Comments on: Our family’s neurological link to gluten

By: Kim-Cook It Allergy Free

Kim-Cook It Allergy Free — Fri, 25 Jan 2013 16:27:28 +0000

Hi Jaime! Thank you so much for coming and sharing your son’s story! I am so glad that you trusted your mama-bear instincts. Sometimes that is exactly what it takes. It took my son a good year before I felt like he was truly healthy again. I spent a LOT of time working on healing his gut and boosting his immune system. I wrote a post about some of the things we focused on: http://cookitallergyfree.com/blog/2010/08/13-tips-on-how-to-heal-the-leaky-gut/
I also made a lot of Bone Broth and used it in everything, from rice, to noodles, to soups and sauces. Here is my recipe for that too: http://cookitallergyfree.com/blog/2010/10/homemade-bone-broth-and-chicken-feet/
Good luck on your path to health with your son. Please come by any time to ask questions or to give an update on how he is doing!

By: Jaime

Jaime — Fri, 25 Jan 2013 16:04:16 +0000

Thank you for sharing your story!! My 8 yr old son has been constipated for 7 years. Also has had joint pain for 3+ yrs. And eczema for about 7 yrs. We have been to many specialists for his joint pain and he has had many tests/labs done and the doctors couldn’t find anything wrong. He loves sports and plays many of them but has a hard time running and moving around. For the last two years I have been really concerened with his joint pain and weak muscles. I started reserching gluten senstivity and celiac. I had a strong feeling that this was the answer to his problems. He has been tested for celiac 3 times from different doctors and always negative. I highly suspected gluten sensitivity. I decided to try a gluten free diet for him 2 months ago and within a month I noticed a huge difference with him complaining about his joints. He also told me that his knees don’t hurt anymore and also his feet(which he hasn’t complained about for 2+yrs)
My son was living in pain everyday and not one doctor could figure it out. And when I mentioned gluten possibly being the problem they looked at me like I was crazy:) So glad I went with my gut and took him off gluten. I have also seen an improvement with his eczema and other skin problems but he is still constipated. Just wondering if you know how long it will take for that to get better? Or do you have any tips on helping with that? Thanks again for sharing your story! I’m glad you finally found your answers and your son is healthy:)
Jaime

By: Weekly Menu Plan, Rattlesnake Huntin’ (and a Giveaway!) | Adventures of a Gluten Free Mom

Mon, 06 Jun 2011 16:16:06 +0000

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By: Cook It Allergy Free

Cook It Allergy Free — Thu, 18 Nov 2010 04:30:16 +0000

Nicola, I too am so grateful for getting to know you through our special group!
And I am absolutely fascinated with Tibetan medicine, so I would love to talk with you sometime about your journey to get your son healthy. It is so frustrating that the doctors we are supposed to trust cannot give us the answers we need.
Oh, and i so hear you about how you feel the day after eating bread. Every now and then i will cheat when I am out without my family. And every single time I feel miserable the next day and get so mad at my self! Ugh!
My mom has also been very vigilent since her own breast cancer struggle and watches every single thing that goes in her mouth. I do as well since breast cancer has a long history in my family.
I am so amazed and proud at how you overcame your breast cancer.

xo
kim

By: nicola @ gfreemom

nicola @ gfreemom — Wed, 17 Nov 2010 22:50:24 +0000

Wow Kim. I can only begin to imagine how stressful that initial time of diagnosis must have been! So great that you came through it – and came through it so strongly.

Our journey to helping my son being gluten free came through Tibetan medicine. We came up against brick walls with our pediatrician and GI. The whole family is now gluten free at home, although my husband will splurge and have his gluten fixes when he is at work. I find that if I can’t resist a bread-fix and then have it, I only find myself disappointed and sluggish. I’m also especially conscious of diet since my scary breast cancer ‘episode’ and believe that eating healthily and ensuring that my body can absorb all of the nutrients that it needs is key to staying healthy – and staying alive.

So grateful for having met you!

Nicola xo

By: Kim

Kim — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 18:43:19 +0000

Alta, thank you so much for your kind words! As mothers, we do not feel like we are doing anything special when we are just trying to make sure our children are safe and healthy! I love living gluten free! One, because of the amazing health benefits, and two because of how it has brought me into a world filled with amazing people, just like you!

By: Alta

Alta — Fri, 18 Jun 2010 20:52:04 +0000

What an exceptional post. My heart goes out to you and your family for having to go through the struggle that you did! I do feel the same way, when people comment that it must be a struggle to live gluten-free. It’s not – at home, in our kitchens, full of fresh, healthy, naturally gluten-free food, it’s nourishing, welcoming, and natural. I too find it a blessing. Continue to love and take care of your family – you are obviously a loving mother with a big, big heart.

