My Story

So in my last post, I mentioned that I was diagnosed with Celiac Disease last September.    Prior to being diagnosed I knew that something was seriously VERY wrong.  I had abdominal pain so severe that it almost felt like I was in labor all over again.  My allergies flared up like they never had before the spring prior to diagnosis.  I remember doing a google search along the lines of "Hashimotos Thyroiditis and sudden severe allergies" and up popped a story about a woman just like me who stated that this is what she had prior to her Celiac diagnosis.

I did more online research on celiac - I certainly didn't fit most of the "textbook" symptom criteria.   I would tell friends and family that I felt like I had celiac, and that maybe because of my thyroid condition instead of losing weight I was gaining.  People were really quick to brush that off and say things like "nah I don't think you have that - your symptoms don't match". 

What made me think that I did indeed have celiac was the fact that I had stopped my intake of beer for the most part.  I was avoiding it, because it, more than anything else caused excessive abdominal pain and discomfort.   My good friends back home in St Louis know me as a kind of "Beer Connoisseur Extraordinaire"  how I loved to try new beers and enjoy the warm and fuzzy feeling they provided me with. 

I finally informed my Dr that things were so severe that I was referring myself to a gastroenterolgist.  I waited for 1 month to see him, and upon hearing my symptoms he was perplexed, but suggested testing for celiac - I told him that even thought I didn't "look" celiac I wanted to rule it out.  Two days after the blood work was taken on Sept 25, 2009 I received the call that I did in fact test positive - the test was followed up by an endoscopy which also showed that I had damage to my villi and small intestine from the evil known as gluten. 

Rather than be upset about it, I felt like jumping up and down!  I was so thrilled to have a diagnosis that did not require medicine.   I was also excited about eating better, not worrying about the cost involved in eating gluten free and hopefully being closer to feeling better and losing all the excess weight that I had been carrying since pregnancy.

It took about 4-5 months for me to lose 35-45lbs of weight that I was beginning to think I'd never lose.  Eating gluten free isn't difficult for me, but what (and still is) difficult is waiting for the intestines to fully heal.  I'm currently 9 months into it and I'm just now able to feel somewhat back to normal a fraction of the time.  I'm told it can take up to 2 years for my intestines to heal completely.

I have learned to *truly* listen to my body now.  I even find at times that foods  labeled as Gluten Free can cause reactions that zap me of my energy, and cause abdominal pain.  I'm really careful about everything that I eat.  I eat more fresh foods, raw foods, and local foods than I ever have before.  I'm eager to share all of my passion on the subject of health with friends and family.  On September 25, 2009 - a new Elle entered the world full of gratitude (for a quick diagnosis and a wonderful Dr), full of hope (that I would feel better and lose the weight that I needed to) and overall happiness, because I could finally see that proverbial light at the end of the tunnel.