Please Help My Sister By Sharing Your Story

[revenant]

Hi there,

I have expressed this before on this forum, that my sister has been depressed almost her entire short-lived life (She is 16, now). These last few years she has become suicidal, has been diagnosed with "bipolar disorder" (intense anger to intense depression), anxiety, depression and psychosis (she hears voices and sees things from the corner of her eye). I would say her main symptom is an uncontrollable and reasonless rage.

(She also has had GI symptoms from birth, including childhood constipation, but it is in denial because she doesn't know how ti feels to not..But i'm getting a bit off topic here!)

She has 0 belief that these things are from a food intolerance of her own, despite the similar background of some of her family and their success (including my own ties to those disorders). Her mom and I, her older sister, both have either severe gluten intolerance or celiac, but neither of us has been tested. She tried the gluten free diet for 5 days and even during those 5 days she never had an episode of anger, in fact she was happier and calmer than I've seen her, but she doesn't accept this... Her diet is now bagels and pasta and she is in a rage all day long.

I would love to hear your stories of dealing with the ugly neurological side of gluten intolerance so that I can show them to her and maybe she'll give the diet another go. She really needs comfort and somebody who understands her right now, so any support you can provide in your stories is SO, SO helpful and appreciated! Thankyou!

[rosetapper23]

Please read the following article that is available on celiac.com (look at the left column and you'll see something like articles and research/other diseases, and then scroll down to Schizophrenia/Other Neurological Diseases).

https://www.celiac.com/celiac-disease/celiac-disease-amp-related-diseases-and-disorders/Schizophrenia-%7B47%7D-Mental-Problems-and-Celiac-Disease/

In this article, it states VERY CLEARLY what it is in gluten (a peptide that is also found in LSD) that affects some people so that they can become psychotic (hallucinatory), depressed, etc., when they eat gluten. They don't even need to have celiac for this to occur. Please print this article out and give it to your sister. There is solid evidence in the studies upon which this article is based.

My own son became terribly depressed and suicidal when he was 15-16, and luckily I found out that we both had celiac disease shortly thereafter. He's been fine ever since switching to a gluten-free diet.

[Skylark]

My gluten-caused psych disorder story is in my profile. Just click on my name to have a read.

[rustycat]

In my case, I have had a lifetime of anxiety and depression. Some of the other neurological symptoms were slurred speech, brain fog, rage and poor memory. I've only been totally gluten free for just over 3 months, but the change in my mental state is noticeable. My emotions are much calmer and I've only felt rage once in that period (may have been accidentally glutened), where it used to be a several times a week kind of thing. My rages left me feeling so out of control and I could never figure out where they came from, since they seemed out of character for my personality (pretty laid back).

The main symptom that I still struggle with is the brain fog and I've heard from others that it can take longer to improve than some of the other neurological symptoms.

I feel sad for the time that I've lost to this disease. Sometimes I felt like I was losing my mind. It was frightening and the doctors blamed a lot of my symptoms on stress. I wish I'd known that the solution was so simple.

Revenant, I hope your sister can give the diet a try, at least for awhile, and not lose more years of her life to the effects of gluten. She's very fortunate to have someone who cares as much as you do.

[Muffy]

Gluten makes me anxious, paraniod, and rageful. I also get brain fog (which I still have), muscle twitches, dizzyness, and severe migraines. The anxiety, rage and obsessive-ness I've had since I can remember. I was having full blown panic attacks and hallucinaotry experiences by the time I was 16. Although the hallucinations seemed to fade after a brief time, the general anxiety and physical symptoms worsened. I didn't start getting the headaches until I was in my mid-twenties. Had I got the headaches sooner I may have taken the other symtoms more seriously and saved myself 2 near death experiences caused by gluten. Graves Disease (overactive thyroid) at age 21. My heartrate was 225 per minute at rest, they couldn't believe I wasn't comatose or dead already. And just about 2 years ago I had to have part of my intestines removed. I am lucky I can still function without a bag, unpleasant to think about but true.

The dangerous thing about having early symptoms that are not painful is that it doesn't seem as serious. But the longer it damages the body the more serious it will get. The migraines were/are the worst for me, it was the symptom that got me eliminating foods about 9 months ago and my anxiety based issues have severely decreased with the headaches ever since. I have a teenage daughter who just went gluten-free as well and her moods and emotional outburts are gone too.

