I'm Struggling.........

[Mountaineer Josh]

Well, it's almost been a year since my positive bloodwork came back. I've got to admit, I'm struggling dealing with this asinine disease.......I recently went on my first business trip of about four days and it was tough trying to find safe places to eat. I'm so sick of explaining this disease to people.........I'm sick of thinking about it at every meal........i'm tired of wanting to go out and drink a BEER with friends and enjoy some bar food......I'm JUST TIRED! I'm 32 years old and I have to deal with this for the rest of my life? This is just hard for me to accept. I used to brew my own beer, now I can't drink any? Why? What's frustrating about this is, I'm asymptomatic for the most part. My celiac only showed itself as a bloated stomach.

Is it a possibility that this enzyme pill will come to fruition and actually provide us some flexibility to live like normal humans again?

Sorry for the complaining, but I don't know where else to go.......

[plantime]

I think we've all gone through the phase you are going through now. It is difficult to mainstream, which is what you want to do. Even if you were asymptomatic, you were still getting damage. Yes, we have to deal with it for the rest of our lives. The longer you deal with it, the easier it will get. It will eventually reach a point where it is second nature, and you will no longer consider it to be a hassle. I hope you get to that point soon!

[i canary]

What Plantime says is true, it's a phase we all go through. Some of us dwell there longer then others. February will be three years and I've finally got to the acceptance phase. There is gluten free beer, perhaps you can do some research and figure out how they are doing it and get back to the making it yourself.

[Sue F]

i'm really new at this, but my daughter just emailed me that Budweiser is coming out with a beer that is gluten free call Redbridge it is a beer brewed with sorghum, thus there is no wheat or =

barley used. I'm 50 and just found out, I can't imagine if I was your age when I found out. Rant and rave all you want, I for one feel the same at times!

[Carriefaith]

I also get frustrated with all the food I have to avoid. I think it's only normal to have those feelings once in a while. Our world does seem to depend on wheat (and dairy ) and it's hard to avoid. When I start getting depressed about celiac disease and all my allergies I just think that I could have got something worse.

[Guhlia]

Anheiser-Busch came out with a mainstream gluten free beer called Red Bridge. It's pretty good. Also, Bard's Tale makes a great gluten free beer called Dragon's Gold. You can also brew your own beer using malted sorghum. There are tons of articles online about how to brew your own gluten free beer.

[par18]

Actually there are at least 3 main beers (Bard's Tale, New Grist, and Red Bridge) and all are in various stages of production and shipping. I have tried New Grist and it is pretty good. Others like Bard's Tale and some have even tried Red Bridge (the newest). I have heard others say it is not like the "traditional" beers they were used to. If people are going to spend the rest of their life comparing the old with the new they will not have much opportunity to enjoy anything. As bad as it seems to you now think of all of those people who had this condition 20 years ago with little support and no internet. At that time there was "no" beer and very little convenient gluten free food at any price. I feel fortunate that I have the choices available to me now. I drank my share of the other beer for the better part of 30 years so it is not like I have nothing to compare it with. That said if I were you I would get myself the resturant cards (if you don't have them) and start to navigate your way around. The best bet for beer available in a bar is probably going to be the AB product "Red Bridge" I would say it will probably be available nationwide in the next couple of months. Everytime I am in a resturant or beverage store I make it a habit to talk to the manager and let them know of the beer choices out there so that when it is available they could get it. So far all have been open to this. Right now there just is not enough beer to make this happen. This "will" change for one reason and one reason only and that is there is MONEY in it!

The fact that you don't have very bad symptoms may be part of the reason why you feel this is so unfair. Consider yourself lucky that you don't or haven't been very ill or you might think differently about the choices you do have. As far as a digestive pill that may very well happen but I personally feel if my body was meant to digest everything forever then I would not have developed this condition. The pill won't be cheap and you will probably have to take it before every meal. I think deep down that most of us who really were sick are so grateful to be feeling better we are willing to accept whatever choices we get. I'm not critical of your opinion (we all have one) but the world is not going to stop so that we are once again just like everyone else. However progress is being made and I am very optomistic about the future.

Tom

Tom

[Guhlia]

Hey, Tom, I thought I might see you rear your head here. Just for the record, I wanted to let you know that our local Outback has a bar and they carry Bard's Tale beer.

Josh, try approaching your local bars and see if one of them would carry gluten free beer for you. All we had to do was ask and they were happy to help us out.

[Guhlia]

Hey Josh, how far are you from Maryland? Bard's Tale beer is ALL OVER Open Original Shared Link.

[Mountaineer Josh]

Hey Josh, how far are you from Maryland? Bard's Tale beer is ALL OVER Open Original Shared Link.

