I was diagnosed as a coeliac in 2000. My mother was diagnosed in 1984, and things are a lot better now than they were for her, particularly with regards to gluten-free alternatives to staple foods, such as bread and pasta. I remember one loaf being in a tin, and thought I never tasted it, I’m pretty glad I didn’t need to.

By the time of my diagnosis, free from sections were rare in supermarkets, and for the most part, ‘essential’ foods were still only available on prescription. Bread, pasta, flour mix, biscuits, pizza bases etc.

For years, I would stick in an order once every three months, but as food became more and more readily available, my dependence on the prescriptions reduced. So, when my local NHS Trust decided to place restrictions on prescriptions for gluten-free food (at first it was dressed up as some nonsense about healthy eating, which meant we could no longer order things like biscuits or pizza bases), I just didn’t bother any longer.

So, my ire at the Newsnight report is not rooted in my being a ‘freeloader’. Rather, it is the way in which coeliacs are perceived to be following a gluten-free diet as if it were a wishy-washy tree-hugging life choice.

Would I like to go into a pub and order a beer? Hell, yes. Would I like to go out for a meal and not have to quiz staff about the exact constituents of menu items? Naturally. Would I like to be able to eat the same meals as the rest of my family? Of course. Should I be forced to pay three times as much for my food in supermarkets? Well, no.

Why anyone would choose to live their life like that is beyond me.

And if it does cost the NHS £30 to get a gluten-free pizza base, then that is not the fault of us coeliacs. It says much more about the inefficiencies of the prescription system, and I’m willing to bet there are thousands of other examples where the prescription item itself is a fraction of the cost that the NHS eventually pays.

Happily, I resisted temptation and created a delicious dinner.  A salmon burger on a bed of garlic sauteed spinach with a mustard sauce.  Sounds fancy…    it wasn’t. The burger was frozen as was the spinach and garlic.

I heated the pan to medium and added the burger to the pan once it was ready.  The directions on the package for the burger said to flip it after four minutes so before I flipped it I added the frozen spinach and garlic. While that was cooking, I mixed spice brown  mustard, a little butter and some mayonnaise together.

Once the frozen spinach started to cook, I added the frozen garlic cubes. I waited until those had melted and mixed the garlic and spinach together and place it one the plate. Once the burger was done, I placed it on top of the spinach with the mustard mixture was on top.

Sometimes, my experiments don’t taste so good, this once was so yummy there was nothing on the plate.

Have fun with your food, don’t be afraid of  it.

In the beginning start small.  Stick with simple foods that are easily definable and easy to say.  A rule I learned to live by as I overcame the label reading hurdle (hydrolyzed wheat protein and/or hydrolyzed soy protein – really I need to learn this stuff)?, I started with the least processed foods.  This meant food shopping along the perimeter of the super market and down the organic isles, even though gluten free does not mean organic.  Reading labels became easier over time.  You get familiar with the term gluten, and understand that it encompasses multiple grains such as rye, spelt, barely, and durum.  Also, when the FDA passed the Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act of 2004 (FALCPA), consumers were able to see in bold if the product contained one of the top eight food allergens.  The caveat?  Gluten is not part of the top eight food allergens, only wheat.  This means products such as Rice Krispies contain gluten because malt flavoring is listed in the ingredients, but the allergen warning does not disclose it.

Over the past few years gluten free products have been hitting the shelves.  You can find breads, cake mixes, pizza crusts, pasta that doesn’t turn to mush if it overcooked by 30 seconds, and a wide array of sauces.  Stores are making it easier to find their gluten free products too.  Wegmans has a “G” marking a product as Gluten Free, and recently Giant has instituted a program where they disclose gluten free products throughout the store.  Though these seem like small steps they are a huge help in daily living.  It’s nice to be able to go in a store, like Wegmans, and just shop from their gluten free section.  It decreases the time needed to read labels, and more manufacturers are promoting that their products are produced in a dedicated gluten free facility.

