My story...Celiac or what?

Now that we are a little more educated on what Gluten is and why it is toxic to some of us, let's talk. I didn't just wake up one day, have some issues and the doctor said "you suffer from celiac". It just doesn't work like this in the real world. (where I live)

I suffered for years with painful stomach problems. I always thought this was normal, or that time of the month. Pain was just a natural part of my life I would eat and be okay. It would seem that by Sunday, I was "sick". I would be doubled over in pain, praying for death.

I never really associated it with what I ate I just thought it was "normal".  I would bloat up llike I was ready to give birth and when this happens so often it becomes part of your life, even if it's so negative.

I tried to get rid of the pain. This became my focus. You see, we treat the symptoms before we figure out that we need to treat the cause. I needed to find out what was causing the problem not just treat the issues being caused by the main problem.

I found myself time and again in the doctor's office and the emergency room for pain and pain management. I was treated for various conditions; pancreatitis, gallbladder, and anemia, fatigue and lactose intolerance.

Through the years I took various treatments of antibiotics. I swallowed products to break down lactose, the enzyme in milk that can irritate your digestive system. I turned to herbal therapies and spent a fortune on these treatments.

At the tender age of 42, after a lifetime of pain and suffering, I finally found my answer. Surprisingly enough, where my answer came, was from my mother in-law. She knew my history and had read an article about Celiac. She had also seen a show about it on one of the daytime medical talk shows.

I looked it up and researched the illness. I couldn't believe it. I had almost all of the symptoms. I had finally figured out what I had. I stopped eating gluten to see if I was correct. I was. I had to now convince a doctor. I told him what had happened.

Luckily I have an understanding physician, He'd been through years of pain with me. Because I had never been fully honest with him about my intestinal issues, (because I was way too embarassed to admit this) I also thought what I was going through had been "normal" for so long. Now I knew it wasn't.

I had screwed up though, I needed to come to have testing before I changed to "gluten free" for the testing to be accurate. This is something you should keep in mind if you have any idea you might suffer from Celiac.

I was sent to a very caring gastrointerologist-a specialist in digestive issues. He listened to my history and told me I had a classic case of Celiac. Oh My God! Years of pain and agony were over! I was thrilled.
He said that because I had been on my gluten-free diet for six months already, and was symptom-free, I would fine as long as I stayed on it for the rest of my life. As far as life sentences go, I felt with the support of my family and a better understanding I could do this!