Ages Of Diagnosis

[Mayflowers]

I'm not having an easy time of being gluten free. I'm having withdrawals, depression, cravings. Is my age a real factor? I don't have that much malabsorbtion. Are the older peopel, if you don't mind my asking having as difficult a time as I am? As I read the posts of a lot of people who feel so "great", I wonder how old they are... I'm 50.

[CarlaB]

I'm 43, I feel like garbage. I had a time where I felt relatively good, but for the past three months or so, I feel bad. You can see my diagnosis info, dates and all, on my signature.

It takes time ... I'm getting impatient, too.

Oh, I take St. John's Wort for the depression, it helps a lot, but it conflicts with some prescription meds so check with your pharmacist if you decide to take it. Also, invest in a good pair of sunglasses, you get sensitive!

I don't crave, I'm too sensitive, in fact, I get nightmares that I've eaten gluten!!

[jayhawkmom]

I'm 36. I feel like crap. But, I AM consuming gluten at current - in preparation for my endoscopy tomorrow. (Not a lot.... )

The funny thing is.... right now I feel like I *always* feel. I didn't realize just how bad I'd been feeling until I removed gluten from my diet.

I can't wait till after this EGD tomorrow so I can get back to the gluten-free lifestyle!!!

never dreamed I'd EVER say that!!!

[lonewolf]

I'm 42 now. When I was 32 I found out I had food allergies/intolerances. I was very sick in addition to having horrible arthritis. I was also depressed. I saw some improvement very soon, but it took me 8 months before I really felt decent and a year before I was brave enough to try adding a few foods back to my diet. (I had eliminated everything except rice, fish, some fruits, some vegetables and sunflower seeds.)

[FaithInScienceToo]

Just tunred 49....got diagnosed about 1 1/2 years ago no...went gluten-free then...went CF also about 9 months ago...feeling better all the time, but recently got contaminated by Mrs. Mays snacks, which USED to be gluten-free... am feeling better, again, after realizing what was making me have symptoms starting again...

I've recently read that it can take YEARS for older Celiacs to feel good...

HANG IN THERE!

KEEP PROTECTING YOURSELF, and take good care of yourself...get enough sleep, water, exercise, and love :-)

We have no other choice than to keep on keepin' on, and doing the best we can.

I do feel for you, too...as I'm in a similar boat... 'older' and a bit scared by the fact that I was SO sick for SO long... I sometimes wonder if what I feel 'is good health' now is really 'a little bit sick still and always will be health' due to the many years of damage....

BUT, I MUST think positive, and you, too!

There is a book, for people with very bad illnesses, entitled something like, "You cannot afford the luxury of a single negative thought!" ...none of us can...

[Mayflowers]

I had been feeling steadily worse after I passed 45. I had fatigue, sometimes I would get exhausted. I'm noticing improvements. I just noticed today, my dizziness is gone. I'm having improvements but not what I want improved is happening.. I guess it does take time. I'll probably notice more when I'm up and walking around more.

If I have the strength, I might give up all grains, just to see if it helps. I tried St. John's Wart and it makes me sleepy. Can't work falling asleep.

Thanks

[ArtGirl]

I'm 59 and just went gluten free after probably 40 years of being gluten intolerant and not diagnosed. Everything got worse after I turned 40 and even though I had an allergy panel done six years ago, the dr. didn't give any guidance so didn't really know how to avoid everything I needed to. I'm a little over 2 months gluten/casein free and a couple weeks corn free. GI symptoms are clearing up, FINALLY, but the fatigue is still hanging around. I guess it'll take a few more months to get my energy up to where I want it.

The fatigue factor seems to be directly related to quality of sleep. My sleep pattern is still not normal, but that's improving steadily also.

[ravenwoodglass]

I turned 50 this year and my DS said not long ago that I look and act 40, and that when I was 40 I looked and acted like I was 60. I was diagnosed 4 years ago, the first year saw a lot of improvement but it has been this summer when I have really noticed that I don't just feel good I feel great. My tummy troubles resolved after a couple of months but but the fibro and arthritis and nerve stuff took a lot longer longer. I eat very few grains with lots of protein, veggies, fruits and chocolate. The simpler the better for me at first and I found it helped me to limit my nightshade intake.

[jerseyangel]

I was diagnosed last year at the age of 49.

I firmly believe that if I was diagnosed sooner--I've had symptoms for at least 20 years--I would be farther along in my healing, and I probably wouldn't be intolerant to so many other foods.

I guess whoever said that people diagnosed over 30 take longer to heal was right.

