Having the will to be healthy but not the willpower

[Crossaint]

Was recently diagnosed with Celiac after almost 16 years of suffering. The first week gluten free was amazing, my brain was working, i wasnt as bloated, i even started to not have to use the toilet 12 times in an hour. Excellent! But i keep having uncontrollable cravings for gluten. My mom is an amazing baker, woth no sympathy for my weakness and live for food, so of cohrse i ended up eating a bunch of gluten today. i dont know how to stop, i know its poison but at the end of the day i just feel like i need it. Will be re attempting gluten free tomorrow, but im scared that i wont be able to stop myself from eating the deliciously poisonous devil that gluten is. 😞

[trents]

Welcome to the forum, @Crossaint!

Are you living in the same home with your mother?

Your experience with the cravings is very common in the celiac community, especially among the recently diagnosed. It might surprise you to hear this but gluten has addictive qualities much like opiates. It plugs into the same pleasure sensors as gluten in the brain and so for some people, there can be a significant withdrawal experience. It usually begins to subside in a matter of weeks but is perpetuated with inconsistency. 

I think three major things need to happen for your to get on top of this:

1. You need to understand that more is at stake here than the number of bathroom trips you make if you can't stick to your gluten free diet. There can be some serious long-term health consequences such as osteoporosis, neurological damage, a host of medical conditions related to poor vitamin and mineral absorption and even small bowel lymphoma. 

2. You need to help your mom understand how serious this is and how important it is to your long term health to be consistent in eating gluten free. Both you and she need to understand that celiac disease is not just a matter of inconvenience or discomfort from a little GI distress. It is an autoimmune disease that causes inflammation and damage to the lining of the small bowel that can have serious health consequences over time.

3. You need to redirect your mom's baking skills toward creating delicious gluten-free creations. Challenger her with it. Gluten-free does not have to mean "it tastes awful!" One good place to start is with a good gluten-free carrot cake recipe. Another is gluten-free zucchini bread. These are two things that taste just as good made with gluten-free flour as they do with wheat flour. There are a ton of good gluten-free recipes on the Internet. Not everything can be made to taste as good with gluten free ingredients as it does with wheat flour but many things are pretty close. And you know what? After a while, you adjust and many gluten-free foods become the new norm for you. You don't miss the wheat ones so bad anymore. Yes, you may still have flashbacks of "I remember what this or that wheat thing used to taste like and I really miss it" but not so often as time goes on. Check out the relevant sections on this forum for some good recipes and get your mom going on it for the sake of her kid.

[cristiana]

Great advice from @trents. 

A couple of other tips.

Firstly, always try to have a good stock of gluten-free alternatives in the house so you aren't tempted to give in when there is nothing else available.

Secondly,  as you will have noticed, gluten-free bread does taste quite different from regular bread.  But I think it was my GP who said making toast with it makes it taste much more like the usual stuff - and I would agree there. If you haven't already I suggest you give it a try. But remember, you will either need to toast it under a clean grill, or your Mom will need to buy you your own dedicated gluten-free toaster.

Edited August 22, 2025 by cristiana

[Wheatwacked]

2 hours ago, Crossaint said:

sympathy for my weakness

This is not a weakness.  It is a serious threat to your health.  I once read an interview with a representitive of a large company.  He proudly stated that his wheat based product is more addictive than potato chips.  The other issue is cultural.   Perhaps this book will help Gluten-Centric Culture: Chapter 5 - Grabbing A Bite Together.  It is published here on Celiac.com free to read.  Chapter 1 starts here Gluten-Centric Culture: The Commensality Conundrum - Chapter 1 - Are You Kidding?

At first I ate anything, regardless of nutritional value. Fritos, M&M Peanuts, potato chips, fruit, steak; anything else. Like most habits, it takes about thirty days create the gluten free habit.

Pretend you've moved to another country where the food is entirely different.  Don't try to recreate your old diet based from commercial gluten free foods.  Gluten free foods are not fortified, so be aware of vitamins and mineral intake, especially vitamin D.  Vitamin D deficiency is practically a given.  You probably already have deficits from the malabsorption caused by villi damage.

Some symptoms respond immediately, others take time to heal.  I counted 19 different symptoms that got better.  Some, like permanent stuffed nose, I was told was normal for some people.

Welcome aboard @Crossaint !