Jump to content

  • 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

In College & Working Help!

glutenfreejenny

Recommended Posts

glutenfreejenny Apprentice
glutenfreejenny
Posted

I debated on where to post this, I was going to put it in the teen/young adults, but I'm in my mid 20's and I thought I could get more advice from people who are done with college.

Anyway, I am currently working full time (no choice there) and trying to go to school full time (it's turned into part time because of the celiac disease). When I get sick it usually lasts about 7 days to fully recover. About 3 or 4 of those days are spent so tired it's really hard to get out of bed. I still continue to go to work because I can't lose my job, so school comes in second. I've told my academic advisor about my celiac disease, but haven't really explained it or anything. I've been missing a lot of classes lately. When I get glutenated sometimes while sick I'll catch something else like the flu. I work with kids so there's always something going around.

My question is about school. Is there anything I can do to make them more aware and help me out? My teachers all do not accept late work, it's a school policy. So if I miss a day all that work is gone. This is obviously a problem. I've been trying to get through college for the past 5 years. Any advice?

Thanks :)

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

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):


The Fluffy Assassin Enthusiast
The Fluffy Assassin
Posted
I debated on where to post this, I was going to put it in the teen/young adults, but I'm in my mid 20's and I thought I could get more advice from people who are done with college.

Anyway, I am currently working full time (no choice there) and trying to go to school full time (it's turned into part time because of the celiac disease). When I get sick it usually lasts about 7 days to fully recover. About 3 or 4 of those days are spent so tired it's really hard to get out of bed. I still continue to go to work because I can't lose my job, so school comes in second. I've told my academic advisor about my celiac disease, but haven't really explained it or anything. I've been missing a lot of classes lately. When I get glutenated sometimes while sick I'll catch something else like the flu. I work with kids so there's always something going around.

My question is about school. Is there anything I can do to make them more aware and help me out? My teachers all do not accept late work, it's a school policy. So if I miss a day all that work is gone. This is obviously a problem. I've been trying to get through college for the past 5 years. Any advice?

Thanks :)

Not to sound like the doctor on "Hee-Haw," but if you're only getting sick when you accidentally eat gluten, don't do that. We can help a lot with suggestions for quick meals, fast food (maybe not "a lot" under that category, but some), frozen foods, meal planning, etc. Obviously, you're pressed for time, but this is your health you're talking about. Even apart from being able to meet school and work responsibilities, you have to learn how to live gluten-free, and for the rest of your life.

You should certainly make your employers and teachers aware of the situation, and try to get them to work with you as much as possible. I don't know what kind of school refuses as policy to accept late work; obviously you'll have to find out if there's any wiggle room in the policy at all. If you're asking whether the ADA applies to celiac disease, no, it probably doesn't. But people are willing to make reasonable accommodations. You'll just have to explain as clearly as you can the situation, and as I say, try harder to avoid gluten accidents.

Also, there's no law that says you have to finish school in any set span of time. If you have no choice about working full time and are having too much difficulty keeping up with school, let school go until you have a better handle on the gluten-free diet. When you go back, your performance will likely be dramatically better.

Sorry I can't offer any more helpful suggestions. Good luck.

MySuicidalTurtle Enthusiast
MySuicidalTurtle
Posted

You could try on-line classes since you'd be submitting via the internet. Are you eating gluten-free? I found working and going to college at the same time to be doable as long as I followed my diet. So, it can be done! Just make sure you are eating right, even if it means only fresh fruit, veggies, and meat. It may be boring but you will not get sick. Good luck!