[emcmaster]

I'm so sorry you are having troubles.

[queenofhearts]

If you've only been gluten-free since the 15th, you've really barely begun. I'm 50, I've been gluten-free since the end of May, & I'm just now really beginning to feel stronger-- probably just beginning to absorb iron (I've been anemic virtually all my life.)

Many people, young as well as old, only begin to feel healed after 6 months to a year on the diet, & to fully heal the intestines alone can take up to 2 years. But just think, you are MOVING FORWARD, actually healing after many years of harming your body.

Just be sure you are adhering very carefully to the diet. Are you sure you have eliminated all gluten from utensils, cosmetics, shared foods & so on?

Read the unexpected results thread, if you haven't already-- it always cheers me up when I'm struggling.

Open Original Shared Link

Eat well & be well!

Leah

[I'dratherbecycling]

Going off gluten I felt great at first, then all the symptoms came back about 3 months later. Felt crummy in every way, including brain fog, no energy, digestive problems, and I looked gray. Then I discovered there were 2 reasons I was feeling rotten again 1) I wasn't really getting all the gluten out of my diet (just because it says gluten free on the label doesn't mean it is) and 2) I have other food intolerances (took me a while to be willing to admit that because I didn't want to have to give up more foods). Give it a little time, but if you still aren't feeling remarkable improvement, it could just be other things you are eating. If I stay try clear of gluten, dairy, and tapioca, I feel like a million bucks. Any one of them makes its way into my diet and I feel awful all over again.

[Mayflowers]

Tapioca? I didn't think anyone was allergic to tapioca. I'm taking extra "B" vitamins, B-1 and B complex along with omega 3 fish oils, a multi, and extra C to help my body heal faster and fight the withdrawals. It really helps. I hope these vitamins a gluten free....I think they are. They're by TwinLab. I just got an answer from TwinLab, they said B complex 50 is free of gluten and yeast but has some corn in it. I'll take that for now.

My sister is still eating gluten. Why should I be surprised? She still smokes too. She's 52.

Thank you for all of your support. You're a bunch of really nice people...

This morning I had pancakes from Morning Star Farms gluten free pancake mix. It was so good..a little tougher than wheat but the taste was the same. I was wondering about cross contamination.

[Queen Serenity]

Hi!

I'm 39, and was diagnosed at 28. It took about a full year to recover completely. But, you do feel better with each passing month. Just give your body time to heal, and readjust to the new lifestyle. Take care, and good luck!

Vicki

11 years and still counting

[tiffjake]

I'm not having an easy time of being gluten free. I'm having withdrawals, depression, cravings. Is my age a real factor? I don't have that much malabsorbtion. Are the older peopel, if you don't mind my asking having as difficult a time as I am? As I read the posts of a lot of people who feel so "great", I wonder how old they are... I'm 50.

I am 23. I figured it all out by myself (with mail tests like Lame Advertisement and EnteroLab) and then took that info into my doc, who was actually very nice about it (and I didn't expect that!). HIS office screwed up the celiac panel, but he agreed with all of my previous testing, and didn't want me to go back to eating gluten to have more bloodwork done.

When I tried a gluten challenge. I made it for 3 days, couldn't handle it. I got SO sick....so I gave up on hopes of an endoscopy.....fine with me!

[Mayflowers]

I am 23. I figured it all out by myself (with mail tests like Lame Advertisement and EnteroLab) and then took that info into my doc, who was actually very nice about it (and I didn't expect that!). HIS office screwed up the celiac panel, but he agreed with all of my previous testing, and didn't want me to go back to eating gluten to have more bloodwork done.

When I tried a gluten challenge. I made it for 3 days, couldn't handle it. I got SO sick....so I gave up on hopes of an endoscopy.....fine with me!

Hi,

You're very lucky. I never had wheat symptoms except, IBS in my twenties and the doctor didn't even think to check for gluten intolerance back then. I think patients had to be like your grand mother, holes in the intestines to be tested. He just gave me pills for the D and I figured out myself to add more fiber to my diet to stop it. I think when I added more wheat bran fiber I was unknowingly not absorbing as much gluten and my symptoms stopped, because fiber can't be absorbed. So all these years I thought I just had IBS controled by wheat bran. duh.

This year, I started getting indigestion and gas/pain/heartburn after I ate a lot of wheat. I began to suspect it as an allergen. Blood test was negative. I didn't know about the antibody blood test for celiac. I had Enterolab and it came back positive. I wasn't surprised but I was hoping (in denial) it wouldn't be. That was enough for me. I don't need an endoscopy risk for that. It's so hard to stop eating wheat (I'm thinking quitting smoking was much easier) that I would never even think of going back on it just for a stupid diagnosis from a doctor that means I can't get health insurance.

