Re: I can't stop

[Guest guest]

>

> I can't stop eating gluten. I dont know what to do.

>

Hi .

I count it among my blessings that I get obvious " sick "

symptoms from gluten. I can now honestly look at almost all gluten

as " severe pain, big D, and days' worth of migraine " . Then,

I honestly ask myself the question, " Is that oreo/donut/sandwich/

french fry of unknown history and companionship *REALLY* worth it? "

When I'm honest about the answer to that question then it's easy

now for me to walk away from gluten.

I was so sick before GF that I've never relapsed into gluten-eating

ways. Relapsing into total glutenoid living holds no appeal for me.

Sure, there are things that tempt me. Like when I'm REALLY hungry

and don't feel like doing the research required to eat safely, I

get tempted to say " dang it all, hunger trumps " . But that rarely

happens if I'm home, as I know what's in my home and the research

is already done. Rather, the " hunger RULES " events usually happen

when I'm away from home. So, if I start to think about it... " Esther,

you're 40 minutes away from home, you're the only driver, and

you'll have four kids in the car... Is it really worth even the

POSSIBILITY of being in pain? " I know what it's like to drive

after an accidental glutening - SCARY and possibly illegal. I

can't even think straight when I'm in the gluten pain. To drive

in those circumstances is nearly impossible. Therefore, if I

think it through I can HONESTLY decide I'd rather be hungry than

under arrest, or injured, or worse. I'd rather be hungry than

drive like a maniac because I'm sick.

You can be sure, as well, that some things hold much more temptation

than others. I'm writing " trip to cinnamon bun store with hungry

daughter " in my book of 10,000 things a mother does every day just

for the sake of love and for no other reason. It was truly torture

to sit in the cinnamon bun shop and watch my daughter eat.

It's also hard to go to a steak house and watch my family enjoy

the marinated chef special while I have boiled chicken.

It's also hard to watch my family eat deli grinders while I fry

an egg and have a bowl of soup.

But if I think it through and remind myself of the following:

- I can make cinnamon buns any time I want. I lived just fine without

it yesterday. I can live fine without it right now.

or

- I can cook a big fat juicy steak any time I want. I lived through

yesterday without one just fine. I can live just fine right now

without it, too.

or again

- If I really want a grinder, I can make one. I don't *HAVE* to

eat a fried egg and a bowl of soup. I can make a grinder if I want

to. But you know what? I don't really want or need a grinder and

a bowl of soup and fried egg is just fine.

When food becomes " just food " it's easier to stare down gluten

and win the battle.

I've long envied my husband who's allergic to peanuts AND finds

them totally revolting. He finds the smell of them to be truly

gag-o-licious. He won't even kiss me if I have peanut butter

mouth. (Secret - peanut butter can be used for family planning!)

If I were to be blessed with finding gluten revolting, I'd feel

like I won the lottery.

I still have to use logic to stare down the gluten and win.

Maybe one day I'll find it revolting and then it will be TOTALLY

easy.

In the meantime, all I have to do is remind myself that I've already

been through the world's smallest and shortest gluten tolerance

test: One crouton crumb got in my honey mustard dressing on my

chicken at a restaurant. One crouton crumb and I was sick for a

week. One crouton crumb is all I need for a gluten tolerance test.

I don't even need a whole Oreo or a whole Dunkin' Donut. One

crouton crumb is all it takes to TKO me. Imagine that. 5'6 " and

a 150+ pounds and all it takes to knock me on my behind is a

bit of gluten one bajillionth my size!

Gluten: 1

Esther: 0

And you want to know another secret? You don't have to think about

it in terms of " FOREVER " . You can make the decision to feel

better one bite at a time.

Can you live without an Oreo for the next five minutes? Good.

Can you live without gluten until you finish reading this message?

Good.

Can you go find a non-gluten snack you ENJOY after reading this

message? Good.

You go, girl! YOU CAN DO IT!

And your body will thank you by becoming healthier and healthier.

