Perlés Jewellery

I have had a nut allergy since I was in my twenties, so my adjustment has been 17 years in the making. At first, it was so hard giving up a lot of things I really enjoyed. Especially during the holidays with pecan pie and pecan rolls and banket. But now, I see it as a blessing. I don't have to have any will power over these things. I simply cannot have them or bad things happen to my body. With my nut allergy my mouth and stomach would hurt and then my blood pressure takes a nose dive. I haven't had any reactions since my twenties because I don't cheat on my nut allergy at all. I am lucky though that I can have peanuts, they are actually a bean, so my allergy to tree nuts is seperate.

I was diagnosed with Celiacs Disease at the end of December. Unlike an allergy it is actually an autoimmune disorder. Any gluten can cause my immune system to go crazy and attack the villi in my intestines. This causes my body to not digest food correctly or absorb the nutrients from the things I eat. I was terribly anemic which was brought about the doctor checking for this disorder. At first I was so angry. It's so annoying to have to read every label and think about anything that I put into my mouth. Everything takes so much more planning and thought and I was not happy at the thought of having more work in my life. As the mother of a special needs son, (he has Aspergers Syndrome) I find my life to be full enough of trouble without adding more things into it! It has been a little over a month now and I can feel the difference in my body now that the gluten is gone. But, I have a ways to go before I am healed.

Yesterday, I got the test results back from the food panel my gastroenterologist ordered. The results show abnormal reactions to eggs, cassein, corn, chocolate, soy, rice and of course the main grains; wheat, barley, rye, and oats. This really threw me for a loop! Seriously, how many more "Nos" are there going to be? Again I have to do even more label reading and have even more limitations on my diet. My body is still telling me something isn't right. I was still feeling bloated and my stomach was still hurting. Hopefully removing these other things will make my life even that much better.

The most important thing is to keep a sense of humor and a positive spirit. I am sometimes so tempted to throw myself a pity party but I can't let myself go down that road. At least I can have my coffee!