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

Nightmares About Gluten

Googles

By Googles
in Coping with Celiac Disease

Recommended Posts

Googles Community Regular
Googles
Posted

I have recurring nightmares that I have accidentally eaten gluten. Then I try to puke it back up to get it out of me. It is so awful. Does anyone else experience this? Ugh I hate it. I hate this whole thing. Why can't it at least leave me alone in my sleep?

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

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):


domesticactivist Collaborator
domesticactivist
Posted

I have had lots of dreams about it. Last night I dreamed that I ate a huge piece of bread and broke out in a horrible rash!

rosetapper23 Explorer
rosetapper23
Posted

I get those kinds of dreams quite frequently. Usually, I take a bite out of a sandwich or pizza...and then realize it isn't gluten free. I freak out and wake up immediately. I always have a terrified feeling, and it takes me a while to go back to sleep.

ktotheroll Contributor
ktotheroll
Posted

I have definitely had dreams like that! I'm always part-way through eating something that very obviously contains gluten (like cereals or pasta) and then I realize it (in the dream) and get really mad at myself for being so dumb, lol

Googles Community Regular
Googles
Posted
  • Author

I'm glad to know that I'm not the only one who has these nightmares. But I'm sorry other people are going through it too. The last one I woke up and couldn't figure out if I had actually eaten gluten at some point, or if it was a dream. I'm not sure if I woke up in the dream and then was confused, or if I really woke up and was confused. Originally the dreams were that I forgot that I needed to be gluten free and then ate something, but now the dreams are (usually) that I get served food that I think is gluten free (Ie ordered gluten free) then to realize they aren't gluten free. Last time it was a dream about ice cream. UGH.

zus888 Contributor
zus888
Posted

I have definitely had dreams like that! I'm always part-way through eating something that very obviously contains gluten (like cereals or pasta) and then I realize it (in the dream) and get really mad at myself for being so dumb, lol

This is me! It's always something obvious that contains gluten that I've half eaten. Last night, it was a HUGE corn muffin. Then, my next step is to panic. Last night, though, I realized that there was nothing I could do and then decided to order a regular pizza for dinner and make an angelfood cake. I figured I might as well go all out. It's something I think about a lot, though. I, too, wish the stress and anxiety would be gone in my dream state.

quincy Contributor
quincy
Posted

I have recurring nightmares that I have accidentally eaten gluten. Then I try to puke it back up to get it out of me. It is so awful. Does anyone else experience this? Ugh I hate it. I hate this whole thing. Why can't it at least leave me alone in my sleep?

I had those dreams once a week, at least, for my first year after dx. I am now early into my second year since dx, and I don't have that dream much any longer. I think my fear level has gone down alot since my symptoms have gotten down to almost nothing anymore. all the shock that my body was in I think is calming down. I accidentally consumed gluten from some Edy's ice cream yesterday and I was initially freaked out like in my dreams, but I waited for the pain and I was lucky I dodged that bullet of gut pain.... wow. so maybe I am getting alot better and can withstand a minor exposure? I just drank alot of water. So the fear factor has lessened alot.

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

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):


rosetapper23 Explorer
rosetapper23
Posted

I thought Edy's ice cream is gluten free. It isn't? Did you eat a flavor like cookies and cream?

kellynolan82 Explorer
kellynolan82
Posted

I had a dream that I ate a cookie once that wasn't gluten free. I didn't get sick though. I prefer gluten free cookies personally, though :)

love2travel Mentor
love2travel
Posted

I had one of those dreams - once just after my celiac disease diagnosis. My husband and I stopped by a diner off the highway (so goes my dream) when we were seated outside at a rustic table. Two others were seated there as well. We were brought complimentary doughnuts and mine was gluten-free. However, they all looked identical but I was assured mine indeed was gluten-free. Then for some reason we all had to get up from the table and move it (I think it started to storm). Of course when we sat down again I could not tell which was my doughnut! So, I could not have any of them. Sigh... :( No dreams of that nature ever since! :D

anabananakins Explorer
anabananakins
Posted

I used to have nightmares about gluten all the time. Generally I'd dream that I was at a party and absent mindedly took some crackers or chips from a bowl and then I'd panic and spit them out. One time I dreamed I was being chased by cupcakes. If it's any consolation, the nightmares got less frequent the longer I was gluten free (it's been 15 months now)

