New Here; Getting Tested Today

[hhdavid]

I just wanted to pop in and introduce myself. My name is Helen. I'm getting tested today, but I've decided even if the test is negative I'm still going gluten free. I'm going to start working on cleaning the kitchen this weekend, and I was wondering about appliances. I know I need to replace my mixer, due to the vents. But what about the microwave? I've had it for over 4 years, and I'm really looking for an excuse to replace it if I can. Do I need to replace the coffeepot? I've used it to make both tea and coffee. Don't know if it's contaminated, I didn't use Folger's coffee and Luzianne/Lipton tea bags every time. But considering the cost of replacing food items, cookware and cooking utensils, and my Tupperware collection I might have to wait a while to replace the microwave. I'm on a very tight budget right now, and haven't worked since last August. I need to make the change to gluten-free ASAP so I can feel better and possibly go back to work soon, but I'm in gluten limbo while testing is in progress. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

IMHO, this is an awesome forum. You guys are great!

[MollyBeth]

Hey Helen!

Welcome to the forum! I'm pretty new to all this myself and just went throght the kitchen purge. I kept my microwave and have had no problems because of it. Though, I am not nor have I ever been big on using my microwave. I've had it for two years and it's still like new.

I got rid of all my spatulas and cutting boards. I've slowly been buying new pots and pans. The spatulas and cutting boards were fairly cheap to replace. I'm preparing for a move so the purge has been good for me!!!

I hope you have as good as results as I have since going gluten free. I really believe that it has changed my life. Don't be discouraged if the changes don't come over night. Best of luck with your kitchen purge! Remeber this is a great resource and everyone on this site is more than willing to help!

-Molly

[MELINE]

Hello Helen.

Welcome to the forum. I hope that going gluten free will improve your life in every aspect.

so, you don't have to replace everything in your kitchen. The last thing you want is to become too obsessed with hidden gluten. You only have to replace wooden stuff, cause gluten is hidding in there and you can't get it out! so no ! you definately don't need to change your microwave (I am sorry...) as you don' need to change the oven, the table etc etc.I live in a gluten kitchen and I am careful and nothing goes wrong.Just change that thing you use for tosting your bread, I don't know how you call that thing.

Generally I use the same stuff as my family, just not the wooden ones.

most important is to find products that you Think it is ok for you to consume, but they may have hidden gluten. these are your toothpaste, your lipstick , your cosmetics, your shampoo, your vitamin supplements. also learn how to read EVERY label of things that you consume. oganic does not mean gluten free. and wheat free does not mean gluten free. there is gluten in flavorings for example.

In home page of this forum there is a link to ingredients that have gluten. print it and keep it with you (at least for the begining). You can't imagine in how many places gluten may be hiding.

In my country Balsamico vinegar has caramel colour, and caramel colour has gluten. How could I ever imagine that???? any way, don't panic, it gets extremely easy as time goes by. Be careful but don't destroy your life while doing it.

also don't try to explain gluten free to everyone you know. people are strange. when I go to a restaurant I say allergy and they get it at once....but these are details that you will figure on your own.

! I forgot!!! there is a chance that, at least for some time in the beginning, you may have to go dairy / casein / lactose free. most of us did. if you see that your symptoms are not getting any better, try that too.

Have a great day!

Meline

[psawyer]

Welcome, Helen,

Most things you have will not need to be replaced, just cleaned thoroughly.

You will need a new toaster. It is just impossible to thoroughly clean those things, and a new one isn't that expensive.

Porous objects, such as wooden spoons and wood cutting boards can hide gluten, and should be replaced.

Plastic containers and non-stick cookware should be individually evaluated. If the surface is scratched, then I would replace it. If not, a thorough cleaning should render them safe to use.

Hard surfaced things, like cutlery, metal cookware, dishes, glasses, and so forth need only be washed thoroughly.

Your coffeepot should be fine, as should your microwave after cleaning the interior surfaces.

Cheers.

[MELINE]

toaster! that was the word...

[hhdavid]

Thanks for the warm welcomes! I'm leaving for the lab in a few minutes.

