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Celiac Success Stories |
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Tell us about your symptoms before you were diagnosed with celiac disease?
As a child, I had plenty of stomach upsets with vomiting and/or diarrhoea and stomach cramps. I was always small for my age [and remained the shortest in my family] and quickly developed a reputation as a fussy eater. Growing up in Ireland, our breakfast and dinners were almost always naturally gluten free foods—it was the sandwiches at school lunchtimes that gave me problems when I started school. After lunch, I would report stomach pains to the teacher and was sent to lie down in the sick room until I felt better. Sometimes I didn't eat lunch—or tried to trade [unsuccessfully] with friends for their potato chips - but I learned to live with stomach cramps. When I started university and discovered cheap beer and cheap pasta and pizza, my health really suffered but I put this down to hangovers or too much partying. The stomach upsets became more frequent and I also found in difficult to concentrate in class or while studying—it seemed like a brain fog had descended. I started a postgraduate course in the UK and started losing weight rapidly, throwing up some meals straightaway and suffering more diarrhoea. I just could not concentrate on my course and just a couple of months after starting and feeling totally miserable, dropped out and returned to Ireland. I saw yet another doctor, who again diagnosed a stomach bug. I stayed in bed, ate small portions of plain rice and the diarrhoea cleared up. The next academic year, I started another postgraduate course in another university in the UK. Soon after starting, in October, we were taken on a field trip to Paris, France. I felt nauseous, worn out and miserable: I remember sitting in a pizza place with the group, feeling hungry and looking forward to my food. When the pizza arrived, I could only manage a few mouthfuls and felt sick—but I put this down as a stomach bug. [I'd also been sick in Paris on my last trip there]. When I returned, I just couldn't shake off that feeling of tiredness, no matter how much I slept. Friends started to comment on how bad I looked: pale, tired and still losing weight. By December, I suffered from diarrhoea every day and it just wouldn't clear up. Going down the stairs of my house exhausted me. I developed a rash on my back and upper arms. I was very thin, but with a bloated stomach. I went to see another doctor who sent me for a blood test. The lab faxed the results of the blood test to my doctor who arrived at my house to admit me to hospital—I had severe iron deficiency anaemia and he was afraid I would lapse into a coma. He referred me to a gastroenterologist for tests—he mentioned coeliac disease immediately. Tell us what has your life been like since being diagnosed with celiac disease? When I was finally diagnosed with coeliac disease (by endoscopy) I was so relieved. I was so pleased I didn't need any more medical procedures or medication. It seemed so amazing that I could control my health with food. I quickly felt better on starting a gluten free diet and improving to feel wonderful!—athough my parents tell me it was quite a few months before I started looking well again. I always loved cooking and now I enjoyed eating. I gained weight rapidly but soon settled back to a reasonable weight. There was a lot of support for coeliacs in the UK: I joined the Coeliac Society, got my gluten free food free on prescription and had the support of a nutritionist. When I returned to Ireland, there was an amazing market locally which sold freshly baked gluten free foods: pizzas, scones, bread, swiss rolls filled with homemade jams, cookies, cupcakes... It is still held monthly in Raheny in Dublin on Friday afternoon. I moved to South Africa two years ago and boy did I miss the variety and low cost of gluten free foods in the UK! Luckily, a new health food shop opened locally who supply me with gluten-free flours and will order anything I need. I started my blog, Gluten-Free South Africa to connect with others on a gluten free diet. Being diagnosed gave me a new life. I felt, [and still do] energetic and happy. What a difference a gluten free diet can make! It was life-changing in the best possible way.
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