Lastly, as you continue to develop a routine to manage your gluten free lifestyle, be adventurous in the kitchen.  Try out new recipes and dishes whenever possible.  Test out quick meals that can be thrown together in 30 minutes, to meals that recreate what you used to eat when wheat was in.  Being gluten free doesn’t mean sacrificing taste or eating the same five foods daily.  View dinner as a veggie, meat, and starch and go from there.  Or base it on being Italian, Mexican, or Asian.  No time to cook?  There are great frozen meals out there too.  Really you can have all that.

Aside from learning that yes, I can still have good pizza, I also realized that I was naturally eating close to gluten-free anyway, and the modifications I had to make were pretty simple.  The biggest hurdle, both for me to deal with and for others to comprehend, is no more bread.  My understanding is that there are decent breadlike options for sale, and better recipes, but I haven’t really explored them.  I’ve made quick breads, but I have stayed away from making yeast bread since I had to cut out gluten.  The two main reasons for this were a. I had repeatedly read that it will never be like gluten-containing bread, and b. I haven’t found that many recipes that don’t use xanthan gum, and I at first didn’t have any, and now I am still a bit hesitant to use it.  I do plan to make yeast bread again in the future, but for now I will stick to yeast pizza dough as the extent of my g-f/yeast crossover.  These days I mostly don’t crave bread, though I would still consider killing to get a nice fluffy/squishy g-f donut.

Anyway, I wanted to share what my day looks like in terms of food.  The later it is in the day, the more variety shows up.  I do not want to have to think about what I’m eating first thing in the morning before my coffee has finished brewing, and I feel like I’m wasting work time if I make much effort during the lunching hour.  I would also like to note that I am not a nutritionist and I have never been to a nutritionist, so please don’t take this as advice in that realm – this is just what works for my body, and if it’s craving something then I listen, because it usually means I haven’t been getting enough of something that I need.

Breakfast:

• 2 Eggs, over hard (break yolks, cook on one side, flip and cook other side) – sometimes with some basil on (fresh basil, if I have it, is best)
• 1 Cup of Coffee (sometimes I will have a second if I’m of a mood)

Lunch:

When I first went off gluten, I ate what I liked to call “Celiac Sandwiches”.  They were not sandwiches at all, in fact, but were instead just the meat and cheese I would put on bread before.  It was still filling, but more expensive than what I eat now, and also somewhat visually underwhelming.

• 1/4 cup Hot Cereal – either Bob’s Red Mill Mighty Tasty G-F Cereal or Arrowhead Mills Organic Rice and Shine
• Milled Flax Seed (usually around a Tbsp or so?  I just pour it in the bowl)
• Instant Dry Milk (same procedure as with the flax – if you have non-dry milk, then go with that, but maybe reduce the water content)
• 1 Tbsp organic honey (if you’re in the St. Louis area, I highly recommend Stinger’s Honey, which can be found at a few of the farmer’s markets)

I microwave the first 3 of those together and then add the honey after.  In addition to that I usually either have a cup of berries or a fruit on the side, or if I don’t have either of those, then I mix in craisins or raisins (usually omitting the honey, since those sweeten the cereal nicely).  I also sometimes add in an ounce of cheese if I need a little protein.  I sometimes switch up lunch by having left-overs from dinner (not common, I usually incorporate those into the next night’s dinner), or more commonly by having greek yogurt (plain and add honey) with fruit.

Dinner:

Dinner is where things get really mixed up.  I generally have three versions of dinner, so here are the basic forms:

Ramyun

• Thai Kitchen Instant Rice Noodle Soup (Ginger type is my favorite, but I also like the Garlic.  I haven’t tried any of the others yet)
• 1 egg
• Sriracha
• Red Pepper Flakes (yum! I love using these in dinner)
• Frozen Vegetables (usually, sometimes I have fresh produce which I chop up for it – I most frequently use frozen green beans)

I usually have two things on the side – an ounce of cheddar cheese and some kimchi is my usual, but I also sometimes have half an avocado, raisins, steamed brussel sprouts…  It really depends on what I have in the fridge, how many calories I need, and what I’m in the mood for.  Cheese and kimchi is my favorite because the cheese is really mellow in texture and flavor, and then kimchi is spicier than the ramyun and also provides a nice texture change, since it’s quite crunchy.

