Rusla

My dear, this is not a silly disease and do NOT care what people think. Your life depends (literally) on you not eating wheat and wheat glutens. Let me tell you a story.

My sister was the one who scared me into leaning on the doctors big time to have the tests done. One of her friends at that time has to wander about for the rest of his life with a colostomy bag due to stomach and bowel cancer because of this disease. He is only 43 years old. Her other friend is barely alive in the hospital because they discovered he had bowel and kidney cancer late last year, he was diagnosed with Celiac 2 years ago and he still did cheat because the only symptom he ever had was it felt like he threw his back out. Well now he is fighting for his life because his kidneys have shut down, his intestines had to be removed and he has an infection in his bowels because of all of this and the infections he got when he had the cancer operations. His system was too weak to fight the infections off because of this terrible disease. If he survives, which we don't know yet if he will, he too will have a colostomy bag for the rest of his life.

Do not destroy your life for other people. They are not the one who will suffer the consequences, you will. So you have to make the decision on whether you want to take the chance of people not understanding and thinking it silly or your life.

Do what most of us do and tell them it is a very severe wheat allergy that could kill you.

You need a live warm one ... now let me think, who do I know in Calgary... hmmmmmm You got an address so I can send someone?

Well, is there anyone there who wants someone juicy and plump like a ripe Macintosh apple? Well I can give you an address and you line 'em up and I will knock 'em down.

I figured I need a blow-up life-size Johnny Depp doll who is dressed in his pirate gear. He could sit in my car with me so, I could drive in the HOV lane and freak everyone out and he could sit with me on couch.

All of you make me smile and laugh.

Johnny and I would have a much better time if I could get him out of that DVD.

AWWW garsh, you guys are sweet. Thanks bunches! I am 25 today yes, once you hit 40 you are allowed to count backwards each year after.

I not only was glutened, but not by Purdy's. I also had the flu. I still have not felt terribly well today but better than last night. This is one heck of a way to lose fifteen pounds. My exciting eveing is me staying home with Johnny Depp.

That is what the government says but they are not doing anything to help those who do go forth and multiply. I would say most people do not have the income to support more than two no days. In this province most can barely support themselves with the high cost of living, homes and rents. Average house in Calgary now is $500.000.

I was in Jamaica in March. I got glutened by accident once only, I was staying at the Starfish Trelawny. They had no idea I was coming and that I needed special foods. Each day at that resort lunch and dinner buffet changed but the chefs would take me down the line and tell me what had flour or bread in it and what didn't.

Jerk Chicken and Jerk swordfish is awesome and their fresh fruit is fresh fruit grown there. Not colored globs that look like fruit but don't taste like it that is in the stores here. Make sure you at least try the "dirty banana's" it's a drink. I loved Jamaica and never starved there. Dunns River Falls, Rose Hall and the Appleton tour are the best of the touristy things. Beware of the no seeums they will eat you alive. I suggest Benadryl if you are allergic to mosquitos or noseeum bites.

Have fun, it is terrific there.

Adelle, I feel very sorry for your niece. It is obvious your sister hates her and she is going to spend her whole life being the odd man out. That poor kid must feel so lonely and unwanted. If you want kids then by all means have kids. Maybe you should also adopt your niece from your sister. I fear what that poor kids life is going to be like.

I also believe your sister hates herself for having been with a meth head and not really getting anywhere so she takes it out on her child and on you. I would say she is jealous of what you have and that it is not hers.

You did not make bad choices, she did.

Being Celiac is like being an alcoholic. In a as much as with us a little bit of wheat will hurt us and so will a little bit of alcohol take a dry alcoholic back on the road of drunkeness. The difference isw we have to eat to live and an alcoholic does not need alcohol to live. We can and have learned to eat and live without wheat, that is what your mother needs to do. But then it is her perogative to suffer if she doen't think she has suffered enough.

Well after and in depth conversation with Purdy's they guaranteed me that none of the chocolates I had contained no wheat or gluten. We figured with the one chocolate that I might have got a chocolate that was the last in the bunch and got too much syrup in it which may have caused a bit of a problem. However, it could have been the flu also. Although i have DH on my head so, somewhere gluten played a part. I am still weak and my ribs really hurt, all that vomiting didn't help.

Patti, remember to lie about on the couch and be as melodramtic as any sick man would be. Request bon bons and drinks, pillows and blanket. No cleaning anything, you are to lay about like the pampered princess.

I got mine from Amaranth in calgary they were the Cream Hill Estates ones from Quebec, they are excellent and expensive. However, you can get bigger boxes of MCCanns Irish oats and I have seen them in Planet Organic etc. I hear they are very good. Other extremely sensitive celiacs eat them and come out okay, so I may give them a shot. When you come out here Lisa we can take a run over to planet organic.

I ate nothing different than normal. But because my reaction came from the candy about 12 hours later that was my reaction to it, I know that is the only thing it could be.

And believe me everything that came up was chocolate. Essentially as you said that when we get glutened it is like food poisoning because we are literally being poisoned by food. I also had my nasty bowel pains and the gurgling with this that usually accompanies a glutening.

If it is a restaurant I have never been to or been very rarely too I ask to speak with the manager. I go through the everything has to be clean pan, utensils etc. If it is one I go to a lot they know the drill and what I can and cannot have. There is no way to be high maintenance and if they don't know what is in something I ask them to bring it out so I can read the ingredients for sauces they don't make themselves. We know what we are looking for but they don't. If it has hVP they would not know that or soya sauce has wheat or wheat glutens in it.

