Jump to content

  • Welcome to Celiac.com!

    You have found your celiac tribe! Join us and ask questions in our forum, share your story, and connect with others.



  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A1):

    Celiac.com Sponsor (A1-M):

  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Support Our Content
    eNewsletter
    Donate

Day 5 Gluten Free And Anxiety/depression

kathleenp

By kathleenp
in Coping with Celiac Disease

Recommended Posts

kathleenp Apprentice
kathleenp
Posted

Today is day 5 of going gluten free for me. The afternoon of the first day I had bad anxiety, but I took some meds and it stopped. The next several days I could tell a slight improvement in mood and thought things were going well. Then today has been a horrible, depressed/crying/anxious day. Is it normal to see improvement and then to have a really bad day?

I so want this to be the answer to my depression/anxiety/bipolar, but part of me thinks I am nuts to think it could be this simple. I haven't had any problems with the diet at all-have no desire to eat gluten, mostly becuase I am so sick to begin with. I really need to see some improvement.

How did it go for you when first going gluten free?

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):
Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):


kathleenp Apprentice
kathleenp
Posted
  • Author

Also, yesterday morning I woke up with a bad stomach ache-I thought maybe I had food poisening, but my sister ate the same food that I did and she wasn't sick at all. Tonight I feel a little bit of a stomach ache. Is this a symptom of Gluten withdrawal? I have also been having head aches. I will say that my sleep has been amazingly deep. I don't think I have ever slept this well and I am alert during the day. I am really loving that. :D

mushroom Proficient
mushroom
Posted

You are probably going through gluten withdrawal, which is really common. Gluten acts as an opioid on the brain and the withdrawal can last up to a couple of weeks, including migraine-like headaches, depression, anxiety. If you have a scrip for a mood elevator try that, but otherwise I am afraid you just have to stick it out, like withdrawing from nicotine or drugs. But it is well worth it when you get through to the other side :)

kathleenp Apprentice
kathleenp
Posted
  • Author

Thanks Mushroom. I am actually feeling much better today, although I am not at work and I'm sure not having that added stress is also helping. You mentioned that gluten acts as an opioid on the brain. Is that only for people with celiac and gluten intolerance, or is that for anyone? It's been a rough ride so far, but I have no desire to go back to gluten, thankfully.

kareng Grand Master
kareng
Posted

Sorry I didn't see this sooner. The first week I went off gluten, I had monster headaches. Not migraines. Not sinus. I found a little dark chocolate made them back down a bit. ( OK. Maybe a little more than a little. :ph34r:

kathleenp Apprentice
kathleenp
Posted
  • Author

Karen, my headaches are not migraine either. But they ARE persistent! :angry: I'll have to try the chocolate. ;) Did you have stomach pain or the anxiety/depression? I ahve been very weepy and spent a lot of time in the bathroom at work, trying to get a hold of myself and keep from crying in front of everyone. :o

kareng Grand Master
kareng
Posted

Karen, my headaches are not migraine either. But they ARE persistent! :angry: I'll have to try the chocolate. ;) Did you have stomach pain or the anxiety/depression? I ahve been very weepy and spent a lot of time in the bathroom at work, trying to get a hold of myself and keep from crying in front of everyone. :o

I was a bit weepy. I'm not generally a cryer. It is an emotional thing to be told you have a" chronic illness". Even a curable one. It's a lifestyle change. I felt bad that my kids might get it, etc. Getting healthy could effect your hormones, too. Try to find something funny, even Sponge Bob or Family Guy or a stupid joke website. Enjoy the chocolate.

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):
Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):


  • 1 month later...
vawksel Rookie
vawksel
Posted

Today is day 5 of going gluten free for me. The afternoon of the first day I had bad anxiety, but I took some meds and it stopped. The next several days I could tell a slight improvement in mood and thought things were going well. Then today has been a horrible, depressed/crying/anxious day. Is it normal to see improvement and then to have a really bad day?