Stir-Fry

• 1 yellow onion (as with all ingredient for this recipe, size/amount depends on how many people you are feeding or how much you want in the way of left-overs)
• Chicken (usually – sometimes I use beef or go vegetarian and only use an egg or 2)
• Carrots
• Schnucks Frozen Stir-Fry Vegetables (I like these because I don’t have to chop, making stir-fry a much quicker option, and they’re still fairly inexpensive for that being the case – also means I don’t have to know I’m doing stir-fry b.c I can leave them in the freezer for weeks, rather than having to use fresh produce on hand)
• Rice!  I usually use Jasmine or Basmati.

Liquids I may use for making the sauce:

• G-F Tamari (I get San-J brand reduced sodium. Kikkoman makes a respectable g-f option as well, but I have never seen a reduced sodium version, so I generally prefer San-J.  By the way, if anyone knows where I could get g-f soy sauce in bulk, I would adore you for telling me.)
• Toasted Sesame Oil
• Olive or Canola Oil
• Thai Kitchen Fish Sauce
• Sriracha

I also usually incorporate minced garlic, powdered ginger, and red pepper flakes.  Sage also makes an appearance here and there.

Baked Meat and Vegetable

This is easily my most boring and passive option.  Usually the meat in question is chicken breast.  I plop it in a pyrex baking dish (sometimes with butter or oil, but frequently without) and sprinkle spices/herbs over top.  I like baking chicken at 425F for 15-17 minutes because it’s juicy, but adequately cooked.  The vegetable is frequently steamed in the microwave or baked in another pyrex.  Brussels I steam (I love brussel sprouts and do not understand how anyone couldn’t), cauliflower I bake in olive oil with lots of powdered cumin, green beans are steamed (occasionally buttered, usually not), broccoli is baked or pan-fried..

Other than that, I snack a decent amount.  My body is happiest when I eat every few hours (I get a little dizzy and/or nauseous if I go too long without eating).  Snacks include the assorted lovely things I bake, as seen on the blog, cheese, peanut butter (yes, by itself), Glutino Crackers (I’ve only tried the original and cheddar varieties – original I eat when my stomach can’t handle exciting, cheddar is good all of the time), Chex cereals, fruit, vegetables…  I could probably make an entire post dedicated to my snacking habits, really, because it’s much more varied than my main meals.

So there you have it!  I eat a lot of things, and I think I eat pretty well.  I would like to branch out on the dinner front (I specifically want to try more Korean and Indian dishes – I make beef bulgogi, dak galbi, and curries, but that’s it for those two realms), and I could probably stand to shake lunch up a bit more.  I still eat a fair amount of grain, and most notably, I eat pretty normal food.  Gluten-intolerance and Celiac Disease are not the end of the world as far as tasty food is concerned, it just takes some time to adapt.

Choosing to live a gluten-free lifestyle can have many benefits.  Not only can you reduce some of the health problems that you may be experiencing, but you can also have a healthier diet overall.   Many people report a significant lessening of symptoms that they previously struggled to treat using regular medical treatments.  Removing gluten from their diets is often something that had not been previously considered, and one thing that can have a dramatic effect.

There are several chronic health conditions that may be related to gluten sensitivity.  One condition that is often linked to a gluten sensitivity is autism.  It has been found that many children with autism have certain problems with their gastrointestinal systems that make it difficult for them to digest the proteins found in milk and milk products.  A gluten free diet that is also casein free (milk protein) may be especially helpful in these cases.

Type 1 diabetes can also be improved by following a gluten free diet.  This is because a gluten free diet includes foods that are low in the glycemic index, especially vegetables.  While it may seem very difficult to get your child on a gluten free diet, there are so many delicious gluten free products available at your supermarket that it is probably far easier than you might imagine.

