What Am I Doing?

[jemms]

Lately, I have been binging on cheese even though I cant have dairy and pretzel rolls and other tasty gluten filled breads. I feel like I am out of control. I know this is harming my body but I cant stop. I was only diagnosed a few months ago and in the beginning I was really careful but now I think I am just so angry that I dont care anymore. What is wrong with me???

[Jenniferxgfx]

Gluten an dairy triggers opiod responses in people-- you might be going through withdrawals. If you can resist the urges, the terrible craving may pass. Have gluten-free substitutes (whole foods are great but sometimes I really need a cookie!) think of it like detoxing from heroin, because it's a lot like that. :/

[Takala]

You are just out of whack, that's all. And glutened.

If it's not in the house you can't eat it. Stock up on what you can eat and get rid of the rest of it.

If you are not already, you will need to be taking a gluten free multivitamin, B complex, calcium w/ D, and magnesium supplements.

Try eating higher protein, lower carbohydrate and higher good fats. This means more things live olive oil, avocados, nuts, eggs, chocolate, coconut milk. You should get several cans of that coconut milk and start using it in your coffee and tea. You can also make great sauces and soups out of coconut milk. There is also Coconut Bliss frozen ice coconut cream, which is truly decadent. Never eat just plain old "white" carbohydrates without putting some fat and protein into the meal or snack. This means that you want to make home fries out of your potatoes more often. Fat is good for helping make you feel full, and it takes longer to burn off, it won't spike your blood sugar up and then crash it.

They make gluten free and dairy free cheese substitutes, but if you cannot do these without triggering more cravings, you may want to start subbing something like nuts or cooked beans with lots of olive oil. They also make gluten free, dairy free buttery spreads. I can make a killer rice pasta pesto with olive oil, garlic, basil, and chopped nuts which is cooked and tossed with rice pasta, no cheese necessary. Other people go and eat a lot of hummus of mashed chickpeas, garlic, and olive oil - you can make a gluten free flatbread on a stovetop pretty quickly out of high protein type gluten free nutmeals and seedmeals, and have that as a snack or meal. Other people develop a serious relationship with peanut butter. Avocado and mayo on anything is a worthy cheese substitute. For example, you can take a tortilla, put chile or refried beans on it, lay a fried egg on that, and top with avocado slices drizzled with oil and sprinkled with lime and salt for some kick.

3 to 4 heaping tablespoons of gluten free flour, a bit of vinegar, oil, baking soda, salt, and seasoning, with a little dollop of molasses for the iron, add some water, and you can have a bun in cup in the microwave or a pancake on the stove in a minute or two. I make a lot of these out of things like almonds, buckwheat, and amaranth and teff mixtures, because they are higher protein and don't spike your blood sugar, and they can be used as a base to be made sweeter or savory. You can make them taste like a doughnut when sprinkled w/ cinnamon or choc chips, or whole grain bread. Adding an egg makes them even higher protein. Avoid that rice styrofoam stuff. You also may want to do an alternative breakfast to just cereal and milk sub, or add some protein to it like a hard boiled egg or some bacon.

For the urge to chew things, select gluten free alternatives, such as nuts, fresh fruits, or vegetables. You can also keep your pantry well stashed up with rice cakes, so you have something that can be a base for things like the peanut butter or tuna with gluten free mayonnaise.

Hopefully this has given you some ideas on how to eat heartier so as to avoid bad gluten.

[WhenDee]

You're in the angry phase, that's what is wrong with you!

I was happy to be well when I found out that I thought I would never have an "angry" phase. Wrong! I got glutened at a restaurant and the frustration took over for a while. Eating bread or something straight-out would have made me too sick, but I took lots of chances and did gluten myself by mistake several times.

Being gluten free is

HARD!

FRUSTRATING!

ANNOYING!

It takes over everything! You can't just have a cracker on your way out when you're starving. If the store runs out of the ONE brand of whatever-it-is you can eat, you feel like snatching out of other carts and yelling, "you have a choice! I don't! Pick a different kind of potato chips!" Eating out is a minefield. The kids are constantly into MY stuff, hubby is not careful with the bread, I can't use the toaster... agh!

I will never, ever be able to return to Bernalillo, New Mexico and have the most fantastic green chili enchiladas ever conceived by man, my most favorite food ever ever ever ever. That is truly heartbreaking. It makes me want to cry, right now.

The good thing is... this will pass. If you persevere, this will go away, and besides the occasional moment, you'll get used to it and stop being so mad. You'll find new favorites and frequently manage to forget the old ones.

It's like a phase of grief. It seems stupid, but we have to put down a whole way of eating, a way of interacting socially, and pick another way that is hard and frustrating and annoying. Of course we grieve a little, even if it seems selfish and trite.

So grieve, and try not to hurt yourself too much with it. Tomorrow is always a new day.

[loneferret]

WhenDee... you just described what I'm feeling, minus that last part of things passing. lol

[jemms]

thank you all for your thoughts and ideas...I am in tears over here because I know I am not alone in this.

@Takala-thank you for the wonderful ideas!!! I am printing that out.

@WhenDee thank you for reminding me that tomorrow is a new day and that it is ok to feel like this sometimes.

Peace to you both!