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LoveBeingATwin

By LoveBeingATwin
in Coping with Celiac Disease

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LoveBeingATwin Enthusiast
LoveBeingATwin
Posted

Hello Everyone!

I just wanted to say Hi and introduce myself. I was officially diagnosed with celiac disease in December. I am currently trying to figure out how to do this for the rest of my life and still have a smile on my face. I am doing quite good at it however I get frustrated easily. I found out I had celiac disease when I started having problems with fullness all the time. I took all the medication for indigestion/heartburn you could think of. The doctor ordered a stomach emptying test for both my solids and liquids. Well needless to say, my liquids we not emptying. So that is where the malabsorption comes in. I then had an upper GI done that included a biopsy. That did come back positive. We also did blood work which really put the icing on the cake. My levels were really high.

So that is how I got to this point. I can tell if I have been eating gluten because I get really bloated and have diarreha really bad. I have noticed that even since I have chanced my diet completely, I still feel like I am fighting with the malabsorption. Does anyone have any ideas why? I went and got some gluten free/wheat free all natural viatamins and started taking those. I do feel better but I still feel like my body is holding onto everything I eat and drink. I did see a dietician, but I felt like it was a waste of time. I didn't learn anything new that I haven't already researched myself.

I am looking forward to talking with everyone and getting some advice. Thanks for listening!

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Jestgar Rising Star
Jestgar
Posted

Welcome lbat!

Give yourself some time to heal. It could take months for you to feel like everything's starting to be absorbed normally.

dlp252 Apprentice
dlp252
Posted

Hello and welcome!!! Sounds like you have a good start to it all. It can take quite a while for the intestines to heal and while they are healing you may still experience some negative symptoms. Some people heal quickly, but for some it can take a year or more to heal. It's always possible that there may also be other intolerances too--casein in dairy products is a common one for people with gluten issues.

cnlazarus Newbie
cnlazarus
Posted
Hello Everyone!

I just wanted to say Hi and introduce myself. I was officially diagnosed with celiac disease in December. I am currently trying to figure out how to do this for the rest of my life and still have a smile on my face. I am doing quite good at it however I get frustrated easily. I found out I had celiac disease when I started having problems with fullness all the time. I took all the medication for indigestion/heartburn you could think of. The doctor ordered a stomach emptying test for both my solids and liquids. Well needless to say, my liquids we not emptying. So that is where the malabsorption comes in. I then had an upper GI done that included a biopsy. That did come back positive. We also did blood work which really put the icing on the cake. My levels were really high.

So that is how I got to this point. I can tell if I have been eating gluten because I get really bloated and have diarreha really bad. I have noticed that even since I have chanced my diet completely, I still feel like I am fighting with the malabsorption. Does anyone have any ideas why? I went and got some gluten free/wheat free all natural viatamins and started taking those. I do feel better but I still feel like my body is holding onto everything I eat and drink. I did see a dietician, but I felt like it was a waste of time. I didn't learn anything new that I haven't already researched myself.

I am looking forward to talking with everyone and getting some advice. Thanks for listening!

cnlazarus Newbie
cnlazarus
Posted
Hello Everyone!

I just wanted to say Hi and introduce myself. I was officially diagnosed with celiac disease in December. I am currently trying to figure out how to do this for the rest of my life and still have a smile on my face. I am doing quite good at it however I get frustrated easily. I found out I had celiac disease when I started having problems with fullness all the time. I took all the medication for indigestion/heartburn you could think of. The doctor ordered a stomach emptying test for both my solids and liquids. Well needless to say, my liquids we not emptying. So that is where the malabsorption comes in. I then had an upper GI done that included a biopsy. That did come back positive. We also did blood work which really put the icing on the cake. My levels were really high.

So that is how I got to this point. I can tell if I have been eating gluten because I get really bloated and have diarreha really bad. I have noticed that even since I have chanced my diet completely, I still feel like I am fighting with the malabsorption. Does anyone have any ideas why? I went and got some gluten free/wheat free all natural viatamins and started taking those. I do feel better but I still feel like my body is holding onto everything I eat and drink. I did see a dietician, but I felt like it was a waste of time. I didn't learn anything new that I haven't already researched myself.

I am looking forward to talking with everyone and getting some advice. Thanks for listening!

cnlazarus Newbie
cnlazarus
Posted
Hello Everyone!

