How Long Does It Take Before Symptoms Subside

[marklen]

Hi guys,

I started my gluten free diet a week ago and was wondering how long each of you were on the diet before you noticed your symptoms cleared up? Not necessarily any intestinal damage, more like stuff like fatigue, etc. I have non-DH hives as part of my reaction and they are driving me nuts. Can't wait till they disappear.

Cheers,

Mark

[Andy-oh]

Hi guys,

I started my gluten free diet a week ago and was wondering how long each of you were on the diet before you noticed your symptoms cleared up? Not necessarily any intestinal damage, more like stuff like fatigue, etc. I have non-DH hives as part of my reaction and they are driving me nuts. Can't wait till they disappear.

Cheers,

Mark

hi Mark

I think i'm in the same boat as you, i have also been gluten free for one week after years of mysterious symptoms, which my doctor put down to depression, and am also curious as to how long it takes before symptoms began to subside, ive been up and down all week more or less, one minute tired the next energetic, i have periods where my mood is elevated then i feel down for a period of time, one thing is for sure it is certainly having an affect on me, either that or i'm Bi Polar , and i think my good periods are beginning to out weigh my bad periods, partiularly towards the end of the week.I suppose everyone is different.

I would like to know if anyone who has had depression from gluten intolerence has had similar experiences when going gluten free ?

Andy.

p.s Mark have you been diagnosed or are you just experimenting ?

[Osprey101]

For me, the biggest symptom was the Big D. After suffering two months, my PA suggested it was either IBD or celiac- which was a red flag, as I have close relatives with it. After three days, things improved- then got worse for two days. Then two good days, one bad day, and about a week of very good days. After the first week or two, the mouth pain I was experiencing- not aphthous ulcers, but something very similar- went away, as did the thin, papery texture to the mucosal lining of my mouth.

Energy returned after about the first week, but as I noted- I was only sick for two months, which has to be some kind of record when it comes to celiac diagnosis.

Try sublingual B12, and you might load up on B vitamins in general. I'm not sure, but I think it's the water-soluble vitamins that are depleted preferentially; it'll still be tough for your system to absorb them until the villi heal, but a little more can't hurt. Not so much the fat-soluble vitamins, as it's easier to be harmed by consuming too much of them.

[Matilda]

..

[Andy-oh]

I didn't realise I had other symptoms until they started going away. What I really remember most vividly was feeling like I'd woken up.

Ive have had that same feeling, almost as if my my eyes were less tired, exactly how you describe, my eyes feel as though they are wider and more open.Ive not been diagnosed with gluten intolerence but from what i'm learning from this excellent board i have alot in common with people here, i'm noticing people wrote the same things i have done, for instance someone in a thread mention that when going gluten free for the first time it felt like they had a bipolar disorder, this is what i'm experiencing now, feeling good for periods punctuated by depression and a feeling of ditatchment as you noted in your post, i'm hoping the good periods will soon out-weigh the bad/depression moments.

It alsmot feels like the old me it trying to break out.

[marklen]

Thank you all so much for your replies. I appreciate your comments and thoughts.

Kind regards.

Mark

[WW340]

My GI symptoms improved right away. The hive like itching did not go away for several weeks, and only after I changed all my soaps, shampoo and cosmetics to gluten free.

It took many months for the fatigue to improve significantly. That has really only improved in the last month. I have been gluten free since January.

Your recovery will also depend on how many mistakes and cross contaminations you encounter along the way.

I also had some ups and downs along the way. I was hungry all the time in the beginning of the diet. That did go away. At about 3 - 4 months I had some emotional ups and downs and frustrations. Once I got past that hump, recovery has been pretty much straight up and getting better every day.

[culhanegirl]

Hi guys,

I started my gluten free diet a week ago and was wondering how long each of you were on the diet before you noticed your symptoms cleared up? Not necessarily any intestinal damage, more like stuff like fatigue, etc. I have non-DH hives as part of my reaction and they are driving me nuts. Can't wait till they disappear.

Cheers,

Mark

Hi Mark,

I completely understand what you are going through. I have had hives for the past five months and let me tell you there is hope. I have been on steroids and three prescription antihistamines and still had to go to the emergency room three separate times to get a steroid and benadryl IV because I was literally covered with hives as big as dinner plates and had swollen lips, eyes, jaw line, etc. It is like torture!! But after going gluten free I noticed a dramatic difference within two weeks with the hives completely going away by the six week mark. However, at week 7 I had a really bad episode where they returned in full force. I think I got glutened by processed foods that were cross contaminated or by my well-meaning mother who made me a gluten free birthday cake. Anyway, since that time I have eaten only foods I prepare myself and nothing packaged and no restaurant meals. So basically I have been eating fresh fruits and vegetables, legumes, and meats, and salad dressings I make myself. It's a pain but I will do anything to not have the hives. It's working because I have not had the hives since I recovered from the last attack two weeks ago. Make sure you watch out for cross contamination in restaurants, in processed foods (even foods that do not contain gluten but are made in factories that make products with gluten), and even in your own home if you live with others who eat gluten. Hope this helps. Hang in there, it does get better. And in a way the hives helped me because I have been trying my whole life to eat this healthy and it took fear of tortuous hives returning to make me eat this way! Tina