(sigh) I guess I'll keep the microwave for now. Darn it, I thought I had it gone for good! haha

LOL Meline! I haven't had a toaster in years. I just fix it in the oven.

Toothpaste? Shampoo? Body wash? (Goes off looking for the non-food gluten-free items thread).

Just knowing whatever is wrong with me just might have a name has improved my mood and lifted the depression some. Are some people glad to be diagnosed Celiac? I get so tired of people saying, "Hey, you don't look so good. Are you sick?" and I say, "Yes." "What's wrong?" they ask. "I don't quite know for sure," I reply. Then I get that look or .

[hhdavid]

So it turns out that the tests are cash up front, over $300, and it will be a while before I have the money. I'm a little disappointed as this is not what I was told at the doctor's office before I went to the lab. My doctor wanted to order a stool test, so that will probably happen next week. In the meantime I will continue to be sick and in pain, but at least I am taking steps to find out what is going on. I'll just take this waiting period as an opportunity to continue to educate myself and maintain a positive attitude. My main concern in the delay in getting tested is my daughter, age 25 and pregnant, in her first trimester. She has many symptoms of celiac disease. Maybe she can go ahead and get tested, I will talk to her about it. Thanks for all the information and positive thoughts.

[ravenwoodglass]

Are some people glad to be diagnosed Celiac?

Gosh yes. It saved my life.

[ang1e0251]

I was over the moon at the dx. I finally had an answer and to many more problems than I ever imagined. It wasn't all in my head, it was in my gut!

[SabresOnTheWarPath]

Hello everyone,

I am 24 years old male and I went to the doctor last wednesday and they took blood samples after I told them all the symptoms I was having that had been going for about 6 years now and the doctor thought it might be celiac disease. Now I have to wait (very impatiently) until this friday where I will get the results back. I honestly hope I do have celiac disease, just so I can have some closure and move on with things. I hate not knowing what is wrong, and I definitely need to have something done to fix myself before I graduate from college (going to be a nurse). I really don't want my symptoms full blown while trying to work with patients. Its great to have a forum like this, reading some of the things everyone has written has made me feel a little better about things.

[hhdavid]

Oh, SabresOnTheWarPath, a positive diagnosis so we can take appropriate measures, have some closure, and return to health, that is definitely what we need, isn't it? I'll keep you in my thoughts this week as you wait on your results.

I ordered my tests from Enterolab today. I thought long and hard about it, let me tell you. But seeing as I have limited income, and no medical insurance, I really had no other choice. I could not chance what money I had to spend on testing on blood tests and biopsies that might have false negative results. In my case, I took the win/win situation. If it's not genetic, then it's simple gluten intolerance. Either way, I'll know for sure because as soon as I take that test I'm going gluten-free from now on. I'm hoping the improvement from going gluten-free will only confirm my (hopefully) positive test. I got the full panel plus stool test, and they threw in a free milk intolerance test to boot. I'll know three weeks from when I mail the test back. But by the time I get the test results I should (hopefully) start seeing improvement from going gluten-free.

[SabresOnTheWarPath]

Thank you, it means a lot, I'm glad someone responded, its kinda lonely being the only one I know with it, I only told 2 people about what I might have but they can only empathize so much. I decided to get tested b/c I am still on my parents insurance for a few more months before I get kicked off b/c I will be too old so I figured I might as well do all of this now while I can. It feels weird saying it, but I hope you have a positive diagnosis too and I hope you find relief from going gluten free. I have not decided to do that yet incase I need a biopsy, but it kills me every time I eat gluten or wheat or barley or whatever, I know its probably toxic to me. I will post my results here as soon as I get them.

[ravenwoodglass]

Thank you, it means a lot, I'm glad someone responded, its kinda lonely being the only one I know with it, I only told 2 people about what I might have but they can only empathize so much. I decided to get tested b/c I am still on my parents insurance for a few more months before I get kicked off b/c I will be too old so I figured I might as well do all of this now while I can. It feels weird saying it, but I hope you have a positive diagnosis too and I hope you find relief from going gluten free. I have not decided to do that yet incase I need a biopsy, but it kills me every time I eat gluten or wheat or barley or whatever, I know its probably toxic to me. I will post my results here as soon as I get them.