Mrs.Doyle Newbie
Mrs.Doyle
Posted

Is it possible for you to take a term off from school and get a solid health and good habit foundation under you? There is so much pressure to get into a good school, get good grades, graduate as soon as possible and make lots and lots of money... In my experience, no one has ever asked me at a job interview what my grades were and how long it took me to get through school (B average & over 8 years). It sounds like you are in a place where you are questioning whether or not to push yourself... my personal experience has shown me time and time again, that if I push myself, I end up paying for it more than if I had just backed off a bit, i.e. I push through one week and am down for two months instead of taking the 2 days it would have taken to get my strength back. This is just my personal experience and yours may be completely different and I might have misunderstood your post... I guess my theme is that it is totally fine, and actually wise, to take time out and care for your health.

Please go back and talk with the folks at school who can help you. Perhaps you can bring a note from your doctor. Take the time before you meet with them to clearly decide what you want. Ask what they have done in other cases of chronic illness. You might try sending an email, too... something like "I have a chronic illness that at times makes it incredibly difficult for me to meet my obligations as a student. What accommodations or solutions we can find to this problem so that I can stay on track with obtaining my degree?" Be direct and try not to whine (I'm terrible with that). Unfortunately some of your very healthy student peers have tried to manipulate their professors with lame excuses and the professors don't want to hear anything now, whether legit or not. If you approach them in a professional, adult manner, you should have better success. Unfortunately, what you are experiencing is a life lesson from a class you didn't enroll in, other than the class of life. and it isn't a very fun class, sorry kiddo! Do not accept anything other than your needs being met. You give this school money, you buy their product and if you aren't getting what you pay for, you might want to consider going to another school.

Hang in there and be gentle with your precious self!

RESO Apprentice
RESO
Posted

MST's suggestion about online classes is a good one, IMO. I am finishing up my last class online and will be receiving my BA in a couple of weeks. If it is an option for you, it's great because even though you still have due dates, you can do assignments day or night, whenever you can. Make sure they're accredited by the Dept. of Education. In fact, a lot of "brick and mortar" colleges/universities are offering online programs.

Mrs. Doyle and The Fluffy Assassin are also correct, you must take care of your health first and foremost. If you don't have your health, you have nothing. If you tell us what area of the country you're in, we (people on this forum) might be able to tell you about gluten-free restaurants and products in your area. Good luck and I hope everything works out for you.

adiadv10 Newbie
adiadv10
Posted

My oldest daughter is your age, and we both recently found out we have Celiac disease. She just started a promising new job, wants to further her education and make it a career, and is dealing with the same problems you are. We're still going through a lot of accidental "glutenings" just like you because it's a dramatic lifestyle change and we're still learning every day.

I think it's harder for her because she is tempted to cheat every day -- especially because she's so busy. I've only given into temptation once since going gluten-free in June, and I paid dearly. It really seems like my reactions are much worse than before I went gluten-free (or maybe I was used to it after so many years?). But the good days are sure a nice change!

A lot of pressure is often put on young adults to burn the candle at both ends because they're "young and strong," but the bottom line is you have a serious disease that you're learning to live with, while simultaneously trying to make a good future for yourself.

I REALLY admire your drive to get an education and your self-sufficiency, but like I keep stressing to my daughter: your present and future health are most important. You can't do your best at anything without it.

Obviously everyone here is behind you 100%!

Chuck8268 Rookie
Chuck8268
Posted
I debated on where to post this, I was going to put it in the teen/young adults, but I'm in my mid 20's and I thought I could get more advice from people who are done with college.

Anyway, I am currently working full time (no choice there) and trying to go to school full time (it's turned into part time because of the celiac disease). When I get sick it usually lasts about 7 days to fully recover. About 3 or 4 of those days are spent so tired it's really hard to get out of bed. I still continue to go to work because I can't lose my job, so school comes in second. I've told my academic advisor about my celiac disease, but haven't really explained it or anything. I've been missing a lot of classes lately. When I get glutenated sometimes while sick I'll catch something else like the flu. I work with kids so there's always something going around.

My question is about school. Is there anything I can do to make them more aware and help me out? My teachers all do not accept late work, it's a school policy. So if I miss a day all that work is gone. This is obviously a problem. I've been trying to get through college for the past 5 years. Any advice?

