kbtoyssni

I agree. A good cleaning should do it.

Do you have a list of who brings the snack each day? You could call the parents a few days before to ask what they're bringing so you'd know if it's safe or not. And if it isn't, you could try to provide a similar gluten-free version.

You CAN eat the Milky Way Midnight. No barley.

richard

I could have sworn that Milky Way Midnights had gluten when I last checked the ingredients, too. Was I seeing things?

I feel for you - college dorms and cafeterias are a tough place if you have celiac. Do you have a fridge and microwave in your room? I lived in a dorm one summer and did all my cooking from two mini-fridges and a microwave. This does mean you'd have to go grocery shopping. It's not gourmet cooking, but at least it's safe food.

Does your school have suite-style dorms with a kitchen? You could ask to be transferred to one of these.

Do you have a 504 plan? That will require them to accommodate you. Of course, if the cooks don't get it, I'm not sure what you can do about it. Maybe the cooks need some allergy training. My brother's college had a fridge in back filled with gluten-free breads and pre-made meals with a microwave right there for the celiac kids to use.

And if they can't accommodate you, I'd fight to be exempt from the meal plan.

When I'm traveling to a place with no microwave or fridge, I bring my own microwave. It always feels like I'm smuggling contraband into the hotel as I carry it up to my room, though! I also bring a small cooler that I can refill with ice everyday from the hotel ice machine. It works just as well as a fridge. Good luck! You could also bring hot food for Friday night per-heated in a thermos.

The Girl Scouts in my area are doing a nut sale this fall. Although you never know if the nuts are manufactured on the same equipment as wheat products since many nuts are. Plus many nuts are roasted in peanut oil which I can't eat.

There are three major manufacturers of GS cookies. Each one must make a thin mint and shortbread. Then they can make 6-8 other types of cookies. This is why the names of cookies and types offered vary in different areas of the country. If a gluten-free cookie would sell better than one of the other 6-8 flavors then they'd offer it. But I doubt it would be that big of a seller.

I use corn chips as a substitute for crackers.

Some more ideas:

Baked potatoes with toppings (I like cheese and salsa, some like more of a salad on top)

Tacos - refried beans in tortillas with cheese and taco sauce. I make black bean mixes instead of the refried beans sometimes.

Grilled veggies on a tortilla like a fajita or mini-pizza. You could add cheese.

String cheese

Nuts

Dried fruit like raisins or craisins

Ants on a log

Cereal (take the milk in a thermos)

Poor kid. What a tough way to start her college experience. Good luck getting her out of the meal plan. Sounds like they aren't going to be able to safely feed her.

Had you already gone gluten free before the second blood test? Once you go gluten free, antibodies start decreasing and you end up with negative test results.

You know all the consequences of eating gluten so maybe it's time to talk to a therapist. Many celiacs crave gluten and become addicted to it so approaching this like any other addiction may help.

Maybe you could call a friend and ask for help. Meal prep is really time consuming and can get stressful if you're busy. Maybe someone could help you out with grocery shopping or cutting veggies.

I even bring a microwave with me to make things like Thai Kitchen noodles. I always feel like I'm smuggling in contraband when I'm carrying in the microwave!

At Don Pablos they add some wheat flour to the grated cheese to prevent it from clumping. It's the only restaurant I've ever found that does this.

I wipe down the chair arms and tray table when I fly. You can usually see crumbs on the seat and table on international flights where they feed you a couple meals. And I'll wipe the crumbs off the lunch tables at work. They do get cleaned everyday, but only at the end of the lunch hour.

So eventhough I was about 2-3 weeks in my diet, a blood test for celiac would most definately come back positive?

Not necessarily. If you were going to test positive before you started the diet, you'll probably still test positive after just 2-3 weeks on the diet. But there's a good chance you would have tested negative even if you hadn't started the diet. Blood tests aren't that accurate. The problem is you have to have enough damage for gluten antibodies to get into your blood before testing positive. Most people start feeling sick long before they'd test positive on a blood test.

You could also look for a doctor who will diagnose based on dietary response. It might take some searching, but those doctors are out there. I'd hate for you to have to put your kids through eating gluten again for what may or may not result in a positive test.

I've been gluten-free for four years now and also have migratory joint pain. It's 95% better now that I'm gluten free, but I still have some symptoms. I've been tested for lupus, RA, lyme, etc, and nothing. I just started going to the doc again for it, and I think I'm going to try casein free for a while. I also cut out all soda, MSG, high fructose corn syrup, using plastic tupperware. I figure it can't hurt - my body will be better off without all those chemicals anyway! I wish I could be more helpful, but I unfortunately haven't found a solution yet, either.

Deviled eggs? Those are a good afternoon version of eggs.

Thanks ravewoodglass and Optimisticmom42, I felt much better after the walk, tomorrow I will send more job applications; going for a walk works for me. I won't mention celiac in my application but if I'm asked about any history of illness, what should I answer? Thanks in advanced.

It is illegal to ask about history of illness. They can ask about gaps in a resume, but all you have to say is you had some health problems that have since been resolved. You do not have to go into detail.

Interviewers can't ask personal questions, but they can ask things that relate to the job. So they can't ask "are you sure you can work until 5pm since you have children?" but they can ask "this job requires you work from 9-5, can you do that?"

Have you talked to a career counselor, someone who can review your resume and help you with interview questions? Writing a good resume and getting good at answering interview questions takes time and practice.

It could also be another food that causes your body to have a similar reaction to as it would to gluten. Casein (the protein in dairy) seems to mimic the gluten response in many people. And lactose free isn't casein free.

I found after nine months that peanuts gave me the same reaction as gluten so I had to cut them out.

There's a couple suggestions for GPs in this thread: https://www.celiac.com/gluten-free/index.php?showtopic=55010

I forgot earlier and had a bottle of beer, which, shall we say did not stay down for long (less than 20 mins) ... I seem so sensitive to all gluten based foods at the moment which is making me feel down and sad. I never realised how many foods that I used to eat are gluten based, but I am pleasantly surprised how much there is around now I have to go gluten free.

I also suffer from insomnia which on shift work is not good, but I am scared now I have changed my diet as to whether its going to get worse?

It's so easy to forget in the beginning and accidentally eat something containing gluten without even realizing it! It takes time for this to become second nature. I'd be inclined to think the insomnia will get better on the gluten-free diet. A lot of the little things that are wrong with people gradually go away after going gluten-free. I suffered from chronic fatigue combined with insomnia, but both have gone away now that I don't eat gluten.

I would absolutely call and complain/discuss the situation. When a restaurant has a gluten free menu and I get glutened or something else suspicious happens, I definitely call.

If you bring a picnic-style lunch, you can stop at all the rest stops to let the kiddo run off some energy. It's probably better than stopping at a restaurant since you can actually run around. My family always did this when I was a kid, and we weren't even gluten-free then.

I'm self-diagnosed based on positive dietary response (with negative blood test) and I just matter of factly tell them that I have celiac disease. If I had a doctor question me, I'd walk out. I haven't had to walk out yet.

Also, if your son has been gluten-free for a year, celiac tests will be negative. You have to be eating gluten to test positive so you may not want to ask for testing unless it's more follow-up/checking for complications type testing.