Flipped Upside Down
by Cynthia on December 7, 2010
It certainly feels as though my life has been flipped upside down anymore. One thing after another has been happening and they all have been very trying and tiring. If you
follow me on
Twitter than you probably already know that last week the baby ended up with a horribly itchy rash that covered him head to toe. He still has it but I think it might be getting better. His doctor felt it was a mixture of eczema and some sort of allergic rash. Since he was 6 weeks old we have been having problems with him being sensitive to my breast milk after I have eaten things such as milk/soy protein, wheat, corn, berries, the list goes on and on. We have even tried a prescription baby formula that is ridiculously expensive and of course he refuses it and does not tolerate it all that well. After seeing a pediatric GI doctor as well as an allergist we decided to very cautiously attempt solid foods upon their recommendations. He has tried squash and bananas and we now think those are what has caused this rash. We are now being referred back to an allergist. This time one at a major children’s hospital in Portland.
This is all on top of my 16 year old’s colonoscopy as well as my 4 year old daughter’s health issues. As far as the colonoscopy goes we finally heard back on all the results on Friday. It turns out it is not Crohn’s like the doctor originally suspected but celiac disease. My son was told to start a gluten free diet and we are being referred to a dietitian and a GI doctor. He is handling the news surprisingly well. I think he is relieved to finally have an answer to all the symptoms he has been having. Right now it feels like a huge mountain to climb, going gluten free that is. We have decided the whole family is going to probably follow this diet after we have the other children tested for celiac disease. I have a feeling my daughter might have it as well now that I am learning more and more about it. I never realized how much wheat is in our everyday life until now. My head spins when I think about the change we are facing.
Below I have included some photos of food that I have blogged about here that are now no longer going to be on our menu.
We do love some homemade bread in this house. This is not going to be easy!
Tagged as:
celiac,
Family,
gluten free
{ 8 comments… read them below or add one }
I’m glad you found your teenager has a condition that can be kept under control, but I feel your pain about the home made bread
It sounds as though all the allergies the children suffer from are getting you down. Wish I could do more than just send you cyber hugs and well wishes.
Your cyber hugs and well wishes are so appreciated right now Granny. Thank you for showing you care. I always love hearing from you.
~Cynthia
Hello,
I’ve been following your progress and just have to let you know that this diagnosis is really a blessing in disquise. It will allow your children to return to health, now that you know what needs to happen to do so. Also, I highly recommend you google some gluten free blogs. There are hundreds out there creating really good food.
So what has to happen first is you ditch your idea of the perfect bread or dessert of any kind. Then, start experimenting slowly. And, really, the only commercially available gluten free bread that is any good is UDI’s. They make a variety of muffins, pizza crusts, etc. You can get several $1 off coupons on their web site, too. I find mine at the health food store. Not cheap, but worth the splurge, especially if you’re craving a sandwich. Any other brand’s products are hockey pucks, imho.
Here are a couple good blogs to get you started:
http://simplygluten-free.blogspot.com/
http://www.glutengobyebye.com/
http://glutenfreegirl.blogspot.com/
and
I highly recommend this cook book :
http://www.amazon.com/Cooking-Isaiah-Gluten-Free-Dairy-Free-Delicious/dp/1606521659/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1291774315&sr=8-1
You CAN do this!!! Cheering you on!
I don’t know much about a gluten free diet but I have seen a number of gf items from King Arthur Flour. It might be worth checking out: http://www.kingarthurflour.com/glutenfree/
Amy
Thanks for the link Amy! I’m gonna check it out ASAP!
~Cynthia
Hi Clare- Thank you for the comment. I will definitely be checking out the blogs you recommended! Our heads are spinning right now trying to figure out how to go about doing this. I agree that this diagnosis just might be a blessing in disguise. It explains so much and like I mentioned in the post, I feel very strongly that my daughter might have it as well. She sees the doctor tomorrow and I am going to ask for her to be tested for the antibodies in her blood.
We feel overwhelmed at the moment but I’m sure we will start to get the hang of this and it will get easier and easier. Especially once my son starts to feel better! His gut has been pretty damaged due to this going on for awhile.
~Cynthia
My 28 year old daughter has suffered from severe eczema most of her life. A couple years ago, she went for allergy testing when the skin was broken out so badly, they couldn’t test for everything they wanted to. They told her she was allergic to wheat, soy, and peanuts. She does not have celliac disease, but we found some recipes for gluten free things that we used for awhile. She ended up not sticking with her gluten free diet, even though I still cook gluten free when she comes over. The corn or rice pasta are pretty good. I want to try to make some homemade gluten free pasta.
I hope your breastfeeding goes better.
Hi Sue-
Good to hear from you and thanks for the comment. I have suffered from eczema on and off my whole life and know just how miserable it can be. I feel as though I have passed all my allergies and whatnot onto my children. It’s awful watching the baby suffer. Breastfeeding has been a major challenge due to him being so sensitive to so many things. We had hoped introducing solids would be a good thing but it has completely backfired on us.
Please let me know if you try to make gluten free pasta and how it turns out. My children love spaghetti and the gluten free kind found in the store is so expensive!
~Cynthia