Needing Advice (Pre-Diagnosis)

[Yundah]

Hello! I'm 20 years old and I'm thinking that I may have celiac but I'm in need of a little advice. My maternal great-grandfather died from celiac's in the late 1950's when he was in his early 50s. My great-aunt (his daughter) was diagnosed many years later. I'm not entirely sure when and I'm not sure what her symptoms were, but I vaguely remember being very young and knowing. Her children and grand children also have celiac. 

 

My grandmother had severe endometriosis, thyroid issues, diverticulitis, and chronic candidiasis. My mother has also had endometriosis and she complains about her digestion constantly. I've learned that all of these symptoms can be related to celiac, but neither one of them has ever been tested for it because they aren't the traditional symptoms of the disease. Both of them had hysterectomies at the age of 30.

 

I've had issues with my digestion ever since I was young. I started getting yeast infections (yes, as in vaginal yeast infections) at the age of 5 and I gained and gained and gained weight no matter what I ate. I've also had keratosis pilaris since I was around 8. Thyroid tests came back normal every time my mother begged the doctors to check it. I developed severe depression at around the age of 12. I constantly felt like I was in a fog and it go to the point where I got my GED at 16 because I smart but too depressed to get out of bed for school in the morning. Anyways... When I was 17, I went on a low-carb diet (to get the attention of some boy who ended up being an absolute waste of time) and I felt great! That was in March of 2011. That June, my intuition was telling me to go gluten free. I'm not entirely sure why, but I did it and I felt good no matter whether I was eating carbs or not. 

 

When I was 18, I got my first job and started college and temptation hit me. I'd been over 90% gluten free for a few years and suddenly I had just stopped caring. I ate gluten-free most of the time but every once in a while (like two times a month), my co-workers and I would order out and I just didn't care. It's been that way for about two years now and my depression has crept up on me and I've been having panic attacks, anxiety, and depression on and off since January. (I had a pretty big gluten-y time from Halloween to Christmas) I was gluten free from February - Mid April of this year and I felt a bit better but not much. I had a very stressful event last month and I decided that I officially wanted to be tested. I don't trust conventional doctors that much and I've actually been diagnosed as having PTSD from the fat-shaming I went through as a child, so I bought the biocard test.  

 

I've been doing the gluten challenge "officially" for about three weeks now. My current symptoms are: Gas pain, nausea, insomnia, SEVERE brain fog, heartburn, diarrhea, KP outbreaks, acne, severe mood swings, anxiety, and I was constipated for a week when I first started the challenge.

 

Long story short... Considering my love-hate relationship with gluten, is it possible that I have enough antibodies in my blood to test myself now or soon? I've been eating the equivalent of about 4-5 slices of bread a day and I'm absolutely miserable. 

 

Any advice would be very much appreciated.

[RMJ]

Three weeks isn't long enough, sorry. You should go a few more. But two slices of bread a day should be enough. This paper describes the time course of the antibody increase.

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[nvsmom]

I agree. Three weeks isn't long enough of a gluten challenge, 2-3 months is usually needed for reliable blood tests. You can cut back on your gluten though. Most doctors recommend 1/2 to 4 slices of bread per day, or equivalent (like muffin, noodles, cookie, etc), with 1-2 slices per day being the norm. Try to eat your gluten later in the day to help reduce the impact that gastro symptoms have on your day. If you can, reduce your gluten intake, hang in there a few more weeks, and get tested. It sounds like you should be checked... In fact, even if it is normal, and you might consider getting rechecked every couple of years, or just going 100% gluten-free. I'm afraid eating 90% gluten-free is enough to keep a celiac sick and cause further damage to your body. If you suspect it is celiac disease, you'll need to be strict with your diet to protect yourself. Welcome to the board, and good luck!