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Diarrhea For Over A Month While Gluten Free?

Firsttimemama2014

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Firsttimemama2014 Rookie
Firsttimemama2014
Posted

Hey guys, how common is this? I have COMPLETE elimination every morning to the point where my stomach is almost concave and it's difficult to walk. I only have 1BM a day though.

 

I bought the SCD lifestyle pdf and mostly eat chicken now despite being an ex-VEGAN. I'm desperate! I also have green juice daily and mix up my diet to see if any variations will eliminate the D. 

 

However, I don't see any improvements! 

 

The weirdest part is that I only go once and it's first thing in the morning with high urgency. It's the weirdest thing..

 

I've only started to have symptoms for a few months but it's just not going away... super super persistent despite going gluten-free. 

 

Could it be my cast iron grill? Could there be gluten on it? Or, could it be somewhat normal for symptoms to persist this long? I even forced myself to have ground beef last night (barf) as the SCD pdf suggested it.. didn't help one bit.

 

 

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bartfull Rising Star
bartfull
Posted

Yes, cast iron is porous and if gluten was cooked in it before it is contaminated. They say if you put your cast iron in the oven on the cleaning setting (if you have an electric oven with that feature) it will kill the gluten. Then just reseason it.

 

Were these the same symptoms you had before going gluten-free?

Firsttimemama2014 Rookie
Firsttimemama2014
Posted
  • Author

Thanks bartfull - I told my husband we had to get rid of the cast iron as we don't have the cleaning setting.. he wasn't happy but oh well he isn't happy with a sick wife either!!

 

Before going gluten-free I actually had constipation and mild D with blood in stool and major joint pain. Now, it's just D but worse than before. 

 

Seeing that the blood and joint pain went away with gluten-free diet, I'm assuming I'm doing something right.. but I'm just curious if anyone has had D for 1 month or longer.. just seems excessive! I was considering QUITTING MY JOB!! But my job pays for daycare and I cannot take care of a baby all day long considering how weak I am. I'm stuck in a weird situation right now that's for sure!

cyclinglady Grand Master
cyclinglady
Posted

If you cooked a lot of veggie burgers and other glutinous things in your grille, gluten can still be lurking. If it is an outdoor grille, take out the racks and scrub them. Wipe the inside of the grille lid if possible. Place the racks back in and then turn on the grille to high. Let it "bake" for an hour. All remaining gluten should be burnt off. No time to tackle this project? Then cook it on foil and do not close the lid. Eventually, you will want to do this or get a new grille.

Like Bart said, if it is a cast iron pan, put it through a cleaning cycle of your oven. Do not have one? Ask a friend. I salvaged my old frying pans inherited from my grandparents that way. I use my cast iron almost daily. Not today though! Expecting temps well into the 90's. Am cooking outside!

cyclinglady Grand Master
cyclinglady
Posted

I think you need more time. Time to make sure you are not getting cross contaminated, eating hidden sources of gluten, etc. It takes months to recover. Remember, gluten sets off an autoimmune response.

Then there are the intolerances that go along with a damaged gut. Eat things that are cooked through and easy to digest. Eating lots of raw fruit and veggies is not the thing to do when you gut is wreaked! You can eat those things later. Maybe that green juice is causing you problems.

I am allergic to garlic and the entire family: leeks, onions, etc. This is one food family that I have not been able to overcome despite being gluten free for two years. So, even though garlic has all these healing properties, I can not eat them.

Keep a food journal. You might be surprised.

bartfull Rising Star
bartfull
Posted

So have you gotten a diagnosis of celiac or have you just concluded that's what you have?

 

I am self-diagnosed and my doctor agreed that with the family history (my Mom had an official diagnosis) and the results of the diet that I do indeed have celiac, but I was never tested. No insurance, you know?

w8in4dave Community Regular
w8in4dave
Posted

You may have other intolerances also, You need some Probiotics I think. It helps with the gut flora and helps with D.