Something else to think about is that one of the symptoms for Graves Disease is anger and irritability, and there is a strong coorelation between auto-immune disorders and gluten issues. If you have other symtpoms be sure to get your thyroid tested. And if there is an underlying thyroid issue, remember - it is still gluten related in origin.

Good Luck!

[LivesIntheSun]

I was depressed almost for as long as I can remember, since I was a young child. I was a psychiatric hospital out-patient throughout my teens, and took SSRIs throughout my teens and twenties. I believed I had been 'born wrong' somehow- I felt sad all the time, had panic attacks and rages. I would wake up sad in the morning and cry all day. I also had big ulcers in my throat and was utterly exhausted.

When I was 27 and the doctors had told me that I'd be on anti-depressants for life, and that they didn't know what to do about my throat, I consulted a nutritionist in my desperation. She said I appeared to her to be an obvious celiac and to give up gluten. Within 2 weeks my throat was fine, I had a few months of gluten detox and my depression lifted quickly, I stopped needing to sleep in the day. Eventually I gave up all medications and I've been totally med-free and non-depressed for 2.5 years now.

BUT if I get glutened I go a bit 'mental'- I cry and whine, I rage, I'm abusive and generally foul to live with. Plus I immediately get a throat ulcer and feel wiped out. I never had a proper diagnosis because one little bit of gluten sends me back into such a pit of despair that I'm not willing to do a 6 week gluten challenge and god-know-what damage just so a doctor can say, 'uh, yes, you can't eat wheat'.

I very much sympathise with you because I'm in a similar position with my father and a cousin. My father has chronic fatigue and after literally begging and all manners of persuasion possible (it took me about 5 years) he agreed to try a gluten free diet a year ago. He said he'd try it properly for three months and if it didn't do anything he's give it up. The whole family hasn't looked back, he's still too ill to work (I think his ME is pretty complex) but now he's doing things we wouldn't have ever believed possible a year ago, for me its been like a miracle, I often jump for joy! Any little bit of gluten makes him feel terrible now, so he carefully avoids it.

My cousin has schizophrenia and his mother is diagnosed celiac. I've sent articles about the celiac schizophrenia link, tried all types of persuasion possible and noone will even take him for a blood test, it drives me completely crazy! If I could I'd take him myself but I'm impossibly far away. I guess you can physically only do what you can do, keep being there, keep mentioning it, but your sister has got to want to try it. All I can say is that I feel for you and I cross my fingers that maybe sometime she'll feel differently soon. A hug!

[revenant]

Thankyou!

Rustycat, try not to focus on the time lost.. It is a miracle that we have been given time to feel so much better for the rest of our lives! I sympathize with you though, I often feel like I lost my entire childhood to this. Childhoods can't be relived, but one can acquire the mannerisms of a child and enjoy life like never before And that is good enough, I think. Thankyou for sharing!

Livesinthesun, I like your name. My sister ALWAYS states that she was "Born with something wrong with her". She always feels like there is something wrong with her, she says it all the time, and I think this is one of the main symptoms for gluten intolerance/celiac... We know our bodies enough to know that life should be better, even when we haven't lived a better life. I can totally relate to how you get when you get glutened, I too become pretty emotionally abusive, self absorbed, I have mental break downs. I am so so happy to hear about your father!! Isn't it the best feeling to help another person in such a personal way.. I sympathizer so much with your cousin. My sister is often stating that she now thinks her visual distortion is schizophrenia. Hearing this makes me want to tear my hair out, but all we can do is give them the idea once, and be an example I guess... They have to hit a rock bottom and discover it for themselves... I have discovered that the best way to persuade somebody is to tell them what WE want to hear from THEM... and that is "You could be right". My heart goes out to you and your efforts! Thanks for sharing

[LivesIntheSun]

Hi Revenant,

I thought of something to try- you can get the Biocard blood test (Open Original Shared Link) on Ebay, and probably in lots of other places. It tests for IgA tissue transglutaminase antibodies. You squeeze some blood from your finger into a test tube and get an instant result. It got a very positive write-up in the celiac journal. I don't know whether it works for gluten intolerance or just celiac but it could be worth a try. If you bought it and asked your sister to use it, she might.

