Need To Vent

[homemaker]

Been gluten free for a few weeks...going through withdrawal...that just shows me how much I needed to purge gluten from my body!

For the first week I was just so happy, I was on a sort of high...like wow, this is really the answer to my problem

The second week, I was in a frenzy trying to figure this diet out, trying recipes like a mad woman

Then withdrawal hit, I feel somewhat like an addict...

Not that I am craving wheat or gluten or anything, just jittery and wired..and very very hungry...

Now, at the beginning of the third week I feel overwhelmed and tearful. I feel angry that Dr's don't know more about Gluten Sensitivity...

Sometimes it just makes you feel so alone...Thank God for this forum !!!!!

I am grateful however and I try to hold on to that in the best way I can for now...I am grateful for what I do have...

I am just struggling with some hard feelings right now.....a sort of sadness, maybe not far from the feeling of grief...

Thanks I just needed to share what I am feeling...

[mushroom]

There definitely is such a thing as gluten withdrawal, and the grieving process is also real, knowing all the foods we used to enjoy so much will now have to appear in our diet in a different form, if at all. Do not despair, because these feelings will pass. You will learn to accept that doctors know little about celiac and learn how to help yourself and not be angry with them for what they are not taught. It is the medical schools you should be angry with mostly (but the doctors should keep current, mind you--a lot of what they learned in medical school has long since been superseded.).

I'm sorry you are having such a tough time right now, but hang in there and it should start getting better soon.

[mamaw]

You are not alone in your thinking process. You are going through physcial,& mental issues that many of us have gone through. It does get better but there is no set time-frame for all. Keep your focus or eye on the ball because much better health is on the horizon...

Try not to take in to much info all at once, in fact it is almost impossible to learn all this in a short amount of time & have it all correct. I'm a gluten-free mentor & have been gluten-free for a long while now & I still research & learn something new daily....

I always tell my new ones to think naked foods, no sauce, coatings,marinades, you can spice things up yourself.

Buy a few gluten-free dessert mixes so you don't have to try to figure out the learning curve for baking gluten-free from scratch. After you feel you have those things down pat move on to the next step. Ie: making a batch of cookies or a cake.... or another may be reading labels & finding that there are a lot of gluten-free products on your grocery shelf you still can have..

Read the hundreds of posts on here for great recipes, tips & ideas. This is a great resourse with good solid info....another good thought is finding gluten-free restaurants in your area....

If you are craving anything please ask as I bet someone will have the answer on here....

It all will fall into place & we all started at the beginning just like you...

It is okay to go through a greiving process after all you are giving up a vital part of your being & what you were taught as a child.. FOOD. I can tell you that we, a gluten-free family of four do not crave anything that I can't make gluten-free....plus many times you will find you do not care for what you used to love .

Its a win win on the gluten-free lifestyle, better health, renewed power, & a sense of relief...

blessings

mamaw

[Northern Celiac]

Been gluten free for a few weeks...going through withdrawal...that just shows me how much I needed to purge gluten from my body!

For the first week I was just so happy, I was on a sort of high...like wow, this is really the answer to my problem

The second week, I was in a frenzy trying to figure this diet out, trying recipes like a mad woman

Then withdrawal hit, I feel somewhat like an addict...

Not that I am craving wheat or gluten or anything, just jittery and wired..and very very hungry...

Now, at the beginning of the third week I feel overwhelmed and tearful. I feel angry that Dr's don't know more about Gluten Sensitivity...

Sometimes it just makes you feel so alone...Thank God for this forum !!!!!

I am grateful however and I try to hold on to that in the best way I can for now...I am grateful for what I do have...

I am just struggling with some hard feelings right now.....a sort of sadness, maybe not far from the feeling of grief...

Thanks I just needed to share what I am feeling...

you are not alone. It took a year before I got a proper diagnosis. I have been Gluten free since April of this year. I have a very serious case of celiac disease and even though I have been gluten-free I still have symptoms. Stick w2ith it things w2ill get better

[tmbarke]

I have to say, I'm right there with you in the struggles and withdrawls and the frustrations and sorrow.

I'm only 1 week into it and I cry over it. I feel hopeless at times struggling to find what I can and can't have. I can have fruits and vegetables in the meantime with meat and milk. I'm learning how to eat from there.

Today I made my first gluten free dinner - I wanted to replace what I was going to miss with the same ingredients that are gluten free and although it's tough, I managed. I'm just not clear on how to cook again and get the timing of scratch prep time to match up.

But I'm doing it.......and by doing so, my symptoms are changing. My eyes are focusing, my throat and tongue isn't swelling, my shoulder doesn't feel twisted and painful anymore, my days aren't spent walking thru water (or a fog as some refer to it).........and to me, the feeling I have now is what I've wanted all along! The withdrawls will be temporary - the stumbling thru the grocery store is just a learning curve........but the way I feel now after feeling the effects of gluten in my body will last forever.

I'm certain we'll feel like new people who can't imagine life any other way again.

I know I can't drink Castillo rum! First mistake!!!! But I am doing fine on Ingelnook boxed wine.

I'm gonna miss the Subway BMT the most! But I'll find an alternative to that too (I can be hopeful)

Vent anytime! I do!

Hugs!

[CGally81]

Been gluten free for a few weeks...going through withdrawal...that just shows me how much I needed to purge gluten from my body!

For the first week I was just so happy, I was on a sort of high...like wow, this is really the answer to my problem

The second week, I was in a frenzy trying to figure this diet out, trying recipes like a mad woman

Then withdrawal hit, I feel somewhat like an addict...

Not that I am craving wheat or gluten or anything, just jittery and wired..and very very hungry...

Now, at the beginning of the third week I feel overwhelmed and tearful. I feel angry that Dr's don't know more about Gluten Sensitivity...

Sometimes it just makes you feel so alone...Thank God for this forum !!!!!

I am grateful however and I try to hold on to that in the best way I can for now...I am grateful for what I do have...

I am just struggling with some hard feelings right now.....a sort of sadness, maybe not far from the feeling of grief...

Thanks I just needed to share what I am feeling...

As someone whose withdrawal symptoms (muscle twitching, tingling, heartburn, itchiness) are mostly gone, and whose hunger problem seems to be quickly going away (it was going down and up again, then I removed turkey lunch meat (it's "gluten-free", but cross-contamination may result) and Fudgsicles (malt powder = small amount of gluten, may have been causing hunger), and it's improved so much I ate an almost normal amount of calories for the first time since I went gluten-free over 2 months ago!

Granted, I'd been suffering symptoms for a short period of time before I went gluten-free, so depending on how long you've been having symptoms, your recovery process may be longer than mine. But still, I can tell you from personal experience that it does get better. The hunger really sucks, but it does go away gradually over time. You have to be aware of "hidden gluten". Gluten is in more things than people think.

(For me, I'm now going to test to see if casein affects my hunger. I sure hope I don't have a reaction to that also! If casein affects my hunger, there's another restriction to my diet.)