Awaiting Biopsy And Looking Forward To Being Gluten Free

[SuzanneT]

Hi everyone,

I've been reading this forum a lot over the last few weeks and I've been finding it very helpful. Thought I'd say hello and a little bit about me and my symptoms.

Last month I had a positive TTg IgA test of 40 (normal reference range 0 - 7.9) and I'm currently waiting for an appointment with a GI doctor and then presumably a biopsy to diagnose celiac disease. I'm in the UK so I'm on a waiting list (have been waiting around 3 weeks so far).

I've not had many of the typical symptoms. My problems started back in June this year when I started getting really horrible palpitations during exercise. I went from being fit and healthy doing 5 gym/yoga classes a week to being unable to do any exercise. This led down the path of being referred to cardio specialists, who found nothing wrong with my heart.

Over the next few months my main symptoms were:

- nausea (but never actually being sick)

- weak feeling in legs

- an almost strange weak and lightheaded feeling which got worse with activity

- sometimes feeling like I couldn't get a deep breath (lots of yawning and sighing)

- just a general feeling of being unwell

And over the last few weeks I've also had

- a few minor stomach cramps

- headaches

I kept going to the doctor about this, but the initial cardio related problems meant that they didn't do any further blood testing until last month when got the all clear from the cardio problems.

I was happy to see the blood test results as I had been worried that there was something really awful going on. I was on vacation for a while at the begining of last month so did an almost gluten free diet for 2 weeks and felt a LOT better.

Unfortunately I've been told to keep eating the gluten until my biospy, which has been very hard. I spent most of the last couple of weeks in bed just feeling really unwell (with the nausea, weakness and light headed feeling) and felt like I was being torchered, because I know that stopping the gluten will make me feel better.

I spoke to the doctor earlier this week to get my priority increased for an appointment, so I'm hoping it won't be long now, but I've decided to have a short gluten free period over the next week or so just to give me some relief.

Anyway sorry for the big rambing story! I'd be interested to know if anyone else has had symptoms like the ones I listed above? I wonder what causes the weak/lightheaded feeling as this is the thing that bothers me the most as I am unable to go anywhere when I feel like that. I don't know if it is because of all the antibodies going around my body, or if it is that my intestines are under stress. I know it's not vitimin deficiency related as my B12 and iron leves were normal.

[Mama Melissa]

Hello welcome to the forum:) I was newely diagnosed 6 1/2 weeks ago with celiac and have been following a strict gluten free diet to my knowledge,i too from time to time still get frequent nausea.I feel your pain it is the most horrible feeling and leaves you with a lost appetite:(I did realise once diagnosed i became lactose intolerant ans i think that to can cause nausea, i put 2 and 2 together last night had a gluten-free product which clearly said contains milk boy i payed for it all night wih constant nausea:( Also other food intolerances can become apparent after you start the gluten free diet i myself am still trying to figure this whole thing out it is very frusterating but with time we will figure out what our bodys are trying to tell us. Best of luck!!!!

[BoydBT]

Yes welcome. This forum is great. I like contributing too.

I was so sick both physically and mentally unbalanced it still is hard to believe it was all from gluten.

I drink Coconut Milk. Tastes great too.

I have found a product packed with nutrients you may want to look into it. Zrii.

Bye

[sb2178]

I wasn't having heart palpitations, but did have low blood pressure problems and was often very lightheaded and even collapsed and blacked out for a few seconds a number of times.

If you aren't absorbing electrolytes like potassium, magnesium and sodium that can do very strange and occasionally very dangerous things to your heart. And, since it sounds like nobody was actually drawing blood during your attacks, it's quite possible that you managed to self correct through diet or drawing from body stores for any blood work. Craving salt and yielding to that helped somewhat for me.

Good luck! And, I would not go off gluten prior to your biopsy, even for a week.