Last night I dreamed I was ranting at someone for their carelessness with cc. Ha, the poor person hasn't done anything wrong in real life but in my dream, I gave them a very stern telling off :-)

GottaSki Mentor
GottaSki
Posted

I too had nightmares for the first year or so. They became fewer as time went on...I haven't had a gluten nightmare nor anxiety that an item is gluten free for quite sometime. Thank goodness...although I am starting a very strict elimination diet so I hope bad dreams and anxiety aren't part of the deal this time around.

:)

Marilyn R Community Regular
Marilyn R
Posted

Those dreams are normal. (My nightmare was about being at a party and eating fluffy hotdog buns with a bratwurst or hotdog.) And the dreams were very vivid, I saw color, shape, sounds.

I told my Internist about the nightmares and she said it's like when you graduate from college and dream that you can't find the location of your last exam and keep running, looking, or you dream you lacked two credits so you have to go back to college. She felt that the nightmares are a result of feeling unprepared.

It's a major life change and accomplishment you're working hard on. I haven't had a dream like that in months now. I guess your brain is telling you that gluten is bad as a survival mode? I don't know.

Anyway, hope everybody has sweet dreams tonight. :D

love2travel Mentor
love2travel
Posted

OK - I'm pretty certain I had a gluten dream last night due to this thread! :D For some unknown reason I was shopping in a clothing store when suddenly it was a prison for women. We all had to wear denim jeans and bright red dress shirts (one size fit all)! Weird. Anyhow, suddenly we were in a very long buffet line in this prison. You should have seen all the choices! Probably in the hundreds. I kept passing deep fried dishes followed by breads followed by doughnuts... I kept telling the staff I had a disease (in my dream I could not remember the name of it! and that I could not eat anything. Tough luck, I was told.)

1. What was I doing in prison?

2. Prison food looked very good! :P

Marilyn R Community Regular
Marilyn R
Posted

OK - I'm pretty certain I had a gluten dream last night due to this thread! :D For some unknown reason I was shopping in a clothing store when suddenly it was a prison for women. We all had to wear denim jeans and bright red dress shirts (one size fit all)! Weird. Anyhow, suddenly we were in a very long buffet line in this prison. You should have seen all the choices! Probably in the hundreds. I kept passing deep fried dishes followed by breads followed by doughnuts... I kept telling the staff I had a disease (in my dream I could not remember the name of it! and that I could not eat anything. Tough luck, I was told.)

1. What was I doing in prison?

2. Prison food looked very good! :P

That sounds like a pretty vivid dream. At least they didn't have wheels of brie in your prison dream. :lol: (I can picture you wheeling them right to your cell in your red top and denims!

RacerX35 Rookie
RacerX35
Posted

I guess I had a nightmare about gluten the other night :blink: . I never really thought about it as a nightmare though. My wife and I were at a chinese restaurant and we had ordered food. I had "made sure" that they gluten free food and I had a meal. I don't quite remember the whole transaction, but my wife and I were starting to question the food after I was eating either a won ton or just had used the soy sauce. I woke up with a start after I was following the waiter around the whole restaurant trying to talk with him. :lol: I guessit was a nightmare with the wayI woke up.

Later,

Ray

Googles Community Regular
Googles
Posted
  • Author

I wasn't bothered by the nightmares when I was first diagnosed, as I saw them as part of me trying to process the whole change. But now I've been gluten free for over two years and am still having them. Has anyone else kept having them?

love2travel Mentor
love2travel
Posted

That sounds like a pretty vivid dream. At least they didn't have wheels of brie in your prison dream. :lol: (I can picture you wheeling them right to your cell in your red top and denims!