Thanks :)

Its very tough,been there done that! Unawareness is hurting us,,alot!celiac disease for 6 years.Chuck :huh:

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

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):


ravenwoodglass Mentor
ravenwoodglass
Posted

Not much to add other than that Celiac is covered under the ADA. You should go to the ADA office at school and see what help they can provide. Also you may be getting CC'd badly working with the little ones. Their snacks and even some of the stuff they may use for play could be an issue.

Archived

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

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

  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      132,869
    • Most Online (within 30 mins)
      7,748
    MaryannHall
    Newest Member
    MaryannHall
    Joined
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A20):
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A22):

  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      121.5k
    • Total Posts
      1m
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A21):

  • Upcoming Events

  • Posts

    • Scott Adams
      Anti-endomysial Antibody (EMA) Testing

      By Scott Adams · Posted

      That is interesting, and it's the first time I heard about the umbilical cord beings used for that test. Thanks for sharing!
    • knitty kitty
      Son's legs shaking

      By knitty kitty · Posted

      @lizzie42, You're being a good mom, seeking answers for your son.  Cheers! Subclinical thiamine deficiency commonly occurs with anemia.  An outright Thiamine deficiency can be precipitated by the consumption of a high carbohydrate meal.   Symptoms of Thiamine deficiency include feeling shakey or wobbly in the legs, muscle weakness or cramps, as well as aggression and irritability, confusion, mood swings and behavior changes.  Thiamine is essential to the production of neurotransmitters like serotonin and dopamine which keep us calm and rational.   @Jsingh, histamine intolerance is also a symptom of Thiamine deficiency.  Thiamine is needed to prevent mast cells from releasing histamine at the slightest provocation as is seen in histamine intolerance.  Thiamine and the other B vitamins and Vitamin C are needed to clear histamine from the body.  Without sufficient thiamine and other B vitamins to clear it, the histamine builds up.  High histamine levels can change behavior, too.  High histamine levels are found in the brains of patients with schizophrenia.  Thiamine deficiency can also cause extreme hunger or conversely anorexia.   High carbohydrate meals can precipitate thiamine deficiency because additional thiamine is required to process carbohydrates for the body to use as fuel.  The more carbohydrates one eats daily, the more one needs additional thiamine above the RDA.  Thiamine is water soluble, safe and nontoxic even in high doses. Keep in mind that gluten-free processed foods like cookies and such are not required to be fortified and enriched with vitamins and minerals like their gluten containing counterparts are.  Limit processed gluten-free foods.  They are often full of empty calories and unhealthy saturated fats and additives, and are high in histamine or histamine release triggers.  It's time you bought your own vitamins to supplement what is not being absorbed due to malabsorption of Celiac disease.  Benfotiamine is a form of Thiamine that has been shown to improve intestinal health as well as brain function. Do talk to your doctors and dieticians about supplementing with the essential vitamins and minerals while your children are growing up gluten free.  Serve nutritionally dense foods.  Meats and liver are great sources of B vitamins and minerals. Hope this helps!  Keep us posted on your progress!
    • Scott Adams
      Bob red mill gluten free oats

      By Scott Adams · Posted

      Oats naturally contain a protein called avenin, which is similar to the gluten proteins found in wheat, barley, and rye. While avenin is generally considered safe for most people with celiac disease, some individuals, around 5-10% of celiacs, may also have sensitivity to avenin, leading to symptoms similar to gluten exposure. You may fall into this category, and eliminating them is the best way to figure this out. Some people substitute gluten-free quinoa flakes for oats if they want a hot cereal substitute. If you are interested in summaries of scientific publications on the topic of oats and celiac disease, we have an entire category dedicated to it which is here: https://www.celiac.com/celiac-disease/oats-and-celiac-disease-are-they-gluten-free/   
    • knitty kitty
      High TTG-IgG and Normal TTG-IgA

