Celiac after baby?

[jed84]

Hello!   I had my second baby 7 months ago and have not fell well since, which has led me here.   Last year, I got very sick several times (once right before I got pregnant and the other 2-3x were during my 3rd trimester...otherwise I had no morning sickness and an easy 1st trimester).   I am in my early 30's and had not thrown-up since I was a little kid, so it was highly unusual for this to happen to me, especially given that my illness was in no-way related to pregnancy hormones, as I breezed through my first trimester.   In each occurrence, my sickness involved awful vomiting and/or severe diarrhea and subsided after about a day.      I did recall that twice I had eaten something with vital wheat gluten prior to falling ill (Field Roast Veggie Sausage, so yeah, lots of gluten).   

I had an impossible time gaining weight and baby was diagnosed with IUGR, or growth restriction, in my 2nd trimester after my anatomy scan showed him in the 6th percentile.   Because I had gestational diabetes with my previous child, I was tested at 12 weeks and did not have it, but did develop it again in my 2nd trimester.   I controlled it with diet and exercise and had no issues, so I do not believe the IUGR was anyway related to the GD diagnosis.   Baby was born at 38 weeks at 4 lb. 7oz.   My first child, not IUGR, was 6 lb 1 ounce at term, so it's possible that I do have smaller babies due to my genetics, but I have no explanation for the IUGR that I had for this last baby.   No issue was ever found with my placenta, cord flow, etc. I am just now seeing that Celiac is often an IUGR cause, so I'm wondering why I wasn't tested for this to rule it out then.

The main Celiac or gluten-sensitivity issues I have had are bloating, stomach pains, gas and loose/dark/sticky stools.  I'm thin naturally and I am breastfeeding, but still I find myself down over 10 lb. from my pre-pregnancy weight, which was already low.   Of course I am tired and struggle to focus, but I also have two children.     I initially thought maybe that the almond milk I put in my morning coffee and oatmeal was the culprit as some are sensitive to the thickeners in it, but using dairy instead did not solve the problem.   Since I ruled out almond milk,  I came to the realization that the reason that I often feel most uncomfortable in the morning is because I have the most gluten then, usually toast or non-gluten-free oats.   The rest of the day, save for snacks, I consume mostly veggies/fruits/nuts and thus limited gluten.   I have switched to gluten-free oats in the morning and cut out all other gluten for the last 4 or 5 days.   So far, my GI issues have improved but it's too early to say if it's a fluke or not.    The last time I consumed gluten was two pieces of sprouted grain bread for breakfast and I had to go to the bathroom urgently afterwards and my stomach felt like it was burning/irritated all day.   

Should I get tested for Celiac?  What tests do I order?    Or does it sound like something else?   No idea.  I just would like to regain some weight and heal my body so I can be healthy for my family.   

[tessa25]

It can't hurt to get tested for celiac. The first step is just a blood test. I would do the full celiac panel so there is no questioning the results.

The full celiac panel includes:

TTG IGA
TTG IGG
DGP IGA
DGP IGG
EMA
IGA

You have to be eating gluten daily for 12 weeks before the blood test. A positive on any one blood test should lead to a gastroenterologist doing an endoscopy /biopsies to confirm a celiac diagnosis.