:lol::lol::lol: Just picturing that wheel of brie in my colourful prison garb.

My dreams have always been vivid and imaginative. Our family is very creative and full of imagination so it stands to reason that my dreams are, too! Still stumped on the whole prison thing, though... :P

  • 2 weeks later...
Marilyn R Community Regular
Marilyn R
Posted

I wasn't bothered by the nightmares when I was first diagnosed, as I saw them as part of me trying to process the whole change. But now I've been gluten free for over two years and am still having them. Has anyone else kept having them?

You've been gluten-free longer than me, but I don't have the nightmares anymore. If I recall, you have a shared household. Maybe that's part of the anxiety that causes the nightmares. IDK. Hope you sleep well tonight.

Marilyn R Community Regular
Marilyn R
Posted

:lol::lol::lol: Just picturing that wheel of brie in my colourful prison garb.

My dreams have always been vivid and imaginative. Our family is very creative and full of imagination so it stands to reason that my dreams are, too! Still stumped on the whole prison thing, though... :P

You mentioned that you had to give up dairy right around the time you mentioned the nightmre. I'm not a professional, but I would guess your psyche is batting with the concept of giving up cheese. (I'm far from a pro, but worked as a secretary for the psych dept. at a college 30 something years ago lol.) The good news is you can reintroduce cheese in a few months. I was cautious at first but have gone full bang without repercussion.

love2travel Mentor
love2travel
Posted

You mentioned that you had to give up dairy right around the time you mentioned the nightmre. I'm not a professional, but I would guess your psyche is batting with the concept of giving up cheese. (I'm far from a pro, but worked as a secretary for the psych dept. at a college 30 something years ago lol.) The good news is you can reintroduce cheese in a few months. I was cautious at first but have gone full bang without repercussion.

I just thought of giving up dairy last Monday and has this silly dream a week or so before that. But I was on some new potent painkillers at the time that I stopped using a few days later. The side effects were horrid!

I'm glad for the encouragement about cheese. You know how much I love it! My husband and I will be in Italy six weeks from right now so I will miss gluten AND cheese. Cheese is one of the things I had for snacks on our last trip in May. But I am going to try it again November - hopefully I will be able to at least tolerate the hard cheeses...we will see.

Googles Community Regular
Googles
Posted
  • Author

Yeah,

I hadn't thought about the fact of being in a shared house. I was living alone and then needed to move in with a friend because of expenses. So now I am at more risk of CC. I hadn't thought of that being a cause of my nightmares. That makes since being that they seemed to come back when I moved in with my friend now that I think about it. Thanks for the help.

thleensd Enthusiast
thleensd
Posted

Last night I dreamt I ate half of a burrito before I noticed. It's been 2.5 years since I went gluten-free. The good news is, I don't get those dreams nearly as often as I used to.

At times I've wondered if they're connected to stress (I've had a lot of stressful dreams this week), but I've had them even when I don't seem to be under a lot of stress. More when I'm stressed, though.

I did wake up with a stomach ache (which I still have), so the dream could've been a reaction to the physical sensation.

You're definitely not alone in this! =)

Marilyn R Community Regular
Marilyn R
Posted

I'm glad for the encouragement about cheese. You know how much I love it! My husband and I will be in Italy six weeks from right now so I will miss gluten AND cheese. Cheese is one of the things I had for snacks on our last trip in May. But I am going to try it again November - hopefully I will be able to at least tolerate the hard cheeses...we will see.

Marilyn R Community Regular
Marilyn R
Posted

Last night I dreamt I ate half of a burrito before I noticed. It's been 2.5 years since I went gluten-free. The good news is, I don't get those dreams nearly as often as I used to.