[beebee28]

She sounds alot like me, especially when I was younger. Im now in my early 20's, and just found out I have celiacs. I want to possibly help someone else out there that may be going through what I did. When I was 16 and younger, I cycled between severe depression and rage. I would scream, punch holes in things, I even ripped a door off a hinge. I was such a thin thing I have no idea how I did that. I was always sick with pnemonia, bronchitis, fevers, and severe stomach pains. What I did eat was $1 frozen burritos, pasta, plain ground beef, cheerios or bagels with cream cheese. I would stay in my room and think about what was going on in my head and why. It was like I was my own psychologist, I knew it wasnt normal so I tried to wrap my brain around it in a rational way.

After I was 16 I was able to take my health into my hands and went vegetarian and ate mostly organic. I improved but I was still eating wheat. My stomach was always bloated like I was pregnant even though Ive always been underweight. I've had bad acne since I was 16. I cut down on gluten for the past 6 months, but two weeks ago I found out I had celiacs and have cut gluten out of everything down to my chapstick and beauty products. Im feeling so much better, my hair, skin, and nails are improving. I actually had 3 hallucinations out of the corner of my eye the first week I cut gluten out. Then I kept at it and felt even better and they didnt happen again. I hope that my story might help her. She may just need someone to really reach out and get to her understant its out of love. It might take a while to adjust to the new food alternatives. Maybe do the diet with her? I dont know either of you personally, but perhaps she's rebelling? (I had blue hair and a long list of things I did lol). Just a thought...

[acojo]

HI,,

so sorry about your sib.. I am almost 50 and have battled mood swings my whole life. Lately, last 2 years, I have had "anxiety attacks" in the middle of the night.. not sure this is what they are- I just feel like I can't stay still. I am a drinker, and love my beer and wine and at first attributed it to that, but soon I found out that something else was involved. I remembered from a few years back how great I felt on a high protien diet. So, back on high protein and very little carbs. One night I just had to have a bagel,,, so I did, just before bed and I HAD THE WORST NIGHT EVER/ I just wanted to jump off my roof. So that lead me to experiment--- when I had bread/cookies/sweets, I was MISERABLE ,, mostly at night. So not sure if it was sugar or gluten, my Dr. suggested I try a gluten free diet. I am now on it-- just one day, so nothing to report. I can tell you that I work with a type 1 diabetic and when she was diagnosed at 12, she went nuts and ate all the wrong stuff-- got very skinny, didn't take enough insulin. she is now 28, has the feet of an 80 year old, and her kidneys are BAD. she just rebelled against the whole diagnosis... maybe this is what is happening in your family? gluten intolerance IS SO MUCH EASIER than diabetes!

[cO-ol]

I had times where I would lay in bed wanting to die, and the next day be ok. Sometimes after such a night, I actually would ask myself, "Do I still want to die?" when I woke up. The answer was sometimes yes, but other times I realized that no, I don't still want to die. I knew that this was wacked. I also had the uncontrollable rages and massive emotional outbursts over the dumbest things (especially lost items). I got promoted at work, and the anxiety and depression got so bad that certain aspects of that job became impossible for me and I had to step back down. Oh yeah, the anxiety. People tailgating me on the road set my heart racing, for instance. I also had this WONDERFUL tendency to replay events over and over and over and over in my head 1000000 times without cease.

Despite the depression, I STILL knew that "depression" was a far inadequate explanation for what was going on. The non-behavioral symptoms I was having, for one thing, plus the sheer seeming "randomness" of it (never made the connection that the mood swings were related to diet other than recognizing low blood sugar though).

I still deal with this stuff even after 3 months gluten-free, but it's barely a shadow of what it used to be. I've lost items and looked for them in a rational manner! I want to live 99.9999999999999999% of the time! I don't replay stuff like the hit music station on crack anymore! I'm quick to look on the bright side!

