[irish daveyboy]

bananababy, on Nov 14 2008, 08:35 PM, said:

has any one , lived with undiagnosed celiac for over 60yrs or their abouts and has now been diagnosed I would love to see on the boards about seniors living and coping with the disease this would help much thanks

Hi,
I am 60 yrs of age, I was diagnosed at 57 in Nov 2005, it was a shock in the begining,
but I decided rather than lay down and die, that I would do something about it.
.
I couldn't eat what passed for commercially available Gluten Free Foods,
the bread was Gluten Free WF DF Yeast free and basically 'Taste Free'.
.
The cakes were overloaded with sugar to disguise the gritty after taste.
.
Pizzas were like lumps of 'Cardboard'.
.
So I set about teaching myself how to bake, and now I devise my own Gluten Free Recipes.
.
There's a lot of information on my Website and it may be worth your while to have a look.
.
Best Regards,
David

[mushroom]

I self-diagnosed at 67 after no one would take my symptoms seriously all those years, starting in high school. Doctors must really think we are a bunch of whingers or nut-cases to ignore us for so long. I don't know if they train them in medical school to think we are all just making these things up to get attention.

[irish daveyboy]

bananababy, on Nov 15 2008, 12:30 AM, said:

I hope I have it right this time . well in case I dont and some one see's this can you tell me how I use reply ( I'm new to computers ) and if I do I wanted to say thanks to David I am going to your page or somthing just as soon as I figure out how to get their thanks so much for taking the time to reply, and if this does not show up where it's supposed to go and any one see's it I follow instruction a lot better than sitting here pushing buttons David when I find my way I will let you know ok again thanks all the best ally mac

.
Hi Ally Mac,
Just a quick word, to access my web site, click on my user name (Irish Daveyboy)
a drop down menu will appear, click on view member's profile.
.
Scroll down (Along the L/H/S you will see Visit My Website) click on this and you're there.
.
Best Regards,
David
.
P.S.
I can't link you from here it's against board rules (I found that out the hard way).
.

[codetalker]

mushroom, on Nov 14 2008, 07:22 PM, said:

I self-diagnosed at 67 after no one would take my symptoms seriously all those years, starting in high school. Doctors must really think we are a bunch of whingers or nut-cases to ignore us for so long. I don't know if they train them in medical school to think we are all just making these things up to get attention.

Doctors ignored my symptoms for over 30 years. One actually sat down with me in his office and in a very concerned and sincere manner asked if I had ever considered that I was simply a hypochrondriac. He suggested psychological counseling.

Of course, nowadays the DX and treatment situation is even worse. This can be seen by listening to drug ads. When I was growing up, the typical side effects of medications were headache, nausea and/or vomiting. Today, typical side effects are liver damage, heart attacks, birth defects, gambling and sexual urges, seizures, even death. A recent ad takes this a step further. It does not use the word "death". Rather, it substitutes the phrase "fatal events" as one of the side effects. There was a time when treatment was based on the idea of "first do no harm". That has been replaced by marketing and profit. Doctors now rank among the most dangerous people in our society.

All things considered, celiacs are better off self-diagnosing with the help of boards like this one. Doctors should be reserved for little more than broken bones and stitches.

[darlindeb25]

Well, I am 53, went gluten-free 8 yrs ago. My sister aslo went gluten-free 8 yrs ago, she is 50. Our dad, after being very ill for some time, and having stomach issues for years and years, and years, went gluten free at age 69. That was 4 yrs ago this month. He was down to 135#, from nearly 250#. It took some time for him to feel better, now, he is doing pretty well.

[Piccolo]

Bananababy,

Welcome to the club. I am 60. I am self diagnosed and went gluten free at 58. It has taken me at least a year to recover. My big side effect of going undiagnosed is I have severe osteoporosis. I was always told you have IBS live with it, but my colon was hurting all the time. I am nearly pain free now. I only start hurting when I get glutened.

It does get better.