At times I've wondered if they're connected to stress (I've had a lot of stressful dreams this week), but I've had them even when I don't seem to be under a lot of stress. More when I'm stressed, though.

I did wake up with a stomach ache (which I still have), so the dream could've been a reaction to the physical sensation.

You're definitely not alone in this! =)

I think stress effects our autoimmune system not in the same way that gluten does, but in a fairly powerful way, not just in our sleep but in our normal activities of daily living.

Archived

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

Go to topic listing
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A19):


  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      132,129
    • Most Online (within 30 mins)
      7,748
    Raz
    Newest Member
    Raz
    Joined
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A20):

  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      121.5k
    • Total Posts
      1m
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A22):



  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A21):


  • Upcoming Events

  • Posts

    • knitty kitty
      Gluten related ??

      By knitty kitty · Posted

      @Colleen H, I have had similar reactions and symptoms like yours.  I started following the low histamine Autoimmune Protocol diet developed by a doctor with Celiac Disease herself, Dr. Sarah Ballantyne.  Her book, The Paleo Approach, is very helpful in understanding what's going on in the body.   Not only do you have antibodies attacking the body, there are mast cells spreading histamine which causes inflammation.  Foods also contain histamine or act as histamine releasers.  Our bodies have difficulty clearing histamine if there's too much.  Following the low histamine AIP diet allows your body time to clear the excess histamine we're making as part of the autoimmune response, without adding in extra histamine from foods.  High histamine foods include eggs, processed foods and some citrus fruits.  The AIP diet allows meat and vegetables.  No processed meats like sausage, luncheon meats, ham, chicken nuggets, etc. No night shades (potatoes, tomatoes, peppers, eggplant).  No dairy.  No grains.  No rice.  No eggs.  No gluten-free processed foods like gluten free breads and cookies.  No nuts.  No expensive processed gluten-free foods.  Meat and vegetables.  Some fruit. Some fruit, like applesauce, contains high levels of fructose which can cause digestive upsets.  Fructose gets fermented by yeasts in the gastrointestinal tract.  This fermentation can cause gas, bloating and abdominal pain.   The AIP diet changes your microbiome.  Change what you eat and that changes which bacteria live in your gut.  By cutting out carbohydrates from grains and starchy veggies like potatoes, SIBO bacteria get starved out.  Fermenting yeasts get starved out, too.  Healthy bacteria repopulate the gut.   Thiamine Vitamin B 1 helps regulate gut bacteria.  Low thiamine can lead to SIBO and yeast infestation.  Mast cells release histamine more easily when they are low in Thiamine.  Anxiety, depression, and irritability are early symptoms of thiamine insufficiency.  A form of thiamine called Benfotiamine has been shown to promote intestinal healing.   Thiamine works with the seven other B vitamins.  They all need each other to function properly.   Other vitamins and minerals are needed, too.  Vitamin D helps calm and regulate the immune system. Thiamine is needed to turn Vitamin D into an active form.  Thiamine needs magnesium to make life sustaining enzymes.  Taking a B Complex and additional Benfotiamine is beneficial.  The B vitamins are water soluble, easily lost if we're not absorbing nutrients properly as with Celiac Disease.  Since blood tests for B vitamins are notoriously inaccurate, taking a B Complex, Benfotiamine, and magnesium Threonate, and looking for health improvements is a better way to see if you're insufficient.   I do hope you will give the low histamine AIP diet a try.  It really works.
    • Kara S
      Finding gluten free ingredients

      By Kara S · Posted

      Hello, my family is very new to Celiac Disease so forgive me for asking what Warrior Bread is and is there a recipe for it online?
    • jessicafreya
      Tamale ingredients

      By jessicafreya · Posted

      I'd like to make tamales and wonder if anyone has recs for corn husks free of cross contact for a sensitive celiac little boy. Thks!
    • knitty kitty
      My only proof

