My Journey from Gluten Glutton to Gluten Free

[08.23.16]

This post may be a bit on the long side, so bear with me! I am going to be writing about a month long diet here! I have been having some minor health problems over the pass few years that have been gradually getting worse. I have just recently opened up to someone about it for the first time about a month or so ago. I don't want to get into all of that here- yet! Maybe one day I will face it and just come out and tell you guys what has been going on, but for now we'll keep it vague. Anyway, I had come to the end of my rope! I was tired and felt weak and just sort of depressed to be honest. I was feeling sick and didn't know what my problem was. I felt it was somehow my fault and there was nothing I could do about it. Weeelll,... I decided to start looking for a solution, or err, the problem. Which I believe could possibly be gluten! If it is gluten that would explain a lot! So why not try it? What could it hurt? Well, I will miss pancakes, and my almost-daily-bagel, also cookies, and BP&J sandwiches, wait,... can I eat anything? I heard that there is gluten in coffee once... Will I survive? So here we go on my first true diet ever, which I didn't even think of until I was two days in!

Week 1

[08.19-08.25] :

Well the first couple of days weren't that hard to be honest! I did pretty good even if I do say so myself! I went to Wal-Mart and bought salad stuff and fruit, and OHMYWORD IS THAT GLUTEN FREE COOKIE MIX??? It was! Thank my Father in Heaven for this wonderful blessing! "Now please GOD, don't let this be some cruel joke" I prayed as grabbed it off the shelf. It wasn't! You can't tell anything is missing! The first night was a bit tough going to Demos and not being able to eat the bread, but the AMAZING chicken salad made up for it!

I've been doing great since then! Until Tuesday, that is. I work in an office and people we give business to bring us things such as business cards and notepads. Some of them are very kind and bring Hershey's chocolate and muffins (I'm a sucker for a good muffin!). Tuesday, I was brought a bag full of doughnut holes! The aroma was seeping through the bag and drifting my way. I am a glutton for doughnuts and the temptation was getting to be too much to bear, so I stood up grabbed the bag with determination, and placed it in the back room. Once I sat back down, I must say I felt sort of proud of myself! LOL! A silly thing like that was good for me. I could proudly say "I am still going strong on day 5"!
I must confess though, I messed up on the 25th! Not on purpose though! I was happily making a taco with my corn tortilla and I took two bites and realized I didn't even think of the seasoning! So I checked, and yup! Gluten! UGH!!! So I gave my tacos to Bekah and made a breakfast burrito on a corn tortilla. I made a gluten free muffin mix on Thursday night and I must say they weren't great, but they weren't they bad either! They don't have the same consistency, or as strong of a taste, but still satisfying! I can do this!

Known Slip Ups:

•Two bites of a taco with gluten in the seasoning :(

What I Learned:

•Gluten may not be the solution to my problem, but this experiment has been good for me none the less!

• Denying myself of even the simplest things is difficult, but in the long run it is good for me.
• Cutting gluten out of my diet truly wasn't as hard as I thought it was.

• Eating healthy can be hard work, but the outcome is so much more healthy and tasty!

•Giving up gluten does not mean giving up all bread and/or tasty treats. I can still have muffins! (Which is a great thing to know!) but I simply have to make my own!

•Maybe I'll be a better cook at the end of this thing... Or I'll live on salads... Who knows?!

•It's hard living the gluten free life, because well, people. I know this always my main complaint in any subject, but hey people can be pretty annoying sometimes! I don't hate the human race, by the way, I just don't always like people okay? okay. On to my point! You have to ask if something is gluten free and you always get "the look". You gluten free peeps out there know what I'm talking about! You know the look that makes you wonder "do I have an extra head or something?" Because they look at you like you're plain crazy sometimes! Why is that so weird to ask? It may be an allergy! I'm not trying be a health freak or "one of those people" as you call it. Yes I have been asked this ( I think they were joking? I hope so anyway! LOL) But, would it be so bad if I were???

