The Winds of Change: Part One

The winds of change are blowing here (literally). It is VERY windy here, but the wind is bringing in some very warm weather. We have a week full of 75 degree days ahead of us. The ground turned green almost as soon as the sun hit it, due to all of the moisture that this winter provided. The whole world looks like it’s waking up!

What does the weather have to do with eating gluten free? Let me tell you! I’m a symbolism kind of girl, and I found a lot of symbolism in this. I know the “winds of change” thing is cliche, but I’m ok with that. I find myself sitting by the open window, enjoying the warm breeze and reflecting a bit.

I notice new members here on Gling every day. It makes me wonder, how many of these people are just beginning their gluten free journey? How many are looking for support, ideas and an end to the “what do I eat” panic? My heart goes out to you today, and this post is for you.

I’ve been gluten free for almost two years now. I can tell you, it DOES get easier! Come enjoy the breeze and let me tell you a story, you’ll see what I mean...

Once upon a time, there was a girl named Marissa. She was a very social girl who lived to eat buffet dinners and have large family dinners. Her evenings were filled with impromptu trips to Taco Bell and McDonald's. Summer was dedicated to Blizzards full of brownie bits or cheesecake pieces. It was a charmed life, but not a perfect one.

Marissa was suffering inside, literally. She woke up every morning to horrible stomach cramps. She spent days at a time in brain fog/depression. The impromptu fast food trips were not for fun, as a healthier diet was much preferred, instead they were forced upon Marissa by uncontrollable cravings. Marissa was not so much a foodie, but a slave to food.

Then things got worse. There came a time when eating anything took recovery time due to horrible nausea. Dairy was named as the culprit of these symptoms, and told to leave the kingdom. Marissa’s symptoms improved some-what, but her overall health continued to decline. She continued to deny the sage advice of family that with such a history of Celiac that there was probably another culprit altogether...

I’m sure you’re with me so far. We all have similar stories. I fought hard against going gluten free. I had watched some other family members eating their “special food” and couldn’t stand the thought of such restrictions. It was my little girl who tilted the scales in my house...er...The Kingdom :)

D.D. was the delight of Marissa’s life. She was a gorgeous and delightful child (who was known to throw up, at random and without warning). She needed a solid 12 hours of sleep every night in order to function. In spite of all her rest, she had purple circles under her eyes that got darker each year. She also had a large, firm belly that was usually attributed to baby fat.

All of this was a slight nagging concern to Marissa, but D.D. was so active and happy that it wasn’t a big concern. As often happens in life, everything came to a scary head at once. About the time that Marissa was starting to fear for her life in the wake of declining health, The Headaches came to D.D.

These were not normal headaches. They were completely debilitating and even resulted in memory loss occasionally. Doctors could offer no explanation and CT scans showed nothing abnormal. The Headaches seemed to lessen in the wake of massive hydration, so D.D. was sent to school each day with a large water bottle and instructions to drink A LOT.

It was a the end of a scary summer in which The Headaches came every day and Marissa could barely get out of bed that realization came. Marissa was writing an article about Celiac Disease and trying to find out as much as she could in order to better understand her niece when she came across a detailed list of possible symptoms. Tears came to her eyes when she saw that every one of the things plaguing D.D. was on the list, including The Headaches.

There was suddenly no more room for denial. Marissa knew that if D.D. was going to have any relief, she had to give up the gluten fight. (Never-mind the fact that all of her symptoms were on the list as well, Marissa didn’t have the strength to make a decision that big just for herself.) It seemed that the true culprit was Gluten. The Headaches and all the rest were just the henchmen. Thus, the gluten free journey began...

Luckily, the story does not end there. Unfortunately, this article does :) The story continues on Thursday with The Winds of Change: Part Two.