One bite at a time is all you have to do. Just decide one bite

at a time, " Is it really worth it? "

Nothing, and I mean ***NOTHING***, tastes as good as healthy feels!!!

Oh, and eventually you will find GF foods you TRULY love. My

kids and I made gingerbread muffins for breakfast today. Man, were

they delish!!!!!! And then we went out on errands. We came home

to the house still smelling like gingerbread muffins. What a

wonderful " Welcome Home! " from the land of GF cooking.*

e-Hugs! Esther in RI

* Coffee cake on Friday. Lasagna (hubby made) on Sunday. Gingerbread

muffins on Tuesday. Oh my! Give me six months and I'll be blaming

the new oven for a weight gain of 20 pounds and will be screaming

" GET THAT NEW OVEN OUT OF HERE! "

[Guest guest]

-

If you have symptoms when you eat gluten, I can't

imagine why you would do it. You must not have any

symptoms. I know how I'll feel when I eat gluten, and

I DO NOT want to feel that way, so it's easy for me.

I also went to Weight Watchers for a while, and found

that they have a lot of motivating methods to get

people to eat less, and the right thing. One of the

methods they use is to tell yourself that: I have

control over this. I can chose whether to eat or not

to eat. Of course, it works better in a group

situation!

First of all, don't buy gluten. Have plenty of

substitutes. Keep thinking of how much healthier you

will be without it. And good luck!

Barbara in SoCal

__________________________________________________

[Guest guest]

Ok,

Let's ask a few questions:

What's your trigger food?

(donuts, cake, pizza, hamburgers,...?)

Is it usually sweet or salty?

(Are you into desserts or need a spicey kick?)

Where are you when you get a craving?

(home, work, cafeteria, Starbucks, grocery store, shopping, driving

around?)

If you can answer these questions, then you can find an alternative

to the food you enjoy AND know how to avoid the trigger condition,

when possible.).

I found myself craving a little bread in the morning, and seeing all

the people at work with bagels, donuts, etc. So, I take a few

slices of GF banana bread or a half a muffin to heat up in the

microwave for a midmorning snack. If I forget, I have to resort to

a few GF bars (half of one) that I keep in my desk drawer. But I

never run over and grab a bagel, because I know it will cause me

problems (and I don't have the severe symptoms that most get! I'm

thinking about general or even future health problems.).

And don't ever let that little voice (you know the one I'm talking

about) convince you that it has the upper hand. If there is

absolutely no other alternatives, then you set yourself up! You

could have stuck something in your purse or gotten some popcorn or

whatever to have for this occasion.

And find something useful to do to take your mind off the

situation! You know what you've been putting off doing. Invest a

little time (within reason) to tackle that project around the house

or at work. Maybe that means getting some GF recipes and making

some great snacks for yourself!

Finally, reward yourself when you go a whole week without! Rent a

video and snack on some GF goodies. Or go shopping for a

new " whatever " . Or get outside and do something fun. Or buy a GF

cookbook!

That's all my suggestions.

BTW, you know you can do this. If you really didn't want to stop,

you wouldn't have written to us about it.

Joy

[Guest guest]

>> Oh, and eventually you will find GF foods you TRULY love. My> kids and I made gingerbread muffins for breakfast today. Man, were> they delish!!!!!! And then we went out on errands. We came home> to the house still smelling like gingerbread muffins. What a > wonderful "Welcome Home!" from the land of GF cooking.*> > e-Hugs! Esther in RI> Esther, what a great way of putting things... Sunday, I stopped at the small grocery (big stores have to remain closed on sunday now that summer is over) to pick up a couple things... Now, I have never been in this place before, its in the 3rd city center that I rarely go to other than the garden center.... OH THE SMELL!!! Fresh gluten globs of goo gorging my nostrils... Fresh Pulla hot out of the oven, Karjalan Piirikka hot and ready... Freshly baked cakes, pies and cookies, and and and..... I just stopped, huffed a huge amount of aroma, the girl at the counter offered me a sample, and I told her no thank you, I am celiac... LO! So was she... brought me a cookie from her "PRIVATE" stash, and said have one on her. Was the most delicous shortbread.... would have been SO easy to grab that pulla and snarf down a whole loaf... At what cost? Eating Viili for another week? NO THANKYOU!> > > * Coffee cake on Friday. Lasagna (hubby made) on Sunday. Gingerbread> muffins on Tuesday. Oh my! Give me six months and I'll be blaming> the new oven for a weight gain of 20 pounds and will be screaming> "GET THAT NEW OVEN OUT OF HERE!"Oh you love that new oven... fess up! I know I love me some new dishwasher!!! Now, if it only put the dishes away--- Ok, wont press my luck!Best!CassiGluten free in downtown Imatra! (eek! 4 more weeks)>

