gluten sucks.

Over the Fourth of July holiday of 2005, I read a book that changed my life forever. After the first chapter of Gluten Free Bible, I knew without a doubt that I had Celiac Disease and that my body was fighting itself (with dire consequences) because of wheat. I was devastated and yet a little trickle of excitement crept in from behind also because maybe, just possibly some of the problems I had been enduring were not normal...

Looking back now, I cannot believe I put up with all of the 'symptoms' that eventually lead me to conclude that I have a gluten allergy. I had a horrible case of insomnia and was barely sleeping at all, depression, I was losing hair, there were bumps all over my legs, I would bruise so badly that I was questioned about the relationship between Troy and I and of course the discomfort and embarrassment of bowel issues that almost all Celiacs experience. When bunched together, I am ashamed that I never sought a doctor's opinion to find out what the hell was wrong with me. As a teen I was diagnosed with a lactose intolerance which in turn I blamed for all of my bowel discomforts. I never thought to question it. The insomnia, bruising, hair loss and skin problems - my Mom had them also, so it was just assumed to be a hereditary problem (which of course it was - she has Celiac's disease also). This disease can be so hard to diagnose because the symptoms are not the same in every person every time. Many of the problems associated with this disease are also indicators of many other diseases and health issues. Gluten allergies are often misdiagnosed for Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Lactose allergies, Crohn's Disease and more. It was not until my Mom's stomach issues became so severe that cancer was feared and Celiac Disease was finally diagnosed.

I am in no way, intended or implied, an expert on Celiac Disease or gluten allergies. I simply am a girl who's body cannot handle wheat and I think it sucks. For those of you who do not have a problem with wheat, sit back and think about what items you eat that contain the ingredient... Of course there are the biggies such as bread and everything made with flour (pancakes, pastries,pasta, pretzels, etc.) but it is far more reaching than that. Flour is used to thicken so many foods that many dietary staples become untouchable - soups, gravies and sauces are almost all off limit. Wheat is a common ingredient in almost every convenience food and you can kiss all fast food goodbye.

The first few months with the disease were hard. Many people in my family, Troy included, were very doubtful of the disease. I was probably overreacting or misinformed... Celiac Disease was basically unknown. Who the hell is allergic to wheat? It was especially difficult for Troy to wrap his head around because he is a fantastic cook and would spend many hours a week cooking amazing Cajun and Creole dishes for his family to eat. Dishes his family could no longer eat because every single one of them contained this ingredient that we know had to consider poison. We had a pity party.

Eventually however, you begin to accept the new terms of your life. Health problems that you had been experiencing disappear as if by magic in the absence of wheat. When you do not discard this way of eating as you maybe would a fad diet, people around you begin to seek out information on their own and slowly choose to believe you or at the very least accept that you believe you. You begin to adjust your thinking and come to accept that eating salads for every meal is your new way of life.

But that sucks. Veggies are great, but I just cannot eat them for every meal, every day. Troy, no matter how hard he tried, could not stay away from the kitchen. The experimenting began. Over these couple of years, Troy and I have invented many dishes and tweaked many recipes so that meals could be eaten by me. A lot of the earlier tries were really disgusting. We have gotten better and now, we can make the most amazing meals and I would bet our goats that no one would ever guess that wheat was taboo in our home.

Our lives are now almost completely back to pre Celiac normalcy. I still obviously cannot order whatever I want in a restaurant or dive into Thanksgiving Dinner at my Aunt Jean's, however here in my home, we live normally. We have delicious pizza every Friday night during our Family Fun night. I bake cookies with my daughter and celebrate birthday's with yummy cake. I am lucky. I wish that for all people who suffer from this awful allergy. I hope that we can help.