[VikingMac]

Before I get into the neurological symptoms, let me give you a synopsis of my background and family history. Both my parents smoke and my dad was always a heavy drinker. My mom had GERD / Acid Reflux pretty much her whole life and it should be noted that she's basically 100% Norwegian (I've read that Northern Europeans have GERD and gastrointestinal issues more than anyone else - same with the Irish). My mom was also recently tested positive for Celiac Disease (our diets growing up was filled with wheat products, so connecting the dots here, I think she was being bombarded with gluten and her body couldn't handle it). She would have severe mood swings, especially towards my dad (who is now passed on). Her acid reflux got so bad that she went in for an endoscopy and they told her that she had Barrett's Esophagus. She's still alive to this day though and seems to be holding up reasonably well. My sister also has severe acid reflux and panic attacks. Now to get to my own history. I was born in 1983. As a baby, I had severe eczema, and would rub certain areas of my body (such as my wrists) raw on the carpet, because I was constantly itchy. I would also constantly spit up breast-milk and even the baby formula. My parents had a hard time figuring out what to feed me! We would also drink tons of cow's milk. That finally hit a brick wall around age 25 (in 2008), when I started noticing that if I drank straight cow's milk I would end up with (and still do end up with if I drink it) sulfur burps which taste and smell like rotten eggs. I even tried drinking raw cow's milk one time and the result was the same, I was burping rotten egg smelling burps and would get diarrhea! This is also around the time when I noticed my acid reflux getting worse and worse. 

In 2009, I started lifting weights again after taking a long break from high school. When I would do any squatting motion exercises such as dead-lifts or squats, I'd almost pass out because I couldn't catch my breath afterwards. I finally went in for an endoscopy and they told me that my esophagus was raw and red. I also should note that I've read getting anesthesia and all the drugs they give you during that time, can cause long-term psychological issues, especially anxiety, which I never really had until after that year. I realized that I couldn't do those squatting exercises or anything that put pressure on the abdomen area, since it would push acid back up into my esophagus. I decided to start lifting weights on an empty stomach and that did work for awhile but I couldn't figure out why my acid reflux was still so bad. Acid shooting back up into the esophagus, is caused by inflammation. This affects the Vagus Nerve (which is the longest cranial nerve). Some of the main functions of the Vagus Nerve include,

1. Breathing
2. Speech
3. Sweating
4. Helping in keeping the larynx open during breathing
5. Monitoring and regulating the heartbeat
6. Informing the brain of the food that is ingested and food that has been digested
7. The Vagus Nerve performs the major function of emptying the gastric region of food

Any damage to the vagus nerve causes Gastroparesis which is losing the muscular function in the stomach and intestines. This results in food being emptied slowly, that leads to other problems such as fermentation of food in the stomach and food getting compressed into hard pellets which can cause severe problems if the pellets get stuck in the intestine. Especially in people with diabetes, when sugar levels get high and are not well controlled, it can result in the vagus nerve damage. This can result in anxiety / panic attacks, OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder), trouble swallowing, chills, asthma-like symptoms, heart palpitations, tingling / numbness in extremities and limbs, blood in the stool, hard of breathing, anxiety attack-like symptoms, canker sores, nightmares (including hypnogogic and hypnopompic auditory / visual hallucinations, such as hearing a gun shot upon waking up, even though no gun was fired), dry mouth, heart attack-like symptoms, and more (I had all these symptoms too btw). I believe that since our bodies are intolerant to wheat and dairy products, it is causing inflammation in the body, which then causes all these other symptoms. 

So at that point, I began having hallucinations (including hypnopompic and hypnagogic hallucinations). They were mainly auditory hallucinations and some (but fewer) visual hallucinations. They started around 2013, when I got sick with the flu and also had an in-grown toenail (I had to get it cut out by the doctor and it was the worst pain of my life!). I was extremely religious back then (I left my faith last year at end of 2015) and felt like these were omens or signs for some of the things that were deemed ‘sinful’. I then had a breakup with a gluten-free who lived in Montana and the auditory hallucinations continued. I’ve been having them again starting in 2016 after getting sick with a chest respiratory infection (I’m seeing a trend here with getting sick and having these), which I believe were caused by the Autumn Rhinitis / Hay Fever Allergies. I was at the gym around the start of August 2016, and I felt like I couldn’t catch my breath after each set of lifting. I went home and haven’t been back to the gym since. I was having trouble breathing just walking up a flight of stairs, and it was a daily nightmare until I started looking into ways to help solve my issues (which I’ll get into in a minute). I also don’t have a great sleep schedule from working late night shifts, so I’m typically always sleep deprived. I should also mention that I think I have formed P.T.S.D. (PTSD - Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) from watching a music video where it showed a death. The image of the woman dying kept playing in my head (this also happened around August 2016).