[Guest guest]

Cassi, Isn't those dishwashers great to have? Yup, if you just could wave a magic wand so that the dishes would put themselves away. lol Donna

Dean & Donna ' Appaloosa Horseswww.donnaappaloosahorses.com

Welcome To Donna ' WebPagehttp://donnaevans.multiply.com

Donna ' Blog WebPagehttp://www.myspace.com/9586741

Re: I can't stop

>> Oh, and eventually you will find GF foods you TRULY love. My> kids and I made gingerbread muffins for breakfast today. Man, were> they delish!!!!!! And then we went out on errands. We came home> to the house still smelling like gingerbread muffins. What a > wonderful "Welcome Home!" from the land of GF cooking.*> > e-Hugs! Esther in RI> Esther, what a great way of putting things... Sunday, I stopped at the small grocery (big stores have to remain closed on sunday now that summer is over) to pick up a couple things... Now, I have never been in this place before, its in the 3rd city center that I rarely go to other than the garden center.... OH THE SMELL!!! Fresh gluten globs of goo gorging my nostrils... Fresh Pulla hot out of the oven, Karjalan Piirikka hot and read y... Freshly baked cakes, pies and cookies, and and and..... I just stopped, huffed a huge amount of aroma, the girl at the counter offered me a sample, and I told her no thank you, I am celiac... LO! So was she... brought me a cookie from her "PRIVATE" stash, and said have one on her. Was the most delicous shortbread.... would have been SO easy to grab that pulla and snarf down a whole loaf... At what cost? Eating Viili for another week? NO THANKYOU!> > > * Coffee cake on Friday. Lasagna (hubby made) on Sunday. Gingerbread> muffins on Tuesday. Oh my! Give me six months and I'll be blaming> the new oven for a weight gain of 20 pounds and will be screaming> "GET THAT NEW OVEN OUT OF HERE!"Oh you love that new oven... fess up! I know I love me some new dishwasher!!! Now, if it only put the dishes away--- Ok, wont press my l uck!Best!CassiGluten free in downtown Imatra! (eek! 4 more weeks)>

[Guest guest]

Cassi, Isn't those dishwashers great to have? Yup, if you just could wave a magic wand so that the dishes would put themselves away. lol Donna

