7 Yrs gluten-free & I Look Pregnant!

[Enough]

Gosh it is good to see some other people who feel like me! My doctors all treat me like a chronic hypochondriac...,

I went to see a dietician and they knew less than i did and couldnt suggest anything helpful at all,

I've been on gluten-free diet since diagnosis 7 years ago, but despite being religiously strict with my diet, i'm constantly bloated and uncomfortable. I don't eat processed food cos im too suspicious of it, i cook everything myself from pure fruit, veg etc. i don't eat gluten-free products eg bread cos they just made me feel really uncomfortable. I could easily put up with all of this but i'm still so bloated i look like i'm 9 months pregnant!!!

I don't know what to do, i've tried all sorts of special additional diets eg dairy free, but none of them conquered the problem. I avoid caffeine entirly and have lots of mint teas etc between meals makes it slightly less awful, but every time i eat i can physicaly feel my insides struggling to digest everything, there doesn't seem to be any food that doesn't do this, protein, carbs, veg, whatever. I can name a million things that make it worse, but nothing that makes it better!

I tried going without carbs but I have a really fast metabolism and just went dizzy and blacked out.

Do we just have gentically rubbish digestion doomed to be like this forever?

Please can anybody suggest anything that could help? or even just say they feel the same...i'm really at my absolute wits end, i cannot go on like this i just want to cry :'(

love xx

[mftnchn]

Have you ever tried a strong probiotic?

[CarlaB]

Probiotics is a good idea.

Have you tried taking digestive enzymes?

Have you been tested for bacterial dysbiosis? Candida?

[tom]

1st, I second what Sherry and Carla wrote.

2nd, a food/symptom diary can be invaluable. There must be SOME variation in the misery.

And to answer "Do we just have gentically rubbish digestion doomed to be like this forever?"

I give THAT an emphatic NO!

You're not doomed to be like that. There is an answer.

Starting a thread is one heckuva good step towards finding that answer.

Since candida overgrowth was one of my post-gluten-free problems, I see candida symptoms everywhere. (Not imagining them. They're there and I think many celiacs have it and don't know it.)

Google "candida quiz" for a 1st pass check.

It can cause all the symptoms you listed.

[Enough]

1st, I second what Sherry and Carla wrote.

2nd, a food/symptom diary can be invaluable. There must be SOME variation in the misery.

And to answer "Do we just have gentically rubbish digestion doomed to be like this forever?"

I give THAT an emphatic NO!

You're not doomed to be like that. There is an answer.

Starting a thread is one heckuva good step towards finding that answer.

Since candida overgrowth was one of my post-gluten-free problems, I see candida symptoms everywhere. (Not imagining them. They're there and I think many celiacs have it and don't know it.)

Google "candida quiz" for a 1st pass check.

It can cause all the symptoms you listed.

Thanks guys, well i followed your advice and took several of the candida quizzes and they came back negative, really the only things i have are bloating, tiredness and poor concentration, i've never taken antibiotics etc or had fungal infections so i don't think it is that.

When I was first dianosed i took psyillium with probiotics, for about the first month, which didn't seem to make any difference, but have been thinking about trying something like that again now ive been gluten-free for a while, does anyone have any particular recommendations of probiotics/enzymes that work well? I've heard that many don't survive as far as they need to into the digestive system to be effective, so I'd really value a personal recommendation.

Finally, I've kept food diaries in the past and have always failed to pinpoint anything specific that i can digest easily, though i know the things that make things worse: milk, fat, grease, caffeine, pasta (dunno whether the tomato, cheese or pasta but have tried without each and none seem better) gluten-free breads, large amounts of carbohydrates, whole grains, high fibre foods. Have tried so many elimination diets, but doesn't it get depressing restricting your restricted diet further?!

Strangely though (please excuse the following!) never have any bowel troubles, just the bloating and uncomfortableness.

thanks so much for all of your replies,

XXX

[CarlaB]

Do you eat a lot of raw veggies? Things like broccoli and cauliflower can cause bloating/gas when eaten raw.

I take Theralac and Ultra Flora for probiotics. I'm on antibiotics for Lyme Disease, so I'm on heavy duty probiotics ... so one or the other would be enough for you. I'd tend towards the Theralac ... initially you'll take it daily, but after a couple weeks, you cut back on the dosage. It has several strains of beneficial bacteria and 20 billion of them per capsule.

Since candida is most likely ruled out, Google bacterial dysbiosis. It can cause the tiredness and brain fog as well as the bloating. Of course, if you've never been on abx, I don't know what would have caused it ... well, maybe the celiac ...

You might also Google oregano oil and plant tannins (I get mine from intensivenutrition.com) to see if their benefits might help you.

I don't have suggestions for enzymes.

[aikiducky]

Have your vit. B12 levels been checked? That could account for tiredness and poor concentration though maybe not the bloating. Some of the other B vitamins can also play a part... what you could do on your own is try a vit. B complex supplement and see if that helps.

Someone mentioned digestive enzymes, if the problem is that your stomach has a hard time digesting stuff then those could help with bloating. If your poops are normal that could be the case, that the problem is your stomach and not intestine?

Pauliina

[de caps]

HI,

Your story sounds like mine. I have had continued bloating and discomfort since going gluten-free after my diagnosis 2 years ago. I just had a colonoscopy and several biopsys were taken. It turns out I have MICROSCOPIC COLITIS. My GI doctor said this now explains it. I was begining to think she thought I was crazy.

I was prescribed COLAZAL for three weeks and told to avoid dairy, and raw veggies and fruits while on the medication. I'm on week two of the medication and feel about 50% better. You can check out the Mayo clinic web site. They have lots of info on Microscopic colitis. Many people with celiac disease also have this disorder.

Good luck. I hope you feel better soon.

Donna

[de caps]

Here is the link to the Mayo clinic

Open Original Shared Link

[tom]

www.enzy.com/pearls is the site for a probiotic "guaranteed" to not be released in the stomach.

I see the page also has a powder but I only know about the pills/pearls.

[Betty in Texas]

I am sorry you are having all the problems, but now I don't fill all alone I been dig for 4 years. You sound like my twin I am 56 and I have never eaten any of the gluten free box stuff are any kind of gluten free bread. I just eat the veg, fruit and meat and eggs but I tryed getting off of the the different foods 2 weeks at a time to see if it make a difference no still swell in the stomach If I know I am going out at night I try not to eat so I don't look so pregant It is not a good feeling. I think I am going to try to quit eating the raw veg and fruit for a while I love them so much. It looks like I may start drinking my food . I don't know what else to do I don't go to drs any more no insurance but may be some day we can figure this thing out. Hope you feel better.