I so want this to be the answer to my depression/anxiety/bipolar, but part of me thinks I am nuts to think it could be this simple. I haven't had any problems with the diet at all-have no desire to eat gluten, mostly becuase I am so sick to begin with. I really need to see some improvement.

How did it go for you when first going gluten free?

A couple things are probably happening, at the same time. One, is gluten withdrawl. You can get flu like symptoms for a few days after stopping eating it. This has something to do with the gluten binding to the opiate receptors in the brain (nasty stuff I think).

The second is if you are diagnosed bi-polar, you most likely have severe malnutrition issues. Do not be fooled if you are overweight or normal weight. If you are sensitive to gluten, your villa in your intestine are most likely destroyed.

You are most likely deficient in some or all of the following: magnesium, B6, B12, and more.

You need nutrition. You should probably take multi-vitamins, but make sure to check magnesium. Most multivitamins don't use enough, and magnesium is needed to process other vitamins, so just taking a multi-vitamin can cause some magnesium issues. I take a multi + separate magnesium supplement. Make sure to get vegan + gluten free supplements. I've seen so many that are made in factories processing wheat... bad stuff.

Look into things like this: http://www.(Company Name Removed - They Spammed This Forum and are Banned)/Ultimate-Life-Meal-1200-powder/dp/B00013YYR6/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1307578401&sr=8-1

It's a super-foods meal in a fruit blend shake. Read the reviews, people are recovering from mental disorders using this stuff. I think because they are finally getting all the nutrients their bodies need. I personally love it.

Try to treat your body like it's very sick, because it is. Give it the best foods, drink water, go on some walks. But you gotta find out if you are deficient and take care of yourself.

I'm not a doctor, and if anything sounds like advise, please research for yourself and consult your own doctor :)

vawksel Rookie
vawksel
Posted

I was a bit weepy. I'm not generally a cryer. It is an emotional thing to be told you have a" chronic illness". Even a curable one. It's a lifestyle change. I felt bad that my kids might get it, etc. Getting healthy could effect your hormones, too. Try to find something funny, even Sponge Bob or Family Guy or a stupid joke website. Enjoy the chocolate.

Chocolate really makes sense if you are magnesium deficient. Dark chocolate is high in Magnesium. I read many reviews on Amazon about people treating their migranes with magnesium. Having celiacs would make you easily deficient in something like magnesium. Magnesium is one of the harder to get minerals. Vitamin manufactures don't put much in their pills because its a heavy bulky mineral.

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

Go to topic listing

  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Support Celiac.com:
    Join eNewsletter
    Donate
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A17):
    Celiac.com Sponsor (A17):



    Celiac.com Sponsors (A17-M):



  • Recent Activity

    1. trents
      - trents replied to Ello's topic in Celiac Disease Pre-Diagnosis, Testing & Symptoms
      7

      Small Bowel Resection 12 inches

      You might consider asking for a referral to a RD (Registered Dietician) to help with food choices and planning a diet. Even apart from any gluten issues, you will likely find there are some foods you need to avoid because of the shorter bowel but you may also find that your system may make adjustments over time and that symptoms may improve.
    2. Ello
      - Ello replied to Ello's topic in Celiac Disease Pre-Diagnosis, Testing & Symptoms
      7

      Small Bowel Resection 12 inches

      I wish Dr’s would have these discussions with their patients. So frustrating but will continue to do research. Absolutely love this website. I will post any updates on my testing and results. Thank you
    3. trents
      - trents replied to Ello's topic in Celiac Disease Pre-Diagnosis, Testing & Symptoms
      7

      Small Bowel Resection 12 inches

      Losing 12" of your small bowel is going to present challenges for you in nutritional uptake because you are losing a significant amount of nutritional absorption surface area. You will need to focus on consuming foods that are nutritionally dense and also probably look at some good supplements. If indeed you are having issues with gluten you will need to...
    4. Ello
      - Ello replied to Ello's topic in Celiac Disease Pre-Diagnosis, Testing & Symptoms
      7