I would try to eliminate all foods one by one. First take dairy out, if no change take something else out. Keep going until you find out what it is, because of the caseine in dairy it has similarities to gluten reaction.

And welcome to the board Janie.

All coke and pepsi products are gluten-free. Yes, your vitamins could have wheat and gluten in them call the company and find out.

Now on symptoms it is not only different for different people but I find how much gluten and type make a difference. Some I know in 5-10 minutes and others like this last huge horrifying incident it took 12 hours and I have reacted up to two days later. However, as being gluten-free the longer you are gluten-free the more violent the reactions could be when you get glutened. When you were eating gluten it was a constant now you are not your system may react more violently, mine sure does.

Turkish delight is a some kind of jelly yuck covered in chocolate. I don't know if turkish paste is the same or not. Even as a kid I hated turkish delights because they were jelly and only had part of a one that made me feel ill then. I guess a good reason why I hated them. Anyway Purdy's says their turkish delights have gluten in them and unfortunately that is what I got.

Now the good thing is I have quit having to do the 12 foot sprints to the washroom, however back pain is still there and feeling weak and on and off queasy. I have had small versions of this when glutened but usually only one sprint or two to the bathroom with the big "D". This time was 10000 times worse than any other time.

I have noticed with even minor glutenings lately, I will get dizzy and feel like I am going to pass out along with the bathroom dance.

I am so very careful and diligent about being gluten-free because I have noticed the minor glutenings causing me more grief than usual. This was just a half of a small candy.

And our lame governments don't consider this a disability, I can only hope one of them ends up with this and finds out how disabling this is and puts it back on as a disability deduction. I have missed work today because of this very nasty episode, if it had carried on past 2100 hours yesterday, I was prepared by the middle of the night to call the paramedics.

My 13-year old son had some mysterious stomach pain last month--3 episodes that were very painful, but different from how gluten feels. These he felt almost in his back. The doc gave him belladonna, which helped 2 of the three episodes.

We never figured out what caused those episodes, but at the time almost every family around here had kids sick with one virus or another. (Though nobody else in our family got the flu, so I can't say it was viral, either.)

So I'm wondering, is basic stomach flu worse for celiacs than the general population? Do you get a flu shot, or do the shots contain any fillers or ingredients that might be a concern?

Carol

Carol,

I would like to address the back issue. I have noticed when I get glutened by some things and I know one Celiac who was diagnosed with the disease because of back pain, when glutened. As per my horrifying glutening yesterday I had back pain with it, it feels like a combination of throwing your back out and being beaten by a 2x4 with knives attached. I have found some glutenings cause it and some don't with different intensities. Perhaps try to get him to keep a food journal and see if this happens again if it was something he ate or was exposed to.

I am glad you are relatively okay for having pneumonia, Lynne. There is no fun way to have pneumonia, just like there is no fun way to be glutened. Just take it easy because a pneumonia relapse is worse than pneumonia.

Yes, Callebaut is very pricey their Gilbert line is not gluten-free. However, where I got the chocolate from was Purdy's. The ones they have that are not gluten-free were all the chocolates I hated in the past and those are marzipan and turkish delight. However any of theirs with vodka are not gluten-free. It was the turkish delight that she gave me by accident. I still don't feel special but at leas I have quit the "P & P" parade to the bathroom. I have a headache too from this. I have had flu's that never did this to me.

I have literally never been this sick in my whole life. When I bought some chocolates at a company that I know the majority is gluten-free the qirl was new and gave me two that were wrong. Well one I had never had before and didn't know what it looked like. I just popped it in my mouth and started to chew.

Well, that chocolate, most of it came flying out of my mouth. It was a horrible jell and tasted like turkish delight that I not only hate but has gluten. Well I have not only spent 12 full hours in bed only to get out and run to the bathroom with the big "D" and I mean big "D" and vomiting. You all know the butt on the toilet head in the pail routine.

Finally, I have been able to leave the room and sit somewhere other than the toilet. Each time is worse than the times before and I never want to be this sick again and I hope no one else is ever this sick, it is horrible.

As an asthmatic they used to say I should have a flu shot but I had serious allergic reactions to the shot. As eggs can be a problem for me and then the found out that anyone who is allergic to wasps and bee stings should NOT have the shots. The shots are a guess at best anyway. From year to year they guess at what the flu strain will be that year but there is nothing saying it will be that strain.

I do not know what the Amy's packages say in the US but in Canada they all say "manufactured in a facility that produces gluten products." I don't care how gluten-free the item says it is those words or a reasonable facsimilie of those words would NOT get me to buy those items. I am highly sensitive to wheat and gluten and I would end up with the say affect that you did. Read all labels very carefully is my advice.

Another thing is the cheese. They did not say the cheese was without caseine (sp). That, in itself acts much the same as gluten and most people who are celiac have dairy problems. I use goat cheese with no caseine.

Well, here we are into the New Year Mateys.

I had to take my phone off the hook on New Years Eve because my psychotic landlord was calling every half hour including after midnight.

I think I should move to Nelson, I can run around nakey and eat gluten-free chinese food. The place I go in Calgary has a few things they can do for me gluten-free and I have never been glutened there because they know the drill. But Shirley, the place you go to sounds even better.

Work was fine it was fairly slow, we didn't have to talk to any rude, obnoxious drunks or anything yesterday. We just dealt with the monitoring, police, ems etc. It was nice and peaceful for a change.

Hope everyone had a great New Years!

It is triple time plus a lieu day which is like a weeks worth of pay for me.

As I work tomorrow. I must bid you all adieu and wish each and every one of you a very Happy and prosperou gluten-free New Year.