I just wanted to say Hi and introduce myself. I was officially diagnosed with celiac disease in December. I am currently trying to figure out how to do this for the rest of my life and still have a smile on my face. I am doing quite good at it however I get frustrated easily. I found out I had celiac disease when I started having problems with fullness all the time. I took all the medication for indigestion/heartburn you could think of. The doctor ordered a stomach emptying test for both my solids and liquids. Well needless to say, my liquids we not emptying. So that is where the malabsorption comes in. I then had an upper GI done that included a biopsy. That did come back positive. We also did blood work which really put the icing on the cake. My levels were really high.

So that is how I got to this point. I can tell if I have been eating gluten because I get really bloated and have diarreha really bad. I have noticed that even since I have chanced my diet completely, I still feel like I am fighting with the malabsorption. Does anyone have any ideas why? I went and got some gluten free/wheat free all natural viatamins and started taking those. I do feel better but I still feel like my body is holding onto everything I eat and drink. I did see a dietician, but I felt like it was a waste of time. I didn't learn anything new that I haven't already researched myself.

I am looking forward to talking with everyone and getting some advice. Thanks for listening!

Rachel--24 Collaborator
Rachel--24
Posted

Welcome to the board!!

As previously stated....dairy could be a problem for you. Did your Dr. tell you that you should eliminate dairy until you have healed some??

If not I would suggest trying that and you may get some relief from your symptoms. When your villi are damaged you become lactose intolerant until the villi grow back. The enzymes for lactose digestion are at the tips of the villi....but these are usually not present at the time of diagnosis....when there is significant villi damage.

Other than that....it is still early days for you. It may take several months to feel significant improvement.

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happygirl Collaborator
happygirl
Posted

lbat,

Welcome to the board! I am happy you have found this resource...it really is invaluable.

Well, the good news is that you have a rock solid diagnosis! (Hey, we have to be grateful for little things sometimes, right?) Just getting a diagnosis is step one of all this, so at least you are past that.

Now, onto the diet. Your body takes awhile to heal...unfortunately, just getting gluten out of your diet for a little while isn't enough. (I thought I'd eat gluten-free for a day and then I'd magically be better....whoops!) It can take weeks/months for your body to really improve, as it takes time to get gluten out of your system, then start healing, and then get all your levels of everything back up. Plus, if you are still getting glutened, then your body hasn't yet to fully recover. Each time you ingest gluten, it sets off the autoimmune reaction...the goal is to "stop" the "on" button from being pushed.

I think you will find that there are many people on here who had a gradual improvement in symptoms. I think it can be frustrating when you want to see tangible results!

I second the idea of taking dairy out for a few days and seeing if that helps your symptoms. Once you have healed, you may be able to tolerate it again.

Do you need help with ingredients? Are you sure that everything you are eating is gluten free? Have you checked medicines, personal care products, etc.? Are you eating out? Are you taking care to reduce cross contamination in your home? (these are all things that I had a steep learning curve on, so I just thought I'd ask). Feel free to ask anything. We all started in your shoes!

Best of luck, and I really hope your symptoms improve quickly!!!

Laura

cnlazarus Newbie
cnlazarus
Posted

Glad you are on your way to recovery.

Perhaps the most important thing is that you have found this forum.

The people and information here are priceless.

The index is probably a good place to start.

A few generalities that might be added...

Gluten intolerance seems to cluster with quite a few other "unpleasant" conditions e.g. dairy intolerance etc.

Genetics seems to be involved and the general trend seems to be that one segment of the human race has genetics from primarily meat eating ancestors who evidently didn't have a lot of diversity in their diets.

Those with gluten intolerance seem to have more of these genetics.

Which means that as much as the TV commercials make it look so appealing and natural to eat almost anything they try to sell you...

Often by the time someone realizes they are gluten intolerant a great deal of damage has already been done from many different insults... and their health and resistance has already been highly compromised.

It would be great and relatively easy if all one had to do was avoid gluten.

But it is just the tip of the dietary "iceberg".

Please spend as much time as it takes to search through the truly awesome knowledge on this site.

One thing for sure is that when there is money to be made at anything... ethics and morality start slipping fast! And this holds true in the food industry and most of the other industries which are polluting our air, food, and water.

You are beginning a journey of discovery of what is good to put into your body and what must not be.

To your good health.

blueeyedmanda Community Regular
blueeyedmanda
Posted

Hi!

Just wanted to say Welcome to the board, hope you find all the answers to the questions you have. This is a great place to meet people who understand exactly what you are going through. I have learned a lot from this site. It has helped me more than I can ever say.

Good Luck!

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