Dean & Donna ' Appaloosa Horseswww.donnaappaloosahorses.com

Welcome To Donna ' WebPagehttp://donnaevans.multiply.com

Donna ' Blog WebPagehttp://www.myspace.com/9586741

Re: I can't stop

>> Oh, and eventually you will find GF foods you TRULY love. My> kids and I made gingerbread muffins for breakfast today. Man, were> they delish!!!!!! And then we went out on errands. We came home> to the house still smelling like gingerbread muffins. What a > wonderful "Welcome Home!" from the land of GF cooking.*> > e-Hugs! Esther in RI> Esther, what a great way of putting things... Sunday, I stopped at the small grocery (big stores have to remain closed on sunday now that summer is over) to pick up a couple things... Now, I have never been in this place before, its in the 3rd city center that I rarely go to other than the garden center.... OH THE SMELL!!! Fresh gluten globs of goo gorging my nostrils... Fresh Pulla hot out of the oven, Karjalan Piirikka hot and read y... Freshly baked cakes, pies and cookies, and and and..... I just stopped, huffed a huge amount of aroma, the girl at the counter offered me a sample, and I told her no thank you, I am celiac... LO! So was she... brought me a cookie from her "PRIVATE" stash, and said have one on her. Was the most delicous shortbread.... would have been SO easy to grab that pulla and snarf down a whole loaf... At what cost? Eating Viili for another week? NO THANKYOU!> > > * Coffee cake on Friday. Lasagna (hubby made) on Sunday. Gingerbread> muffins on Tuesday. Oh my! Give me six months and I'll be blaming> the new oven for a weight gain of 20 pounds and will be screaming> "GET THAT NEW OVEN OUT OF HERE!"Oh you love that new oven... fess up! I know I love me some new dishwasher!!! Now, if it only put the dishes away--- Ok, wont press my l uck!Best!CassiGluten free in downtown Imatra! (eek! 4 more weeks)>

[Guest guest]

,

I'm sorry to hear that you're struggling. First question...how many gluten free

resources

do you have at home? Do you have any cookbooks, any lists to help you with your

grocery

shopping?

This is how I went gluten-free....

Bought a cookbook. Signed up with this awesome Silly Yak group. Bookmarked

tons of

celiac websites and online shopping sites (you can find a good deal on bread).

Then I gutted my pantry. I removed EVERYTHING that had gluten or had the

possibility of

having gluten. Then I went shopping. Bought all the correct flours, cereals,

canned foods

for when I feel too tired to cook; that way I'm not tempted to go grab a pizza.

(Pizza is my

weakness....I LOVE pizza) My first gluten free meal was pizza margherita. It

was good. In

fact...it was better than any pizza I've bought from a restaurant! It was a

homemade crust.

For snacks and weak moments I have GF peanut butter cookies and jello. What has

helped

me tremendously though is the fact that I have drastically increased my fiber

intake. That

way I feel full for longer periods of time. I've been GF since August 22nd and

have lost 10

pounds. We've saved $15 a week by quitting our weekly Mc's trips.

However, I'm

beginning to wonder if gluten was my problem after all because I still have my

symptoms

that have been plaguing me for the past 7 years. Who knows. Our entire family

has been

healthier lately. Everybody, including the kids, is interested in reading

labels and actually

knowing what goes in our bodies. There are ways to make this fun . I hope

this

helps you a little. Please feel free to e-mail me off-list.

Sincerely,

Cheyenne

[Guest guest]

To the person who can't stop eating gluten, I know how you feel. I wondered if "a little bit can't hurt" and why it is so important to stop eating gluten. I am asymptomatic so I don't know if I've eaten gluten or not.

But, I read Wheat Free-Worry Free by Danna Korn, and it made an impression on me exactly what the consequences would be if I didn't stop eating gluten. If you haven't read it, do so. It might make a difference.

And, in case I sound well-adjusted on this, I'm not always. I am still going through the stages of grief and I seem to get stuck in the anger stage a lot. It stinks, but it is what it is. And, it could be so much worse. So, keep hanging with the yaks here. This group is so supportive, you won't believe it.

It will get better.