Then on top of all that, I was lifting weights 2 times a week (full body workouts), doing H.I.I.T. (High Intensity Interval Training) a couple times a week in the morning, AND working night shifts. On top of all that, my dad died last year (October 3, 2015) and within a week afterwards around October 10th, I ended up with appendicitis so I had to get the appendectomy surgery to get my appendix removed. A few weeks later, I walked away from my faith (not due to emotional reasons, but due to extensive research, which was already in the process starting at the beginning of 2015). So I lost my dad, my faith and my appendix within a month's time period. It put a lot of stress on me I think. I’m 33 years old, so still somewhat young, but I think I was pushing my body to the limit, and it’s been affecting my brain chemistry. Not only that, but recently, I put the other dots to the puzzle and found out that I also have gluten intolerance / Celiac / Coeliac, so I’ve stopped eating gluten (and dairy) products. I also have done a few sessions of AAT (Advanced Allergy Therapy), by a doctor named Dr. Jill Cohn in the San Francisco / Berkeley / Oakland Bay Area. You don’t even have to be there in person for her to treat you, she does it all online through a conference call on a site similar to Skype. You can watch testimonials on YouTube as well, and I’m here to tell you that her system did cure me of Ragweed allergies. I now understand that because I was pushing my body to the limit as well as trying to stay 500 calories below maintenance (to cut fat and get shredded), that my body wasn’t getting the proper nutrients and vitamins due to eating wheat and gluten (as well as dairy). This damages the alveoli and villi in the intestinal tract which are crucial for absorbing the nutrients from your food. I also found out that my body reacts poorly to chocolate as well. Chocolate is a 'stimulant' and has been proven to affect the brain the same way that cannabis / marijuana will. This could be some of the problems you all are facing as well. At that point, your body is so run down, that it will start attacking ‘harmless’ invaders, such as ragweed pollen, pet dander or even just simple dust particles, which this process of your body in attack mode, will cause inflammation, hence the reason I was having trouble breathing (my body developed exercise-induced / allergy-induced asthma). Not only that, but when your body is so run down and not getting the proper nutrition, it can cause psychosis and schizophrenic symptoms as well! I started taking a ton of supplements and they’ve helped tremendously.

Here are a few to get you started. Try these and eat a balanced diet for a couple months. I’ll bet you start to feel better and the hallucinations diminish.

1. Vitamin D3 (Jarrow Brand 5,000IU – take two to four per day) – This is especially necessary if you live above the 37 degree parallel (latitude) in the Fall and Winter (typically from September to March). The sun only produces Vitamin D3 in our body when it is 50 degrees (altitude not temperature) above the horizon and even during the Spring and Summer, this only occurs from around 10AM in the morning to 2-3PM in the afternoon. So you have only a 4 to 5 hour window in the morning to afternoon when the sun is producing Vitamin D3, which most people aren't really out during those times, because of work schedule. This is why around 75 to 80% of the world population are D3 deficient! A good source of information on this is Dr. John Cannell. Go research how vital and important D3 is for us! You want your ng/ml (nano-grams per milliliter of blood) to be from 50 to 100 (or even slightly over 100 is fine too!).

2. Magnesium (CALM BRAND) – Magnesium is the driver for Vitamin D3. It’s very important and we don’t get enough of it in our diet on average.

3. Vitamin C (take around 2,000mg per day) – Look up Dr. Thomas Levy and Dr. Linus Pauling for good information on this. The Liposomal type of Vitamin C is the best kind!

