This is a personal post for all the family and friends who have been following along with all of my health struggles over the last few years. We may have finally started getting some answers!
Okay, so I tested positive for Celiac Disease.
For those of you who don’t know, that is a disease where gluten essentially damages your small intestine to the point where it no longer absorbs nutrients. It can cause a lot of other issues as well. In fact the list is too scary to write out for you lol. I am lucky in that the only symptom I have really shown, up to this point, is my Iron Deficiency Anemia.
The only treatment for Celiac Disease is to cut gluten out completely. This is both a blessing and a curse. If all goes well, my intestine will heal, so my body will absorb iron through food again, so I wont have to spend thousands of dollars a year on infusions. Saving me a ton of time and money! Sadly, gluten is in a lot of things people don’t even think about like ketchup, or gravy, or meatballs. So I have to stay away from a lot of foods I love. Anyone who knew me growing up, I am a bread and butter girl!
I do have quite a few other concerns as well. I have been doing a lot of reading, which may have been a mistake lol. Being truly gluten-free is pretty difficult because gluten hides on labels under sooooo many different names. I will have to read every single label to everything I put in my body. Celiac can apparently also lead to more serious conditions, like infertility and cancer. Those outcomes of course aren’t definite, but I don’t feel as care free as I once did when day dreaming about my future.
Life will go on and I will adapt. God is good. This is an answered prayer because I now know what is going on in my body, and why. I also know how to treat it, and thankfully it is not with a medicine I have to take every day, or with expensive treatments. So I am happy.
I want to say a special thank you to everyone who has been praying for me, and for those who have gone out of their way to help me research Celiac, and have remembered me when they brought gluten free food to church meals. It really does mean the world to me! So, thank you.
brandyange.me 