Denver Donna

Re: I can't stop

>> I can't stop eating gluten. I dont know what to do. >Hi . I count it among my blessings that I get obvious "sick"symptoms from gluten. I can now honestly look at almost all glutenas "severe pain, big D, and days' worth of migraine". Then,I honestly ask myself the question, "Is that oreo/donut/sandwich/french fry of unknown history and companionship *REALLY* worth it?"When I'm honest about the answer to that question then it's easynow for me to walk away from gluten.I was so sick before GF that I've never relapsed into gluten-eatingways. Relapsing into total glutenoid living holds no appeal for me.Sure, there are things that tempt me. Like when I'm REALLY hungry and don't feel like doing the research required to eat safely, Iget tempted to say "dang it all, hunger trumps". But that rarelyhappens if I'm home, as I know what's in my home and the researchis already done. Rather, the "hunger RULES" events usually happenwhen I'm away from home. So, if I start to think about it... "Esther,you're 40 minutes away from home, you're the only driver, and you'll have four kids in the car... Is it really worth even thePOSSIBILITY of being in pain?" I know what it's like to driveafter an accidental glutening - SCARY and possibly illegal. Ican't even think straight when I'm in the gluten pain. To drivein those circumstances is nearly impossible. Therefore, if I think it through I can HONESTLY decide I'd rather be hungry thanunder arrest, or injured, or worse. I'd rather be hungry thandrive like a maniac because I'm sick. You can be sure, as well, that some things hold much more temptationthan others. I'm writing "trip to cinnamon bun store with hungrydaughter" in my book of 10,000 things a mother does every day justfor the sake of love and for no other reason. It was truly tortureto sit in the cinnamon bun shop and watch my daughter eat. It's also hard to go to a steak house and watch my family enjoythe marinated chef special while I have boiled chicken.It's also hard to watch my family eat deli grinders while I fryan egg and have a bowl of soup.But if I think it through and remind myself of the following:- I can make cinnamon buns any time I want. I lived just fine withoutit yesterday. I can live fine without it right now. or- I can cook a big fat juicy steak any time I want. I lived throughyesterday without one just fine. I can live just fine right nowwithout it, too.or again- If I really want a grinder, I can make one. I don't *HAVE* toeat a fried egg and a bowl of soup. I can make a grinder if I wantto. But you know what? I don't really want or need a grinder anda bowl of soup and fried egg is just fine. When food becomes "just food" it's easier to stare down glutenand win the battle.I've long envied my husband who's allergic to peanuts AND findsthem totally revolting. He finds the smell of them to be trulygag-o-licious. He won't even kiss me if I have peanut butter mouth. (Secret - peanut butter can be used for family planning!)If I were to be blessed with finding gluten revolting, I'd feellike I won the lottery.I still have to use logic to stare down the gluten and win. Maybe one day I'll find it revolting and then it will be TOTALLYeasy.In the meantime, all I have to do is remind myself that I've alreadybeen through the world's smallest and shortest gluten tolerancetest: One crouton crumb got in my honey mustard dressing on mychicken at a restaurant. One crouton crumb and I was sick for a week. One crouton crumb is all I need for a gluten tolerance test.I don't even need a whole Oreo or a whole Dunkin' Donut. Onecrouton crumb is all it takes to TKO me. Imagine that. 5'6" anda 150+ pounds and all it takes to knock me on my behind is abit of gluten one bajillionth my size! Gluten: 1 Esther: 0And you want to know another secret? You don't have to think aboutit in terms of "FOREVER". You can make the decision to feel better one bite at a time.Can you live without an Oreo for the next five minutes? Good.Can you live without gluten until you finish reading this message?Good.Can you go find a non-gluten snack you ENJOY after reading thismessage? Good. You go, girl! YOU CAN DO IT!And your body will thank you by becoming healthier and healthier.One bite at a time is all you have to do. Just decide one biteat a time, "Is it really worth it?"Nothing, and I mean ***NOTHING***, tastes as good as healthy feels!!!Oh, and eventually you will find GF foods you TRULY love. Mykids and I made gingerbread muffins for breakfast today. Man, werethey delish!!!!!! And then we went out on errands. We came hometo the house still smelling like gingerbread muffins. What a wonderful "Welcome Home!" from the land of GF cooking.*e-Hugs! Esther in RI* Coffee cake on Friday. Lasagna (hubby made) on Sunday. Gingerbreadmuffins on Tuesday. Oh my! Give me six months and I'll be blamingthe new oven for a weight gain of 20 pounds and will be screaming"GET THAT NEW OVEN OUT OF HERE!"