• I know more people that are gluten free than I thought I did! YAY! More recipes!!! And pointers! I can use all the help I can get!
• Coffee doesn't have gluten in it, but some creamers do

Week 2
[08.26-09.01] :

Dun Dun DUN!!! I made it to round two! Woo-hoo! Yay me! Okay enough of the self praising thing Sarah! People will think you are either really self-centered or just plain crazy. Ahem. Now where were we?
This gluten free diet is starting to become a habit now. Like I said, Starting!!! At times I reach for something with out thinking, but soon realize I can't eat it. But I must say, I am starting to get used to it!
I made breakfast for dinner the other day [08.29]. I made pancakes, gluten and non-gluten, and I was told there isn't much of a difference in the tastes! So, I'm not truly missing out, now am I?
I just received some new gluten free recipes from a friend and I am excited to try them and let you know how they go! I may not get to it until next week unfortunately!
I have been noticing a huge difference in myself recently! Especially this week! I feel more like myself! I don't feel totally beaten down with exhaustion all the time. My skin is starting to clear up (though I've still got a ways to go there!!!). I also have been a bit more sociable. I've actually had people tell me these things! For me that is a big deal! My usual nicknames at home are things such as- Hobbit, or Hermit. My room is called my cave on a pretty regular basis! Lol! Maybe you see the picture! I'm not normally known as one to start a conversation, or be social! Maybe I'm not as introverted as I once thought-though I still believe I am an introvert (always and forever)!
[08.30] So glad Mexican and ice cream have gluten free options- even if it isn't exactly healthy...
[08.31] I baked the muffins! I couldn't wait! They were actually pretty good! I may try them again though just to get it exactly right! I still have a Lava Cake recipe to try :)

Known Slip Ups:

•I may have accidentally licked my finger after making (egg-free, but not gluten-free) pancakes for my family... That's not too bad though is it???

What I Learned:

• I am so blessed! The more I've looked for guidance in my diet, the more I have seen the daily struggles of others. People struggle with celiac disease everyday, and I am simply trying this out to see if its a problem. Some people become crippling sick if they eat something that has even come in contact with gluten!
• I have learned more about some diseases that cause gluten sensitivity.
• My focus has been improving a little bit.
• This may sound weird, but I have even seen a difference in my spiritual growth! Maybe food affects more than we all realize!
• Another coffee fact -though coffee is gluten-free, it can mimic gluten after consumption. But it hasn't been proven to do so with organic whole bean coffees. (Ethiopian coffee, here I come!!! :) )
•Dairy can also mimic gluten after consumption in some people- So far I don't believe that is the case with me. But I don't consume a whole lot of dairy on a daily basis though, so it may be?

Week 3

[09.02-09.08]

Wow! I can't believe I'm starting my third week of this diet! I have three more to go counting this week! I may end up staying on it after the month is up, but not being so strict on myself. Then again, we will see how I feel!!!

[09.04] I messed up!!! I ate chicken alfredo without the noodles, but forgot that there is flour in the alfredo sauce... and then I had ice cream- that's safe right? Well, unless it was cookies and cream... yeah. I messed up bad guys! I'm sorry! Seriously, I am so sorry! I was feeling it for the rest of the day! I bet it would have been a lot worse, but I decided I was not going to let that ruin the great day I had been having. I drank over 3.5 liters of water to clear all of that gluten out of my system! I felt so much better! I still felt like I was recovering, and I slept pretty late the next morning. I am going to make it through this guys!!! I simply must be more aware!

[09.05] A friend gave me some gluten free cookbooks!!! The Gluten Free Bible and a slow cooker recipe book as well! I also had another friend give me a pumpkin bread recipe. I am so elated about this guys!
[09.08] A friend of mine kindly gave me some gluten free cookies! They were good!

Known Slip Ups: 

•I had chicken alfredo sauce and cookies and cream ice cream... don't worry, I was properly punished for this misdemeanor!

• I think I may have made a mistake I don't know about because there was one night I felt awful! I don't know why though! Like I said, still learning!!!

What I Learned:

• Some people are allergic to not only gluten but all flours!!! 

• Rice Krispies are gluten free!!! As are rice Krispie treats!!! YAY!... and Duh...

• I'm almost convinced gluten is my problem now... At least a small part of my problem anyway! Then again it may be caused by many things, but I would guess it is caused by yeast as well. Good news! That is fixable!!! Maybe I should try to see if that is the problem too...

Week 4

[09.09-09.15]

[09.09] I went out to eat with friends and got my first glance at the nutritional guide (sounds fancy doesn't it?) at O'Charlie's. I ended up getting a salad that was pretty good!

