13 Year Old Sick All The Time :(

[audrey d]

Hi just found you guy's!!!!!!!! I am a single mom my daughter has celiac and type1 diabetes ;( she is sick all the time, I feel like we live at urgrnt care, her doctor just basiclly tells us to deal with it, her diabetes doc is more helpfull but can only see him 3 times a year, living in colorado so blessed to have the barbra davis center for diabetes but they are booked months in advance, my kiddo is hardly ever at school so the school is making it really difficult for me, i feel like we go to urgent care at least 3 times a week just for doctors notes, my income is limited so i can't even aford the fancy gluten free foods ;( I would love any advise on what we can do to get her feeling better we do strict gluten free also have to do sugar free for diabetes, and doctot has her drinking Miralax like crazy, which i am so afraid that this is bad for her,even though she has been gluten free for at least 3 months all the xrays still show that her colon is still not cleared completely please any help would be so gratefull, so tired and sad about this and it's hard when you don't have backup, it's just me and my kiddo, Thank you

[shadowicewolf]

You don't need to buy all the gluten free (easy to use) items.

Put her on a whole foods diet (meat veggies fruit grain) stay away from processed foods for a while.

Those gluten free goodies are just that, goodies. They do not need to be eaten on a daily basis. You can also learn how to make them yourself.

To avoid cross contamination it is best to replace things that are scratched, that are wooden, that are plastic (colender), and to have a seperate toaster.

Have you checked if her toothpaste is gluten free? What about chapstick? Makeup?

Will she eat prunes or drink the juice? What about a digestive enzyme pill, those help.

Has she been strict? I'm not trying to imply anything but sometimes with children, especially those just starting out, it is very hard on them and sometimes they cheat.

What about the school? Do you have a 504 plan for her? If not, get one. It will help with the absences and whatnot. Since celiac falls under the ADA act (americans with disabilities act) they have to accomodate.

[mommida]

I think your state will have "homebound" student exemptions too. It is not easy, but all her work is sent to your home with a teacher visit once a week.

Some states are starting more on-line options for PUBLIC school as well as private school options. Connections Academy (make sure you are in the public school option) and K 12 are two cyber schools that I know of. Sometimes public school environments are not for every student with medical conditions, even if there are 504 plans in action.

Some other areas of cross=contamination...

pet foods

cross contaminated baking ingredients (flour dust clouds can contaminate other ingredients)

[dilettantesteph]

In my area you can get fresh produce really cheap at the farmer's markets. I don't know how those guys make a living. It might help for you to keep a gluten free household. Other members of the family can still eat gluten outside the house, but it will cut down on cross contamination possibilities in the house. That helped us.

[Chiana]

Exercise is really good for helping to manage blood sugar. Would she be open to joining an athletic or exercise group? I know the local colleges/community centers around here offer drop-in yoga, pilates, etc. at free or cheap to the public. She could go when she is having a good day, and she could see if it helps her.

Also, laxatives increase the transit time of food in your body, decreasing absoption. Clearing up that end of things will probably cause her to feel a lot better.

[my3monkees]

Another thought, shared items like butter, peanut butter, mayonaise etc.. My dd kept getting sick and I realized we had all gotten lax, about keeping her items seperate. Although everyone was careful, enough cc was getting into these types of items to cause problems.