Life with SIBO, Gluten Intorelance and Hashimoto's

Turkey day update!

Thanksgiving was great - 24 people and the entire meal was GF and no one knew!  Kids and adults alike ate everything.  A year ago, when I started the GF journey, I would never have guessed that I could host a big dinner with success, without making something different form myself.  I was new to the GF world, stumbling along, not getting a firm grip until the spring.  Now, I have confidence to cook almost anything!

The next weekend I discovered the best GF pizza I have ever had.  It was at a little pizza place in Keystone Colorado.  After a day of skiing my family convienced me to try it, they had been there before and asked a couple of times about the GF options. It was so yummy!  Better than the other pizza places I have tried, even better than the ones I made at home.  I just love it when I find something so good!

Have any of you found a yummy GF food either in the store or eating out?  Share!  I am always looking for new things.  Like the pie crust at whole foods, the whole foods brand - good eating.  I have tried others, yuck.  A nice find!  Share!

What I'm thankful for

It has been awhile since I wrote, not because things are going poorly but because I have my life back.  As Thanksgiving approaches I have been thinking about all the things I am thankful for.  Of course family, friends, being employed is what we all think of.  This year I am thankful that I have figured out why I have been so sick these last 3 years.

After being gluten free since the spring, I have not had one recurrence of SIBO.  No more bloating, gas, feeling miserable, tired, getting sick easily - it is all gone.  Now the disclaimer here is if gluten sneaks into my diet, even a crumb, I feel horrible. At least I know that I have been glutenized within about 20 minutes.  The last time was because of a sponge that had crumbs on it, you know, those with the mesh coverings.  Bye, Bye sponge.  I know have my own toaster, condiments, butter, everything that could possibly provide a source of cross contamination.  Eating out is slowly getting easier - I state that I am GF over and over again and never go during rush hour.  The list of places that have a GF menu is growing.  Then there are all the yummy products you can get.  Now don't get me wrong, there are some pretty gross things too but that is true in the world of gluten as well.  I am hosting Thanksgiving this year - 24 people - the entire meal, including dessert, will be GF.  When I was making the stuffing my S.O. kept snacking on the bread and cornbread - saying this is so good.  He couldn't keep away from it - that is until I ushered him  and the dogs that were under foot, out of the kitchen!  My kids are requesting GF chocolate chip cookies and brownies!  Don't get me started on some of the yummy GF beers out there. Needless to say, going GF does not mean you are on a "diet", you can eat really well.  Still need to watch those calories!

Then there was the allergy testing - I wanted to know if there was anything else foodwise that I needed to know about.  I mentioned that I tested positive for Casein with the saliva test.  The doctor said that the saliva test is highly unreliable.  So he retested me for that and 90 other things.  I looked like a pin cushion!  No other foods are off the list.  No to the casein allergy but he said that I was probably intolerant to the casein or lactose due to my symptoms if I have it for 3 or more days in a row. 

My new endo tested my insulin levels after I told him my 9 yr old son passed out at school and I suspected low blood sugar, the doctor agreed.  Diabetes/hypoglycemia runs in families.  My insulin levels were really high - I have finally been diagnosed with hypoglycemia which explains the roller coaster of energy, the exhaustion in the evenings, crankiness, memory issues, lack of ability to lose weigh (high insulin levels = weight gain, typically around the middle).  I changed my diet and avoided even more carbs and sugars, all low GI/GL.  Still the symptoms remained.  My endo put me on metformin twice a day.  Ok, so that was a miracle drug for me.  I feel 1000% better!  

My weight is still high but it is not going up anymore - it has actually started dropping, slowly but that is the most progress I have had in 3 years.  I am beginning to accept myself for they way I am.  This journey has taught me that doctors don't have all the answers, sometimes you have to be the one who solves the mystery through trial and error.  Often more error than anything.  The elimination diet helped me immensely with the trial and error part of my food journey.  Sometimes you just get lucky with a doctor who listens.

I am thankful for the journey.  Thankful that I stopped saying I can't and started saying I can.  Thankful that I had the courage to keep looking for answers.

Hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving. 

Great Success

Wow, it has been way too long since I have written.  I have no excuses - just enjoying the summer!

I have been 100% gluten free for 6 months now and feeling sooo much better.  No reoccurance of the SIBO, no more miralax, no bloating.  What have I discovered - everything is related and you are what you eat.  I used to read blogs and groups about SIBO and autoimmune issues and got so frustrated with the fact that people tried all these funky treatments and cures - never addressing the basic issue of what they are eating.

