Sick Again & Don't Know Why

[pondy]

Help please...

I've been sick for almost 2 weeks - headache everyday, bone pain (around ribs), burning pain right below the ribs, constipation, brain fog, anxiety, and skin pain & sensitivity.

I don't get it. I've was doing fairly well since going gluten free near the end of February.

I cannot figure out what's making me so ill.

I would like to try an elimination diet. Any ideas what to start with? Are there any common foods that tend to make us celiacs sick?

I'm a huge cereal eater, I love dairy, potatoes and sugar. These things currently make up a large percentage of my diet.

Having all of these symptoms again is so frustrating. I'm tired of complaining, tired of feeling so bad again - it's like the old days again (before dropping gluten).

Thanks so much for any and all ideas out there...

Pondy

[Newsy]

Hi Pondy,

I went on a self-imposed elimination diet last October, and did GREAT within a few days. Within a few weeks, I was dancing around after being practically bedridden.

A few months after that, I began adding a lot of my old foods back into my diet, with the strict exceptions of gluten, soy and dairy and have been doing fairly well, but not nearly as well as I did in rhe beginning. So now I am going to go back on my original elimination diet (as soon as my current supply of groceries runs out

What I did was net research on my symptoms and eminination diet and such, i.e., rheumatoid arthritis diet, inflammation diet, etc.

I found sites like these helpful:

This one on the elimination diet:

Open Original Shared Link

This one on symptoms:

Open Original Shared Link

The only thing I didn't do well was systematically add foods back into my diet. I knew I reacted to dairy and soy...and of course GLUTEN.

I kept cheating on the dairy, because I had such a LOVE for all things dairy and unlike the gluten, I had such a hard time finding suitable replacements (there are a few, but I believe it is the dairy protein I react to, not the lactose and that makes it even tougher, since many of the fake dairy products contain casein.

Another thing, is the folks here update their profile with their various food intolerances/diagnoses/info on their signatures (I haven't gotten around to mine yet) so you can read after someone posts what foods they react to, and hence you can see that many others here have problems with things like dairy and soy.

I know too, that there is a detox period for us, after years of eating what our bodies consider to be poisons. Who knows how long that detox period lasts for each individual?

But I think you are on the right track with the elimination diet...it helped me anyway.

Also, about 4-5 mo. into my gluten-free diet, I began breaking out in rashes...and what I now believe to be DH reactions from gluten containing body and hair products, pet food, etc. I have a pending appt coming up in August with a dermatologist.

It's a tough row to hoe, but with our friends here (and some good prayers) we will make it.

[pondy]

NewsyNanette, Thanks so much!

I will check those websites out tonight.

It's strange you mentioned the rashes - I'm having those too, mostly on my forearms. I should probably dish out the extra money for gluten free lotion, hair products, etc...

You mentioned pet food - I never really thought about that. I have 2 cats & I'm always in contact with their canned food (Fancy Feast). Could this be part of it? I read that gluten can't get absorbed through the skin.

Anyway, thanks so much for your advice and support!

[Kim69]

Help please...

I've been sick for almost 2 weeks - headache everyday, bone pain (around ribs), burning pain right below the ribs, constipation, brain fog, anxiety, and skin pain & sensitivity.

I don't get it. I've was doing fairly well since going gluten free near the end of February.

I cannot figure out what's making me so ill.

I would like to try an elimination diet. Any ideas what to start with? Are there any common foods that tend to make us celiacs sick?

I'm a huge cereal eater, I love dairy, potatoes and sugar. These things currently make up a large percentage of my diet.

Having all of these symptoms again is so frustrating. I'm tired of complaining, tired of feeling so bad again - it's like the old days again (before dropping gluten).

Thanks so much for any and all ideas out there...

Pondy

Hi pondy. I was dx just over 1 year ago and have had very similar symptoms to yours. The pain under the ribs for me was gas pain. I am fructose malabsorbent, lactose intolerant and have had to cut out lots of other foods such

as legumes.

I was at my wits end starting to consider dx such as MS, fibromyalgia and was told I probably have IBS and another autoimmune disease such as sle or ms etc. I have just discovered I was infected with a parades called blastocystis. In a healthy person this single cell organism can live happily without causing any symptoms but in someone who is immunosuppressed or has digestive problems it can become symptomatic.

I have had 2 days on antibiotics and feel better than I have for 2 years!

Recovery can be a long road. Don't give up. Be systematic about which foods you eliminate first. Consider having breath tests for lactose and fructose intolerance. Avoid gas producing food such as cauli and cabbage. Reduce sugar intake. Try one type of food at a time and see if it makes a difference. Try rice milk with your cereal. At least this reduces your lactose load.

Good luck!

[ravenwoodglass]

You mention being a huge dairy and cereal eater. I would drop the dairy completely for a while, yes I know that is going to be hard but you can add it back in later. Many of us can go back to dairy after we have healed.

What are you eating for cereal? Many of us don't tolerate gluten free oats. Are the cereals you are eating made with those? If they are drop them for now.

You might want to start by eliminating those two things and see if there is any difference before going on a stricter true elimination diet.

[Hawthorn]

You mentioned pet food - I never really thought about that. I have 2 cats & I'm always in contact with their canned food (Fancy Feast). Could this be part of it? I read that gluten can't get absorbed through the skin.

Not sure about it getting absorbed through skin, but cat eats food, cat cleans itself, you stroke cat, then finger finds it's way into mouth, or you grab a drink or something to eat....it can happen. I'm a habitual finger sucker/chewer when I'm concentrating or thinking about something. It's easily done without even realising it.

I got glutened off a handwash once - it was then I ditched the products containing gluten, and some low level problems I had been having improved greatly.

[pondy]

You mention being a huge dairy and cereal eater. I would drop the dairy completely for a while, yes I know that is going to be hard but you can add it back in later. Many of us can go back to dairy after we have healed.

What are you eating for cereal? Many of us don't tolerate gluten free oats. Are the cereals you are eating made with those? If they are drop them for now.

You might want to start by eliminating those two things and see if there is any difference before going on a stricter true elimination diet.

Hi,

I ate Udi's Gluten-free oats a couple months ago. Now I stick to Chex or Nature's Path (no oats anymore).

I had just a splash of milk in my coffee this morning - still sick!

I'm sure you're right about quitting dairy totally - along with the sugar. I'll try. I'm sick of being sick.

Thanks!