[Guest guest]

OK

I could not stop either

and cheated for YEARS

I was cheating myself

Then I was on the Mayo Clinic web site and for kicks did a search on

Celiac

and read the complications

and realized some of the 'fybromialgia' type symptoms I was really

suffering with were celiac related

and the 'little blackouts' i had while taking Welbutrin XL were celiac

related

and quite frankly

IT SCARED ME GLUTEN FREE

and i've pretty much stuck with it since this spring

and the 'fybromialgia' type symptoms are gone

my head is clearer

my depression is almost gone

It is worth it.

However my youngest daughter who is both celiac and diabetic can't quit

eating gluten either

and it makes her way sicker than it does me.

I guess we each have to reach our own turning point.

Best of luck!

Kathy E

>

>

>

> >

> > I can't stop eating gluten. I dont know what to do.

> >

[Guest guest]

Donna, Been there, done that. Recently, I have had a big variety of wheat/gluten free foods, due to I have three different stores to go to, to get a good variety of foods that won't hurt me. We even went to one recently that even sell wheat/gluten free dinners. They didn't have any at the time, due to their freezers broke down, but the next chance I get, I'll be going to that store and see if they have them in. HyVees in my area have a health food section in the store and they also carry wheat/gluten free cookies, flours, breads, etc... So since I've been getting the variety, even able to eat spaghetti and macaroni and cheese again, due to I've been getting the noodles that are wheat/gluten free. I know when you first find out the news of CD or DH, it's upsetting, I felt that way. I already had to stay off a salty stuff, then was being careful with the sugar, due to my Dad is diabetic, then when I found our I had DH, it was real upsetting, but now, I'm taking it a lot better than I did at first.

Hang in there, this is a wonderful and very supportive group. In Regards, Donna of Missouri

