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Never Thought I Would Be Able To Do This

ravenwoodglass

By ravenwoodglass
in Coping with Celiac Disease

Recommended Posts

txplowgirl Enthusiast
txplowgirl
Posted

CONGRATS Raven! Gives me hope that my problems will be gone in time too. :D

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psawyer Proficient
psawyer
Posted

Well done, and congratulations. It is possible to overcome many obstacles it you try hard enough. :)

Roda Rising Star
Roda
Posted

Cheers and congrats!!

kareng Grand Master
kareng
Posted

Congrats, Raven! I feel I should say something deep and meaningful here......but then you would ask who wrote it for me!

Really, this is a great accomplishment! You have overcome a lot of obstacles. :D

kayo Explorer
kayo
Posted

I have chills! Congratulations doesn't seem like a big enough word for all that you have accomplished. You're amazing, simply amazing. :)

gifree Apprentice
gifree
Posted

In 2002 I had given up all hope of ever being able to do anything but live in pain and continue slowing dieing. Even after diagnosis I still had little hope of ever being able to accomplish much as my brain and body were so very damaged. Everything was so hard from thinking to walking to even talking to my children. I felt trapped in my own body.

I had to quit college one semester short of my degree in 1996 due to being so very sick from undiagnosed celiac. In 2008 I tried to go back to school and finish my last semester but my brain was still not back enough and my memory was still so poor and movement was still so difficult at times that I went back for a little over a month and gave up. It was just too hard physically and mentally. To say that was demoralizing is an understatement. But I continued with physical therapy for my motion issues and never gave up on the idea that I could heal fully.

Last summer I decided to give it one last shot. I sit here now with tears in my eyes still not quite believing that I took my last exam today. I did it. I finished my duel degrees. Even if I don't ever find a job with them at least my children can say now that their Mom at least finished college. Something no one else in my family (other than my children) ever did. It was hard and I spent many many hours studying to get my brain to be able retain what I was reading but I did it. I even had a 100% average in 2 of my classes going into the exams.

For those of you who are still struggling with neuro damage keep the faith. We can recover even from severe brain damage. I wish it hadn't taken so long but I am so glad I never gave up. You shouldn't either.

Big, big congrats Ravenwood!! I know from personal experience how difficult it is to persevere academically when Celiac affect's one's cognition...so, a big hats off to you!

Hang that diploma prominently and proudly!

Googles Community Regular
Googles
Posted

Awesome! That is so cool!

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Ox on the Roof Apprentice
Ox on the Roof
Posted

Congratulations! You are a kind person and even though I've been here a short time, you've already been an encouragement. I celebrate with you! Someone should bake you a good ol' gluten-free CAKE! :D

plantime Contributor
plantime
Posted

Way to go!!

sandsurfgirl Collaborator
sandsurfgirl
Posted

Congratulations!!!! I am SO proud of you! What an inspiration you are. Thank you for sharing and for all you do to help others on this board. Way to go!!!!!

Woot woot! Woop Woop! Yippee!!! Yay! Awesome! You're number one! Go Ravenwoodglass! (that's my cheerleader impression)

finally diagnosed Apprentice
finally diagnosed
Posted

In 2002 I had given up all hope of ever being able to do anything but live in pain and continue slowing dieing. Even after diagnosis I still had little hope of ever being able to accomplish much as my brain and body were so very damaged. Everything was so hard from thinking to walking to even talking to my children. I felt trapped in my own body.

I had to quit college one semester short of my degree in 1996 due to being so very sick from undiagnosed celiac. In 2008 I tried to go back to school and finish my last semester but my brain was still not back enough and my memory was still so poor and movement was still so difficult at times that I went back for a little over a month and gave up. It was just too hard physically and mentally. To say that was demoralizing is an understatement. But I continued with physical therapy for my motion issues and never gave up on the idea that I could heal fully.

Last summer I decided to give it one last shot. I sit here now with tears in my eyes still not quite believing that I took my last exam today. I did it. I finished my duel degrees. Even if I don't ever find a job with them at least my children can say now that their Mom at least finished college. Something no one else in my family (other than my children) ever did. It was hard and I spent many many hours studying to get my brain to be able retain what I was reading but I did it. I even had a 100% average in 2 of my classes going into the exams.

