Advice for a gluten free diet? New queston post #27

[ChooksChick]

I grew up GF. My suggestion to start is to go to the biggest grocery store near you and look in the health section- they often have GF shelves now, with everything you could possibly want- Hy-Vee has it down to the pizza & chocolate donuts!

I would like to be a huge busybody for a second and ask if you would be open to a second opinion? There's a naturopath clinic here in Lawrence that has people coming to see them from all over the country, and the main doctor's testified before congress (I'm fuzzy on the details, forgive me about that) regarding right to wellness treatment and normal American medicine treating only symptoms and not fixing the source. I believe Crohn's to be a description of a set of symptoms and that the underlying source can be fixed.

Drs. Khosh cured 2 friends of 'Crohns' diagnosis. Neither has ever had symptoms again, given they stay on the rotation diet prescribed. My friends brought a kid with uncommunicative autism to the clinic (some of our closest friends- kid checked out at 2 1/2: they went to this clinic 2 years later after 12 normal specialists) He was quickly brought to the point that he's the popular kid in the grade, and chess champ for the school district. My daughter's crush testifies about his social adjustment...

When I say cured they Crohn's diagnosis, I mean they stopped the symptoms. There would be no diagnosis if no symptoms. There are no medications to take, no restrictive life, no accidents or fears of further autoimmune attacks. No progression. No diapers or days in bed.

This clinic has made some really, really sick folks I know well again. It's an amazing thing. Some of it's not covered by most insurance plans, and the really expensive part is the $500 in tests a person needs at the beginning, but after that they see folks all the time for cheap- sometimes no office call charge, and just make you better!

It's Natural Medical Care and I've never been, but lots of folks whom I know who and have been very ill have been made happier and healthier than they ever thought they could be by these guys (Drs. Khosh) and their work. They genuinely care about their patients and not about throwing pharmaceuticals at them.

Now that I've sounded like an ad for these guys, I have to say, I've never met them or used them myself, and I am stating all I know from witnessing it and hearing things from patients. My little sis was diagnoses with IBS and copied her friend's Crohn's diet from these Docs and it only partially worked because it's tailored to your body.

Perhaps call them and see if they have colleagues near you who will see you for your supposed Crohn's? I can't stand to hear about diagnoses like Crohn's that don't do anything for the patient but mitigate symptoms with meds that cause more symptoms. Steroids make me nuts, and I get neck bloat like I gained 50#...instead of the 20# it does make me gain. I'll be there in a flash if I ever need it.

I HATE Western Medicine sometimes, and want to offer hope for a less restrictive treatment and way of life. I would've kept my mouth shut but I like Gritsar & redhen too much to not risk potentially being an ass.

(stepping off of soap box. crawling under rock...)

 

[the lemon tree]

Check out glutenfreegirl.blogspot.com. She was diagnosed with Celiac disease a few years back and since then has written an excellent gluten-free cookbook. She keeps a regular blog of GF recipes and is a fantastic writer. I highly recommend perusing her website.

 

[Frogdogtimestwo]

Quote:
I could not agree more with you, I have seen amazing results with my child from a Naturopath treatment center than any other thing we have tried. It took many frustrated visits to our pediatrician and them just wanting to medicate to get to where we are today. Our insurance did not cover the "alternative" treatments but they changed our world of living with allergies.

 

[colowyo0809]

Speaking as someone who was diagnosed with Crohn's, I am going to have to agree with the ladies who posted before me. Crohn's is not the disease, it is a symptom. Moreover, generally speaking, you don't have crohns. I would ask your doctor specific questions, such as where exactly the crohns is located in your body. In my case, they only place they were ever able to find it was at the very start of my intestinal tract. This is not how crohn's works. Crohn's starts affecting at the bottom and working its way up your body, not the other way around. Come to find out, I have a gluten intolerance, which btw is not an allergy thank you very much. Definitly read labels, figure out what gluten is, the various names it goes by when in products. Malt is one. anything that says Malt or Malt.... is nonallowable. And I'm telling you right now, if you ever break your diet, you will regret it. I currently have zits all over my face because I got ticked off, went to gluten filled comfort foods, and am now paying for it

. Living a gluten free lifestyle is definitly not easy, but it is doable. Especially with the internet. Taking the time to prepare your meals with raw ingredients instead of using processed foods not only saves you alot of the headace, it is also healthier for you!

