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Help Me With My Back Ache!

chatycady

By chatycady
in Coping with Celiac Disease

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chatycady Explorer
chatycady
Posted

I've been gluten free for a week, but still have a back ache. It actually seems worse. Any advice or suggestions would help.

Thanks

chaty :(

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Lisa Mentor
Lisa
Posted

chaty:

I have had a chronic backache for many years. My doctor told me that my IBS and chronic backache were two different issues.

After years of complaining and celiac was triggered ( he was clueless about what was going on), he sent me to a gastro guy who did the endoscopy. My biopsy indicated Celiac.

Since gluten free, I no longer have a chronic backache. I think that my intestines were inflamed constantly.

Give it a month or so TOTALLY gluten free and see how you feel. It does take some time to heal.

Make sure you are completely gluten free, including your cosmetics and shampoos.

Hope this is encouraging.

kbtoyssni Contributor
kbtoyssni
Posted

A week isn't very long. Healing often takes time. Probably not what you want to hear, but give the diet a few more weeks to work its magic. It stinks to have to wait a few more weeks now that you *finally* have an answer, but things will get better.

VioletBlue Contributor
VioletBlue
Posted
I've been gluten free for a week, but still have a back ache. It actually seems worse. Any advice or suggestions would help.

Thanks

chaty :(

Hi Chaty. I'm new here. I've been gluten free two months or so, maybe longer. Mine was a gradual descent into gluten-free as I kept accidentally glutening myself the first few weeks, LOL.

I had no clue my back pain was in any way tied to the gluten intolerance until one day last week when my sciatica started to act up. That was when it hit me that I'd been without back pain for over a month. Near the end there the back pain got to be a constant daily thing. Now it's just an occasional sciatica attack and even then it's short lived and less intense than it used to be. My range of motion has improved too. I also take glucosamine supplements, which now work a lot better than they used to. So maybe you just need to give it some more time.

violet

Ursa Major Collaborator
Ursa Major
Posted

My awful backaches used to not only be caused by gluten, but by dairy, rice, soy and eggs as well. As the others said, it could just be that you're too impatient, and that your backache will clear up soon. It is also possible that you need to eliminate other foods (dairy and soy are the most likely ones to be your problem, as these are most common with celiacs).

Try eliminating dairy for starters to see if it makes a difference.

I hope you'll feel better soon, it is hard to do anything with a terrible backache.

Cruiser Bob Newbie
Cruiser Bob
Posted

My body has been aching way more than I think it should for my age/condition/activity for over 3-4 years now. The Sciatica has been 12+years and my right wrist is always in pain. That's on a gluten-free, DF, Egg free, Nightshade free, chocolate free, coffee free diet.

I'm convinced things are intermixed: Celiac, RLS, Insomnia, body pain, energy level.

So, now with a new job (decent insurance). I'm working on things and we'll see what I can figure out. New Iga, Ige test results will be in soon and I visit a Nuerologist next week - I assume there will be a full blood work. And in April I'll be doing some more Energy work. Between the non-traditional and traditional medical I should find out some more information on what is going on with my system.

Bob

gluten-free 1999

chatycady Explorer
chatycady
Posted
  • Author

Thanks everyone. I just wasn't sure my backache was related to celiac. I will wait ... impatiently. I realize now I must give up dairy products as that may be causing some of this too. Your encouragement is wonderful!

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alyssasgabby Rookie
alyssasgabby
Posted
Thanks everyone. I just wasn't sure my backache was related to celiac. I will wait ... impatiently. I realize now I must give up dairy products as that may be causing some of this too. Your encouragement is wonderful!

Hi there! I'm a Newbie, but wanted to let you know how much I can relate to you! Just before my Celiac diagnosis, I was also dx'd with a Cyst on my right kidney and a stone on my left. Combined with the Celiac symptoms I was miserable. Are you sure that your back pain is not from another cause? Don't want to alarm you, but make sure you let your MD know your symptoms. Hope you feel better soon!

johnsoniu Apprentice
johnsoniu
Posted
Thanks everyone. I just wasn't sure my backache was related to celiac. I will wait ... impatiently. I realize now I must give up dairy products as that may be causing some of this too. Your encouragement is wonderful!