I hope they get it figured out soon for you. Hopefully you know of the chance of a false negative on bloods and even bioopsy. When you are done with all the testing you choose to do do give the diet a good strict try. We are here and many of us have had a long road to diagnosis mainly because doctors fail to mention trying the diet no matter what the test results. When you do go gluten free you should have a Wegman's near you and they make shopping for gluten free foods very easy. All the name brand stuff they have that has a circle G is safe. Welcome to the boards and I hope you feel better soon.

[SabresOnTheWarPath]

Thank you as well, I will definitely try the diet after testing is done. In the mean time, I have been trying to treat the symptoms with Digestive Advantage for Irritable Bowl Syndrome (which is originally what I thought I had) and Peppermint Oil pills. The Dr. also put me on a medication to control the diarrhea and I have been on these things since last friday and they already stopped being effective, so the diet is the last thing I can think of no matter what the results. I will make sure to start checking Wegman's out for the gluten free products. I have found some recipes on here in some of the other threads that I want to try.

[SabresOnTheWarPath]

Well, I got my blood test results back today and I was basically devastated. I do not have celiac disease. My blood test results were very normal. I was told I have Irritable Bowel Syndrome, which to me is so much worse. I was given a bunch of info on it and how to go about dealing with it from exercising, to managing stress, to eliminating food groups and foods, all of which I have already done before and nothing has worked. So I am basically back at square one. I was given a prescription, but I have to lower my dosage down to one a day and the doctor will only let me be on it for 6 months, he wants me to eventually be weened off of it and if I still need it after 6 months I have to go back. I really don't know what to make of this or even where to go from here. I am quite upset at this turn of events, as I was fairly certain I had celiac disease. I just don't know what to do now.

[ravenwoodglass]

Well, I got my blood test results back today and I was basically devastated. I do not have celiac disease. My blood test results were very normal. I was told I have Irritable Bowel Syndrome, which to me is so much worse. I was given a bunch of info on it and how to go about dealing with it from exercising, to managing stress, to eliminating food groups and foods, all of which I have already done before and nothing has worked. So I am basically back at square one. I was given a prescription, but I have to lower my dosage down to one a day and the doctor will only let me be on it for 6 months, he wants me to eventually be weened off of it and if I still need it after 6 months I have to go back. I really don't know what to make of this or even where to go from here. I am quite upset at this turn of events, as I was fairly certain I had celiac disease. I just don't know what to do now.

What you do now is give the diet a good strict try. I relied on blood tests for years and no doctor ever told me anything about the diet. They just said the tests were negative and I should be happy. I wasn't, I was dieing slowly and painfully. They also never told me there was any possibility of a false negative. Try the diet you have nothing to lose.

[ang1e0251]

You know blood tests have many false negatives. Get a copy of your test results and post them here. There are some real experts on the testing that can evaluate the results for you. No matter what you can still go on the Gluten free diet and see how you feel. You don't need a dr's permission for that. It is a healthy diet and you can see if it gives you relief.

[SabresOnTheWarPath]

Thank you again, when I get the chance I will post my test results, I do not have them with me at the moment. I will give the diet another go and see how things work out. You guys have been very helpful this past week, I appreciate it.

[hhdavid]

Sabre, sorry to hear about your results. If mine come back negative, I'm still going on the gluten-free diet. Like ravenwoodglass and ang1e0251 said, it can't hurt to try.

Speaking of tests, I got my package from Enterolab Thursday. Opened the package, and inside only the materials for the stool test, no swabs for the gene test. *sigh* Called the number, and they sent out the gene test materials that day. I must say I was a little disappointed, since I've been waiting for the tests to arrive so I could take them and make the diet change. Not to mention it's a lab and the amount of money I spent, I guess I expected a little more attention to detail. Guess that's what I get for having expectations, lol. But I can hang on a few more days, I guess.