I actually have two cases of Bard's Tale at my house! Don't get me wrong, Bard's Tale Beer is very good and tastes like a real beer unlike the disgusting New Grist. But I guess I'm sick of being the "odd man out" in social settings. I'm just whining right now. The holidays don't help though. We have several parties here at work and I'm the one ordering Chicken Pad Thai instead of eating the pot luck meals. Trust me, I know, things could be much worse! Thanks for the lift everyone!

Red Bridge? I haven't heard of this yet.........I'll look into it.

[tarnalberry]

"odd man out" is a frame of mind, and you'll feel less that way if you can adjust your perspective. I know it seems kinda silly, but it is true. sure, you're eating different food, but there are a hundred other ways that you can be just the same. (though, I don't know it's so fabulous to be just the same. ;-) ) you can partake in the same conversations, you can relate to the same jokes, you can know the same people, you can dress the same way, you can speak the same language, you can share similar backgrounds, you can have similar interests, etc. you're focusing on this one difference because it feels so incredibly huge to you. and that's not to say it isn't - any difference might feel incredibly huge (though I think speaking a different language would feel bigger ) - but you can change your focus on it, and shift that focus to the social aspect, with the food being so far down the scale that it hardly registers, and that can help make things better.

(that's just one way to approach it. you could embrace being different with gusto too, but it sounds like that's not the route you want to take at the moment, and that's ok!)

[happygirl]

Josh,

I just moved to Fairfax...PM me if you'd like!

Laura

[Phyllis28]

I agree with Plantime, living on a gluten-free diet will become second nature. It will get easier. I always give people the simple explanation that I can not eat wheat, oats, rye or barley and answer any questions they may have after that.

One of the elements I incorporate into gluten free diet, that is now second nature, is pre-planning. I take 10 to 12 business trips a year. I don

[luvs2eat]

Imagine waiting for 4 years to taste your first gluten-free beer and suddenly (a few weeks later) ALL forms of alcohol are shooting right thru me!! I'm giving my intestines a rest HOPING it's a temporary thing...

I can cook and bake w/ alternative flours... but there's no substitute for booze!!

[Guhlia]

I actually have two cases of Bard's Tale at my house! Don't get me wrong, Bard's Tale Beer is very good and tastes like a real beer unlike the disgusting New Grist. But I guess I'm sick of being the "odd man out" in social settings. I'm just whining right now. The holidays don't help though. We have several parties here at work and I'm the one ordering Chicken Pad Thai instead of eating the pot luck meals. Trust me, I know, things could be much worse! Thanks for the lift everyone!

Red Bridge? I haven't heard of this yet.........I'll look into it.

Josh, in a bar you could have a 7&7 (Seagrams and 7-up), a Rum (Captain Morgan) & coke, a Woodchuck cider, Jack Daniels on the rocks, or a glass of wine. Forgive me if the latter is slightly feminine. You could always drink a few at home and then order a soda at the bar. As for bar food, you could always ask them to carry special tortilla chips and salsa for you. I eat Tostitos and Pace with no problems. Trust me, I understand where you're coming from. It's hard to "fit in" when you feel so different. Let me assure you though that often, if you don't make it into a big deal, others likely won't even notice. I find that the best way to do bars is to order a Captain and coke and eat before you go. No one ever notices that I'm "different" when I order captain and coke and I've never had a problem doing this.

[carriekate]

Well, it's almost been a year since my positive bloodwork came back. I've got to admit, I'm struggling dealing with this asinine disease.......I recently went on my first business trip of about four days and it was tough trying to find safe places to eat. I'm so sick of explaining this disease to people.........I'm sick of thinking about it at every meal........i'm tired of wanting to go out and drink a BEER with friends and enjoy some bar food......I'm JUST TIRED! I'm 32 years old and I have to deal with this for the rest of my life? This is just hard for me to accept. I used to brew my own beer, now I can't drink any? Why? What's frustrating about this is, I'm asymptomatic for the most part. My celiac only showed itself as a bloated stomach.

Is it a possibility that this enzyme pill will come to fruition and actually provide us some flexibility to live like normal humans again?

Sorry for the complaining, but I don't know where else to go.......

[sunshinen]

Don't get me wrong, Bard's Tale Beer is very good and tastes like a real beer unlike the disgusting New Grist.

Really??!!! I'll have to look into this. Everthing I had seen said New Grist was the best, but after trying it I pretty much decided my beer days had come to an end. I'll still carry one around the deck sometimes, just to feel normal again, but I can't bring myself to finish them.

If anyone has some good recipes/places to get ingredients for brewing your own gluten-free beer, I'd love to get my hands on them.

