The wonders and horrors of Celiac Disease

I have a Dr Appt in a couple of hours in Ogden, that I will drive an hour for. My doctor (My gastrointerologist) is awesome, and that is why I drive an hour each way for every one of my dumb appointments with him. For all of you out there that don't know what Celiac Disease or Celiac Sprue Disease is, well, that means you're lucky and have had no reason to find out.

In quoting WebMD, Celiac disease is an intolerance, or allergy to gluten. (Gluten is the base of flour) it says, " Celiac disease -that's when gluten actually triggers the body's immune system. When people with celiac disease eat foods or use products containing gluten, their immune system responds by damaging the villi -- tiny, fingerlike projections in the small intestine that absorb the nutrients from food. For this reason it's considered an autoimmune disease.
Celiac disease, which also goes by the names gluten-sensitive enteropathy, nontropical sprue, and celiac sprue, is a genetic disease. This means it can run in families. And it has far-reaching effects.
"Celiac disease is not just a disease of the gut," says Shelley Case, R.D., nutrition consultant and author of Gluten Free Diet: A Comprehensive Resource Guide. "It's a multi-system, multi-symptom disease with serious implications."
Celiac disease is linked to malnutrition that can lead to anemia, osteoporosis, depression, behavioral problems, and stunted growth in children, among other problems. People who have celiac disease may also have other autoimmune conditions, such as type 1 diabetes and rheumatoid arthritis.

Ok, sound fun yet? It's HORRIBLE. I hate bread, I've never been a bread lover/eater, but right now, I CRAVE bread. I crave everything about it, I want to eat it with just butter on it, I want to make garlic toast, I freaking want a grilled cheese sandwhich!! I CRAVE bread. But oh, it gets better, I'm not allowed to eat ANYTHING that has gluten in it, so...Um, looked at food labels lately? I'm not allowed to eat Twizzlers, I'm not allowed to eat any cake, cookies, PASTA, most gum, most ice cream, soy sauce, barbeque sauce, cereal, I could go on forever. Don't get me wrong, people have made gluten-free cookies, and cakes, and even pasta. For the most part, they all taste like, well SHIZ. My Dr. did tell me that I could eat as much meat as I wanted. Oh rapture, oh purejoy, for the love of Norman Rockwell and the Letterman. I don't like meat in the best of times. So, here is what is really honestly and truly pissing me off. I have been SO good this last 8 months about what I've been eating and really and truly not eating hardly anything with gluten it (it happens, you just try not to) I've been doing so well, that since April, I bet I've gained 30-40 pounds. I've been eating things like, salmon, rice, vegetables, grilled chicken and steak, corn on the cob, baked potatoes-- all fresh and lovely. I'm not eating bigger portions, in fact I probably eat less. IS THIS FAIR??? NOOOOOO!!!! I spoke with my Herr Doktor about it in August and he said, basically, that's the craps, your body is coming out of starvation mode and EVERYTHING that you eat, it's storing as fat, in case you start eating gluten-filled stuff again, and it can't get nutrients. Doesn't that just sound awesome? I'm working extremely hard (and believe me-it's work!!) at eating the best I can to get healthy and not eating all the junk that I want to (by junk I mean, toast, spaghetti, cookies, etc) and I GET FAT as a freaking result. I am so frustrated right now that I want to punch someone/everything

Hmm, I'm going to Rexburg tomorrow, Bird or Bud would be an easy target. :-)

Thanks for letting me ramble, although I was screaming this in my head the whole time.

Peace!~