On the bright side, you may be able to try to re-introduce dairy later, after you've had some time to heal up. Depending on how much damage was done before you went gluten free, dairy is often the hardest to digest when you start the diet, especially if it's from whole milk or another high fat source. Hope the backaches clear up soon.

MaryDawn Newbie
MaryDawn
Posted

Hi I'm new to this..I was diagnosed with celiac in June of 02.I was really sick and lost alot of weight was anemic the whole bit..Then i found out I was pregnant.Couldn't gain weight kept losing , I had to come off my diet. he is now 4 years old and well I'm just getting back on it..So this is all new to me...I wasn't really sick just tired .I went to the Dr last week she sent me for blood work and well I'm Severely Anemic and I have damaged my liver so I am really upset with myself..What was I thinking...I may need a transfusion I will know in the next week or so when I go for my second round of blood work..I also have to have an ultrasound of the liver to see how much damage I did do..How selfish was I ..I have 2 little boys to think of and I thought about was myself..I need allot of help here i have been living on rice cakes and meat and potatoes for the last couple of weeks. I don't know what else to do i called the support group in my area last week and she still hasn't gotten back to me..I really need to talk to other people who have this...No one seems to understand me. they think I'm going on the Atkins diet.Anyway any suggestions on a menu would help a whole lot...

VioletBlue Contributor
VioletBlue
Posted
Hi I'm new to this..I was diagnosed with celiac in June of 02.I was really sick and lost alot of weight was anemic the whole bit..Then i found out I was pregnant.Couldn't gain weight kept losing , I had to come off my diet. he is now 4 years old and well I'm just getting back on it..So this is all new to me...I wasn't really sick just tired .I went to the Dr last week she sent me for blood work and well I'm Severely Anemic and I have damaged my liver so I am really upset with myself..What was I thinking...I may need a transfusion I will know in the next week or so when I go for my second round of blood work..I also have to have an ultrasound of the liver to see how much damage I did do..How selfish was I ..I have 2 little boys to think of and I thought about was myself..I need allot of help here i have been living on rice cakes and meat and potatoes for the last couple of weeks. I don't know what else to do i called the support group in my area last week and she still hasn't gotten back to me..I really need to talk to other people who have this...No one seems to understand me. they think I'm going on the Atkins diet.Anyway any suggestions on a menu would help a whole lot...

I'm so sorry you're going through so much. I seem to recall a couple threads here somehwere that helped me on what people were eating with sample menues. I eat rice cakes with peanut butter a lot. Trix believe it or not is gluten free. Hardboiled eggs are a great little compact food as are eggs of any kind as long as you're not allergic. Fruits are good, fresh vegetables. Chinese rice noddles are yummy. Thai Kitchen makes them in little packets just like ramen only they're gluten free. Thai Kitchen makes a lot of good rice noodle products. Gluten free baking mixes are great for things like pancakes and waffels and muffins. Some of them don't taste half bad. You can usually find them in organic stores or on line.

I have a couple of what I call last resort foods that I keep around when I cannot figure out what to eat. I always have a bag of Fritos around. They're corn meal corn oil and salt. Gluten free. A lot of other brands of corn tortilla chips are too, you just have to read the ingredients to make sure. Most corn tortillas are gluten free as well. I also keep around a container of sour cream to dip my Fritos in. I've started keeping slim fast shakes in stock because they're gluten as well as lactose free and an easy choice, though somewhat expensive. Read some of the other threads. I think there's one under the Coping With heading on what to eat for breakfast that might help.