Susan

[Mack]

bananababy, on Nov 14 2008, 11:35 AM, said:

has any one , lived with undiagnosed celiac for over 60yrs or their abouts and has now been diagnosed I would love to see on the boards about seniors living and coping with the disease this would help much thanks

Yes I am 68 years young, and was told this summer that I hve Dermatitis Herpetiformis, which has to do with celiac, and it is very hard to give up all the foods that you are use to. I had also give up idozide salt,food high in idoine, and find vit. that did not have idoine, because if I by some chance eat something with gluten, idoine help make the blister break out. I love chines foods which I can not have any more, but you find a way to cope.

[Judyin Philly]

HI and welcome.
I just saw this thread and see you did it Nov14th
there are alot of us here over 60 I think
I'm 67 and went 20+ years undx'd with IBS, of course.

I've been gluten-free & s/f 3 1/2 years, df and & casein free for the most part but adding a tiny back in.
There is so much info on the Scott's main home page.
It will get easier as the time goes on
We'll help you all we can.
Judy in Philly

[Dittenheim]

bananababy, on Nov 14 2008, 11:35 AM, said:

has any one , lived with undiagnosed celiac for over 60yrs or their abouts and has now been diagnosed I would love to see on the boards about seniors living and coping with the disease this would help much thanks

I was finally diagnosed at age 53 after specifically asking my gastroenterologist to test me for Celiac. After ten years of an IBS diagnosis and feeling crappy even while avoiding trigger foods I had enough. I wasn't a bit surprised at my diagnosis when the biopsy came back positive.
I've now been gluten-free for five years. I really miss Dunkin' Donuts Bavarian Creme!! And at this time of year I miss Pfeffernuesse cookies!!
I also am hypo-thyroid. My doctor is now doing a study on a possible Celiac-Thyroid link. Any others out there with both?

[sixtytwo]

Yes, there are a lot of us with celiac or a gluten intolerance that also have problems with thyroid. I was diagnosed with a thyroid problem first, then fibromyalgia and then figured out the gluten thing. I have been away from this site for a long time, but decided to come back and have a look today. Glad I did. I was cheating a little and have been having terrible problems with migraines, I think I need to get clean with the gluten and see if that is the problem. I would like to talk to someone who made the migraine/gluten connection. Barbara

[home_based_mom]

I've been 60 for almost a month now so I guess I qualify!

Anyway, I remember having allergy tests as a kid but I don't remember what for. (Goes with being over 60, don'tcha know . . )

I had digestive issues in my 20's. That doctor with the high-priced reputation told me he couldn't find anything wrong with me but I must have thought there was something wrong because I kept coming back. He suggested I go elsewhere but I didn't. I figured out myself the problem would go away as long as I didn't eat All Bran. Funny thing is I still can't eat bran - even rice bran.

About 3 years ago a new and different set of digestive issues developed that I figured out happened everytime I ate wheat. I began to learn about gluten and realized that was the problem. Unfortunately by the time I had learned about testing while still eating gluten and all that it was too late. There is no way I am up to a gluten challenge so I will not have an official diagnosis, but that's OK.

So here I am, 60 and living gluten free just fine, thankyouverymuch!

[nasalady]

sixtytwo, on Dec 20 2008, 03:13 PM, said:

Yes, there are a lot of us with celiac or a gluten intolerance that also have problems with thyroid. I was diagnosed with a thyroid problem first, then fibromyalgia and then figured out the gluten thing. I have been away from this site for a long time, but decided to come back and have a look today. Glad I did. I was cheating a little and have been having terrible problems with migraines, I think I need to get clean with the gluten and see if that is the problem. I would like to talk to someone who made the migraine/gluten connection. Barbara

Hi Barbara,

You and I have a lot in common. I was first diagnosed with asthma and psoriasis as a teen, then with Hashimoto's thyroiditis in my thirties, now (in my early 50s) with autoimmune hepatitis, fibromyalgia, rheumatoid arthritis, and, of course, celiac disease.

I've been gluten free for approximately 3 weeks now. My very first sign (usually within 12 - 24 hours) that I've been accidently glutened is a splitting migraine headache. It feels like the top of my head is coming off! I also have blurry vision and sometimes vertigo. The diarrhea and other gastric symptoms follow later, within 48 hours.

It's just a guess, but based on my experiences I'd say you're absolutely correct in making the connection between your headaches and eating gluten.

Take care,
JoAnn