I'm Getting Addicted To Grocery Shopping For gluten-free Foods

[Coolclimates]

Since being diagnosed with Celiac disease and starting the gluten-free diet in early May, i have found myself making trip after trip to the grocery store and buying just about every gluten-free product under the sun. Well, that's a bit of an exaggeration, but I am just obsessed at trying all these new foods (esp. baked goods and carbs). I've been spending 4-5 times as much $$ as I normally do on groceries. And I don't get everything already made, many of these things are baking ingredients like flours, etc. But I have boxes of cookies and crackers. I have trouble keeping myself from opening new boxes of these treats to try something new all the time. I live alone, and after awhile I get tired of a box of cookies, etc and just have the urge to rip open a box of something different. But it I do that too much, the treats get stale fast and I end up wasting money or eating a lot of stale stuff.

In a way, it's fascinating to see what's out there that I never paid attention to before. But it's also costing me lots of $$ and I'm also worried I can gain weight. Many of these things are staples so I feel I can keep them in the cabinet for a long time. I just suddenly feel deprived and have to "stock up" on everything to make sure I never run out.

Is this strange or is anyone else having a similar experience?

[kareng]

I found it fun, especially in the beginning to try all the new things. I found several things I wished I had known about before. It made it less discouraging and sad to find something good. I found some things I couldn't stand. You might want to make a note of what you really like and what you don't. I felt like - if I can't have regular stuff, I was going to reward myself with lemon wafer cookies and sun nut dark chocolate cups. Just stop, now. Eat what you have. Freezers and plastic bags are your friends. If it's good, maybe, take it to work and share with others. People are sometimes surprised by how good gluten-free can be.

[Olivegirl]

I was the same way when I first got diagnosed (1 year ago). I could not wait to get to the shops and test out all the gluten free products. I even bought heaps of gluten free cookbooks. It was exciting to me to discover a whole lot of different foods I'd never tried before. And it helped to lessen the disappointment that I could never eat a normal pizza again, or pasta etc. It never gets cheaper to eat gluten free, but after a while you will probably get over the excitement of the gluten free aisle at the supermarket! I still, however, 'treat' myself, as I feel I deserve it if I can't eat normal food. And I make sure my cupboard is always well stocked with food I can eat. I actually lost weight when I went gluten free - probably because I could no longer eat all the junk food that I used to eat (despite trying out all the 'new' gluten free food I could find).

[Coolclimates]

most of the things that I've tried so far have been very tasty. However, i don't like the Enjoy life snack bars. They taste like sweetened compressed dogfood. Unfortunately I bought a whole box and they are really expensive, so I'd hate to throw them away but...

[kareng]

Enjoy life snack bars. They taste like sweetened compressed dogfood. Unfortunately I bought a whole box and they are really expensive, so I'd hate to throw them away but...

Maybe the dog would like them?

[Coolclimates]

I don't have a dog. I have cats, but I think it would make them sick. Maybe I should feed them to the fish and geese out in my pond.