[09.13] I must say now days its becoming such a habit that I almost forget I am even on a gluten free diet! It is becoming easier as I go! I'm still learning though! The other day I was trying to make some garlic biscuits (gluten free of course) and I only used coconut flour! So of course they crumbled and fell apart! Silly me! I truly don't know what I'm doing! Not yet anyway! I'm learning through trial and error, and that's okay! I am truly thankful to have friends that are gluten free and actually know what they are doing! It is so helpful!

Wow! Week four has come and gone!!! I can hardly believe it! I haven't opened this journal up to write for a few days and I lost track of time and let week four slip by without writing hardly anything about it! Let me catch up!

My amazing mother went shopping and bought me gluten free bread among many other gluten free products! I am so excited about that! I have no idea what happened to this week to be honest with you! I did eat gluten free, but I don't think anything else exciting happened besides my mom getting me some gluten free products! Ooohh! Wait! I did make gluten free pancakes again but this time I put blackberries in them and I basically deep fried them in vegetable oil to make them more crispy, and OHMY! They were delicious! I will be doing that again in the future for sure!

Known Slip Ups:

 •I used only coconut flour in an attempt to make garlic biscuits.

What I Learned

• You can't make bread with only coconut flour! It just falls a part! Hehe! Yeah, I'm truly that ignorant about this stuff!
•Oats are gluten free, which makes chocolate oatmeal cookies gluten free as well... I shall make some soon!

Week 5

[09.16-09.22]

I have got this! I know I can do this! I got my weeks mixed up a bit and thought I was starting week four when I was actually starting week five! Time has flown by! I have been gluten free for over a month now as of Sunday! Who would have thought I could do this? Not me! But here I am! Maybe I shouldn't, but I feel a bit proud of myself! Even though I should have backed off the sugar more than I did!

[09.18]  I got the chance to try a gluten free slow cooker recipe. It was super easy and my whole family seemed to like it! I may try another soon! I made chocolate oatmeal cookies, and I have missed those! I would really like to try a bread recipe this week but I would have to find the time to go buy the flour... I may have to do that next week!

[09.19] I had leftover pancakes, eggs and a small glass of milk for breakfast. I packed my backpack and went on a short "hike" with some friends. We munched on our snacks we had brought. They had crackers and such and I had an apple ( I got the better end of that deal right?) We went out to eat and I got a salad that came with a crescent roll on the side! I set it in the middle and let them have at it. The salad was satisfying. I didn't have time for supper because I went to a church meeting, but I was so hungry when I got home I ate a small plate of chicken, green beans, and radishes at 11:30pm! Yeah I'm crazy I know! I didn't want to go to bed on an empty stomach! Had it not been out already, I probably would have simply gone to bed,... but it was out, sooo... Do you see how badly I need self discipline???

[09.20] I have been slowly backing off the sweets, but I'm going to try even harder this week! I've been eating too much sugar in the mornings! All of the pancakes I've eaten are smothered in sugar and I can't be doing that! That defeats the purpose of a diet! Not that I am trying to lose weight (which I probably could/should)! Again with the self discipline thing! I have got to work on that!

Known Slip Ups:

•None. Just need to back off of the sweets a bit more!

What I Learned:

•You can do anything you set your mind to! If you are determined you can do it!

•It is very difficult to do something you are uneducated about! I suggest if you do decide to go gluten free, read up on it! Learn more about it before you try it. If you don't you are setting yourself up for failure! I did read up on it a bit, which is why I decided to do this, but I wish I would have studied it more! I've been learning as I go!

•If I set my mind to do something, I can be super stubborn! You will not change my mind!

A bit of a sermon for you guys! I was realizing how determined I had become to make it through this diet and stick to it, even though it was something I never thought I could do. A sermon called "You Can Do It" was preached Sunday night. I thought yes, look at how far I have come in this thing I never thought I could, but because I became determined to do it, I have done it! This has applied to other areas of my life such as foul worldly music, among many other things. I purposed in my heart to do it (or not do it) and I got to it! It is easy to do right, when you decide to do right! Don't think "I'm not going to do this or that ever again!" Think, "I am going to please to my Heavenly Father today"! One day at a time. You can't simply focus on what you can't do! You will become discouraged! Believe me I know! Focus on what you can do to bring the LORD glory and praise in the way you live. Whether that be food, music, clothes , language, movies, or whatever. These are things the Lord is still working on in my heart, slowly changing one thing at a time. We must all place our focus on pleasing Him, because that is why we are here. To bring Him the glory and honor He so richly deserves! Ahem. That was free.

 

    Simply,

         Sarah