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Have I Been Glutened? Or Not?

nasalady

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nasalady Contributor
nasalady
Posted

I just started the gluten free diet on doctor's orders on November 25th, after my biopsy. I woke up this morning feeling better in general than I have in a long while. However, today I'm experiencing some of the vertigo that I thought was gone! Is this a sign that I've been glutened or is it just my fibromyalgia acting up and maybe has nothing to do with what I've been eating?

I suppose my question is as follows:

I don't know if I should just be focusing on the big picture (that I feel better in general) or if I should pay attention to each and every little piddly symptom? Is there a chance that a headache can simply be a headache and not a sign that I've been glutened?

I do know that there is still a LOT of potential gluten contamination that I'm risking every time I cook in my kitchen, because I still haven't gotten rid of all gluten-containing foods (DH doesn't want me to, he wants to eat them up himself so we're not "wasting food"), and therefore I still haven't replaced all of my kitchen utensils, small appliances, and pots and pans that need replacing yet. I have started to use a dedicated set of gluten free wooden spoons and my own cutting board, but I'm still worried that I'm being glutened here and there inadvertantly (for example, we just thought about the scrubber sponge we use for washing dishes!).

Anyway, I hope this post makes sense....thanks in advance for your help!

JoAnn

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happygirl Collaborator
happygirl
Posted

Its hard to say if you ate something with gluten or not - but keep in mind - you've only been gluten free for about 2 weeks (which seems like an eternity at this point!). Chances are, your body hasn't healed yet, so your symptoms won't resolve overnight. Keep focusing on the big picture....there will be ups and downs. Keep doing the best you can. Hang in there and good luck.

nasalady Contributor
nasalady
Posted
  • Author
Its hard to say if you ate something with gluten or not - but keep in mind - you've only been gluten free for about 2 weeks (which seems like an eternity at this point!). Chances are, your body hasn't healed yet, so your symptoms won't resolve overnight. Keep focusing on the big picture....there will be ups and downs. Keep doing the best you can. Hang in there and good luck.

Thanks, happygirl!

I have heard that it can take quite a while to heal; since I'm already feeling somewhat better, I have a LOT of motivation to stay gluten free. My fibromyalgia and rheumatoid arthritis have put me in a wheelchair recently and I'm hoping to get out of it again soon!

Take care,

JoAnn

SGWhiskers Collaborator
SGWhiskers
Posted

I'll add that my experience was that as the worst of the neurologic symptoms started to fade away, some of my other aches and pains became more noticeable. They were not any worse than before, but rather as the #1,2,3,4&5 worst symptoms left, #6 was moved to the front of my attention.

Since being gluten-free, I've had a couple of small headaches that I don't think were gluten related. Most of the time, though, when I'm feeling my old migraine starting, that means that I've been glutened and the reaction just gets worse.

I've told hubby that he is free to have the gluten if he prepares it himself. He has the old pans and wooden spoons to cook in. I've labeled all of them. I pitched all the baking mixes though so I wouldn't inhale any gluten. He has a shelf in the pantry, a drawer in the fridge, and a cubby in the freezer that it all stays in. He has the old sponge and has to rinse down all the gluten dishes before they go in the dishwasher. I've put labels on much of the kitchen. We have our own condiments now.

I've also replaced some of his food without him noticing. I just give it a new name and dress it differently. gluten-free pancakes were called apple fritters and topped with hot applesauce and cinnamon for the first several servings. I packed up a few things everytime I went to my sister in laws and delivered the stuff I wouldn't be cooking for us anymore to her house one grocery bag at a time. I pained me to get rid of so much perfectly good food too. It seemed better to have it go to family than in the garbage. Most of it was open, so couldn't go charity. She was OK with an open bag of flour or spagetti noodles.

Another idea for getting rid of the gluten could be to cook it up, and freeze it in individual servings for when he is home alone. You could also set it aside, and save it for when you take a dish to the house of a new mother or a family in mourning. It would go in a disposable pan, so your new ones would still be safe.

SGWhiskers

nasalady Contributor
nasalady
Posted
  • Author
I'll add that my experience was that as the worst of the neurologic symptoms started to fade away, some of my other aches and pains became more noticeable. They were not any worse than before, but rather as the #1,2,3,4&5 worst symptoms left, #6 was moved to the front of my attention.

Since being gluten-free, I've had a couple of small headaches that I don't think were gluten related. Most of the time, though, when I'm feeling my old migraine starting, that means that I've been glutened and the reaction just gets worse.

Thanks for the reply, SGWhiskers.

Yes, now that I think about it, the one time I KNOW I was glutened by accident in the past two weeks I had a screaming migraine the next day, followed by two more days of the big D. The headache I had today was just a mild thing by comparison....probably sinus related. The vertigo was only a problem for a short while in the morning, and then it was gone. I can live with occasional neurological symptoms, particularly if they seem to be going away!

I've noticed that I can certainly type better now! My hands aren't trembling nearly as badly as they were before.

I've told hubby that he is free to have the gluten if he prepares it himself. He has the old pans and wooden spoons to cook in. I've labeled all of them. I pitched all the baking mixes though so I wouldn't inhale any gluten. He has a shelf in the pantry, a drawer in the fridge, and a cubby in the freezer that it all stays in. He has the old sponge and has to rinse down all the gluten dishes before they go in the dishwasher. I've put labels on much of the kitchen. We have our own condiments now.

I've also replaced some of his food without him noticing. I just give it a new name and dress it differently. gluten-free pancakes were called apple fritters and topped with hot applesauce and cinnamon for the first several servings. I packed up a few things everytime I went to my sister in laws and delivered the stuff I wouldn't be cooking for us anymore to her house one grocery bag at a time. I pained me to get rid of so much perfectly good food too. It seemed better to have it go to family than in the garbage. Most of it was open, so couldn't go charity. She was OK with an open bag of flour or spagetti noodles.

Another idea for getting rid of the gluten could be to cook it up, and freeze it in individual servings for when he is home alone. You could also set it aside, and save it for when you take a dish to the house of a new mother or a family in mourning. It would go in a disposable pan, so your new ones would still be safe.

SGWhiskers

These are all great suggestions....thanks very much for your help!

Take care,

JoAnn

ang1e0251 Contributor
ang1e0251
Posted

My tremors are much less on the gluten-free diet. Welcome to the forum and I'm glad you're seeing relief to some of your symptoms. I've read other posters say the dizziness took a long time to go away. My neurological problems took the longest to improve like neuropothy of the feet and tremors. They haven't completely cleared up but are much improved after a year.

Hang in there, it gets better from here!!

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