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Firsttimemama2014 Rookie
Firsttimemama2014
Posted
  • Author

bartfull sorry to hear about not having insurance?! Move to Canada (my home land) and you'll be covered! Gosh, I don't get this country sometimes.

 

I had my endoscopy on Tuesday but the bloodwork indicates Celiac and many symptoms went away on gluten-free diet so.. yeah I'm Celiac :P

 

win8in4dave, I'm going to get probiotics and Pepto Bismol today! Thought I could just do this naturally but now I'm going to try meds and supplements!

 

cyclinglady, you have a good point! I'm going to have to cut out the green juice for a while as despite it just being juice it could be doing more harm than good. I just am not keeping much food down so I need to get my nutrients SOMEHOW ya know? Thanks for the cast iron tips but I'll just buy new ones as I'm getting super paranoid now and just want to start fresh. Also eating using paper dishes and plastic cutlery. I even stopped wearing makeup (gluten could be hidden in there right?)

 

From my research it could be one of the following:

- hidden gluten in my diet/cookware

- ongoing residual inflammatory process 

- IBS, IBD, Ulcerative Jejunitis, Lymphoma, Addison's disease etc..

- Refractory Sprue (rare, see below for more details)

- Lactose Intolerance

- Pancreatic Insufficiency (requires pancreatic enzymes)

- Bacterial Overgrowth (requires antibiotics, I just ordered a SIBO test online)

- Microscopic Colitis (Pepto Bismol may help with this)

 

More on Refractory Sprue ( will have to be hospitalized.  Last resort after looking at all else. It causes ongoing Diarrhea for 6 months +)

 

 

I'm just lost. I will ask my dr to test me for all of the above I guess.. why can't the doctors do this without MY asking them! I feel like maybe a naturopath would be better.

bartfull Rising Star
bartfull
Posted

OK, other than the cast iron I would put money on dairy being a problem. Lots of celiacs have trouble with dairy at first because the part of us (the villi) that is damaged is the part that digests dairy. Get your new pans and go completely off dairy for a while and see of that doesn't do the trick. Most of us get dairy back after we've healed (six months to a year).

 

Have you read the Newbie 101 thread in the coping section? It's full of all sorts of helpful information about cast iron and dairy and cross-contamination and more.

w8in4dave Community Regular
w8in4dave
Posted

bartfull , knows what she is talking about, I was Lactose intolerant for a while, I can eat butter, cheese now, but cannot drink a glass of milk, well I don't like milk so pfft! But I can do butter! That being said, I think she is right. Look for other intolerances , 

Firsttimemama2014 Rookie
Firsttimemama2014
Posted
  • Author

Update: I took pepto bismol (the full dose of 30mg) and it resolved. This stuff is magic.

gilligan Enthusiast
gilligan
Posted

You don't need to get rid of your cast iron.  Spray with an oven cleaner, leave overnight in a plastic bag,  clean well, and reseason.  Mine were so clean after this, they looked like they had never been touched.  One of mine was over 40 years old, and looked fantastic.

cyclinglady Grand Master
cyclinglady
Posted

You don't need to get rid of your cast iron.  Spray with an oven cleaner, leave overnight in a plastic bag,  clean well, and reseason.  Mine were so clean after this, they looked like they had never been touched.  One of mine was over 40 years old, and looked fantastic.

Sorry, but I have a hard time using lye to clean off porous cast iron pans that food is cooked in. I googled it and folks are doing it but I would not! Oven cleaner is just that -- to clean ovens (stainless, porcelain, etc whiich are hard non-porous surfaces). Even the brand Easy Off off does not even suggest it on their website.

I would stick to a self-cleaning oven to burn off gluten and then re-season it. I had success doing this even to my Grandfather's frying pan that is almost 100 years old.