4. Vitamin K2 (different from Vitamin K1 – Get the Jarrow Brand called Vitamin K-Right) – Millions of people take calcium supplements to maintain healthy bones. Yet few patients or physicians realize that optimizing bone integrity involves more than taking a single mineral supplement. A critical additional component for bone and cardiovascular health is vitamin K2. Recent research has revealed that, without vitamin K2, calcium regulation is disrupted. In fact, low levels of vitamin K2 are associated with an increased risk of heart disease and atherosclerosis. K2 is the gateway that allows calcium to get to your bones. When you take vitamin D3, your body creates more of these vitamin K2-dependent proteins, the proteins that will move the calcium around. They have a lot of potential health benefits. But until the K2 comes in to activate those proteins, those benefits aren't realized. So, really, if you're taking vitamin D, you're creating an increased demand for K2. And vitamin D and K2 work together to strengthen your bones and improve your heart health.For so long, we've been told to take calcium for osteoporosis... and vitamin D3, which we know is helpful. But then, more studies are coming out showing that increased calcium intake is causing more heart attacks and strokes. That created a lot of confusion around whether calcium is safe or not. But that's the wrong question to be asking, because we'll never properly understand the health benefits of calcium or vitamin D3, unless we take into consideration K2. That's what keeps the calcium in its right place.

5. Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) Ubiquinol – it’s a substance similar to a vitamin. It is found in every cell of the body. Your body makes CoQ10, and your cells use it to produce energy your body needs for cell growth and maintenance. It also functions as an antioxidant, which protects the body from damage caused by harmful molecules. (Get the Jarrow Brand – no I don’t work for them, but I’ve heard they are the best in all of these, and it’s what I take).

6. Vitamin B-Right (Jarrow) which has all of the B vitamins in it. Niacin (B3) has proven to be very helpful for those with Schizophrenia and Psychosis. Look up Dr. Abram Hoffer and his research on mental illness and Niacin. Careful with Niacin in huge quantities, as it will cause a 'flushing' effect, but you still want enough to get the benefits.

7. Oxylent (which is one of the best tasting and best multi-vitamins out there in my opinion). It’s got most of all you need in there when included with what I mentioned above.

(Those are the main ones above, but here are a few other supplements I take. ChlorOxygen, Serrapeptase {SerraGold Brand}, mushroom supplement called 'Breathe' by New Chapter Life-shield, HealthForce Green Alchemy Protein Powder, HealthForce Vitamineral Green, Probiotics, MSM, Bragg's Apple Cider Vinegar, local honey, and avocados for potassium, along with getting at least a half gallon of water per day - which I drink at least 32 oz. to 50 oz. of water on an empty stomach every morning). 

Within a month of taking all this (I started on November 2nd, 2016), I’m now feeling about 95% back to my normal self. The other 5% is caused by my poor sleeping habits, as well as stress. I now realize that these psychological issues were all subconscious from the heavy religious indoctrination. If I had never been introduced to these religious ideas, I’m sure I’d not have these particular religious themed hypnopompic and hypnagogic hallucinations. When it first started, I was seeing visuals such as numbers and objects floating in the air upon waking up, which, they’d disappear within a few seconds. I also hear voices, which would say terrible things, and then the voices would continue in my head as if it were having dialogue with me in my own mind. I would feel like God hated me, due to the content of what was being said. I’m pretty sure I have some sort of religious trauma after leaving my faith and also, after my dad dying within the last year (2015). They actually have a name for this type of PTSD and it’s RTS (Religious Trauma Syndrome). You can find some good material through Dr. Marlene Winell online if you suffer from the religious form of PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder). Anyways, I hope all of this helps someone else who may be going through similar! Just know you’re not alone and it’s more than likely happening because of nutrient deficiency and/or a traumatic experience you suffered as well as your diet if you are gluten intolerant / lactose intolerant. These aren’t devils, demons, hobgoblins or ghouls harassing you, this is all natural phenomena and it can be treated with the right diet, the right supplements and proper sleep! I am still getting cross-contaminated (or there is a cross-reactor food that mimics gluten and/or dairy) somewhere in my diet, so my psychological issues persist, including waking up feeling like something is trying to talk to me in my mind. I am trying to figure that out now. But they also have supplements you can take that will break down gluten if you are accidentally 'glutened.' Here is a study I found from WW2, that correlates to mental disease and gluten / wheat below. 

"One of the first hints that these circumstances could have implications for the psychological sciences was the observation that, in several countries, hospitalization rates for schizophrenia during World War II dropped in direct proportion to wheat shortages. In the United States, where over that same period the consumption of wheat rose rather than diminished, such rates increased instead (Dohan, 1966a,b). In South Pacific islands with a traditionally low consumption of wheat, schizophrenia was only found in 1 person out of 30,000. When Western grain products were introduced into their society, it dramatically rose to 1 person out of 100! (Dohan et al., 1984)."