      Small Bowel Resection 12 inches

      Yes this information helps. I will continue to be pro active with this issues I am having. More testing to be done. Thank you so much for your response.
    5. trents
      - trents replied to Ello's topic in Celiac Disease Pre-Diagnosis, Testing & Symptoms
      7

      Small Bowel Resection 12 inches

      There are two gluten-related disorders that share many of the same symptoms but differ in nature from each other. One is known as celiac disease or "gluten intolerance". By nature, it is an autoimmune disorder, meaning the ingestion of gluten triggers the body to attack it's own tissues, specifically the lining of the small bowel. This attack causes...
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A19):

  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      132,831
    • Most Online (within 30 mins)
      7,748
    ATownCeliac
    Newest Member
    ATownCeliac
    Joined
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A20):
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A22):

  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      121.5k
    • Total Posts
      1m
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A21):

  • Who's Online (See full list)

  • Upcoming Events

  • Posts

    • trents
      Small Bowel Resection 12 inches

      By trents · Posted

      You might consider asking for a referral to a RD (Registered Dietician) to help with food choices and planning a diet. Even apart from any gluten issues, you will likely find there are some foods you need to avoid because of the shorter bowel but you may also find that your system may make adjustments over time and that symptoms may improve.
    • Ello
      Small Bowel Resection 12 inches

      By Ello · Posted

      I wish Dr’s would have these discussions with their patients. So frustrating but will continue to do research. Absolutely love this website. I will post any updates on my testing and results.  Thank you
    • trents
      Small Bowel Resection 12 inches

      By trents · Posted

      Losing 12" of your small bowel is going to present challenges for you in nutritional uptake because you are losing a significant amount of nutritional absorption surface area. You will need to focus on consuming foods that are nutritionally dense and also probably look at some good supplements. If indeed you are having issues with gluten you will need to educate yourself as to how gluten is hidden in the food supply. There's more to it than just avoiding the major sources of gluten like bread and pasta. It is hidden in so many things you would never expect to find it in like canned tomato soup and soy sauce just to name a few. It can be in pills and medications.  Also, your "yellow diarrhea, constipation and bloating" though these are classic signs of a gluten disorder, could also be related to the post surgical shorter length of your small bowel causing incomplete processing/digestion of food.
    • Ello
      Small Bowel Resection 12 inches

      By Ello · Posted

      Yes this information helps. I will continue to be pro active with this issues I am having. More testing to be done. Thank you so much for your response. 
    • trents
      Small Bowel Resection 12 inches

      By trents · Posted

      There are two gluten-related disorders that share many of the same symptoms but differ in nature from each other. One is known as celiac disease or "gluten intolerance". By nature, it is an autoimmune disorder, meaning the ingestion of gluten triggers the body to attack it's own tissues, specifically the lining of the small bowel. This attack causes inflammation and produces antibodies that can be detected in the blood by specific tests like the TTG-IGA test you had. Over time, if gluten is not withheld, this inflammation can cause severe damage to the lining of the small bowel and even result in nutrient deficiency related health issues since the small bowel lining is organ where all the nutrition found in our food is absorbed.  The other is NCGS (Non Celiac Gluten Sensitivity or just "gluten sensitivity") which we know less about and are unsure of the exact mechanism of action. It is not an autoimmune disorder and unlike celiac disease it does not damage the lining of the small bowel, though, like celiac disease, it can cause GI distress and it can also do other kinds of damage to the body. It is thought to be more common than celiac disease. Currently, we cannot test for NCGS. Celiac disease must first be ruled out to arrive at a diagnosis of NCGS. Both disorders require elimination of gluten from the diet.  Either of these disorders can find their onset at any stage of life. We know that celiac disease has a genetic component but the genes are inactive until awakened by some stress event. About 40% of the general population has the genetic potential to develop celiac disease but only about 1% develop active celiac disease. The incidence of NCGS is thought to be considerably higher. I hope this helps.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

NOTICE: This site places This site places cookies on your device (Cookie settings). on your device. Continued use is acceptance of our Terms of Use, and Privacy Policy.