Symptoms Returning?

[LeanneMarie]

Hi everyone,

 

So I was officially diagnosed with Celiac in late November of last year. So, it's been about 6 months of very strict gluten-free eating (which started the day after I got my endoscopy and was told to start immediately). My symptoms before being diagnosed were constant throbbing headaches (esp. bad when waking up), night sweats, feeling "out of it" a lot of the time, getting SUPER sleepy about 15-20 mins after eating meals (which usually included gluten), muscle/joint pain in my back, nausea, and I really knew something was very very wrong when I started having all the digestive problems (although this was the last of symptoms to pop up, and the last to go, too).

 

So, through February and March I was doing really well, I felt almost totally back to normal. Then late April and May, when things feel bad again. Same symptoms, ramping up over time to now, beginning of June, where I'm feeling similar to how I did before going gluten free.

 

Things were especially bad on May 18th, after I ran the Brooklyn Half Marathon -- extreme nausea, etc. (and this was not over exertion, I have run this race many times) in a way that I could only recognize as similar to what it felt like when I was still eating gluten.

 

As far as I know, I'm not getting cross contaminated. Nothing has changed, and if anything, I've learned more and become MORE strict. My boyfriend and I are EXTREMELY careful with any foods containing gluten (he cooks his pasta in a separate colander, is the only one to use the toaster, uses a different cutting board, etc etc.) at home, and I usually bring my lunch to work from home. For dinner we sometimes go to dinner but only at the few places I've identified as gluten-free friendly, because I hate grilling the waitstaff about every sauce and ingredient (which sucks, because this used to be a big part of my social life).

 

What else could be going on? Does it just take this long to heal? Could I now be more sensitive than when I started eating gluten free? I am so frustrated and feeling sick again...and I thought I was out of the woods Any help is appreciated. Thanks.

 

-Lee

 

[cyclinglady]

Are you consuming milk products? The villi get damaged from celiac disease and are often unable to release the enzymes needed to digest lactose (milk sugar).

BTW, everyone heals at a different pace. Some folks take months or years to heal.

[NatureChick]

I'd get tested for vitamin deficiencies as an easy way to rule out potential problems.

Exercise, especially at the extreme level of running marathons will deplete some nutrients more than others. You can look up which vitamins are more affected by exercise. Ironically, many of them are the vitamins and minerals that are added to wheat flour, so when you're eating gluten-free, you have fewer easy sources to get them in excess than if you were eating bread, cereal, or pasta made with fortified wheat flour. Niacin, riboflavin are the only two that i remember off the top of my head.

The falling asleep after eating would be a symptom of low blood sugar. Looking up reactive hyperglycemia or hypoglycemia isn't going to help much because they don't know causes or cures. But I mention the vitamin deficiencies because some that are more common in athletes also affect your body's ability to metabolize food via the liver. So being deficient in something could cause your blood sugar to tank if you are exercising more than you are eating and the liver doesn't have the right ingredients available to access the calories and energy in fat stores.

You can also look up gluconeogenesis for a more scientific explanation. 

That is the only thing that comes to mind based on the clues you've given. But gluten likes to damage lots of organs. I have occasional problems with reactive hyperglycemia but haven't figured out the cause yet. It was definitely worse before going gluten-free, but has arisen a few times since. Fructose intolerance looks like a possibility. That one doesn't mean you can't have fructose, just can't have a whole lot of it all at once without being balanced out with glucose and protein.

If you had vitamin deficiencies before going gluten-free, they could persist six months later, even if you were fully healed. Some are really difficult to get back on track.