Higher Sensitivity?

[CMCM]

I thought I asked this before, but couldn't find it anywhere so perhaps not.

So I've had intermittent digestive problems for at least 20 years, and had tentatively decided at the very least I had a problem with dairy, so I ate it in tiny amounts and not every day. I didn't think of gluten because I wasn't underweight; in fact, I was 20 lbs, too heavy and no matter what I did I couldn't lose it. I'm not totally sure, but I'm thinking my own "trigger" might have been a surgical procedure I had 6 years ago for uncontrolled bleeding....I lost so much blood I got horribly anemic, could barely walk and nearly had to have transfusions it was so bad. I had general anesthesia with a D&C to correct the situation, which it did. However, the whole thing was somewhat of a trauma and it took me several weeks to feel better and get the iron levels back up to normal. In retrospect, I think my digestive woes have been getting progressively worse since then.

Before Thanksgiving I had a frightening dizziness/nausea episode that came out of nowhere and lasted for about 5 hours, then I felt kind of yucky the next day, and was OK the day after that. I got suspicious when I realized my diet for the 10 hours prior to the dizzy spell had been megadoses of wheat foods. I found this site, got really suspicious, and as a result, went gluten-free the day after Thanksgiving. I felt great within a couple of days. The bloat disappeared, my asthma-like symptoms and chronic cough totally disappeared for the first time in nearly a year or more, I just felt great. Fast forward to Christmas, I did a bit of isolated binging. Sugar cookies 2 days before Christmas (no huge reaction), good on Xmas except for a few pieces of Cheesecake, which had a graham crust, and than a few days ago, a couple of sugar cookies and a chunk of spice bread. KA-BOOM....major pain and burning now from eating virtually anything. I don't know what to eat at this point. I'm starving hungry, but afraid to eat anything.

After being gluten-free, do gluten exposures create a worse reaction than when I was eating it all the time? This hardly makes sense, but it sure seems to be what is happening.

[num1habsfan]

After being gluten-free, do gluten exposures create a worse reaction than when I was eating it all the time? This hardly makes sense, but it sure seems to be what is happening.

It did for me. Even though I was really, really, really sick for almost 2 months before starting going gluten-free, since then anytime I've cheated the pains are worse, regardless of how little or much gluten exposure I have.

Maybe someone else can explain it better than me.

~lisa~

[drewsant]

I think most people will tell you this is common to have a stronger reaction after you've been off of it. My doctor told me even the foods I'm allergic to will make me extremely sick after I stop eating them because your body gets used to constantly having that allergen, so it has a certain tolerance, but when you eliminate the allergen, then say a few months later eat it again, your body will have a much stronger response to it. So yes, symptoms do get worse after you've been away from the food for a while, then try to eat it again.

[jerseyangel]

So I've had intermittent digestive problems for at least 20 years, and had tentatively decided at the very least I had a problem with dairy, so I ate it in tiny amounts and not every day. I didn't think of gluten because I wasn't underweight; in fact, I was 20 lbs, too heavy and no matter what I did I couldn't lose it. I'm not totally sure, but I'm thinking my own "trigger" might have been a surgical procedure I had 6 years ago for uncontrolled bleeding....I lost so much blood I got horribly anemic, could barely walk and nearly had to have transfusions it was so bad. I had general anesthesia with a D&C to correct the situation, which it did. However, the whole thing was somewhat of a trauma and it took me several weeks to feel better and get the iron levels back up to normal. In retrospect, I think my digestive woes have been getting progressively worse since then.

Wow--I could have written this part of your post . The only difference is that I had my procedure done in 2004. It was after this that my Celiac came on full force. I just wrote about this in another thread, but in my case , the reactions I get from gluten now do seem worse than they were before. Its a little hard to compare, though, because before DX, I was sick all the time--it was more a matter of how sick on any given day. Now that I feel well most days, if I get any gluten, the reaction is more clear cut and seems more powerful. How is your anemia now? Before DX, my red blood ct. was 8, after 6 months gluten-free, its now 14.5! Its nice to have color in my face and not bruse from resting my arm on a table.

[glutenboy]

It did for me. Even though I was really, really, really sick for almost 2 months before starting going gluten-free, since then anytime I've cheated the pains are worse, regardless of how little or much gluten exposure I have.

I'll agree with this too. Even just being mostly gluten free for about 3 months, now every time I get any gluten (like malt vinegar in salad dressing), the results are pretty horrific.

[CMCM]

Wow--I could have written this part of your post . The only difference is that I had my procedure done in 2004. It was after this that my Celiac came on full force. I just wrote about this in another thread, but in my case , the reactions I get from gluten now do seem worse than they were before. Its a little hard to compare, though, because before DX, I was sick all the time--it was more a matter of how sick on any given day. Now that I feel well most days, if I get any gluten, the reaction is more clear cut and seems more powerful. How is your anemia now? Before DX, my red blood ct. was 8, after 6 months gluten-free, its now 14.5! Its nice to have color in my face and not bruse from resting my arm on a table.

You know, I haven't been tested for anemia in years. But I really bruise easily, so given the connection that seems to exist between anemia and celiac disease, I probably sholuld get tested! I never thought of it.....I improved after the surgery by taking iron pills for a couple of months, and I stopped looking like a ghost fairly quickly, so it never occurred to me.

[jerseyangel]

CMCM--After my surgery, I was also on iron suppliments that I had started before the procedure. When I stopped them and just took a multi. with iron, I started to have the symptoms of anemia again. That is also when my Celiac kicked in, like I said before, and it leads me to believe that the Celiac was the main cause of the anemia and the monthly blood loss was a contributing factor. This opinion is shared by my GI Dr. who told me that we'll never really know either way. My suggestion would be for you to persue the gluten-free diet and try it 100% for a month. Go back to the basics--meats, fish, veggies, fruits, olive oil, nuts--to help you feel better and see how you feel then. Getting you blood levels checked would be a good idea, too. The gluten-free diet got rid of my anemia--the suppliments were only treating the symptoms.

[num1habsfan]

You know, I haven't been tested for anemia in years. But I really bruise easily, so given the connection that seems to exist between anemia and celiac disease, I probably sholuld get tested! I never thought of it.....I improved after the surgery by taking iron pills for a couple of months, and I stopped looking like a ghost fairly quickly, so it never occurred to me.

I get check for anemia every 2 months (or I did for a year, anyways). I have all the symptoms of it, but dont have it. When I go to a doctors appointment tomorrow I'll make sure I get a new form for the bloodwork again. It never hurts to be tested for that, thats for sure.

~lisa~

[julie5914]

I has been my experience that the reactions are stronger now with accidents. No more bingeing! That is SO bad for you! I was anemic before going gluten-free (hemoglobin 10/hemotocrit 30)- I just got my CBC last week and my hemoglobin was 13 and my hemotocrit was 41! That's higher than ever! Yay! In addition, my ferritin was within range, which brought up the distribution numbers and made it so there wasn't one flag on the whole CBC! One day I will get my celiac panel to look like that.