Very Confused

[Ursa Major]

I wonder if anybody can give me some advice here. Because I self diagnosed myself (and my doctor agrees with me having celiac disease), and felt just awful lately, with all my pains coming back (not the diarrhea, though) and having stomach aches again, that maybe I was wrong thinking it's Celiac disease.

The last time I (accidentally) got gluten, about a month ago, when I 'stole' one of my daughter's french fries at Dairy Queen (apparently, they're coated in flour), I had diarrhea within an hour, which lasted for two days.

The first time I got glutened, two weeks after going gluten free, I felt like I got hit by a truck, with excrutiating pain within 30 minutes, and diarrhea for several days.

Well, last night I just felt like I really needed to know, and ate a BIG piece of pizza. I am still waiting for the terrible gastro symptoms.

I did get a stomach ache last night, but it had started before eating the pizza. I got some rumbling, quite a bit of gas and some bloating, and I'm sort of constipated. My bodypain didn't increase, but I have a headache and I am kind of dizzy. Strangely, when I woke up this morning, I had asthma (which ONLY happens when either exercising or being exposed to allergens like animals or tobacco smoke). After using my inhaler I was coughing up thick mucus for an hour! Very weird. Also, my eyes used to tear constantly from the outer corners, which got better on the gluten free diet, and today they are tearing the way they used to.

So, I am confused. Do I have Celiac disease or not? Can the symptoms change over time, when glutened? I have been strictly gluten free for three months now. Before I got so ill in May I would get alternating diarrhea and constipation, a lot of bloating and gas.

Could it be that my bowels have healed so much in three months, that I am back to the way I was before May?

[tarnalberry]

if you're a fast healer, it wouldn't really surprise me that your symtpoms are different. the symptoms do not appear to remain the same as we change our diets.

[VegasCeliacBuckeye]

The french fry was probably a victim of cross-contamination --

Remember, anytime the fryer has had other things in it (onion rings, breaded mushrooms, crabcakes, breaded fish, breaded chicken, breaded shrimp, breaded anything, battered anything, then your fries will have gluten on them (CC)

[JessicaB]

Ursula,

Your symptoms sound just like mine! I have been suffering from bloating, and really bad abdominal pain for about 1 1/2 years now. Since i had my daughter. I have been gluten-free for about two weeks. All of a sudden i had D for 3 days strait, then the day after i had the same pain i suffered from before. Its really bad bloating and bad bad pain that lasts off and on all day. It gets worse at times. I dont know if anyone else has pain like this. I never had gotton D before just the pain. Maybe its from somethink i ate, like you maybe cross contamination. Im waiting on my results from the biopsy, my bloodwork was high looking as if i had celiac, i may just be wheat intolerant though. I wonder if anything else could be wrong if i may not have celiac or what? I think we are in the same situation!

[Ursa Major]

Thanks for your responses. I guess in the meantime I've received my answer. It appears that now I just get a delayed reaction, as I have (about 24 hours after eating that piece of pizza) explosive diarrhea (which I've had only the two times I know I've been glutened, and had all summer, when I was so ill) and awful rumbling in my bowels.

No more doubts here, I'll NEVER knowingly eat gluten again. Who knows why the pain came back, maybe it's a reaction to removing the salicylates from my diet. I hope it will pass.

Even though the diarrhea is no fun, and I wished I wouldn't have done it, as it will set me back, at least my doubts have been resolved. The only way to go now is forward, and trying to figure out exactly what else makes me sick.

Oh, and broncobux, I am sure the french fry was coated, as it was WAY too crunchy for being not even really browned. As soon as I ate it I knew that something was off and expected to get sick, which of course, happened. It was a good lesson to learn. In the meantime I heard that the only safe french ways are at McDonalds, and most Wendy's (you have to ask).

[Felidae]

I know how you feel not having an official diagnosis. Sometimes I wonder too. I have wanted to eat half a baguette because they smell so good when my husband eats them, but then I remember the pain and the nausea and the D, and I eat something safe. This site helps so much with the emotional side of being gluten-free. And just so you know, I have lately been craving McDonalds fries and have had them three times in the past couple of months with no bad reactions.

[aikiducky]

Ursula, something you should keep in mind now: after eating that bit of pizza, you can expect to have some kind of symptoms for quite a while. The D might pass quickly, but you're probably going to feel all kinds of weird vague things in the weeks to come. I bet the reason you've had more pains lately was the cross contaminated french fry, too.

I usually don't count a glutening to be truly over before at least three weeks have passed.

Pauliina

[Ursa Major]

Ursula, something you should keep in mind now: after eating that bit of pizza, you can expect to have some kind of symptoms for quite a while. The D might pass quickly, but you're probably going to feel all kinds of weird vague things in the weeks to come. I bet the reason you've had more pains lately was the cross contaminated french fry, too.

I usually don't count a glutening to be truly over before at least three weeks have passed.

Pauliina

Thanks for that advice. I am really tired and can't think straight, which I know is because of that pizza. The french fry episode is already about four weeks ago, so can't really effect me any more. But I am sure I got glutened eating at other people's houses over Christmas, because I was feeling worse and worse. But that could also be, at least partially, because of too much stress. I have an unusually low stress threshhold.