Does This Ever Become "instinct"?

[Molecular Dude]

After 4 years of being gluten free I find that I still "think" about being gluten free. I don't think about whether it's OK to drink water. I also don't think about self-preservation, or avoiding accidents, or a million other things that are just intinctual. But, even in my own house, I still think about avoiding gluten. Does this ever end, or does it go on forever because it was not learned/acquired in childhood? Does it differ for those who have "always" been gluten free?

[ArtGirl]

I imagine it's always in one's mind at some level. It's not like we had a disease that we take a pill for and then can go about our business and not think about it for the rest of the day. We are constantly having to make decisions based on our need to avoid gluten.

I do believe that it becomes second nature after a while and it might not dominate our lives as it had in the beginning. But this might depend on how sensitive one is and how sick one gets with accidental glutening.

My sister had type I diabetes from the age of 9. She took daily insulin shots and had to weigh and measure her food and test her blood sugar levels constantly. From this perspective, the gluten thing isn't so bad.

[Mango04]

I've been gluten-free for four years. It's not difficult any more, but I do still think about it.

I've been dairy-free for about 12 years and that is total instinct.

So...give it 8 more years??

[jerseyangel]

I've been gluten-free for 2 years and 8 months (today!)

It has become second nature to me--I don't think about it all the time, but of course it's on my mind when I'm shopping and reading labels, or cleaning my kitchen, for example.

I think it becomes like anything else we deal with on a day to day basis--kind of always "there", but not foremost on our mind. That's my take, anyway

[Cinnamon]

If a poisonous snake might jump out of your kitchen cabinet at any moment and bite you really hard, you would always have that possibility in the back of your mind. This is kind of the same thing, in a way.

[kbtoyssni]

I think it's become a subconscious thing to always be on the lookout for gluten. I just do it naturally. I don't do it at home, though. I live alone and my house is 100% gluten-free so I don't need to think about it then.

[aikiducky]

I think it might also depend on whether or not you have a gluten free kitchen or not, and other details of your life style. If I'm at home all day I don't really have to think about it.

Pauliina

[psawyer]

After 4 years of being gluten free I find that I still "think" about being gluten free. I don't think about whether it's OK to drink water. I also don't think about self-preservation, or avoiding accidents, or a million other things that are just intinctual. But, even in my own house, I still think about avoiding gluten. Does this ever end, or does it go on forever because it was not learned/acquired in childhood? Does it differ for those who have "always" been gluten free?

It has been seven and a half years. Yes, I have developed what might be called an instinct. I read labels. I reread labels. I know which companies have a clear gluten disclosure policy. I read labels. I call companies with uncertain ingredients, or I choose another brand. I read labels. I ask questions in restaurants, and prefer restaurants that I know are aware of celiac issues (I won't list them here). Did I mention that I read labels?

[pixiegirl]

I agree with Patti, at home it never even enters my mind. In the grocery I'm reading labels and such. However just yesterday I went to the health food store to buy some biotin and asked the guy and he gave me a bottle and I started walking away when it dawned on me. I said to him "oh btw, it has to be gluten-free" and he gave me a funny look and said "why didn't you say so". And I said, "I just didn't think about it".

Its just part of who I am now and for the first time in years, I'm healthy!

Susan

[aikiducky]

...I read labels. I reread labels. .... I read labels. ... I read labels. .... Did I mention that I read labels?

:lol:

This is so true. I don't even think about it but I read labels all the time. I only notice it when I go grocery shopping with someone else, and they are already done and I'm standing there reading yet another label. I guess that shows that it has become instinct.

Pauliina

[psipsina]

I think it might also depend on whether or not you have a gluten free kitchen or not, and other details of your life style. If I'm at home all day I don't really have to think about it.

Pauliina

I agree. I have my safe places where I don't really think of it at all. I remember having a panic attack the first time I had to travel because I would have to think about it all the time for days on end. Of course I think about it when I grocery shop or when I go out to eat somewhere new but that is a tiny part of my life. I feel like having my house be gluten-free is very important to me psychologically . . . to know that somewhere is safe an stress free.

[Molecular Dude]

Glad to hear that, eventually, this will likely become second nature to me. I think that I probably would have already attained that state, but I live in a gluten-filled household and that definitely complicates matters.

Actually, the most troublesome part is that family and friends are always bringing up the issue, so I always find myself discussing gluten, etc., rather than just allowing it to quietly settle in and "become a part of me." I guess that I shouldn't complain about this since they think that they're acting in my best interest, and I suppose that they really are.

[Lux]

By definition, it's something you will always need to be aware of - so, I think that it's simply a case of incorporating that awareness into your everyday life, of adjusting to that and that in itself becoming second nature :-)

[Genie75]

By definition, it's something you will always need to be aware of - so, I think that it's simply a case of incorporating that awareness into your everyday life, of adjusting to that and that in itself becoming second nature :-)

Yes I think it is something I will always consciously think of whenever I eat. I still eat with people who do eat glutens, and I encourage them to eat as they usually would, and not to deprive themselves of anything cause of me. And I advise them that I can manage myself and what I eat. That they don't need to worry about that. So I do have to be careful not to get my food contaminated. But I've got the hang of it.