Living a gluten free lifestyle is definitely not as difficult as it may initially appear.  For example, oatmeal with cinnamon is gluten free and will help to regulate blood sugar all day long when eaten for breakfast.  Gluten free pancakes are another delicious option, and cinnamon makes them tasty and helps to keep blood sugar in check.  Egg whites are another great healthy choice.

When in doubt, read the food labels carefully.  Many products have gluten free versions that are clearly labeled, like peanut butter, buttermilk, tahini, gelatin, syrup, jam, and honey.  Using these products can help you to manage a gluten sensitivity and help to improve your overall health and well being.  Once your body recovers from the constant influx of gluten that it has been used to, the intestines and the entire gastrointestinal system will be better able to absorb nutrients and filter waste.  Your body will become far more efficient at processing foods and nutrients.

Living a healthier lifestyle by eating a gluten free diet can leave you with higher energy levels, better digestion, clearer skin, fewer chronic health problems and a better mood.  Many people report that they feel far more alive once they begin living a gluten free lifestyle!

FREE Gluten-free Recipes & Shopping Guide

This recipe has been adapted from an Scharfen Berger chocolate recipe. I didn’t have their chocolate, but I did use the 72% Belgian chocolate bar I talked about in an earlier post. And of course, I converted it from gluten-full to gluten-free.

Today has been an interesting day. First, two failed bread recipes. That was a real bummer. Then, I tried to convert Paula Deen’s chocolate chip cookie recipe and that was also a total fail. I won’t bore you with those pictures. They looked like melted pancakes on the baking sheet. But, I persevered because I wasn’t about ready to have a complete flop of a baking day.

Boy am I glad I hung in there! These are wonderful. My newly gluten-free husband will be thrilled that I’ve converted a great chocolate chunk cookie recipe. They are very lightly crisp on the outside, and gooey and soft in the middle.

Chocolate Chunk Cookies

2 1/2 Cups Mama’s All Purpose Almond Flour

1 teaspoon Baking Soda

1 1/2 teaspoons Xanthan Gum

1 teaspoon Kosher Salt

3/4 Cup Dairy Free Butter (I use Soy Free Earth Balance)

1 Cup Dark Brown Sugar, packed

3/4 Cup Granulated Sugar

2 Large Eggs

1 1/2 teaspoons Pure Vanilla Extract

1 1/4 Cups Dark Chocolate, roughly chopped (at least 72% and dairy free)

*Preheat oven to 350 degrees ( I use a convection oven)

Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside. Measure the flour, baking soda, xanthan gum, and salt into a large bowl and whisk to combine.

In the bowl of a heavy-duty mixer, cream the butter and sugars until creamy, about 2 minutes. Scrape down bowl and add the eggs and vanilla. Blend well and scrape down sides.

With mixer on low, add the flour mixture and beat just until fully incorporated, scrape down bowl and add chocolate chunks. Mix until fully incorporated into dough, about 20-30 seconds.

Drop rounded Tablespoons of the dough onto the baking sheets about 2 inches apart (I did 6 per sheet) and bake for 13-15 minutes. Do not over bake, as they will become too crisp and you will not have the soft middle. Cool on wire racks and store at room temperature in airtight container.

You can trust me when I tell you that these are good, really good. Because I could pretty much live my whole life without eating a chocolate chip cookie. I’ve never really liked them. They are either too soft, too crisp, or have too much chocolate and I end up eating around the chocolate chunks and throwing them away.

But these – these are delicious, I’m shocked, and pretty happy with myself considering the bread fiasco and failing at converting Paula Deen’s cookies. Ha!

For those of you who might be considering trying the gluten-free lifestyle, I thought I would let you know how it’s going for my husband.

He is a pretty healthy 44-year-old who exercises on a regular basis. He also has Hashimoto’s disease (thyroid) which is known to be linked to gluten intolerance and Celiac’s. He has exercise induced asthma (sometimes worse than others)  which is difficult when he loves to run, mountain bike, and ski. For the past two to three years he has also had some issues with inflammation in his back that is exasperated by exercise, sometimes forcing him to take a break from activities that he enjoys. Within 1 week of going off of gluten he had zero tightness in his lungs while running (even long distance – over 10 miles), he felt more energetic, and after two weeks off of gluten all pain in his back was gone. Going off of gluten isn’t a cure-all for everything that ails you, but it’s certainly something to consider. He’s had one or two bouts when his back pain has returned…but, that was after ingesting gluten while he was traveling out of town.

