Is Fatigue Normal *after* Going Gluten Free?

[mamarie]

I've been gluten free 8 days now. My stomach has never felt better. But I've been SO tired. I have to take a nap during the day. I'm exhausted by 8:00 at night and just feel like going to sleep. I feel like sleeping in every morning. I'm not normally so tired. I'm wondering if it has anything to do with going gluten free? I don't quite understand it.

[Jestgar]

Think of it like getting over the flu, it takes a while for your body to heal the damage that's been done, and it takes energy to do that.

[GlutenFreeManna]

I felt terrible for about the first two weeks. Some people call it detox or withdrawl symptoms. Think of gluten as a very dangerous drug your body got used to you ingesting. It takes a while to feel 100% better. One other thing, however, if you keep feeling tired after a couple months gluten free you might have to eliminate other foods to help your body heal. I get extremely tired and achy when I eat soy.

[bluebonnet]

i remember wanting to fall asleep a few hours earlier in the evening than i normally do. (that's saying a lot because i have insomnia). of course i'd wake up during the night rather than sleep all through it but i welcomed the sleepiness! i was more tired than usual the first couple of weeks but it tapered off.

[my.oh.my]

When I went Gluten Free I literally fell into bed every afternoon and slept fpr gppd few hours. And what worried me the most was that I didn't have trouble falling asleep again at night....

At first I couldn't figure it out but after few inquires I learnt that it's very usual for your body to react this way when geting used to a complete new diet.

[MagpieWrites]

I've been gluten free 8 days now. My stomach has never felt better. But I've been SO tired. I have to take a nap during the day. I'm exhausted by 8:00 at night and just feel like going to sleep. I feel like sleeping in every morning. I'm not normally so tired. I'm wondering if it has anything to do with going gluten free? I don't quite understand it.

Are you getting everything your body needs now that you aren't eating gluten? I ended up being told by my doctor to start taking B complex vitamins because I was so tired all the time - most Americans apparently get their B vitamins from enriched cereals and processed foods (not a whole lotta liver and shellfish being eaten! lol) and with those gone, it can whomp your body.

I've been taking just an over the counter B complex vitamin for about 8 months now, and it seems to really help my energy levels. YMMV

[Fey]

I'm on day 10 of being gluten free, and days 2 and 3 I had more energy than I could handle. Since then, however, I've been extremely fatigued during the day, and don't get my energy burst until the evening, and then at bedtime I can't sleep because it's like someone finally turned my brain back on and I get restless.

I bought some homeopathic supplements and vitamins yesterday, and will be experimenting with those some to see if I can find what works for me.

[Coolclimates]

I also had a rough first couple of weeks with this diet. I was extremely tired and was an emotional roller coaster. Since fatigue is one of my major symptoms, I noticed it got worse when I started this diet. Now I'm back to about the same level of fatigue that I had before, although my parents said that I seem to be more alert and brighter. Fatigue, restless legs, insomnia are some of my main issues. I never had all that stomach trouble, although I do have acid reflux and have lost a fair amount of weight recently. I've been on the gluten-free diet for about 6 weeks now and haven't felt much better. I've heard that it can take months to feel better, especially if you don't have the "classic" stomach problems.

[rain]

I like Jestgar's comment - that's exactly how I feel. Only with the flu there are more familiar and clear signals as to why and when I need rest. With this the unpredictability can be frustrating. I am 4 months gluten free and still have ups and downs with healing. My sense of it is that as my body go thru phases of recovering I need rest.

[Jestgar]

....... still have ups and downs with healing. My sense of it is that as my body go thru phases of recovering I need rest.

I had that same sort of thing. The 'ups' got longer and longer, and the 'downs' got less down. Now, after four years, I still have days when I just feel tired, but I have no way of knowing if it's still my body healing, or that's the closest I get to getting a cold.