Healing Timeline: Is This Back And Forth Normal?

[margotb]

Hello everyone. I know that everyone's healing process is different, but I just wanted to ask and get a sense of how I am doing compared to others.

I did my biopsy after a six-week gluten challenge March 28. The biopsy revealed moderate to severe intestinal damage. During the last four weeks of my gluten challenge I felt horrible: very low energy, persistent colds (one after the other), muscle aches, and so on.

Now it's been almost a month since I have been gluten-free again. I have had about 5 or 6 good days when I felt good energy and the ability to exercise and generally not feel like I have to put in a huge effort to shower, dress, and get out there and participate in life.

But then after the good days I have bad days again. A cold comes back. I wake up feeling so exhausted. I am nervous that I am glutening myself unknowingly, but also unsure about whether this is the healing process and maybe it's a step forward, a step back for a while.

I guess no one knows for sure whether the ups and downs are the ups and downs of healing or whether it is the result of accidental glutening (since it can be so hard to know about gluten), but curious about your experiences with the healing process.

(By contrast, I went off gluten for 2.5 months after my blood test and I think I felt better within about 2-3 weeks and didn't feel quite as many relapses. But maybe this extra gluten challenge damaged me so it will take more time to recover.)

Thoughts?

Thank you in advance!

[mamaw]

I can't answer that question for you but I will say some people feel good almost instantly while others are still healing after two years.We all are very different.There ups & downs for many... Think of it this way:it took years of food abuse to your body so it could take years to heal al lthe damage. Be patient. Also asyou become more in tune with what your body is telling you, you may find that other foods bother you & you never noticed before.Nightshades are big problems for many. Along with soy products.( products with soy additives ...some react to corn as it seems we gluten-free people tend to go to corn products...it becomes an elimination diet to find out what gives us grief.

Hopeyou feel better soon

[srall]

I agree with above poster. I found many more food sensitivities, esp. corn. I'm a year in and I still have bad days (like today). Don't know if I ate something or it's just still part of the healing. It is frustrating. I think a month in is pretty new, esp with that diagnosis.