Inflammation in the body causes all kinds of issues. If you can tackle it, it’s worth it. It’s linked to heart disease, auto immune diseases, intestinal issues, and many cancers. It’s also painful. Swollen joints, stiff joints, headaches, migraines, skin disorders…I could go on. If you’re having any of these issues, I challenge you to go allergen free – gluten first for 90 days, then dairy and gluten for 90 days, 180 days total. You will learn a lot about how what we ingest on a regular basis takes a toll on our bodies. Things we think we can digest and process just fine end up being the root of many of our medical issues. We’ve just been putting those things in our bodies for so long it’s difficult to see it. Once you’ve been off of it for a few months, then try to add it back into your diet, if it’s bothering you, most likely you will notice a reaction within the hour and certainly by the next day.

For me, with gluten it is within 60 minutes. Stiff neck, tight joints, headache, feeling like I’ve been drugged with a sleeping pill, and extreme lethargy the next day. With dairy, it’s within 30 minutes. My whole body swells up as if I’ve eaten a weeks worth of salt, stomach is bloated – like Thanksgiving dinner bloated, breasts are sore within 30 minutes, and I am almost guaranteed 3 days of being sick and at least one day with a major migraine.

Sounds extreme, I know. And you may think it’s all in my head or allergen free living is a new “trend” now. But believe me, I kept a food diary for a year and a half. Was plagued with shingles every other month for two years (food allergies tax your immune system), vertigo, migraines, and felt horrible until I slowly started to figure out what was going on and changed my diet.

If you’re suffering, take control of your health. Ignore all the hoopla and the eye rolling from friends and family  when you take a chance and change your diet (there will be some of that and yes, it’s very frustrating)  .

But guess what? They don’t live in your body. Get strong and healthy.

You owe it to YOU to have a healthy, happy, life!

http://www.celiac.com/gluten-free/

Also, here are several contacts for those who need some personal assistance getting started with their new diet or for any person with questions.

Kids and Teen Contacts

• Marlene Frazer · 951-764-8732 · onepartyofsix@verizon.net

Teen Contacts

• Tay Coben · 480-707-9379 · taycoben@aol.com
• Brooke Hamroff · 516-829-0718 · blh0727@aol.com
• Holly Nelson · 949-216-9116 · hollynelson13@cox.net
• Alexandra Van Den Heuvel · 262-618-4598 · 59defender@gmail.com

College Contacts

• Samantha Hamroff · 516-829-0718 · srh3281@aol.com
• Mandra Howell · 720-308-7680 · mandrajo@yahoo.com
• Ashley N. Jones · 310-909-6298 · ashley@trulymadlychicly.com
• Kayla Wright · 602-315-0670 · klw336@nau.edu

Young Adult Contacts

• Matthew Schames · 310-293-9783 · mschames@hotmail.com
• Ashley Fillmore · 609.385.7644 · ashleylfillmore@gmail.com

I was talking to my sister, who has done some research on gluten-free living, and she suggested that I eliminated gluten products for a while, just as a test.  I didn’t think that was the issue with me, so after going back to juice and fruits and feeling well, I attempted to eat again – I had the same result – became sick.  On both occasions, bread was present in the meal.  I decided to listen to my sister.  She insisted that I showed most of the symptons of a person that is sensitive to gluten or allergic to it.  I checked all the food I had in the pantry and put aside everything that contained wheat, barley, rye, or was a gluten suspect.  I found some seasoning spices contained it as well.  Once I read more on the subject, I was amazed at how many symptoms matched how I had been feeling for quite some time.