What were your gluten numbers Tffjake? See mine below.

[loraleena]

I turned 50 this year and my DS said not long ago that I look and act 40, and that when I was 40 I looked and acted like I was 60. I was diagnosed 4 years ago, the first year saw a lot of improvement but it has been this summer when I have really noticed that I don't just feel good I feel great. My tummy troubles resolved after a couple of months but but the fibro and arthritis and nerve stuff took a lot longer longer. I eat very few grains with lots of protein, veggies, fruits and chocolate. The simpler the better for me at first and I found it helped me to limit my nightshade intake.

How long till your fibro went away. I have been great with fibro for 2 years, especially after gluten free one year ago. Now I am having a horrible flair and am in lots of pain. No glutening that I know of.

[Mayflowers]

How long till your fibro went away. I have been great with fibro for 2 years, especially after gluten free one year ago. Now I am having a horrible flair and am in lots of pain. No glutening that I know of.

Have you tried removing all grains? The Paleo Diet doctor, Atkins, and Dr. Mercola to name a few believe that the cause of all auto immune disease and diabetes and cancer is from eating grains. The Paleo Diet Dr. believes we shouldn't even eat dairy, beans or grains or refined sugar, because our ancestors were hunter gatherers and our genes have not changed in 100,000 years.

[jenvan]

Mayflower-- 1st off, your kitty is adorable I was diagnosed at 26...its been a year and a half gluten-free for me. I am better than I was a year ago, but still really struggle. I think I have a ways to go. I suffered through so many years I know it will take a long while to get back to full health. Welcome, also to the "IBS club"... If I had a dollar for each Celiac who was mistakenly diagnosed with IBS first...well, I'd be driving home in an Aston Martin. (And that's only a slight exaggeration!) Typically, little kids recover faster than older folks...but even the younger set can get stuck with lingering issues. I take it you haven't been gluten-free for too long? A lot of people have issues with other foods as well...you may want to keep a food journal to track it that could be the case for you. Recovery can be hard...an overall suggestion is to try and simplify your life as best you can--carve out time to do things you enjoy and that lift your spirits--whether time with friends who encourage you or a favorite tv show. A helper to me with the diet was finding a few good gluten-free replacements for gluten-free sweets...that way I didn't feel like I was missing out so much. The little things can help make things seem easier along the way... Good luck to you!!

[Mayflowers]

Thank you on the "cat in the box" . Your's is adorable too. I just started to go gluten free in July 06' and I went 3 weeks and started cheating.. Then after I received the test results, I knew I had to so I did as of August 15th. Funny thing I noticed this morning. I ate a lot of rice things yesterday, crackers and bread and this morning my knee was hurting! Then I didn't eat any grains at all today and do you know my knee stopped hurting! I'm afraid I'm intolerant to rice...great.

Another problem is that I'm 40 pounds overweight, 10 of which I got from breaking my ankle this summer. (and the rest I bet is from eating gluten and dairy) So I'm depressed over my weight and depressed over not being able to eat what I want... PLUS I can't walk well yet. I'm on a walker with an air cast now. I had a full cast for 8 weeks with no weight bearing...hoping around..Soooo, I can't really eat any candy right now.

[Rikki Tikki]

I am 49 and was diagnosed about 3 years ago. It has taken me about that long to feel well. Many years were wasted being told I was depressed, stressed and all that stuff the doctors seem to throw at us.

The sad thing is that I believed them and didn't pursue anything. I suppose I have to take some responsibility there, should of pushed them for answers.

But it's a new day and here I am!

[FaithInScienceToo]

YES!

It's a new day! GREAT attitude!

And...too cute avitar pic.... love it

[jerseyangel]

Yep, the days of us taking everything thay say at face value is over! I only wish I had taken more of an active part in my healthcare years ago--but I was raised to believe that doctors know best

A new day, indeed!

[Mayflowers]

I am intolerant to gluten, dairy, soy, and eggs.

How many of you lovely ladies (and gents) here have this diet?

[ArtGirl]

I am intolerant to gluten, dairy, soy, and eggs.

How many of you lovely ladies (and gents) here have this diet?

intolerant to: gluten, dairy, eggs, corn

sensitive to: soy and other legumes including chocolate, potatoes and green peppers

I haven't eliminated everthing yet - just gluten, dairy, eggs and corn and eat very little soy - but have greatly improved because of this diet.