Dean & Donna ' Appaloosa Horseswww.donnaappaloosahorses.com

Welcome To Donna ' WebPagehttp://donnaevans.multiply.com

Donna ' Blog WebPagehttp://www.myspace.com/9586741

Re: I can't stop

>> I can't stop eating gluten. I dont know what to do. >Hi . I count it among my blessings that I get obvious "sick"symptoms from gluten. I can now honestly look at almost all glutenas "severe pain, big D, and days' worth of migraine". Then,I honestly ask myself the question, "Is that oreo/donut/sandwich/french fry of unknown history and companionship *REALLY* worth it?"When I'm honest about the answer to that question then it's easynow for me to walk away from gluten.I was so sick before GF that I've never relapsed into gluten-eatingways. Relapsing into total glutenoid living holds no appeal for me.Sure, there are things that tempt me. Like when I'm REALLY hungry and don't feel like doing the research required to eat safely, Iget tempted to say "dang it all, hunger trumps". But that rarelyhappens if I'm home, as I know what's in my home and the researchis already done. Rather, the "hunger RULES" events usually happenwhen I'm away from home. So, if I start to think about it... "Esther,you're 40 minutes away from home, you're the only driver, and you'll have four kids in the car... Is it really worth even thePOSSIBILITY of being in pain?" I know what it's like to driveafter an accidental glutening - SCARY and possibly illegal. Ican't even think straight when I'm in the gluten pain. To drivein those circumstances is nearly impossible. Therefore, if I think it through I can HONESTLY decide I'd rather be hungry thanunder arrest, or injured, or worse. I'd rather be hungry thandrive like a maniac because I'm sick. You can be sure, as well, that some things hold much more temptationthan others. I'm writing "trip to cinnamon bun store with hungrydaughter" in my book of 10,000 things a mother does every day justfor the sake of love and for no other reason. It was truly tortureto sit in the cinnamon bun shop and watch my daughter eat. It's also hard to go to a steak house and watch my family enjoythe marinated chef special while I have boiled chicken.It's also hard to watch my family eat deli grinders while I fryan egg and have a bowl of soup.But if I think it through and remind myself of the following:- I can make cinnamon buns any time I want. I lived just fine withoutit yesterday. I can live fine without it right now. or- I can cook a big fat juicy steak any time I want. I lived throughyesterday without one just fine. I can live just fine right nowwithout it, too.or again- If I really want a grinder, I can make one. I don't *HAVE* toeat a fried egg and a bowl of soup. I can make a grinder if I wantto. But you know what? I don't really want or need a grinder anda bowl of soup and fried egg is just fine. When food becomes "just food" it's easier to stare down glutenand win the battle.I've long envied my husband who's allergic to peanuts AND findsthem totally revolting. He finds the smell of them to be trulygag-o-licious. He won't even kiss me if I have peanut butter mouth. (Secret - peanut butter can be used for family planning!)If I were to be blessed with finding gluten revolting, I'd feellike I won the lottery.I still have to use logic to stare down the gluten and win. Maybe one day I'll find it revolting and then it will be TOTALLYeasy.In the meantime, all I have to do is remind myself that I've alreadybeen through the world's smallest and shortest gluten tolerancetest: One crouton crumb got in my honey mustard dressing on mychicken at a restaurant. One crouton crumb and I was sick for a week. One crouton crumb is all I need for a gluten tolerance test.I don't even need a whole Oreo or a whole Dunkin' Donut. Onecrouton crumb is all it takes to TKO me. Imagine that. 5'6" anda 150+ pounds and all it takes to knock me on my behind is abit of gluten one bajillionth my size! Gluten: 1 Esther: 0And you want to know another secret? You don't have to think aboutit in terms of "FOREVER". You can make the decision to feel better one bite at a time.Can you live without an Oreo for the next five minutes? Good.Can you live without gluten until you finish reading this message?Good.Can you go find a non-gluten snack you ENJOY after reading thismessage? Good. You go, girl! YOU CAN DO IT!And your body will thank you by becoming healthier and healthier.One bite at a time is all you have to do. Just decide one biteat a time, "Is it really worth it?"Nothing, and I mean ***NOTHING***, tastes as good as healthy feels!!!Oh, and eventually you will find GF foods you TRULY love. Mykids and I made gingerbread muffins for breakfast today. Man, werethey delish!!!!!! And then we went out on errands. We came hometo the house still smelling like gingerbread muffins. What a wonderful "Welcome Home!" from the land of GF cooking.*e-Hugs! Esther in RI* Coffee cake on Friday. Lasagna (hubby made) on Sunday. Gingerbreadmuffins on Tuesday. Oh my! Give me six months and I'll be blamingthe new oven for a weight gain of 20 pounds and will be screaming"GET THAT NEW OVEN OUT OF HERE!"

[Guest guest]

Fine with me!

> > >

> > > I can't stop eating gluten. I dont know what to do.

> > >

> >

> > Hi .

> >

> > I count it among my blessings that I get obvious " sick "

> > symptoms from gluten. I can now honestly look at almost all gluten

> > as " severe pain, big D, and days' worth of migraine " . Then,

> > I honestly ask myself the question, " Is that oreo/donut/sandwich/

> > french fry of unknown history and companionship *REALLY* worth it? "

> > When I'm honest about the answer to that question then it's easy

> > now for me to walk away from gluten.

> >

> > I was so sick before GF that I've never relapsed into gluten-eating

> > ways. Relapsing into total glutenoid living holds no appeal for me.

> >

> > Sure, there are things that tempt me. Like when I'm REALLY hungry

> > and don't feel like doing the research required to eat safely, I

> > get tempted to say " dang it all, hunger trumps " . But that rarely

> > happens if I'm home, as I know what's in my home and the research

> > is already done. Rather, the " hunger RULES " events usually happen

> > when I'm away from home. So, if I start to think about it... " Esther,

> > you're 40 minutes away from home, you're the only driver, and

> > you'll have four kids in the car... Is it really worth even the

> > POSSIBILITY of being in pain? " I know what it's like to drive

> > after an accidental glutening - SCARY and possibly illegal. I

> > can't even think straight when I'm in the gluten pain. To drive

> > in those circumstances is nearly impossible. Therefore, if I

> > think it through I can HONESTLY decide I'd rather be hungry than

> > under arrest, or injured, or worse. I'd rather be hungry than

> > drive like a maniac because I'm sick.

