My gluten-free journey begins many years ago. My grandmother was diagnosed with celiac disease in the early 90's before anyone knew what that was. She spent weeks in the hospital before finally being diagnosed. What I remember most about that time is how Thanksgiving was forever changed. Grandma's stuffing was legen... wait for it...dary. Every year she'd get a little better at making it gluten-free, but it wasn't the same.
In college my mom thought my sister Courtney was celiac and Courtney didn't want to take the test to find out. So, being the good big sister I took to the test too. Except, mine came back positive too! I was not planning for that! For about 6 months I ate gluten-free. I never had the stomach or intestinal symptoms so slowly over time I started eating more and more breads, cookies, cakes, etc until the words 'gluten-free' never crossed my mind again.
Fast forward to today - I still don't the intestinal symptoms - but I have a lot of other symptoms that have popped up through the years. Chronic kidney stones, hormone struggles, thyroid issues, and infertility. All of which can be caused by an underlying auto-immune disorder - or gluten-intolerance. I've had 3 different professionals recommend that I go gluten-free.
So, I'm working on making the shift. I know it will be easier than it was for my Grandma over 15 years ago - but it will still be hard. I'm a foodie - I love to eat and try new foods. I don't like to give up control or be limited.
That's why I wanted to start this blog - to share my experiences with others who I know are going through the same struggles as me. I've enlisted my sister Courtney - she has been gluten-free for 10 years now and is full of great knowledge and experience. Together we want to learn more about how to live gluten-free and help others out there.
Gluten-free doesn't have to mean "gritty, dry, and tasteless" - it can be delicious and wonderful too.
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