Celiac And Bariatric Surgery

[KrisBertrand]

three years ago i had bariatric surgery to lose weight. For the past year or so i have had problems with unexplained anemia and was even hospitalized last summer where i received four bottles of blood. (Since the age of 19 or so i remember having been told by the military doctors that my blood levels were low and was often given supplements.)

My stomach doctor suggested that the anemia might be related to Celiac.They still dont understand how and why my blood levels dropped so low. My red blood count was 5, i am currently holding between 9-11 which is still low apparently. The emergency room doctor asked how it was that i was walking . I was brought in for other reasons not related to the anemia but was where the anemia was discovered and subsequently hospitalized for.

My primary care doctor says no that its not Celiac rather that its just issues related to the bariatric surgery and then sent me to a hematologist. the hematologist suggested that there is a possibility of it being celiac because i also have the other symptoms related to Celiac besides the anemia, so he has now referred me to have a biopsy done. He said he wants to rule out Celiac before going any further with recommended treatment which is to come in once a month for iron treatments.

I am scheduled for a biopsy next month. by the way, i go to the VA medical center in case this all seems confusing.

I have been trying to read up on Celiac and have looked for foods that are wheat and gluten free, the local grocery store doesnt have anything and when i asked they looked at me like i was an idiot. I found a local health food store which does have gluten free wheat free products but it is so expensive. I was wondering if anyone can tell me what to expect from the biopsy, and what it is like in the begining to go from a regular diet to gluten /wheat free.

Thank You

Kris

[kvogt]

My first reaction was: I can't eat anything! After a while I realized that there is plenty of food to eat, it's just not the same food. I was one of those people who always ate everything on the table and never put on any weight. My diet was mostly carbs. I reckon this was because my body was asking for all the calories it could get to maintain a modicum of health. I was accustomed to eating carbs all the time. When I went on the diet, I tried to replace all those carbs with gluten-free carbs. As my gut healed, I began to gain weight-- too much actually. I'm now about 20+ pounds more than I think is best for me.

My suggestion is to think less about substitution and more about all the other foods out there that are inherently gluten-free, like fruits, vegetables, nuts, meats and dairy. Consume carbs thoughtfully. I've become a lover of corb bread and I make it different ways. I eat hot gluten-free cereals and also enjoy polenta, but I can now easily go days without a "breadstuff".

It's overwhelming at first, but I can say it's lead me to wonderful foods that I would have hardly considered before my diagnosis. Try to see the good side of this, then take the lemons life has handed us and make some lemonaid.

Kelly

[JsBaby-G]

Kris,

I too have been severely anemic, my blood count was once at 1!!! I was trying to give blood in high school and I ended up in an amblulance and at the hospital. As for the biospy, I'm not gonna lie it's not pleasant but it's worth it. When I first found out I have Celiac I looked at the gluten free food and nearly had a heart attack at the prices. Since then though I've found a way to keep costs of food down and still maintaining my guts!! I eat more things that are naturally found in nature (ie fruits, veggies and meat) then only have a loaf a bread a month. It keeps the cost of the grocery bill down and our bodies have been through enough they don't need all that chemical garbage that's in any baked goods.

Good Luck, keep us posted!!

[Guest jhmom]

Kris:

I had an endoscopy with biopsy last June. It was not bad for me because my doctor knocked me out with"versed". Versed is a conscious sedation, you are out of it but awake enough to follow instructions from your doctor. I do not remember anything about it and it was not uncomfortable to me at all. I also had a colonoscopy and had the same experience.

Hope this helps

[KrisBertrand]

i have had an endoscope before at the VA (i actually remember the entire thing, and it was not a pleasant experience, they had me drink something that would keep me from gagging and something to relax me but thats it) and now to have it again plus the colonoscopy. They scheduled both for the same day 2 hrs apart. my concern is that i will be completely conscious of the colonscopy and will remember the entire experience. i had an endoscope doen at a civillian hospital and have absolutely no recollection of that one at all. I remember asking the dr. something and then asking when he was going to start and he told me he was all done, that was when they hospitalized me for the anemia. i would rather not go to VA cause they said they only give enough to relax, would rather not feel any of it. is there any other way to test?

[gf4life]

You should have the choice to be sedated or not. If you do not want to be "aware" of it and don't really want to remember the experience, then ask them to give you Versed, like jhmom recommended. I had this for both my endoscopy and my colonoscopy and don't remember anything from the endoscopy, but I did "wake up" near the end of the colonoscopy, but not enough to really be aware of what was going on. I remember seeing the screen and the inside of my colon, although I can't tell you now what it looked like. I also vaguely remember my doctor telling me right afterwards that everything looked fine. A little bit of inflamation, but no polyps and she took biopsies to check for microscopic colitis. (Which was negative). I don't think they gave me as much sedation during the colonoscopy, and I'm a bit concerned since I go in Tuesday for the same doctor to do my second endoscopy. I hope they give me a little more. ..

Good luck and God bless.

Mariann