> >

> > You can be sure, as well, that some things hold much more temptation

> > than others. I'm writing " trip to cinnamon bun store with hungry

> > daughter " in my book of 10,000 things a mother does every day just

> > for the sake of love and for no other reason. It was truly torture

> > to sit in the cinnamon bun shop and watch my daughter eat.

> >

> > It's also hard to go to a steak house and watch my family enjoy

> > the marinated chef special while I have boiled chicken.

> >

> > It's also hard to watch my family eat deli grinders while I fry

> > an egg and have a bowl of soup.

> >

> > But if I think it through and remind myself of the following:

> > - I can make cinnamon buns any time I want. I lived just fine without

> > it yesterday. I can live fine without it right now.

> > or

> > - I can cook a big fat juicy steak any time I want. I lived through

> > yesterday without one just fine. I can live just fine right now

> > without it, too.

> > or again

> > - If I really want a grinder, I can make one. I don't *HAVE* to

> > eat a fried egg and a bowl of soup. I can make a grinder if I want

> > to. But you know what? I don't really want or need a grinder and

> > a bowl of soup and fried egg is just fine.

> >

> > When food becomes " just food " it's easier to stare down gluten

> > and win the battle.

> >

> > I've long envied my husband who's allergic to peanuts AND finds

> > them totally revolting. He finds the smell of them to be truly

> > gag-o-licious. He won't even kiss me if I have peanut butter

> > mouth. (Secret - peanut butter can be used for family planning!)

> >

> > If I were to be blessed with finding gluten revolting, I'd feel

> > like I won the lottery.

> >

> > I still have to use logic to stare down the gluten and win.

> >

> > Maybe one day I'll find it revolting and then it will be TOTALLY

> > easy.

> >

> > In the meantime, all I have to do is remind myself that I've already

> > been through the world's smallest and shortest gluten tolerance

> > test: One crouton crumb got in my honey mustard dressing on my

> > chicken at a restaurant. One crouton crumb and I was sick for a

> > week. One crouton crumb is all I need for a gluten tolerance test.

> > I don't even need a whole Oreo or a whole Dunkin' Donut. One

> > crouton crumb is all it takes to TKO me. Imagine that. 5'6 " and

> > a 150+ pounds and all it takes to knock me on my behind is a

> > bit of gluten one bajillionth my size!

> >

> > Gluten: 1

> > Esther: 0

> >

> > And you want to know another secret? You don't have to think about

> > it in terms of " FOREVER " . You can make the decision to feel

> > better one bite at a time.

> >

> > Can you live without an Oreo for the next five minutes? Good.

> > Can you live without gluten until you finish reading this message?

> > Good.

> > Can you go find a non-gluten snack you ENJOY after reading this

> > message? Good.

> >

> > You go, girl! YOU CAN DO IT!

> >

> > And your body will thank you by becoming healthier and healthier.

> >

> > One bite at a time is all you have to do. Just decide one bite

> > at a time, " Is it really worth it? "

> >

> > Nothing, and I mean ***NOTHING***, tastes as good as healthy feels!!!

> >

> > Oh, and eventually you will find GF foods you TRULY love. My

> > kids and I made gingerbread muffins for breakfast today. Man, were

> > they delish!!!!!! And then we went out on errands. We came home

> > to the house still smelling like gingerbread muffins. What a

> > wonderful " Welcome Home! " from the land of GF cooking.*

> >

> > e-Hugs! Esther in RI

> >

> > * Coffee cake on Friday. Lasagna (hubby made) on Sunday. Gingerbread

> > muffins on Tuesday. Oh my! Give me six months and I'll be blaming

> > the new oven for a weight gain of 20 pounds and will be screaming

> > " GET THAT NEW OVEN OUT OF HERE! "

> >

> >

> >

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> >

> >

> >

>