Last week I went to the doctor because I was feeling tired. He suggested I could have coeliac disease as I also have alternative periods of constipation and diarrhea, and feeling bloated most of the time. I have feel like that for as long as I remember, but the tireness is increasingly more frequent.
Have any of you been diagnosed with coeliac disease with only those symptoms?? I had my blood test done last yesterday. Now I will wait for the results, but I don´t know how long will it take.
I'm afraid people on here will probably not be able to be any more helpful at this point that your doctor has been. From the symptoms you describe it sounds like you may have coeliac disease, but you may have something else. I suspect that all you can really do at this stage is wait for the result of the blood test. You will have to continue to eat gluten anyway because you may well have to have a biopsy as well, and the accuracy of that depends upon your eating gluten.
Hi dan, I also had very few symptoms and CD was only suspected when I was extremely tired and lacking folic acid. Although I'm still waiting for the result of the biopsy/histology, the consultant advised starting a gluten free diet from what she'd seen on the day it was done.
Have to say I'm having a few difficulties adjusting to it.
Hi Jennifer, thank you for your reply. I will see tomorrow if I have the blood test results. Good luck with adapting to the GF diet! I bet it's really hard, but everyone said is totally worthy.
GL on your results, they should be in within a week of submitting the test. (Timing may vary)
Did they test for other conditions as well? Thyroid? Vitamin deficiencies? Those can cause your symptoms as well, and can be detected through bloodwork. I hope you had a battery of tests run to rule out or confirm a variety of issues.
As for going entirely GF, as is imperative with CD, it's terribly difficult, especially at first. It's expensive and complicates traveling and your social life. It's entirely necessary and feels so much better, as you've heard, and becomes easier over time... In the UK and much of Europe it seems easier to navigate (and less expensive with prescriptions, how nice!). I'm just happy that the US recently passed stronger labelling laws - makes it a bit easier in our shoppes now when we buy food. Please keep us posted on how you're doing.
They test for Thyroid, Liver, and a few more things I can´t remember! I did my test last Thursday but I´m going to the surgery tomorrow to see if my results are back!
Changing your diet is quite hard, but you can find so many products glutenfree everywhere, it's not even the hardest part (the price though... count on 3£ for your bread). It is harder when you go out (you will need to look for restaurant with a gluten free menu... but there are more and more of them, and they even do gluten free beers). Not to forget all the little things you're used to (crisps, mars bar etc.), some contain gluten, so at the beginning you will need to spend time in the shop looking at every ingredients on the package...
After a couple of weeks though, you will know what you can and can't eat, and you'll get use to it!
You are right though - it's totally worth it! I even lost weight since I started my gluten free diet
Now I'm wondering whether I have cd or not. My only symptoms are tiredness, mild headache, feeling constantly bloated and alternative constipation and diahorrea. Should my blood test comes negative shall I try to go GF to see if my symptoms disappear? I don't know what to do, I'm feeling so tired all the time, and don't feel like socialising anymore, just want to be left alone in my room!
I'm still waiting for the blood test results, 3 weeks today. I'm in the Brighton area of England. Had anyone had to wait that long? Last week I didn't have any symptoms, but yesterday and today I've been exhausted although I'm on holiday and haven't done anything at all!
I'm still waiting for my results, after 4 weeks. I am having back ache for 2 weeks now, with no sign of improvement. I also get very stiff whenever I don't move for a while. My legs are heavy and I remember now that a few weeks ago I had knee pain as well, but it's completely gone now. Does anyone get those symptoms? It seems that all my symptoms are on and off, like the extreme tireness, alright "mild" tireness and head ache are almost constant.
I decided to start gluten free 3 days ago. I find it very difficult, and I haven't had any improvement although I can't judge very well as I'm very tired now because of the hay fever. I still feel bloated though.