Now that I knew what not to eat, I started eating small meals and increasing the food amount slowly.  I was pleasantly surprised that during that time, my belly was flat, I didn’t have any pain, and food didn’t cause any discomfort.  I have been gluten-free for about two weeks now, and I feel great.  My energy is coming back (I was feeling very tired all the time), the fogginess in my head is lifting slowly (I was having trouble concentrating and even thinking), and my mood is better (I was feeling blue, many times for no clear reason).   I noticed that I had to go down two holes when wearing a belt.  I know that I lost a few pounds (3) during that week, however, it is the absence of bloatiness and the absence of an upset belly that amazes me the most.  Foods that I thought were causing an acid discomfort, such as orange juice or tomatoes, are perfectly fine now.  I guess that all this time, my problem had been the gluten, and I wasn’t aware of it, until I got really sick.  This is my gluten surprise.  I intend to follow a gluten-free diet from now on.

Today, following a gluten-free diet is easier than ever since there are many products online and at the supermarket that are labeled gluten-free.  If the facility processes foods that contain wheat or barley, it is usually included in the label as a warning to possible cross contamination.  I found that pre-done gluten-free products, such as cookies, donuts, and breads, to name a few, are expensive.  Cereals are in the same price range as organic cereals, and gluten-free pasta costs more than regular pasta, but almost the same as gourmet brands.  You can save by buying the gluten-free mixes and making your own breads, cookies, pizza, waffles … it is a bit more work but worth the savings.  I found a few brands that I am about to try – Bob’s Red Mill, Cherrybrook Kitchen, Gluten-free Pantry, Hodgson Mill, Udis, Bionaturae, and Nature’s Path.  All these brands carry gluten-free products, and there are many others.  I even found that my local Stop and Shop has a gluten-free cereal under their brand – corn squares.  I have plenty of choices at my local Stop and Shop,  and if your local supermarkets don’t carry many items, you can always go online and there are many gluten-free products available.  I am keeping it simple and making my own breads and the occasional cookie and pizza, when I am in the mood for those.  The pasta and cereals are competitive in price.

I was headed to a lifestyle of growing my food and making my own products, so this change doesn’t bother me at all; on the contrary, it fits right in.  Here are a couple of pictures of some of the gluten-free brands.  As I start to try some of them and make some things from scratch, I will post my progress and some pictures.

If you do happen to find yourself in this solitary Celiac situation, you may find it helpful to watch out for a couple of things.

The first instance happened to me in November.  My mom and my brother have their birthday on the same day…30 years apart  My mom’s only wish was for someone to bake her a cake.  As the primary baker in the family, I took on this task and whipped up a gluten-free chocolate cake.  Again, it doesn’t matter who I’m cooking for now, if I’m going to be doing the cooking and/or baking…it’s going to be gluten-free.  However, I presented my treat at my mom’s house, which is NOT gluten-free.  My brother wanted an angel food cake, and my mom had picked up a gluten-FILLED version at the store.  Completely caught up in the moment and completely used to my usual SAFE environment, I began helping to serve this angel (devil) cake.

What happened?

I got some cake on my finger and proceeded to stick this gluteny finger in my mouth.

The moment it passed my lips, I freaked.  I instantly ran over to the tap and started scraping my tongue.  Of course, then the fear sets in….omg, how bad is this gonna be?  Honestly, thanks to memory loss being one of my lingering symptoms, I don’t remember how badly my body reacted to this gluten invasion.  All I know is that being in a gluten-free environment gave me a false sense of security, and I…someone who is incredibly careful to avoid the poison…ended up glutening MYSELF.

The second instance happened yesterday.  My brother’s car pulled up next to my mom’s truck, carrying the three little rugrats…my two nieces and my nephew.  I got out of the truck and hopped over to the car, stuck my head into the car…and saw peanut-butter and jelly sandwiches in the kids’ hands and on their faces.

I immediately backed off.

This time, I remembered.

