Jump to content
This site uses cookies. Continued use is acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. More Info... ×

  • Welcome to Celiac.com!

    You have found your celiac tribe! Join us and ask questions in our forum, share your story, and connect with others.



  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A1):

    Celiac.com Sponsor (A1-M):

  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Support Our Content
    eNewsletter
    Donate

Been Very Sick For 2 Years-changes With gluten-free Diet

hviola

Recommended Posts

hviola Newbie
hviola
Posted

I have been very very sick for about 2 years. These symptoms popped up gradually over a period of 3 months when I was going through a lot of stress and a bout of pnemonia. (Although, I have always had problems with digesting, joint pain, and anxiety my whole life.) I have seen every doctor and they say I am in perfect health. I even had to quit my job because Im sick! And the Dr's say nothing is wrong!?! Through more and more research on my own, Im starting to think it is food allergies. So I was trying an elimination diet of the different main allergens. I started with gluten. And after 4 days gluten-free, I am showing improvement.

Here were my symptoms and the improvements so far, if any:

(Some I dont list improvements because its too soon to tell)

I am 29 years old and Female

Bad Fatigue (Gone now for 2 days.)

Brain Fog, cant think, confusion (feels a little better)

Extreme light sensitivity (About 20% better. I went to Walmart without feeling like I would pass out from the light)

Sound/Touch sensitivity

Nausea after eating (a bit better)

Anxiety

Depression

Fatty looking stools (not present for 2 days)

Stools only 2-3 times a week

Stomach cramps with frequent diarreah

Dizzyness/Lightheadedness

Had a spontanious miscarriage at 17 weeks!! For NO reason, nothing wrong with baby or me...

Joint pain-neck, lower back, knees, hips (havent felt any since quitting gluten so far)

A lot of times I just feel like I am stoned or had some drinks. Sometimes it even seems like I took some acid or something.

Get extremely sick when trying to diet (When I diet, I eat more cereal and whole wheat)

Severe tonsil infections since I was 8 years old, got them out at 23 years old!

Does any of this sound like symptoms you guys have gone through? Should I ask my doctor for an allergy panel to see if there are any other food allergies?

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):
Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):


glutenfreegirl Enthusiast
glutenfreegirl
Posted

Hi I have never posted before so I hope I am doing this right!!

Anyway reading your psot I felt like I had writed it myself symptoms and all except for the misscarrage I am sorry for your loss

Iwould definetly get tested however I beleive you have to be eatting gluten for the test to be accurate..

good luck you are definetly in the right place to get help and answers everyone here is so friendly..

quote name='hviola' date='Aug 5 2008, 05:52 PM' post='453779']

I have been very very sick for about 2 years. These symptoms popped up gradually over a period of 3 months when I was going through a lot of stress and a bout of pnemonia. (Although, I have always had problems with digesting, joint pain, and anxiety my whole life.) I have seen every doctor and they say I am in perfect health. I even had to quit my job because Im sick! And the Dr's say nothing is wrong!?! Through more and more research on my own, Im starting to think it is food allergies. So I was trying an elimination diet of the different main allergens. I started with gluten. And after 4 days gluten-free, I am showing improvement.

Here were my symptoms and the improvements so far, if any:

(Some I dont list improvements because its too soon to tell)

I am 29 years old and Female

Bad Fatigue (Gone now for 2 days.)

Brain Fog, cant think, confusion (feels a little better)

Extreme light sensitivity (About 20% better. I went to Walmart without feeling like I would pass out from the light)

Sound/Touch sensitivity

Nausea after eating (a bit better)

Anxiety

Depression

Fatty looking stools (not present for 2 days)

Stools only 2-3 times a week

Stomach cramps with frequent diarreah

Dizzyness/Lightheadedness

Had a spontanious miscarriage at 17 weeks!! For NO reason, nothing wrong with baby or me...

Joint pain-neck, lower back, knees, hips (havent felt any since quitting gluten so far)

A lot of times I just feel like I am stoned or had some drinks. Sometimes it even seems like I took some acid or something.

Get extremely sick when trying to diet (When I diet, I eat more cereal and whole wheat)

Severe tonsil infections since I was 8 years old, got them out at 23 years old!

Does any of this sound like symptoms you guys have gone through? Should I ask my doctor for an allergy panel to see if there are any other food allergies?

samcarter Contributor
samcarter
Posted

Oh yes, I've had the brain fog. For the past 9 years I've felt like I was getting stupider and stupider. Add to that the depression I've had all my life (even as a little child), and suicidal thoughts.

For a while there it was feeling like i'd been drugged--after a meal of pizza or bread, I would just feel like somebody had given me sleeping pills, or I'd had a few drinks. It wasn't so much fatigue as total lethargy. And in the mornings (especially the morning after pizza) I'd feel like I had a hangover. Never wanted to get out of bed. And the bloating, oy.

I've been gluten free for four days, and it is getting better. I feel like my digestive system is still healing, BUT...interestingly enough, where i used to excrete all my vitamins (could tell because my vitamin pills are yellow, and I'd pee bright yellow the next morning), that's not happening. So maybe absorption is getting better. The brain fog and fatigue are most likely from malabsorption of B vitamins (same for depression and anxiety). Make sure you're taking a good B complex vitamin, gluten free of course, and try to take it with your evening meal to give your body time to metabolize it during the night.