By: Kim

Kim — Sun, 13 Jun 2010 00:59:21 +0000

Oh my goodness, Angela! What a story! I am so glad that after all this time, you may just have your answer. Celiac Disease can affect individuals in so many different ways and it sounds like your path to diagnosis was quite a difficult journey. Thank you so much for sharing this here. I am so glad that it is not your cancer that is back! Going gluten free is a challenge-no one will argue that-but it is reassuring to know that there is so much support and so many wonderful resources out there. Just check out all of the other wonderful bloggers that I have listed on mine. There is such a community out there wanting to help others understand how it can be fun and delicious to live gluten free!
Adrenal fatigue is also a challenge to overcome, but I only hope that you can see significant improvements in the adrenal fatigue as you begin to heal from the damage that gluten has caused. As your intestines heal, hopefully you will also find that some of your vitamin deficiencies also get better as your body begins to be able to absorb nutrients more efficiently.
Take care of yourself and keep us posted as you learn the ways of going gluten free!

By: Angela

Angela — Sat, 12 Jun 2010 00:39:07 +0000

Hello my name is Angela and I wanted to share my story.
When I was 15 years old I was diagnosed with AML Leukemia. After 2 years of high dose chemotherapy treatments my cancer went into remission. I have been cancer free for 22 years now. Over the years I have been a somewhat healthy person and haven’t any issues except minor depression and anxiety. However, for the 3 or 4 years I started to feel exhausted all the time. I went for my Check Ups every 6 months and my CBC was good so the Dr. would just say It’s was Depression or the Antidepressants that I was taking that made me feel so chronically fatigued.
I constantly worried my cancer had come back because I felt so bad. The fatigue just kept getting worse so the Dr. suggested I switch to a new AD drug. I changed my meds over and over and was still exhausted. No matter how much I slept I could barely get through a days work. I wasn’t able to think straight anymore and couldn’t stay focused.

The Dr. then decided I “must have” ADD so he prescribed me Adderal. At first the adderal gave me the energy to get up out of bed in the morning but by the end of the day I could barely drive home from work. Eventually the Adderal only worked for an hour or two before I got tired. Some days I couldn’t even tell I had taken it. I eventually became too exhausted to do anything. All I could do was work and come home and go straight to bed. When Friday afternoon came I would go straight home after work and go straight to bed. I stayed there until Sunday. I became so depressed about bieng so exhausted and not having the energy to have a life. I stayed so stressed at work and couldn’t handle anything because of feeling so bad. It didn’t matter how many times I went to see several Dr’s and. it was always the same old thing. Aww your just depressed and it’s just in your head.

After a friend referred to a new Dr. that she thought was wonderful, I decided to give it one more try. At my appointment the Dr. made me feel she was going to get to the bottom of it and she did. She sent me home with an Adrenal Saliva Stress test and did blood work. I went back to see her to go over my results. I had severe adrenal fatigue, hypothyroidism, high insulin levels, high dhea, low iga, several Vitamin dif., low progesterone and tested positive for Gluten Intolerance. Normal was 1-12 and 13 was positive and 20-25 was severe reaction to gluten. Mine was 75.She then ran a Celiac blood panel and tested for HLA genes. I tested positive for the DQ2 gene.

She went over all the results with me and said that she believed I had celiac disease but couldn’t give me an official diagnosis without sending me to a GI Dr. for a intestinal biopsy. She recommeded that I go on a GF diet asap along with taking some minerals and supplements to support my adrenal glands and she wrote me a presc. for thyroid med. I decided not to do a biopsy and just go with the GF diet and take the meds she suggested. I have been GF for a week and a half now and I can already feel a differance. I feel more alert and more calm. I have noticed that I am starting to have more energy and haven’t had the horrible headaches I was getting on a daily basis before. I still have a long way to go to recovery from all the damage that was done to my body. And alot to learn about bieng completly gluten free forever.

At times I get furious with the Doctors that just brushed me off as bieng this crazy depressed person who just worried too much. If only they would have listened to me. I knew that there was something causing this chronic fatigue and brain fog besides depression. I just wished that one of the many Doctors I seen them would have looked a little deeper. They only caused me more harm by writing all these meds for sleep, stimulants and depressants. I can’t wait until I have completly winged myself off all these “prescribed: horrible addictive drugs and start living normal again. I know it’s just been a week and a half since going GF but I look forward to having my health back.

By: Kim

Kim — Wed, 09 Jun 2010 16:06:23 +0000

Hi Aunt Jayne! I think that http://celiacandwhat.wordpress.com will be a wonderful resource for people. I think what you are doing is so important to show that it is just not normal GI issues that will be your sign to go gluten free! And your story is quite powerful as well!

Thank you so much for your support!!