My journey began in March, at my wits end, I found a doctor to deal with my Hashimotos.  Hashimotos is an auto-immune issue where my body attacks my thyroid, nice, I thought I was supposed to be my own best friend.  Guess not.  Anyways, the doctor told me that my SIBO, thyroid, joint pain, etc was all related  - related to my environment, to what I was eating, causing massive inflammation in my body as it wage war on what I ate.  This is true with most of the population, but most people are not willing to give up their favorite foods but look for radical approaches or a pill.  As things I ate created inflamation in my body, everything slowed down. The slow down in my intestines caused the SIBO.  Caused me to get sick easily.  No period, irregular at best among a laundry list of problems.  Turned out that what I learned would change my life forever.

Gluten was the prime bad guy - it is for most people, some extreme others mild.  This goes beyond Celiac disease - this is those who have gluten intolerance, those who are feeling bad and don't know why.  It causes inflamation in the body - all through the body.  Now my GI doctor said, you don't have celiac you can eat as much gluten as you want.  Wrong. Come to find out that gluten in my system looks exactly like the thyroid, so my body attacks it with vengence.  So not only does my entire digestive track feel horrible but I get muscle aches, exhaustion, flu like symptons as my body wages war.   Wheat was never a part of humans orginal diet - it was introduced to feed a mass population and was known that certain parts of the population would have problems.

My new doctor he said no more gluten, not 90% removed but 100%.  No cheating - this is a life change, no more, ever.  Sure enough within a few days I was beginning to feel so much better - my SIBO symptoms went away.  A month later I was tested for allergies to casien (protein in Dairy), soy and eggs.  Turned out I was also allergic to casien and soy protein.  A month later I am feeling even better. I would highly recommend getting tested for food allergies.  I plan to have a indepth test done to see if there is anything else.  Now onto sugar and artifical sweetners.  All gone.  I only use Truvia, Stevia and other natural sweetners and I love it. Did you know that sugar causes inflammation in the body and swelling.   

Now I feel even better and food tastes better.  I eat great- I am actually loving being GF.  I will post some great recipes and sites for you to explore.  I have found some yummy GF foods, bread and beers too!  You will be amazed at what you can eat!  I went on multiple vacations and ate GF the entire time -  I ate better than my family!  It just takes some pre-planning.  Eating out is possible!

My doctor started me with an elimation diet for 21 days. That made it easier - cold turkey.  I will post this as well.  If you are constantly eating cakes, bread, cookies, sweets the first 3 days will be hard.  By day 5 you will be feeling great!  After 21 days you add in one item at a time.  Pick one thing, eat it all week and see how you feel.  Still feeling ok, put it on your ok to eat list.  Continue this process.  Note you will never add gluten back into your life.

Now it is almost 6 months later I have not had one bout of SIBO that required me to get on drugs.  I am off the probotics.  I am healthier than I have been in years.  My period came back and is slowly getting regular.  The weight is holding steady and slowly starting to drop.  No more hot flashes, dizziness, brain fog, forgetfulness, crankiness, exhaustion.  I could go on and on.

I challenge you to go gluten free for 2 months and see how you feel.  No cheating!

If you would like to chat directly feel free to contact me via email keepsakegd@gmail.com.

Becky

Hope

This weekend the hope of feeling better has returned - lifting the depression.  The hope that I will soon have a new path to try - in lifestyle, in diet, in how close I montior what I eat and how I feel.  I know there will be many bumps in the road - I look at the past 3 years and how hard I have been on myself for not being able to control what was happening - that it was my fault.  Who would have guessed that my immune system was waging war on me.

The book by Dr. Kharrazain - "Why do I still have thyroid symptoms? When my lab tests are normal" published in  October 2009, has given me hope.  This week I finally see a doctor who treats Hashimotos - my fingers are crossed - I have hope once again. He is referenced in the book - what a great read.

In the meantime - goodbye gluten.  I took a marker and marked everything in my pantry and fridge with a big X and G for having gluten and GF things that I could eat, and ? for things that had "spices" lord knows whats in that so I'm not eating it until I can confirm.  No more excuses for letting things slip in.  Thanks to celiac.com for a great list of unsafe foods.  I ordered a book too to assist in my shopping adventures. 

 Tomorrow is day 1 of my new jounery to health.

Posted March 7, 2010

SIBO, Gluten and Hashimotos

In the hunt to find a doctor to help I stumbled upon a discovery, if you have thyroid issues (or symptoms of low thyroid) and digestive issues (high levels of bacteria, gluten, etc)you could have an autoimmune disease that is the cause of it all.  Get tested for Hashimoto's.  Getting just a TSH test is not enough.  Ask for the antibody test for Hashi's.

If you have Hashimotos (which I do) your immune system basically goes crazy and attacks your thyroid thinking it is an alien invador.  Now common treatment is just to give hormone replacement - not to treat the Hashi's.  Untreated Hashi's can cause major digestive issues including our little problem, among many others. Of the 5+ doctors I have seen no one made the connection until now.