But THIS time, I found myself so fearful of the gluten that I wouldn’t even touch my niece, didn’t even want to come close to my  nephew.  My mom and I went into the store with my nephew, and I was too scared to even hold his hand to cross the road. He used hand sanitizer when we got inside, but then proceeded to get a cookie from the bakery.  I was avoiding touching him like he was diseased, and I couldn’t help it!  In line at the cashier, my mom gave him her gloves, but in my head all I could think is how there was no way he could get the gloves on without getting gluten on them!  I knew that it was ridiculous.  I mean, I was buying things in a gluteny grocery store.  Stuff that I’m sure millions of gluteny hands have fondled.  But I was terrified of my 5 year old nephew.  LOL

So, here is what I learned.

I learned that living in a 99% gluten-free environment 99% of the time can lead to a false sense of gluten-free security.

I also learned that the same thing can lead to a heightened sense of gluten-free fear.

Basically, I learned that I need to find a happy medium between gluten-free and care-free.  There will always be gluten around, and try as I might, I will not be able to avoid it 100% if I plan on maintaining a good quality of life, socially.  However, I must avoid gluten as close to 100% as possible, without going into panic attacks at the sight of it, if I plan on maintaining a good quality of life, health-wise.

I also learned I need to get out more.

SC

—-nieces with sandwiches in car and nephew with gluten in store and angel food cake incident

If you do happen to find yourself in this solitary Celiac situation, you may find it helpful to watch out for a couple of things.

The first instance happened to me in November.  My mom and my brother have their birthday on the same day…30 years apart  My mom’s only wish was for someone to bake her a cake.  As the primary baker in the family, I took on this task and whipped up a gluten-free chocolate cake.  Again, it doesn’t matter who I’m cooking for now, if I’m going to be doing the cooking and/or baking…it’s going to be gluten-free.  However, I presented my treat at my mom’s house, which is NOT gluten-free.  My brother wanted an angel food cake, and my mom had picked up a gluten-FILLED version at the store.  Completely caught up in the moment and completely used to my usual SAFE environment, I began helping to serve this angel (devil) cake.

What happened?

I got some cake on my finger and proceeded to stick this gluteny finger in my mouth.

The moment it passed my lips, I freaked.  I instantly ran over to the tap and started scraping my tongue.  Of course, then the fear sets in….omg, how bad is this gonna be?  Honestly, thanks to memory loss being one of my lingering symptoms, I don’t remember how badly my body reacted to this gluten invasion.  All I know is that being in a gluten-free environment gave me a false sense of security, and I…someone who is incredibly careful to avoid the poison…ended up glutening MYSELF.

The second instance happened yesterday.  My brother’s car pulled up next to my mom’s truck, carrying the three little rugrats…my two nieces and my nephew.  I got out of the truck and hopped over to the car, stuck my head into the car…and saw peanut-butter and jelly sandwiches in the kids’ hands and on their faces.

I immediately backed off.

This time, I remembered.

But THIS time, I found myself so fearful of the gluten that I wouldn’t even touch my niece, didn’t even want to come close to my  nephew.  My mom and I went into the store with my nephew, and I was too scared to even hold his hand to cross the road. He used hand sanitizer when we got inside, but then proceeded to get a cookie from the bakery.  I was avoiding touching him like he was diseased, and I couldn’t help it!  In line at the cashier, my mom gave him her gloves, but in my head all I could think is how there was no way he could get the gloves on without getting gluten on them!  I knew that it was ridiculous.  I mean, I was buying things in a gluteny grocery store.  Stuff that I’m sure millions of gluteny hands have fondled.  But I was terrified of my 5 year old nephew.  LOL

So, here is what I learned.

I learned that living in a 99% gluten-free environment 99% of the time can lead to a false sense of gluten-free security.

I also learned that the same thing can lead to a heightened sense of gluten-free fear.

Basically, I learned that I need to find a happy medium between gluten-free and care-free.  There will always be gluten around, and try as I might, I will not be able to avoid it 100% if I plan on maintaining a good quality of life, socially.  However, I must avoid gluten as close to 100% as possible, without going into panic attacks at the sight of it, if I plan on maintaining a good quality of life, health-wise.

I also learned I need to get out more.

SC

—-nieces with sandwiches in car and nephew with gluten in store and angel food cake incident