[ch88]

I am now gluten and night shade free. I used to have extreme anxiety and social phobia and was rather psychotic, now I enjoy being around people and am very calm.  Gluten was the big change, and I think eliminating night shades has also helped. The amount of change that I experienced was extreme.

Keep in mind that it can take a long time of being 100% gluten free (no processed food, cross contamination, oats etc) for the mind to improve. Most sources recommend trying going gluten free for at least a year straight to see if it improves mental health.  5 days is not enough time time for the body or mind to heal. Some people say that they get more anxiety at first when they go gluten free and then they see an improvement.

 Open Original Shared Link

 

I take St. Johns Wort which I think also has helped lower my anxiety level. 

[JamieRmusic]

5 years ago I had neurological issues, due to gluten ataxia. I had massive loss of cognitive ability among other things, loss off muscle control, total muscle atrophy and you name it. Back to the cognitive side of it, I could not understand right from wrong. I would have insane thoughts pop into my head, like... what hitler did couldn't be that bad. He was probably the nicest guy. To, wanting to not live because of all the pains and the helpless feeling. I felt isolated and alone from everything. Felt no connection to human beings. Was completely lost. Luckily it all subsided as I've gotten better, to the point where I am now who I used to be before I got that ill. It was all related to food, and hidden sources of gluten because I had just moved to Vancouver from Norway. The health issues rann back about 6 years before that, so it was an accumulation of it  all. 

What I've learned is that you can't beat it without having a support network around you. Or at least, you need to be extremely resilient, strong minded and stubborn. At an age of 16 though it will be tough. She needs you, and I think you need to challenge her in a safe way. Challenge her to cut out gluten for two weeks. Like ch88 mentioned, she might feel worse after a few days, but initially it should at least make a difference in the body. If it is celiacs, it will definitely have an impact even just from a week of two without. I always felt better quite quickly after not ingesting anything. Secondly I suggest introducing something like the Wim Hof method, and meditation, something like lifeflow meditation. Those two can make drastic changes to her body. Making better use of oxygen, clearing the mind, and getting her more centered. Also, as hard as it is, movement. Exercise. Getting daily sunlight. EXTREMELY crucial for the recovery. It cannot be overstated. Lastly, whole foods, proper nutrition, and chew 32 times. How can you heal without the proper raw materials and building blocks? You can't.

I hope you guys figure it out. All the best.

[Jmg]

On 1/2/2011 at 8:49 PM, revenant said:

Hi there,

I have expressed this before on this forum, that my sister has been depressed almost her entire short-lived life (She is 16, now). These last few years she has become suicidal, has been diagnosed with "bipolar disorder" (intense anger to intense depression), anxiety, depression and psychosis (she hears voices and sees things from the corner of her eye). I would say her main symptom is an uncontrollable and reasonless rage.

(She also has had GI symptoms from birth, including childhood constipation, but it is in denial because she doesn't know how ti feels to not..But i'm getting a bit off topic here!)

 

She has 0 belief that these things are from a food intolerance of her own, despite the similar background of some of her family and their success (including my own ties to those disorders). Her mom and I, her older sister, both have either severe gluten intolerance or celiac, bu

t neither of us has been tested. She tried the gluten free diet for 5 days and even during those 5 days she never had an episode of anger, in fact she was happier and calmer than I've seen her, but she doesn't accept this... Her diet is now bagels and pasta and she is in a rage all day long.

 

 

I would love to hear your stories of dealing with the ugly neurological side of gluten intolerance so that I can show them to her and maybe she'll give the diet another go. She really needs comfort and somebody who understands her right now, so any support you can provide in your stories is SO, SO helpful and appreciated! Thankyou!

Dear Revenant's sister,

I can't say whether your problems are related to gluten, but I was in a similar place to you for many years, would never have believed and probably laughed at anyone who suggested gluten was a cause, but one day, at a particularly low ebb, I decided to take a step towards finding an answer and discovered that it was just that.