For those of you who are still struggling with neuro damage keep the faith. We can recover even from severe brain damage. I wish it hadn't taken so long but I am so glad I never gave up. You shouldn't either.

Congrad's.... you earned every bit of that degree, its never to late to finish what we started many years ago....

be proud...

Mama Melissa Enthusiast
Mama Melissa
Posted

Congrats Raven!!!!!That is awesome all that hard work did pay off:)

Marz Enthusiast
Marz
Posted

Wow, congrats Raven!! Taking up studying after several years of not studying is hard enough, having to deal with celiac disease and disability on top of that must have been almost impossible.

Well done for tackling the impossible, you are an inspiration! :)

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    • heart390
      Why now?

      By heart390 · Posted

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      Why now?

      By trents · Posted

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      @ainsleydale1700, the additional test information you provided is very significant! Here is the important part: "This test detects IgG antibodies to tTG (tissue transglutaminase), and was performed because your IgA level is below normal. The immune response that occurs in celiac disease often leads to IgG antibodies against tTG." It looks to me that you may be a "seronegative" celiac. The frontline diagnostic tests for celiac disease are IGA tests, especially the tTG-IGA. However, another IGA test ("total IGA") was done to check you for IGA deficiency and you were found to be deficient. That means that the usual IGA tests done to diagnose celiac disease, such as the tTG-IGA, would not be reliable. That is why the IGG testing was done "reflexively" (which means in response to the results of a previous test, i.e., the total IGA test.). The IGG tests are not quite as reliable as the IGA tests for diagnosing celiac disease, meaning, there are more "other" possible causes for elevated IGG test scores. The IGG test did give a borderline positive result, however, so the physician ordered the endoscopy with biopsy to check for damage to the small bowel lining that would be caused by untreated (continuing to consume gluten) celiac disease. The biopsy showed no damage so the doc concluded you do not have celiac disease. However, the monkey wrench in the gears of the doc's conclusion is that he gave you permission to proceed with the gluten free diet which would have allowed for healing of the small bowel lining to commence. How long were you gluten free before the biopsy was taken? And how much damage to the small bowel lining was there to begin with? If the damage was minimal, it might have been fully healed by the time the biopsy was done. And the symptoms you describe involving vitamin and mineral deficiencies, tooth enamel loss, cessation of menses, neuropathy, constipation alternating with diarrhea . . . IMO all scream of celiac disease as opposed to NCGS.
    • trents
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      By trents · Posted

      Yes, other health challenges and even severe prolonged emotional distress are thought to be potential triggers for the latent celiac genes. Let me encourage you to get tested for celiac disease as soon as possible so that you can get on with eliminating gluten from your diet, which itself will involve a considerable learning curve in order to become consistent at it. Even pills and meds can contain gluten because wheat starch can be used as a filler. It's important to know if you have celiac disease for two reasons. First, it damages the lining of the small bowel and, over time, wears down those billions of little fingers that make up the lining and produce a huge surface area for absorbing nutrients from the food we eat. The small bowel is essentially the place where all of our nutrition is absorbed. Long term undiagnosed/ignored celiac disease therefore results in nutritional deficiencies even when we are eating well. You don't need that with the other health issues you are dealing with.  Second, many or most people find it difficult to be consistent with the gluten free diet if they don't have a formal diagnosis of celiac disease. It is just too inconvenient and limiting and they begin to rationalize that, "Well, maybe my problems are due to something else." Human nature has a remarkable capacity to rationalize. It can be argued that you can cheat a little bit on the gluten free diet with NCGS because it only creates a little discomfort and distress but not damage. That doesn't work with celiac disease. So, I feel it is important to know which you are dealing with, especially in the case where you have not yet begun the gluten free diet and you are a good candidate for beginning testing. Many people make the mistake of experimenting with the gluten free diet before they get tested for celiac disease and then they have to go back on gluten for weeks or months, the so-called "gluten challenge", in order to achieve valid test results. By the way, autoimmune diseases tend to cluster. When you get one, it is very common to develop others in time. 
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