KristaleeJane Contributor
KristaleeJane
Posted

Hello and Welcome

Well I just want to say that I have or should I say had a lot of the same symptoms, I am 28, and had tonsilitis, and strep throat so much growing up also and they eventually took my tonsils out at 23 also. I have been trying to get pregant for the last 9 mths with no luck, and so sorry to hear about your miscarriage.

I got diagnosed with celiac only about 3-4mths ago, and I am starting to feel so much better now, I had the blood work done and then a biopsy with both confirmed celiac disease.

If a diagnosis is important to you, you make want to consider that you have to be consuming gluten for the tests to be accurate, you shouldn't start gluten free until your tests are finished.

If diagnosis isn't important to you and you want to start the diet on your own then you don't need to worry about this.

Many of your symptoms sound like celiac disease, my doc tried to tell me I had IBS for a while too.

you should have a celiac panal of blood work done while consuming gluten and if they come back with any sign of celiac then your next step would be to have a biopsy.

Good luck

Krista

Amyleigh0007 Enthusiast
Amyleigh0007
Posted

Hi! Allergy testing won't tell you if you have Celiac but it can help in determining if other foods bother you. That is what I am doing on the 11th. KristaleeJane is right about Celiac testing. Make sure you are consuming enough gluten or you could end up a false negative (that's what happened to me).

hviola Newbie
hviola
Posted
  • Author
Hi! Allergy testing won't tell you if you have Celiac but it can help in determining if other foods bother you. That is what I am doing on the 11th. KristaleeJane is right about Celiac testing. Make sure you are consuming enough gluten or you could end up a false negative (that's what happened to me).

I spoke with my doctor today, and he is going to send me to an allergist. He also said he wants to test me (blood tests) for celiac and other food allergies.

Did you get re-tested after your false negative?

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

Go to topic listing
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A19):


  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      131,339
    • Most Online (within 30 mins)
      7,748
    Skydawg
    Newest Member
    Skydawg
    Joined
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A20):

  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      121.4k
    • Total Posts
      1m
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A22):



  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A21):


  • Upcoming Events

  • Posts

    • trents
      Gluten exposure when trying to conceive

      By trents · Posted

      My reaction to a gluten bolus exposure is similar to yours, with 2-3 hours of severe abdominal cramps and intractable emesis followed by several hours of diarrhea. I don't necessarily equate that one large exposure to gluten with significant intestinal lining damage, however. I think it's just a violent reaction to a what the body perceives to be a somewhat toxic substance that I am no longer tolerant of because I have quit exposing myself to it regularly. It's just the body purging itself of it rather than an expression of significant damage. Before diagnosis, when I was consuming gluten daily, I had little to no GI distress. I was, for the most part, a "silent celiac". The damage to my small bowel lining didn't happen all at once but was slow and insidious, accumulating over a period of years. The last time I got a big shot of gluten was about three years ago when I got my wife's wheat biscuits mixed up with my gluten-free ones. There was this acute reaction after about two hours of ingestion as I described above. I felt washed out for a few days and fully recovered within a week or so.  Now, I'm a 74-year-old male. So, I'm not worried about being pregnant. And I don't want to contradict your physicians advice. But I just don't think you have done significant damage to your small bowel lining by one episode of significant gluten ingestion. I just don't think it works that way.
    • Skydawg
      Gluten exposure when trying to conceive

      By Skydawg · Posted

      Wondering about some thoughts on how long to wait to try to get pregnant after a gluten exposure?  I have been diagnosed for 10 years and have followed the diet strictly. I have been cross contaminated before, but have never had a full on gluten exposure. I went to a restaurant recently, and the waiter messed up and gave me regular bread and told me it was gluten free. 2 hours later I was throwing up for the whole evening. I have never had that kind of reaction before as I have never had such a big exposure. My husband and I were planning to start trying to get pregnant this month. My dr did blood work to check for electrolytes and white blood cells, but did not do a full nutritional panel. Most of my GI symptoms have resolved in the past 2 weeks, but I am definitely still dealing with brain fog, fatigue and headaches. My dr has recommended I wait 3 months before I start to try to get pregnant.   I have read else where about how long it can take for the intestine to fully heal, and the impacts gluten exposure can have on pregnancy. I guess I am really wondering if anyone has had a similar experience? How long does it take to heal after 1 exposure like that, after following the diet so well for 10 years? Is 3 months an okay amount of time to wait? Is there anything I can do in the meantime to reduce my symptoms? 
    • ShadowLoom
      Gluten Free Cannabis Edibles

      By ShadowLoom · Posted

      I’ve used tinctures and made my own edibles with gluten-free ingredients to stay safe. Dispensary staff don’t always know about gluten, so I double-check labels or just make my own.
    • Scott Adams
      Damage after 13 years gluten free

      By Scott Adams · Posted

      It's great to hear that there are some good doctors out there, and this is an example of why having a formal diagnosis can definitely be helpful.
    • RMJ
      Damage after 13 years gluten free

      By RMJ · Posted

      Update: I have a wonderful new gastroenterologist. She wants to be sure there’s nothing more serious, like refractory celiac, going on. She ordered various tests including some micronutrient tests that no one has ever ordered before.  I’m deficient in folate and zinc and starting supplements for both. I’m so glad I decided to go to a new GI!
×
×
  • Create New...