Variable Overwhelm Encouragment Wanted :)

[funDiva]

Hi I'm Christy, long time lurker, first time poster.

 

I've been gluten-free since Aug 2012, self-diagnosed NCGI, sorta doing OK, I also have Fructose Malabsorption and don't do well with dairy, likely casein moreso than lactose.  So I'm currently gluten-free DF and have to weigh the limited foods I can eat to stay under my daily 3g free fructose limit, as well as the fructans, polyols and other FODMAPs that disagree with me.  I figured out the FructMal in April 2010 so I was mostly wheat-free since then.  FructMal is cummulative rather than all or nothing, so it took a long time for me to overcome the gluten denial, thou I had good improvement just from the FructMal adjustments.  There was so much detail I had no idea of, so I'm beating myself up for not knowing what I didn't know - silliness!

 

I'm just tired, not so much physically but emotionally.  If I look back at how awful I used to feel all the time and compare that to feeling awful now maybe once every week or two, I've made huge improvement.  But it's mentally exhausting.

 

There was gluten in stuff I missed for the longest time, like the Bonnie Bell lip blam I used DAILY.  At that realization, I got focused on double checking everything again.  My frozen green beans said "may contain wheat" so out they went.  Uncertain origin of vitamin E in lotion? Bye bye

 

Almost all my kitchen stuff I've replaced, or I make a best effort to make it safer. like my marble mortar & pestle is possibly glutened, so I use the pestle only to crush things in plastic baggies.  I haven't replaced my VitaMix container purely out of cost (they're $130), I scrubbed it & soaked in vinegar and since we use it at least 2x a day, I'm hoping that the fact that it's been washed 600 times since last possible minor gluten (cc oats) is enough.

 

Luckily, I gave my husband Wheat Belly to read and he decided on his own to go gluten free also shortly after I did, so that makes it much simpler.  My darling kitteh was already gluten free :meow: [said cute kitteh pictured in avatar]

 

So there are things I still need to do, like scrub down my cabinets and replace the shelf liner, I'm getting to them a shelf at a time, I greatly dislike the cheap plastic cutting board I now use, I need a bigger sifter, etc.  Most of the stuff left to do is just a time and money situation, so I'm making progress and yet it's frustrating.  I think I have a shread of lingering doubt without a firm diagnosis that it's a huge amount of effort when I'm uncertain.  I considered EnteroLabs or Cyrex, but would rather buy a new VitaMix 7500 for the same cost as the tests.

 

Sigh.  I do want to thank the community in general for all the support and answers I've gleaned over the past couple years, I'm finally posting cuz I'm certain I will benefit from interactive support instead of just lurking.  Plus I'm here if anyone wanted to know that a gluten-free DF Caramel Corn rice cake contains 0.056 mg Fructans - I enjoy FructMal nutrient math.

 

Thanks for listening

 

 

[nvsmom]

Welcome to the board.  I hope you keep feeling better. The menatal absorption starts to go away with time. i know that celiac disease was all I thought about at first. It gets easier. 

 

I have a new Vitamix too. I LOVE that thing. I can make veggie/fruit smoothies that my second son (pickiest eater in the world- I swear he only eats beige food) will eat and enjoy.  Yeah!

[GottaSki]

Welcome Christy...you are in the right place.....we all have gone thru it...some very lucky souls transition quickly ... some not so quickly. Good news is it will get better..hang out...ask questions or just join in the small talk

I had one son that I used the smoothie trick on for years....he had no idea his yummy smoothie was loaded with veggies ... blueberries are great for making it purple

[1desperateladysaved]

Nice to hear from you!

I really feel like a mental battle is overtaking me as the physical battle seems to be subsiding.

D

[IrishHeart]

Hi Christy!

It can be very overwhelming at first, but you sound as if you are figuring it all out very quickly.

We can be your cheerleaders!

 

As for the tests vs.kitchen appliance dilemma,  I would most definitely spend the money on the VitaMix (although I suspect 600 washings in vinegar did the trick  )

New kitchen appliances are probably more useful to you than any of those online tests, IMHO

Plus, who doesn't like a new kitchen toy?

 

Veggie Smoothies rock.

 

Hang in there!

[funDiva]

Thanks for the warm welcomes and empathy lovely ladies.  My disjointed rambling amuses me, impressive that you were able to decipher anything out of it!

Could I have chosen a more cryptic title?  teehee  I sometimes work myself into a tizzy over details or oversights, which is what I meant by variable, maybe I should have said occasional overwhelm.

FructMal eliminates smoothies for me : pout : luckily I use my VitaMix for soup, "cheeze", "pudding" and I make my own arsenic rice milk : grin :

 

Wow, I just checked, I posted my recipes so long ago on my blog, I never updated them to the gluten-free versions.  I refer to my recipes as "reasonably palatable" to me they are terrific, but to a person without intolerances they are bland or weird.  Funny thing, I greatly dislike having to cook or even prepare food, yet this has forced me to have to adapt and get creative.

 

I do truly appreciate you all responding so quickly and enthusiastically, and in trying to reply, I am having this flood of stuff I want to share and I think it would be better if I used the blog feature here for that, I just didn't want to leave yall hanging while I write a novel of my gut history : winkiegrin :

 

[sidenote: For reference, I am a professional goofball, which does not always come across in text, and I have a habit of overusing emoticons to relay that hence I adopted DIY style : likethis : so don't worry that the forum software is having a glitch.]

[IrishHeart]

I confess...I did wonder about the title and thought maybe you got "spell-checked" ...

 

then figured...well, I am pretty sure I know what she means.