Starting Out gluten-free

[loubyloo]

Ok, so have daily D for months now along with nausea. Been treated with various meds but no resolution. I virtually stopped eating and i noticed that when i had wheat,barley etc i got D the following morning, if i didn't have it the following morning i was fine. So after weeks of eating very very little and lots of research which said i needed to be eating gluten for about 6 weeks for a blood test to be of any use i started eating normally again making sure i was consuming plenty of gluten. Boy has this been hard. The D worse than ever and several nights of no sleep due to the pain and nausea, the worst being this week where i was literally screaming in agony.(really severe bloating as well and D)

My Dr has done tests saying that if i'm reacting this badly to gluten it'll show up.....is this true?

After that bad bout of monday night i've had

tuesday - 4 rice cakes (2 with almond butter, 2 with philadelphia)

wednesday

no bowel symptoms, just a fragile stomach still

- starbucks skinny latte with caramel syrup

2 rice cakes with philadelphia, half avocado, some sprouted beans (just a spoonful)

thursday

1 small still very soft bowel movement

- starbucks skinny milk with SF hazelnut syrup

- gluten-free mango & fig raw food bar

- steamed courgette

- baby potatoes

- homemade bean chilli (kidney beans, soya beans, tomatoes, onion,cornflour, spices - but didn't make it hot)

Friday (today) i had D again (only twice tho) in the morning and during the night i had MILD discomfort/pain around my navel

Is this meant to happen?

before it was very clear cut, no gluten = no D but this is confusing me and making me doubt its gluten...hmmm

does anyone have experience or advice?

Much appreciated, thanks

[mushroom]

- baby potatoes

- homemade bean chilli (kidney beans, soya beans, tomatoes, onion,cornflour, spices - but didn't make it hot)

On a strictly gluten free diet these items should be okay. Some of us, though, have other intolerances. I could eat the onion and the spices so long as they were not hot peppers (nightshades, as are potatoes and tomatoes). The kidney beans and soya beans would also have me curled up in a ball on the sofa. Thankfully, not everyone is as sensitive as me. But you might want to try an elimination diet with these ingredients and find out if any of them is bothering you. On the other hand, you are early in the diet, and things do not always go smoothly at the start, there are setbacks, mistakes, accidental cross-contamination, and just plain your gut is in an uproar still

[loubyloo]

On a strictly gluten free diet these items should be okay. Some of us, though, have other intolerances. I could eat the onion and the spices so long as they were not hot peppers (nightshades, as are potatoes and tomatoes). The kidney beans and soya beans would also have me curled up in a ball on the sofa. Thankfully, not everyone is as sensitive as me. But you might want to try an elimination diet with these ingredients and find out if any of them is bothering you. On the other hand, you are early in the diet, and things do not always go smoothly at the start, there are setbacks, mistakes, accidental cross-contamination, and just plain your gut is in an uproar still

I've been wondering about dairy and soya intolerances, but my doctor doesn't want me to cut out anything else just now because of my weight. I don't know. also if i try too many things at once then i'm in an elimination diet situ and will have to test on the basis of reintroducing rather than exclusion. I'm pretty terrified of eating anything just now. I don't know what to eat. I'm vegetarian too. I had such severe bloating after having salad for dinner followed by yoghurt and biscuits that i'm blaming all 3 groups of food (probably irrationally). But if i live off rice cakes they'll never discover what i'm reacting too. I can tell this is going to be a long haul to recovery.

It's all come on pretty suddenly so its confusing how i could be reacting to everything all of a sudden.

But u think it CAN take a wee while for your stomach to settle even without the gluten? Like can my digestion all be screwed up which is causing these reactions?

[cassP]

the kidney beans would have me couch ridden on a heating pad with pressure on my stomach

and the potatoes & corn flour would probably be messing me up too!!

chilli is really hard to digest for someone healing their gut, or having additional intolerances ( i cant handle excess fructose or grains or dairy or beans/legumes )

i know it sounds overwhelming... and i understand your doc wanting you to not restrict your eating. if i were you- i would limit or avoid dairy/soy/beans/legumes for now... if you're worried about losing too much weight- i would tell you to add a helping of basmati rice to every meal... it even tastes good with scrambled eggs

good luck with your recovery

[mushroom]

Answering your original question about your gluten challenge, I'm not sure that six weeks would be long enough for positive results on the tests - a lot of people say two to three months is required for accurate results. It is truly torture to do this and a shame if you don't get positive results. Once we have been gluten free we tend to react more strongly to the gluten, but that doesn't necessarily result in high levels of antibodies in the blood

Yes, the healing process is not a straight line upwards You sound like an experienced gluten-freer, but have you checked for hidden sources -cosmetics, scrips, OTC meds? Have you rid yourself of old wooden and scratched plastic cooking utensils, got a new toaster and colander? Shampoos and conditioners usually have wheat in them too. There are so many places gluten hides - pet food being another.

If you are absolutely sure you are gluten free then I would wait a little while and see if things settle down. I gather you are at low weight which is why the doctor wants you to retain as many foods as possible. Nevertheless, lactose is often a problem for celiacs until they heal. Maybe you could try taking Lactaid tablets with your milk and see if that helps.

I hope you are feeling better soon.