And, in our case, it helps that both myself and my partner are gluten free, and he works at a natural foods health food type store and gets a hella good discount

If you ever need support or a shoulder, we are all here to help!

Blessings and peace
Matthew Ryan

p.s. I have found honey is good in tea

p.p.s. the Gluten Free Registry is a great resource for finding restaurants and such with gluten free menu's. And, if you know of a place that isn't listed, add it!

 

[gritsar]

Besides the access to "normal" grocery stores, our other obstacle here is access to a wide range of medical care. Due to other medical issues and financial ones as well, I am not up to regular visits to Little Rock where I could possibly receive alternative care.

Without going into a lot of detail I am confident in the diagnosis. This has been going on for a very long time. I've actively undergone tests for the cause of the problem for a couple of years now, wih some symptoms going back as far as 1986, the year my daughter was born. The doctor has informed me that it is a diagnosis of exclusion, meaning it can't be diagnosed so much as everything else has been ruled out. It's my small intestine that's the problem.

My mother spent the last twenty years of her life being sent from doctor to doctor for symptoms identical to mine. It reached the point where she could no longer leave her house for fear of having an "accident". I still remember the emergency kit with a change of clothes, washrags and such, that she kept in the trunk of her car. Finally she was given appointments at the mayo clinic. Tired of dealing with it for 20+ years, she took her own life two weeks before her appointment.

Now one of my sisters is experiencing the same issues. In addition, she has recently been diagnosed with fibromyalgia. I was diagnosed with the fibro. in 1996.


Thanks again y'all.

P.S. Not too worried about eating out because we rarely do. We have just a few choices in town - that is when we feel like driving to town - burger king, mc d's, sonic or the diner.

 

[Frogdogtimestwo]

I understand what you are saying, you very well know your own body and issues, I just wanted you to know that the Naturopath that we saw did more for us in helping than the traditional doctor my child had been seeing for years. DIET will make a huge difference for you and I hope you path to feeling like yourself again comes quick

Frogdog

 

[ChooksChick]

I promise you: being confident in your diagnosis or comfortable with allowing your circumstances to limit your care is important-I do not want you to feel like I know more about your situation than you.

I promise you one more thing: you will look back at this, after years (already) of discomfort and lack of substantial action or effect from normal doctors, and you will wish you found a way.

The quality of life can be what you want it to be. You don't have to settle. Fight to have the life you want to live.

In the words of Thelma & Louise: "You get what you settle for."

 

[dipence71]

Quote:
Seems to me that the small intestines would possibly point more toward Celiacs Disease and a gluten free diet. And Celiac's is hereditary, I didn't find out about mine until the diagnosed my mom. I have been sickly since I can remember and I finally am mostly healthy. It can be challenging but so worth it.

 

[chicken_china_mom]

I find myself wondering if, because of all the gluten that is in processed foods, and the fact that people in general eat a lot of processed foods, are we triggering an allergy in our own bodies? Like maybe our bodies can't handle THAT much wheat?

 

[colowyo0809]

Quote:
Absoposilutely! In fact, it's pretty much a given. And, unfortunately, we are passing the problems on to our children. And, the only way to truly be sure if you have a gluten intolerance is with a genetic testing, which, to my knowledge, is only offered by one lab, in texas I believe. It is Entero(sp?) Labs and they do genetic testing to determine that you do in fact have a gluten intolerance, celiacs disease, etc. It is not a test of exclusion, but an actual test of confirmation. Unfortunately, the tests are not cheap, and most insurances will not cover it, but alot of them will reimburse you for it if you pay for it up front (go figure).

And, gritsar, I did not mean any disrespect. I understand full well how the not knowing can eat at a person. I was not trying to tell you what you were going through, or anything. I tend to get a bit preachy when I talk about something like this, it just pisses me off that it took six years and me walking into a health food store for anyone to figure it out. And I ended up filing for bankruptcy because of all the dr bills and hospital bills resulting from it.

to you for not giving up!