Please Cancel My Optimism

[heathenly]

I started out optimistic and positive about eating gluten-free, based on the immediate and significant benefits I received once I stopped eating it. Even though I didn't test positive for Celiac (which made all of my gluten-eating friends happy, because they thought I could cheat once in a while with no long-term repercussion), I have never caved to temptation to eat even a little gluten. I thought being so conscientious and well-behaved would translate into feeling better. That hasn't happened like I thought it would. Now, I just feel hopeless and frustrated.

Whole foods: Kinda expensive, huh? I'm doing my best, but the cost of food is killing me and I'm running out of both food and food money before payday.

Accidental glutening: no good dietary deed goes unpunished, it seems. No matter how conscious I am with food choices, I seem to have a small but miserable reaction almost on a weekly basis, and I can't pinpoint what I ate that secretly contained gluten (or something else I'm sensitive to?). Frustrating.

More food sensitivities: I can't help but notice that dairy and possibly corn seems to be a problem. I want to stay in denial so that I have more foods to choose from, but... yeah. The thought of having to limit my diet further makes me want to go lie down in a busy street.

Food paranoia: it's exhausting. I don't feel I can trust anything I eat anymore. Even/especially items labeled "gluten-free."

Sigh. What I would give for those carefree days when I could eat anything prepared anywhere...

/whining

One cute thing: When I prepare a sandwich for my eight year old, she reminds me to wash the gluten off my hands.

[shadowicewolf]

Whole foods are cheaper than processed most of the time. Buy in season, go for sales, etc. For example i'll take a lrge roaust for about $10 and cut it in thirds. I can get two to threemeals out of oeach portion. Then i'll take a head of cabbage and again take a third of it for a meal. I'll add carrots and some onions or whatever else i have in the frig. Then i make this into a soup and serve rice on the side.

A good idea would be to get yourself a crock pot to make your own meals out of if cc is an issue.

I spend about $30 or so dollars per week on food for myself, that is with my chex and cleaning supplies. You can do it it just takes timme to learn

[Trudyjerry]

Honestly, food is expensive these days no matter what you eat. That being said, try to buy in season, look for sales, and use coupons. We spend roughly $40 a person a week at our house. We all eat gluten and dairy free at home.

When I first started out we did spend a lot more, only because we were cooking two meals for dinner. One for me and one for everybody else. It's easier and cheaper for all of us to eat gluten and dairy free. Another thing that I've learned is what you can make yourself, you should make yourself. I used to spend money on gluten free cookies. Now I just make them myself. I want muffins, I bake muffins. We also make our own almond milk and soy milk. We don't save much on the almond milk but we can make a half gallon of soy milk for a fraction of the cost of the store bought stuff and we know exactly what goes into it. I don't care for the store bought gluten free bread but when I bake a loaf at home, it all gets eaten the same day. The first time I made gluten free pumpernickel bread, we ate two loaves of it. So much for saving one for another day.

I'm sorry that you are having a hard time right now but trust me, it does get easier. I'm sure most, if not all, of us were feeling those things at one point or another. I know I have been there. For me, it really hit on my birthday. No birthday cake or ice cream? I was ready to scream. That's when I started making everything myself. I do still have the occasional melt down in stores. I was highly upset loosing things like twizzlers. I love those but I can't have them anymore. I have burst into tears on more than one occasion in the candy aisle. My husband can attest to the fits I've thrown in the dairy section because I wanted yogurt or some new coffee creamer that just came out.

Six months in I figured out that I was reacting to peas. That set off another downward spiral for me. I realized that it wasn't just peas. I was also reacting to corn, soy, radishes, on top of my other food allergies being magnified. I was starting to feel like there was nothing left that I could eat. I came on here to vent and eventually incorporated it into my diet. Luckily, I can now handle soy and corn based things that are made at home. I still can't handle soy based store bought items. Maybe the problem wasn't the soy but rather something else that was put into the product or the way the soy was handled.

Just try to remember that it does get easier and you can always come here to vent because we do understand. Sending you great big HUGS.

[joolsjewels]

What kinda of reaction did you have to peas? Bloating, extreme gas? I had those problems a few summers ago with peas, but also with carrots and tomatoes. It turned out to be sugar and more specifically yeast overgrowth. The sugars, even natural sugars in fruit and veg, caused a painful explosion in my digestive tract. Even soy milk and rice milk have sugar. I had to take a digestive supplement and go on a sugar free diet for 2 months. That meant small bland meals and often so my blood sugar would not drop too low.

[Trudyjerry]

What kinda of reaction did you have to peas? Bloating, extreme gas? I had those problems a few summers ago with peas, but also with carrots and tomatoes. It turned out to be sugar and more specifically yeast overgrowth. The sugars, even natural sugars in fruit and veg, caused a painful explosion in my digestive tract. Even soy milk and rice milk have sugar. I had to take a digestive supplement and go on a sugar free diet for 2 months. That meant small bland meals and often so my blood sugar would not drop too low.

I definately had the extreme bloating but instead of gas, I ended up with the dread "D". I was actually tested for Yeast overgrowth a few months back and I came back negative. I know that's not it, aside from me not having problems with anything else that's high in sugars. I do take probiotics on a daily basis but I haven't really noticed a difference.

Honestly the first time it happened, I thought that I had accidentally contaminated my slip pea soup with something else but then it happened again with just canned peas. So we just make lentil soup instead.

I do however have gastritis and I don't know if that can play a role in reacting with certain foods.