Celiac Disease And Mental Illness

[ASwinger]

Hello, this is the first time that I am posting on this forum. I am 43 years old and I have suffered from psychiatric problems all of my life. Standard drug therapy has been disastrous for me with a lot of dangerous side effects.

Several years ago I decided that drugs were not helping me and I had to embark on a journey to find different ways to improve my health. Since then I have continued to struggle a great deal with little help from the medical establishment.

Earlier this year I was diagnosed with Celiac Disease and I started on a gluten free/casein free diet in April. Since then I have lost 30 pounds and some physical problems like my acid reflux have disappeared. However, mentally I am still marginal.

I have read that it can take six months to as long as two years to really get the full benefits of the diet change. Is that accurate? How long, on average, does it take to get relief from mental illness that is caused by Celiac Disease?

I've also read about going through withdrawal as the opiate peptides leaves the brain. I think that I am experiencing that. Can some of you share your withdrawal and recovery experiences with me?

Thanks,

Aaron

[Celiaction]

Brother,

From what source do the opiate peptides arrive? Wheat?

Mentally I have long been subject to depression and angst. The basic turnaround time for me post-poisoning is about one month for major symptoms and four months for intestinal renewal (reviseration - my term). I keep hoping lately to make it to four months as I keep getting re-exposed. I get pretty manic at times (and love it) when I get beyond the fatigue induced depresson. I can't address your larger question as to how long for a mental turn-around.

I have experienced a syndrome I call mis-fires when I get these flashes of extremely violent images. They have gone away largely after one month clean. We can't be sure but it is possible your mental woes are not YOU! Rather, the integration of inappropriate proteins in the brain jacks with your head.

Best of Luck, Keep the faith.

David

[Lisa]

There are several articles here on the "Site Index", which you may find interesting. (scroll down to the bottom)

[melrobsings]

I'm bi-polar and going gluten-free did nothing for me. I have found one drug that works BRILLIANTLY for me and I have found meditating helps a LOT.

Have you looked into reiki, acupuncture or any other eastern medicines? I have done reiki for mental health and pain management and I found a VAST difference!! I would still be doing it but insurance doesn't cover it so costs add up.

[zachsmom]

I have to say ... I think that the slowly ridding your self of the gluten is going to make you feel off for a while... I WOULD whole heartly get acupuncture.... You can go to a college and get it very inexpensivly...... 30 dollars a treatment and say if that is the case only 1 time a week on saturday mornings... ( just an example... ) that is when I did it. But The acupuncture works I cannot describe how much it has helped my little issues.... a little Ocd here and littel anxiety there.... I even got pregnate thanks to my acupuncture... it helps the body right it self or correct the way it functions... see when stuff happens or imbalances occur ... they stress other organs... and the acupuncture helps to align the balance and the imbalances present them selves as either stuff like a little heartburn or a full blown case of what ever that the doctor is treatign you fo it helps western meds work better. It just clears you of ' ucky stuff" or chi that is trapped in the energy lines.... I would still go to the doctor ... but also get the acupuncture and the water and juices to flow and wash out the system... then you know what and how the loss of gluten is really leaving you with . good luck ... you in the right place.. the people here are really smart. chris

[celiacgirls]

How sure are you that you are totally gluten free? For me, as long as I avoid all traces of gluten, I feel fine. If I take a risk with cross contamination, usually in a restaurant, I feel anxious, irritable, and tired again. It lasts for more than 2 weeks for me.

I did not suffer from withdrawal. I felt better within 2 days. I was taking an a/d at the time and felt giddy so I knew I needed to get off from that. I had been serving my daughter gluten free food off and on for several years so when I went gluten free myself, I was able to do it without the learning curve that is normally needed so I was very gluten-free right from the beginning.

[gfpaperdoll]

I suggest going grain free & dairy free in addition to gluten free. Take a B12 everyday for the rest of your life, exercise - outdoors if possible, in addition to all the other things like getting blood work done to check all your vitamin levels,

also, some people forget that it is VERY important to sleep in a completely darkened room, I use black out shades, you should not even have a clock light that show, not so much as the glow from a cell phone. This light affects the pineal gland which in my opinion is very "fragile" in those that have any neuro symptoms.

You should also be dairy free in addition to gluten free & yes you will have withdrawal both those have an opiate effect on the brain. But once you are over that, about 3 weeks, you should notice a difference.

You know your body & you have already made some progress in finding solutions, just keep working on it, sometimes it is just not one thing that is a fix but a combination.

as an aside, I used to eat mostly wheat free for years, had never heard anything about gluten or celiac, I just knew that I had allergy problems with food, For a while I dated this guy & he was like a changed person around me, his family could not believe it, I look back & I think OMG this guy had neuro problems due to wheat & no one knew.

[elye]

I'm bi-polar and going gluten-free did nothing for me. I have found one drug that works BRILLIANTLY for me and I have found meditating helps a LOT.

Have you looked into reiki, acupuncture or any other eastern medicines? I have done reiki for mental health and pain management and I found a VAST difference!! I would still be doing it but insurance doesn't cover it so costs add up.

There is an incredible accupressure technique (at least, it has been incredible for me and to literally all of the others I have introduced it to), called EFT. It remains remarkably unknown in the mainstream (ha! Much like celiac disease), but all of the energy system principles from acupuncture are there. You can access the free manual and literature on this technique by googling EFT and/or Dr. Gary Craig, who was the pioneer. No med insurance needed!