      By knitty kitty · Posted

      Just wanted to add that checking B12 and Vitamin D only is not going to give an accurate picture of vitamin deficiencies.   B12 Cobalamine needs the seven other B vitamins to work properly.   You can have vitamin deficiency symptoms before the B12 blood level changes to show deficiency.  You can have "normal" B12, but have deficiencies in other B vitamins like Thiamine and Niacin, for which there are no accurate tests. Take a B Complex supplement with all the B vitamins.  Take additional Thiamine B 1 in the form Benfotiamine which has been shown to promote intestinal healing.  Thiamine Mononitrate found in most vitamin supplements is not easy for the body to utilize.  What makes thiamine mononitrate not break down on the shelf also makes it hard for the body to absorb and utilize.  Thiamine and Niacin B 3 deficiency symptoms include anxiety, depression and irritability.  The brain uses more Thiamine than other organs.  Take the B Complex and Thiamine in the form Benfotiamine or TTFD (tetrahydrofurfuryl disulfide) and look for health improvements in the following weeks.
    • knitty kitty
      High DGP-A with normal IGA

      By knitty kitty · Posted

      Hello, @rei.b, Ehlers Danlos syndrome and Celiac Disease can occur together in genetically predisposed individuals.  Losing ones gallbladder is common with celiac disease. I'm glad Naltrexone is helping with your pain.  Naltrexone is known to suppress tTg IgA and tTg IgG production, so it's not surprising that only your DGP IgG and DGP IgA are high.   Have you tried the Autoimmune Protocol diet designed by Dr. Sarah Ballantyne, a Celiac herself?  The AIP diet helps lower inflammation and promotes intestinal healing.   The AIP diet is a Paleo diet that eliminates foods that can cause intestinal inflammation until you heal on the inside, then more foods can be added back in.  The low histamine AIP diet will help reduce inflammation further.   Histamine is released as part of the immune response in celiac disease.  Foods also contain various amounts of histamine or provoke histamine release.  Lowering the amount of histamine from foods helps.  The body, with help from B vitamins, can clear histamine, but if more histamine is consumed than can be cleared, you can stay in an inflammatory state for a long time. Cutting out high histamine foods is beneficial.  Omit night shades which contain alkaloids that add to leaky gut syndrome found with celiac disease.  Night shades include tomatoes, peppers including bell peppers, potatoes and eggplants.  Processed foods like sausages and gluten-free processed products are high in histamines.  All Grains are removed from the diet because they are inflammatory and provoke histamine release. Blood tests for deficiencies in B vitamins are notoriously inaccurate.  You can have vitamin deficiency symptoms before blood levels show a deficiency.  Blood levels do not accurately measure the quantity of B vitamins stored inside the cells where they are utilized.  The brain will order stored vitamins to be released from organs into the blood stream to keep the brain and heart supplied while deficiency occurs inside organs, like the gallbladder.  Gall bladder dysfunction is caused by a deficiency in Thiamine Vitamin B 1 and other B vitamins.   The eight essential B vitamins are water soluble and easily lost with diarrhea and constipation, and the malabsorption and inflammation that occurs with celiac disease.  Because they are water soluble, the body can easily excrete any excess B vitamins in urine.  The best way to see if you are deficient is to take a B Complex and Thiamine in the form Benfotiamine and look for health improvements in the following weeks.  Most B Complex supplements contain Thiamine Mononitrate which is not bioavailable.  The body has a difficult time utilizing thiamine mononitrate because it doesn't break down easily.  Benfotiamine has been shown to promote intestinal healing.   Remember your intestines are in a damaged, permeable state.  Treat them tenderly, like you would a baby until they heal.  You wouldn't feed a baby spicy bell peppers and hard to digest corn and nuts.  Change your diet so your intestines can heal.   I use a combination of B12 Cobalamine, B 6 Pyridoxine, and B1 Benfotiamine for pain.  These three B vitamins have analgesic properties.  They relieve pain better than other otc pain relievers. 
×
×
  • 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.