How Long Did It Take You To Feel Better?

[Jessica N.]

Hi all! I have been gluten-free for about a week now...still experiencing some bloating and C. I think the bloating is getting better though, my dr said it could take a while before I started noticing results and improvements so I was just curious when did you all start to feel better? What was the first time to improve?

And I have heard a few people say they discovered other in tolerances along the way. I did a dairy-free for a week a while back and it didn't help much but I have noticed after lunch I still bloat a little bit and recover (unlike what use to happen which was bloating for the rest of the day!)I'm considering next week going dairy-free as well.

Any input/opinions are appreciated! It is nice to know I am not alone!

[bny06]

Hello! i'm new to this all too! I'm 3 weeks in to what I think is gluten free, though i'm sure i'm making mistakes! I feel like just the past few days I have noticed some improvement in my stomach symptoms... maaaybe.. my muscle weakness overall has maybe improved a touch, but I still feel weak all over, and just overall a little less "crummy" than I did a couple of weeks ago.. I also just want to suddenly feel back like my old self already! I didn't realize it could take so long! I'm curious how long it took others as well!

[ravenwoodglass]

It can take a bit of time to feel better once you go gluten free. Your thoughts on dropping dairy for a bit is good as it is hard for us to digest until we have healed. Go with as much whole unprocessed food as you can to heal the fastest. Fresh meats, chicken, fish with rice, potatos, beans, veggies and fruits should be the main part of your diet. Do be sure you are doing what you need to at home to be safe. Don't bake with flour for others, replace scratched non-stick pans, your toaster, wooden cutting boards and utensils and try to avoid restaurants for a while.

The time to heal can vary a lot. For me I saw a great improvement with the D within a week but I was on an extremely restricted diet. My other issues took much longer to resolve but I was very far advanced as far as damage goes with multiple systems affected. Some feel better within a couple of weeks and others can take quite a bit longer. Some folks will have a withdrawl which can make us quite moody but that usually resolves fairly quickly. Hopefully you will be feeling much better soon but don't get discouraged if it takes some time. Do also have your vitamin and mineral levels checked as we often are low in D, iron, the B's, calcium etc. I hope your feeling better soon.

[Jessica N.]

Thank you for your advice I struggle with eating fresh whole foods because of my schedule. I didn't plan too well this week and was out of town last weekend (how difficult!) so I have been relying on frozen gluten-free entrees as the main course of my meals. I plan to do some baking/planning/crockpot recipe searching so I can eat more whole foods next week.

I have been trying to wash every bowl, knife, anything before I use it to eat (my roommate is not gluten-free) and I can't afford to buy new cookware right now so I am doing the best I can with what I have!

Thanks!!

[lemontree1]

As far as Dairy goes, it took me several weeks before I noticed a difference. The difference for me was an absence of menstrual cramps. I used to get bad cramps every month. No dairy= no cramping. Now when I have dairy, I cramp almost immediately. Well, all except cheese. For some reason cheese doesn't make me react. I think it is because cheese has less lactose, but I'm not sure if that is the reasoning.