C-Girl Contributor
C-Girl
Posted

Hey Firsttimemama, I hope the Pepto did the trick for you and continues to work. But you should be aware that microscopic colitis is very common in us celiacs, and they dont' really know why. Some suspect it's another immune reaction, some suspect it's food intolerances - lactose and gluten are the most common, but soy and fructose intolerances can also trigger the big D. Obviously you have to eliminate gluten, but also get rid of dairy.

 

If it's just in the morning, look at what you had at night as the cause. Do you take any supplements? I can't even take calcium without getting D. Another thing to think of, do you have caffeine in the morning? It will stimulate the bowels.

 

If it's MC, you'd probably be going a LOT more than once in the morning. Chance are you're just experiencing changes because of your new diet. try to nail down foods with a food diary, as others have suggested, paying attention to lactose, fructose and soy first, then the other FODMAPS (google it) if eliminating those doesn't help.

 

Best of luck, I hope to god you don't have MC. it's a right pain in the ass, literally!

blueshades Newbie
blueshades
Posted

Hi :) I am wheat allergy and i am the same when i eat wheat. 

When i wake up i have the bad urge to go straight away to get rid of everything inside and i'm done for the day.

I know i am 'poisoned' if this happens to me in the morning. If i stop the wheat.. the morning urge will die down slowly after a few days. If it keeps feeling bad the next morning and the next morning i know i haven't stopped eating wheat.

I have changed my cooking pan to be on the safe side. If you suspect it could be something you are eating then stop for a few days and see if the morning pain is fading (i know the pain is never completely gone). 

For me it's a good indication if i've been poisoned or it's just something else :) Goodluck!

 

Firsttimemama2014 Rookie
Firsttimemama2014
Posted
  • Author

Guys, I hate leaving topics unfinished (because there future are googlers out there) so let me complete this topic.

 

1- MY CHRONIC DIARRHEA IS GONE

2- I'M NOT SURE WHY

 

Now here's the weirdest of weird thing that happened: I was prepping for my sigmoidoscopy (which came back negative by the way) and had 2 fleet enemas the morning of. IMMEDIATELY after the enemas I felt better than I had in months. And, didn't have diarrhea ever again since than and that was a week ago.

 

So, could the enema have flushed extra gluten that was stuck on my insides? I'll never know.. so freakin weird.

 

I didn't change my diet either. I did start taking a probiotic (align) and supplementing my calcium/magnesium and vitamin D so that might have helped too.

 

Oh, also, I quit my job.. my diarrhea was worse on the days I worked so stress definitely didn't help.

 

So my solution was: 2 fleet enemas (in a row), magnesium/vit D/align Probiotic, and eliminate all sources of stress

 

Also, I'm still gluten free as I'm borderline celiac.

bartfull Rising Star
bartfull
Posted

Crazy as it sounds, you may have been constipated. I have read here and elswhere that sometimes what seems like D is just "leakage" seeping around the blockage.

 

I think you should stick to strictly gluten-free. There is no such thing as borderline celiac. You either have it or you don't. Some people are told they have "mild" celiac but what is meant by that is that they have celiac with mild DAMAGE. But if they kept eating gluten that damage would continue to get worse.

Firsttimemama2014 Rookie
Firsttimemama2014
Posted
  • Author

Bartfull, yes you are correct. Just because there was no damage found in the 6 samples, that doesn't rule out celiac. I am thankful it's not bad enough (if I have it) that it wasn't immediately detected. I WILL still continue to be gluten-free as you're right I either have it or I don't and at this point I don't know and may never know. 

 

I don't think I was constipated as my diarrhea wasn't pure liquid. There was some form to it (some of the time anyway). But, interesting point. I'm going back to my 2 GI's and am going to ask them to explain this one to me??!?

Firsttimemama2014 Rookie
Firsttimemama2014
Posted
  • Author

Bartfull, I just realized that you may be onto something though! I had severe severe constipation after my c-section due to all the pain meds!! Maybe something was blocked! They SHOULD prescribe  enemas to all women postpartum!  Especially those who had a c-section and were heavily medicated! Our medical system is so backwards. :blink:

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