Cheers!

[kbtoyssni]

After being gluten-free for 15 months, I no longer view eating out as a "I'm hungry, let's eat" thing. It's more of a social event for me, and there just happens to be food there. Which is why I don't mind at all that I bring my own food to restaurants. I go out to lunch with work friends every week or two, and I nearly always bring my food. It's about hanging out with them, not about eating.

It can also help if you research where you're going first and suggest safe restaurants. Everyone I know is more than happy to go to a restaurant I can eat at.

[Mountaineer Josh]

Actually there are at least 3 main beers (Bard's Tale, New Grist, and Red Bridge) and all are in various stages of production and shipping. I have tried New Grist and it is pretty good. Others like Bard's Tale and some have even tried Red Bridge (the newest). I have heard others say it is not like the "traditional" beers they were used to. If people are going to spend the rest of their life comparing the old with the new they will not have much opportunity to enjoy anything. As bad as it seems to you now think of all of those people who had this condition 20 years ago with little support and no internet. At that time there was "no" beer and very little convenient gluten free food at any price. I feel fortunate that I have the choices available to me now. I drank my share of the other beer for the better part of 30 years so it is not like I have nothing to compare it with. That said if I were you I would get myself the resturant cards (if you don't have them) and start to navigate your way around. The best bet for beer available in a bar is probably going to be the AB product "Red Bridge" I would say it will probably be available nationwide in the next couple of months. Everytime I am in a resturant or beverage store I make it a habit to talk to the manager and let them know of the beer choices out there so that when it is available they could get it. So far all have been open to this. Right now there just is not enough beer to make this happen. This "will" change for one reason and one reason only and that is there is MONEY in it!

The fact that you don't have very bad symptoms may be part of the reason why you feel this is so unfair. Consider yourself lucky that you don't or haven't been very ill or you might think differently about the choices you do have. As far as a digestive pill that may very well happen but I personally feel if my body was meant to digest everything forever then I would not have developed this condition. The pill won't be cheap and you will probably have to take it before every meal. I think deep down that most of us who really were sick are so grateful to be feeling better we are willing to accept whatever choices we get. I'm not critical of your opinion (we all have one) but the world is not going to stop so that we are once again just like everyone else. However progress is being made and I am very optomistic about the future.

Tom

Tom

Excellent points Tom. I'm looking forward to trying Redbridge. I just hope it's better than New Grist. I have 5 bottles of New Grist still in the fridge because it's sooooo bad.

Regarding the pill, I'd certainly stay on a gluten-free diet most of the time, but when you're in those situations where you're not sure.............or you'd really love to have a REAL beer, I'd be willing to take the pill.

You're right about my lack of symptoms. For example, I ate the grilled chicken salad at McDonald's twice in one week........then I found out it's glutenated. Whoops. Guess what, not one symptom. I'd rather get sick so I know that this is all legitimate. Earlier this year, I cheated several times with some Bud Light. In Sept, I got a follow-up blood test, it was 18. the doctor was thrilled. My thinking, beer doesn't actually affect my celiac. But, I haven't had any real beer since July because I'm trying to stay disciplined.

Your right though, I couldn't have been diagnosed with Celiac at a better time in terms of the options we now have.

[Mountaineer Josh]

Josh, in a bar you could have a 7&7 (Seagrams and 7-up), a Rum (Captain Morgan) & coke, a Woodchuck cider, Jack Daniels on the rocks, or a glass of wine. Forgive me if the latter is slightly feminine. You could always drink a few at home and then order a soda at the bar. As for bar food, you could always ask them to carry special tortilla chips and salsa for you. I eat Tostitos and Pace with no problems. Trust me, I understand where you're coming from. It's hard to "fit in" when you feel so different. Let me assure you though that often, if you don't make it into a big deal, others likely won't even notice. I find that the best way to do bars is to order a Captain and coke and eat before you go. No one ever notices that I'm "different" when I order captain and coke and I've never had a problem doing this.

When I do go out, I definitely order bourbon or wine.........wine isnt' feminine..........or shouldn't be looked upon that way. In fact, my wife and I are going to San Francisco in February and we'll be touring Napa and Sonoma. I'm looking forward to it.

I'm a Maker's Mark or Jim Beam guy. I've been told that's safe to drink and my antibody levels were all okay while drinking this so I guess I'm doing something right!

[brendygirl]

WE CAN HAVE WOODCHUCK CIDER????

Awesome!

I usually order Smirnoff mixed with juice if I'm with the Girls.

Or on a date I order Jack N Coke.

To show how TUFF i am!

[brendygirl]

Oh yeah.

We're SPECIAL. Not just different.

We go AGAINST the GRAIN.