Took me about a week, but I lived through another one. Certainly not my first, but I sure as Hell hope it’s my last!!!

I can laugh a little about it now. The sleeping part just isn’t fun. The level of fatigue is staggering. Once that part is over, the fun part comes. Hold on for dear life and stay near a bathroom!!! Pottying every 20 minutes for 3 days is an absolute adventure in and of itself. I wish I were exaggerating, but I’m truly not. Just ask my Daddy!!

The initial flush took 6 pounds of fluid out of my system. There are still several more to go that are just fluid retention. Can see it in my ankles best. My thin, pretty ankles and feet are almost back again.

We went out to eat Wednesday night. With the temp at 103, I had no plan of cooking. Went to a local place that offers a gluten free menu. Even ordering off that I had a reaction. Slight pain, but mostly that bloated feeling.

Last night I had an accidental ingestion again. I didn’t read a food lable and wound up doubled over in tears on the sofa about 15 minutes later. Not fun!!! This, my friends, is the joy of detoxing. Rather than a constant feeling of mild milaise, horrific pain from a single bite that’ll make you wish you were dead. Hmmmmmm….! Truly unfair.

On the upside… I feel good. For the first time in a while I have a nice energy level. It’s not caffeine and sugar. It’s my body’s natural energy from being healthy.

For me there’s a serious trade off in being healthy and feeling good. I have great energy levels. I lose weight naturally. My complexion looks fantastic. My mood is better all the time. There are a zillion up sides to not eating gluten. The down sides are harsh, yet very worth it. The cleaner my diet is the less I’m able to tolerate accidental ingestions of any amount. My body also rejects more and more foods. The first to go is always dairy quickly followed by sugar (all processed/refined sugars and artificial sweetners) and lastly soy.

If you’re sitting there wondering, “What do you eat?”. You’re not the first to ask me this question. A neurologist asked me this exact question a couple years ago. I eat a ton of really deliscious, healthy things! I’m not lacking in good food to eat. What I lack is the ability to eat out with friends and my husband. Eat at anyone’s home… EVER. I have to meal plan or at least keep the basics for safe cooking and eating on hand at all times. I lose a lot of freedom with food and social events because of my inability to eat so many food groups. I also MUST take certain vitamins and minerals so that I get all of the things I’d normally get in foods I can’t eat.

The last couple of days reminded me of just what it’s like living without dairy, soy, gluten and sugar again. It’s been almost a year since I’ve gone totally clean. Honestly, it saddens me a bit. There’s a sense of loss at the social aspect of food. It’s far from the food itself!

Before I was diagnosed with Celiac disease I used to get irritated with people who are like me. “Sorry, can’t eat that. There’s nothing on the menu I can have.” It sounds totally bogus, but it’s true. Trying to get 2 people to agree on a place to eat in the first place is hard enough. lol Now add in 4 entire groups of food I can’t eat? Damn near impossible. I guess, I’m asking you to be kind to your friend with food allergies. It’s hard enough. They’re already giving up a lot… or suffering if they don’t.

Tonight I made gluten free spaghetti with homemade meat sauce. What a treat! I should make a point of sharing more than a few of my GF receipes. My husband always says, “Who says eating GF is bad?” as he digs into yet another one of my spectacular meals. 🙂