Little known fact - gluten in the body looks identical to the thyroid so if you have Hashi's and eat gluten your body attacks the gluten in the same way and you will have a reaction.  Bloating, gas, cramps, constipation, high bacterica count in the intestine, etc.  You do not have to be Celiac to have major issues.  Interesting.  Since being GF for a month or so many of my SIBO symptions have subsided - if any gluten sneaks in, the symptoms return.

About the search for a doctor, I see my new one again on Tuesday to treat my Hashi's and SIBO.  My fingers are crossed.  I want my life back.

SIBO and Hashi's are related, why didn't I think of that sooner.

Posted March 7, 2010

January 27th

A good day over all.  No gluten all day and felt great - then I slipped up at home and it's like a lead brick in my tummy.  Yuck.  I do need to get better at watching what I eat - it really comes down to me cooking all my meals.  That is something I can do to feel better.

Day one back on the probotic and Miralax.  I did notice a difference today.  Energy all day, felt good, had a great workout at lunch.  Nice.

Tomorrow is another day - no need to dwell on my slipup this evening.

January 26th - Post Doctor

Another day in the journey to health. Went to the doctor - interesting but I feel like I still don't have any good answers.  Maybe I won't - it will be all trial and error.

The good news is he wants to wait a month prior to doing antibotics again.  Good.  So for the next month I am to take VSL#3 double strenght once a day, MiraLAX once a day, avoid high fiber foods, avoid gassy foods and keep a food journal.  OK, I am willing to give it a shot.  So I will continue my GF life and slowly remove items - it is a three strikes and you are out program.  Try to keep stress to a minimun.

He did mention that taking a fiber supplement to ward off constipation was making my symptoms worse.  I was not to take anything of the sort, it actually slowed down my digestion and movement.  Who would have thought.  So once upon a time there was a drug that sped up the movement and system - it was taken off the market due to adverse side affects.  So in other words this is in my hands to get solved on my own.

The dissappointing part is when it came to weight loss for me he had nothing to say but workout and watch my calories.  I was crushed.  I didn't know what I expected him to say - something to try, anything.  So I will continue to do what I have been doing - working out and counting calories.  As I watch the biggest loser, I'm thinking of trying the body bugg again.  I did it 2 summers ago and it might be worth a chance again.  A dear friend is using it now too.  Anyways an option.

So what I need to love myself for is knowing I could be a FF forever, not a former fatty but a forever fatty (in the most loving terms of course).  In the meantime I will forge on, researching this trying new things and focusing on me, on being happy with myself.

January 25th

Trying to figure out what to eat is a challenge.  Not too much direction as far as SIBO goes.  I resumed my workouts today.  I feel good but crave sugar again. All part of the SIBO returning.  Body needs fuel somehow - I am resisting the urge.

Driving home today I thought of the Biggest Loser and Ms J talking to a contestant about being happy. Are you happy?  For the last two years, no.  I was blaming myself for the weight gain and punishing myself as well.  I remember going to the GI doc 2 summers ago with my same symptoms as today.  Weight gain, gas, bloating, low energy, etc.  He told me I needed to try dieting and working out.  At the time I was already dieting and working out about an hour a day and 6 hrs on the weekend.  His comment made me workout more and try more extreme dieting.  Oh all the diets I tried, Atkins, South Beach, low, low calorie, low fat and low sugar, LA Weight Loss, personal trainers, nutrionists - all to no avail.  Now I have answers although the frustration of not knowing what to eat or how to keep the SIBO at bay still challenge me, I have hope - I am finding the happiness inside again and it feels good.

Information

Information regarding SIBO is hard to come by.  There is not much written about it.  I struggle with how to eat, how to keep it from returning, how to regain my life, and how to lose the weight I have gained because of it.

So far I have found one newsgroup that has been helpful, a yahoo group called sibonation- http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/sibonation/.  Check out their links for good information.  I have joined the Sparkpeople SIBO group.  I love sparkpeople for calorie counting and thought it could be another resouce.  My search continues for information. 

As I find information I will try to post it, but I also want to tell the story of my journey. 

As of now, I am on round three of SIBO returning.  I was diagnosed the week of thanksgiving.  Round one.  Felt good for about 2 weeks after probiotics.  At Christmas I was treated for my second reoccurrance.  This last week my symptoms have returned after a HUGE stressful event with work, and I mean HUGE.  That triggered the symptoms again.  Off to the Doc I go on Tuesday.

Through food journalling  (including moods, symptoms, reactions) I have discovered the any Gluten really bothers my gut, when I go GF I feel good.  I tested negative for Celiac.  My doc agrees with the gluten intolerance.  When I am GF and eat really clean and those nasty symptoms return, I know the SIBO is back.  I do think there is something else I am eating in my diet that could be contributing.  I know that Corn Syrup is an issue - but what else??  White and brown sugar are ok.  Some of the oddest things get me.  I try things 2-3 times prior to cutting them out of my diet.

I wonder if there is a nutritionist out there who could help with weight loss??