Still eating gluten...and miserable.

Well, last Friday I went to a gastroenterologist for the first time. She was wonderful! If you need a referral, just leave a comment and I'll get the info to you. Anyway, she does believe that I have Celiac Disease, but would like to take a biopsy for confirmation. While I am sedated for the biopsy of the small intestines, she's going to go ahead and check my esophagus for any problems since I have had some issues with acid too. I say get it all done at once so I don't have to be sedated again!

As per the gastro's instructions, I am still eating gluten at this time. If I stop taking in gluten then my body will begin to heal and thus I may receive a false negative in the scope procedure. It's difficult to keep eating something that you think might be causing your body to attack itself. In the meantime, I am eating gluten and I'm miserable.

I have just recently found the Whole Foods website that I'm sure so many people have already discovered. FA.BU.LOUS! Since Donnie is type 2 diabetic, we need to make some definite changes in our eating habits...for good! I have just started collecting recipes for things that we can all eat and enjoy. Our oldest son is allergic to eggs too. So basically I'm looking for gluten-free, egg-free, sugar-free recipes that taste good. It sounds like a challenge, but I think I'm up for it! Good thing I love to cook and experiment in the kitchen. The only problem is that most of the gluten-free flours, etc. are so expensive. So in the meantime, we're going to be eating a lot of lean meats, veggies and fruit. Sounds good to me! Especially since summertime is just around the corner! Can't wait to grill some chicken and steak along with some veggies! I have to say that I've always hated fish/seafood, but I recently saw a cooking show that featured some salmon that was grilled on a cedar plank. The salmon looked incredibly delicious, so I think I'm going to give it a try.

Looking forward to having that test done on June 1st so that I can begin my gluten-free journey. Of course we're leaving for vacation AFTER I get the test done. Of course we're not going on vacation before I go gluten-free. That would be too easy. This ought to be a challenge. I'm doing as much research about the place we're going to on vacation so that I can plan as much as possible. We have learned to adapt well to Gavin's egg allergy, so I'm sure this is just a matter of getting even better at reading food labels. One thing that I've gained since I've started looking at labels for gluten is a renewed interest in what I'm putting into my body (and into my children's bodies!). Which leads my random thinking to this thought...

Donnie recently rented a movie (for free at Family Video because it's a documentary) called, "Food, Inc." Very interesting. I'm going to check it out again. It was quite a bit to absorb in one viewing. It may also be available at your local library. There are 6 copies at our library, and they are all checked out! I wish we had more land so that we could have our own garden. I'd love to grow our own vegetables and fruit and have some chickens too. And maybe some honeybees too. I certainly hope I have more energy when I go gluten-free with all the dreams that I have for our family...