Please go easy on yourself. Everyone does the best they can every minute of the day. No one ever sets out to do their worst. If you can forgive yourself for what you didn't know would happen it might take some of the stress out of it for you.

violet

chatycady Explorer
chatycady
Posted
  • Author

Don't fee bad about the anemia. I went a long time before they diagnoised my pernicious anemia. They were talking about giving me a transfusion also, but I bounced back after B-12 shots. I had kids in grade school and high school and missed out on all their activities as I was too sick to attend them. Dr. asked me if I was depressed! Only when I turned yellow did they finally take me serious.

I even fainted a few times, and they sent me to a heart dr who told me I needed to just stand up slower so I wouldn't faint. Ridiculous!

Now it appears I may have another issue, possibly celiac. I go this week to an gastric guy. Who knows what he'll say....

Anyway, my backache has slowly gotten better. I'm two weeks gluten free. Thanks all! I actually was out brushing my ponies. They are shedding so Spring is very very near! Maybe I'll feel well enough this summer to ride again.

Chaty

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      Welcome, @catnapt! The most recent guidelines are the daily consumption of a minimum of 10g of gluten (about the amount found in 4-6 slices of wheat bread) for a minimum of two weeks. But if possible stretching that out even more would enhance the chances of getting valid test results. These guidelines are for those who have been eating gluten free for a significant amount of time. It's called the "gluten challenge".  Yes, you can develop celiac disease at any stage of life. There is a genetic component but also a stress trigger that is needed to activate the celiac genes. About 30-40% of the general population possesses the genetic potential to develop celiac disease but only about 1% of the general population actually develop celiac disease. For most with the potential, the triggering stress event doesn't happen. It can be many things but often it is a viral infection. Having said that, it is also the case that many, many people who eventually are diagnosed with celiac disease probably experienced the actual onset years before. Many celiacs are of the "silent" type, meaning that symptoms are largely missing or very minor and get overlooked until damage to the small bowel lining becomes advanced or they develop iron deficiency anemia or some other medical problem associated with celiac disease. Many, many are never diagnosed or are diagnosed later in life because they did not experience classic symptoms. And many physicians are only looking for classic symptoms. We now know that there are over 200 symptoms/medical problems associated with celiac disease but many docs are only looking for things like boating, gas, diarrhea. I certainly understand your concerns about not wanting to damage your body by taking on a gluten challenge. Your other option is to totally commit to gluten free eating and see if your symptoms improve. It can take two years or more for complete healing of the small bowel lining once going gluten free but usually people experience significant improvement well before then. If their is significant improvement in your symptoms when going seriously gluten free, then you likely have your answer. You would either have celiac disease or NCGS (Non Celiac Gluten Sensitivity).
    • catnapt
      how much gluten do I need to eat before blood tests?

      By catnapt · Posted

      after several years of issues with a para-gland issue, my endo has decided it's a good idea for me to be tested for celiac disease. I am 70 yrs old and stunned to learn that you can get celiac this late in life. I have just gradually stopped eating most foods that contain gluten over the past several years- they just make me feel ill- although I attributed it to other things like bread spiking blood sugar- or to the things I ate *with* the bread or crackers etc   I went to a party in Nov and ate a LOT of a vegan roast made with vital wheat gluten- as well as stuffing, rolls and pie crust... and OMG I was so sick! the pain, the bloating, the gas, the nausea... I didn't think it would ever end (but it did) and I was ready to go the ER but it finally subsided.   I mentioned this to my endo and now she wants me to be tested for celiac after 2 weeks of being on gluten foods. She has kind of flip flopped on how much gluten I should eat, telling me that if the symptoms are severe I can stop. I am eating 2-3 thin slices of bread per day (or english muffins) and wow- it does make me feel awful. But not as bad as when I ate that massive amnt of vital wheat gluten. so I will continue on if I have to... but what bothers me is - if it IS celiac, it seems stupid for lack of a better word, to intentionally cause more damage to my body... but I am also worried, on the other hand, that this is not a long enough challenge to make the blood work results valid.   can you give me any insight into this please?   thank you
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