Help it's bad this time

[Annieoh]

Help! I'm struggling like I've not in YEARS. The flareup is intense and at this moment, figuring the cause (what the heck did I eat? What could it be? Was it this? Was it this???)is secondary to just getting over it. Feeling desperate.

Some background: I figured out my sensitivity to gluten on my own through elimination diets. It came on in my late 40s, I'm now 53. When I'm strict with my diet, I'm good. My symptoms are constipation, fatigue, brain fog, sleeplessness and possibly the worst - chronic sneezing, itchy face and eyes. I suspect the histamine reaction is due to leaky gut. I'm working on that. I don't know if I just got glutened and maybe the leaky gut got so much worse that anything I eat triggers a histamine reaction now? I'm reaching.

For years I didn't know what was happening to me so all those years of abuse my nose took, I developed nasal polyps and rhinitis. Usually if I get glutened, measures such as drinking fresh ginger tea, keifer, eating bland meals with lots of dark greens and keeping hydrated does the trick in a few days. This time is bad and nothing I do is helping. It's been over a week and I can't take it. My face and nose are on fire and I am so foggy and fatigued I can barely work. I just want to go to sleep so I don't have to feel the misery. I need whatever got in me to leave my body.

[knitty kitty]

Hi, @Annieoh,

Sorry you're feeling so poorly.

Are you eating a low histamine diet?  No processed foods like sausages and gluten free cookies, no canned foods, no nightshades (tomatoes, potatoes, eggplants and peppers because they promote that leaky gut), no eggs, no alcohol, no fermented foods like sauerkraut, keifir, and yogurt, no dairy, no smoked foods. You may want to revert to the AutoImmune Protocol diet which is basically fresh meat and veggies.  I find this helps immensely.  

How is your Vitamin D level?  I found this interesting article linking Vitamin D deficiency and nasal polyps....

"Vitamin D deficiency is associated with increased human sinonasal fibroblast proliferation in chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps"

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4921271/

And to help process the excess histamine out of your body, Vitamin C and Vitamin B6 are helpful, along with magnesium (will help with the constipation, too) and Vitamin B1 (benfotiamine and allithiamine will help with the fatigue).  A good gluten free B-Complex vitamin supplement all the time will help you cover those deficiencies that can occur on a gluten free diet.

Hope you feel better soon!  

Keep us posted on your progress!

 

 

 

 

Edited October 16, 2021 by knitty kitty
Typo

[Annieoh]

Thank you for posting and sharing that article. Very interesting!  This makes a lot of sense. I’m already taking Vit D as my muscle aches made me suspect I was deficient. but I’ve not been diligent. Another good reason to be more committed. Will def research further. Yes I had doubled down on eating only anti inflammatory foods since the glutening along with other measures that usually helped in the past but this time didn’t. Incidents have become so rare for me that I’ve become sloppy.

*I’ll keep going* in case it’s useful for anyone with similar issues. Thankfully I’m passed the worst of it (at least the GI part) now on to healing the super inflamed nasals. Using a Netti Pot (without the saline) helped with the fiery mucous membranes. But Interestingly, smoking some CBD-only (trace amount of THC) banished the irritation in my nose altogether. My husband picked some Up for me at a local dispensary. It was a last ditch effort. I’m feeling MUCH better now. Cannabis is legal in California and I’m not saying it’s would be the answer for everyone with irritated sinuses or rhinitis flare up but worked for me in this instance. As the recent culprit, At this point I’m suspecting a vegan gluten free marshmallow offered to me by a fellow backpacker during a trip. It was the only thing out of the ordinary that I ate. My bad. I normally NEVER accept food from others unless I can research first and if I eat a marshmallow it’s only Kraft Jet Puff. but the ingredients didn’t list anything suspect and i was feeling safe. These were Dandies. Their gluten statement: “Dandies are manufactured in a gluten free environment on a dedicated gluten free line. While we process gluten in our building, we strictly control the usage and storage of wheat in our facility in accordance with our Allergen Management Program.” Never again.

[knitty kitty]

@Annieoh,

I'm very glad you are feeling better.   You're very lucky to live in California.  

I'm curious if airborne wheat in the marshmallow factory was the problem.  

Keep us posted on your progress! 

Best wishes for a speedy recovery! 

 

 

[Scott Adams]

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