Malissa from Perth, Australia and i am 41.
For the last 5 years or so I've been incredibly tired, lethargic, depressed and my weight was just going up, up up! I was also very bloated and uncomfortable most of the time, even when eating healthy.
Doctor results revealed that I did not have celiac or diabetes or thyroid issues but that we needed to test further on insulin resistance, intolerances and allergies.
I went Paleo/primal for 6 months and felt absolutely amazing! However the fat content was a little high for me and I wanted more variation in my diet so I joined WW and at their insistance added some whole grains and dairy back into my diet.
After 6 months of no grains, no dairy my body reacted terribly, prickly skin, bloated so much my stomach skin was shiny, sleepiness, bathroom complaints...
so I gave ww the flick and currently eat clean, no gluten, little dairy. I can eat goats cheese, some brands of greek yoghurt, some brands of soy products. Maybe I have an allergy/intollerance to casein also?
I let myself slip every now and then (I always use the 3 spoon rule) and occasionally suffer the consequences due to the small amount.
I dislike just about every product made as a gluten free alternative it just tastes sandy and like cardboard, and just prefer natural real food these days. I have made the worst cakes and muffins with gf flour replacements haha!!
I look forward to recipe sharing and sharing tips for restaurant ordering and going out etc.
I keep an open food diary if you want to look, please friend me if you want to talk about it further. 0 -
Hi, I'm Cara. I've been gluten-free for over ten years. I'm so glad to see other celiacs interested in losing weight, and getting all fit and healthy. I see so many in other circles that just don't want to give anything else up. Good luck to everyone. 0
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Hi, all! I'm Steph. My Celiac was triggered after a bout with Mono two years ago. My mother and uncle are both a-symptomatic Celiacs. After being diagnosed, my joint pain, GI issues, and neurological symptoms have pretty much dissipated! I'd be happy to share recipes, etc 0
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