      By knitty kitty · Posted

      @SamAlvi, It's common with anemia to have a lower tTg IgA antibodies than DGP IgG ones, but your high DGP IgG scores still point to Celiac disease.   Since a gluten challenge would pose further health damage, you may want to ask for a DNA test to see if you have any of the commonly known genes for Celiac disease.  Though having the genes for Celiac is not diagnostic in and of itself, taken with the antibody tests, the anemia and your reaction to gluten, it may be a confirmation you have Celiac disease.   Do discuss Gastrointestinal Beriberi with your doctors.  In Celiac disease, Gastrointestinal Beriberi is frequently overlooked by doctors.  The digestive system can be affected by localized Thiamine deficiency which causes symptoms consistent with yours.  Correction of nutritional deficiencies quickly is beneficial.  Benfotiamine, a form of thiamine, helps improve intestinal health.  All eight B vitamins, including Thiamine (Benfotiamine), should be supplemented because they all work together.   The B vitamins are needed in addition to iron to correct anemia.   Hope this helps!  Keep us posted on your progress!
    • trents
      High TTG-IgG and Normal TTG-IgA

      By trents · Posted

      Currently, there are no tests for NCGS. Celiac disease must first be ruled out and we do have testing for celiac disease. There are two primary test modalities for diagnosing celiac disease. One involves checking for antibodies in the blood. For the person with celiac disease, when gluten is ingested, it produces an autoimmune response in the lining of the small bowel which generates specific kinds of antibodies. Some people are IGA deficient and such that the IGA antibody tests done for celiac disease will have skewed results and cannot be trusted. In that case, there are IGG tests that can be ordered though, they aren't quite as specific for celiac disease as the IGA tests. But the possibility of IGA deficiency is why a "total IGA" test should always be ordered along with the TTG-IGA. The other modality is an endoscopy (scoping of the upper GI track) with a biopsy of the small bowel lining. The aforementioned autoimmune response produces inflammation in the small bowel lining which, over time, damages the structure of the lining. The biopsy is sent to a lab and microscopically analyzed for signs of this damage. If the damage is severe enough, it can often be spotted during the scoping itself. The endoscopy/biopsy is used as confirmation when the antibody results are positive, since there is a small chance that elevated antibody test scores can be caused by things other than celiac disease, particularly when the antibody test numbers are not particularly high. If the antibody test numbers are 10x normal or higher, physicians will sometimes declare an official diagnosis of celiac disease without an endoscopy/biopsy, particularly in the U.K. Some practitioners use stool tests to detect celiac disease but this modality is not widely recognized in the medical community as valid. Both celiac testing modalities outlined above require that you have been consuming generous amounts of gluten for weeks/months ahead of time. Many people make the mistake of experimenting with the gluten free diet or even reducing their gluten intake prior to testing. By doing so, they invalidate the testing because antibodies stop being produced, disappear from the blood and the lining of the small bowel begins to heal. So, then they are stuck in no man's land, wondering if they have celiac disease or NCGS. To resume gluten consumption, i.e., to undertake a "gluten challenge" is out of the question because their reaction to gluten is so strong that it would endanger their health. The lining of the small bowel is the place where all of the nutrition in the food we consume is absorbed. This lining is made up of billions of microscopically tiny fingerlike projections that create a tremendous nutrient absorption surface area. The inflammation caused by celiac disease wears down these fingers and greatly reduces the surface area needed for nutrient absorption. Thus, people with celiac disease often develop iron deficiency anemia and a host of other vitamin and mineral deficiencies. It is likely that many more people who have issues with gluten suffer from NCGS than from celiac disease. We actually know much more about the mechanism of celiac disease than we do about NCGS but some experts believe NCGS can transition into celiac disease.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

NOTICE: This site places This site places cookies on your device (Cookie settings). on your device. Continued use is acceptance of our Terms of Use, and Privacy Policy.