I kept a simple journal which reflected what I ate at a particular time and how I was feeling. I wish I could find it now and post if for you because it changed my life. Over a few days I could see my mood lifting and my confusion and apathy diminish. Because we're always so much in the moment however it was only as I looked back that I could see how hopeless and depressed I'd been at the outset. Within a few days of a strict gluten free diet, essentially lots of non processed proteins, salad and vegetables I was a changed person.

That wasn't the end of the process, but it was those few days that gave me the knowledge that what I was eating was the primary influence on my disposition, that it wasn't 'all in my mind' or a result of being dealt an unlucky hand in my brain chemistry. Gluten had been the cause of a lifetime of crippling depression, brain fog, persistent ill health and numerous other ailments from serious to trivial. All the anti depressants I'd been prescribed and counselling I'd attended had been a patch on a symptom with the cause left untreated. That it worked for me and so many others here doesn't of course mean it will work for you, but until you try you will never know. Not knowing is the worst thing of all. You could request a simple blood test to exclude celiac and even if your negative go ahead and give the diet a try. I tested negative, but that didn't mean gluten wasn't a problem. 

I don't underestimate just how difficult it is to take that first step. You have to contend with the unrelenting negativity you feel, the hopelessness that drains your willpower, the urge to tear down and pour scorn on every proffered explanation or well meaning intervention. After all you know that your not getting any better, that all the talk etc is pointless, that none of it applies to you. 

So that first step is the most difficult one of all. I hope you take it and I wish you the best of luck on your journey.

If on reading these posts you think there's something of value for you here then you'll find a welcoming group of people that have experiences you can learn from and support you can draw strength from. 

Best of luck

 

[Ennis-TX]

Scariest thing in the world is when your own body and mind turns against you. I recall the extreme brain fog, where my mind kept on not being able to move forward and every little thing made me angry. Stuff would not make sense, little things I knew I should be able to do just would not work out right in my minds, worst cases it would loop like a broken record just getting more and more negative going into a obsessive spiral of depression, anger, and anxiety. I had the common sense not to hit people, but I would wail on other things like the wall, fridge, or go outside and just break stuff. Top this off with loss of feelings in my hands and I could be quite brutal in the damage done to things and myself. I actually thought I was dying and started running a bucket list. I also had gut issues of major constipation most the times that after 4-6 days led me to just feel bloated and in a lot of pain then random bouts of diarrhea every now and then. Getting off of gluten was the best thing I ever did, I will admit you will hit a withdrawal stage but after that it gets much better.

Thankfully you are young, you can get off it now before you damage your intestines too much. I did not get off it soon enough and compromised my system. Imagine if your stomach issues got worse? Like NO CARBS, Allergic to random foods you used to love like corn, peanuts, etc. Where you have to stop eating most foods. This can happen if you ignore it and the damage keeps progressing. You can change now to gluten free pasta, gluten free noodles, and breads. alot of which where not widely available a few years ago. I would suggest a whole foods diet only to start off for most people and some stuff to take the edge off like some B vitamins supplements but at this point lets just get off the gluten and stick to the comforts rights now that your familiar with. As young as you are, you are blessed in finding it before too much damage is done. If you need a list of brands, of good gluten-free snacks, cookies, pasta, etc everyone here will be glad to help.

 

[squirmingitch]

Just to let you guys know..... The OP probably will never read your recent posts as this is a thread from 2011. I doubt she's around anymore.

[JamieRmusic]

On 1/10/2017 at 5:58 PM, squirmingitch said:

Just to let you guys know..... The OP probably will never read your recent posts as this is a thread from 2011. I doubt she's around anymore.

Good catch. Let's hope that is a sign that they figured it out.

[Jmg]

On 1/10/2017 at 4:58 PM, squirmingitch said:

Just to let you guys know..... The OP probably will never read your recent posts as this is a thread from 2011. I doubt she's around anymore.

Doh!

[squirmingitch]

4 hours ago, JamieRmusic said:

Good catch. Let's hope that is a sign that they figured it out.

Let's hope so.

I've done this kind of thing before and I'm sure it won't be the last time. Never the less, the newer comments may help someone else who comes along & reads this thread.

 

[Victoria1234]

On 1/13/2017 at 6:31 AM, squirmingitch said:

Let's hope so.

I've done this kind of thing before and I'm sure it won't be the last time. Never the less, the newer comments may help someone else who comes along & reads this thread.

 

I have very much appreciated this thread!