<<Disclaimer: Verify this information before applying it to your situation.>>
 
Hi,
 
I was diagnosed with Celiac Disease about a year ago.  I had been
seeing a doctor for several years (again), trying to find out what my
problem was and once again was the million dollar test baby with the
diagnosis of irritable bowel syndrome.  I had run the gamut, from IBS
to inflammatory bowel disease.  I decided to change doctors and found a
new gastro.
 
Fortunately for me this doctor was familiar with Celiac Disease.  I
weighed 75 pounds (and have been that way since I was approximately 12
to 14 years old except when pregnant.  I'm now 40), and firmly believed
that I was going to die if something wasn't done.  I had been sick for
years.  He prescribed a gf diet without first doing a biopsy or the
proper blood testing.  Being the person that I am, I went home and read
every piece of literature I could find (which wasn't much until I
discovered this list) and stayed on a gf diet.
 
Unfortunately for me, by the time I had finished my research and
decided to go back to the doctor with what I had found (he was quite
impressed with the literature I'd gotten from this list), he admitted
that we had done it all backwards.  By then, I had been on the gf diet
almost nine months and wasn't willing to take a gluten challenge.
After reading some further materials he had gathered, he decided that a
biopsy would not be conclusive at this time nor would any blood testing
because of my strict adherence to a gf diet.
 
I questioned him about being a "confirmed" celiac and he said that
the greatest test was the results of the gf diet
(found in some of his materials).  A few of my results are as
follows:  I'm now 102 pounds, no longer have chronic fatigue syndrome,
 no longer an insomniac, no longer sick after eating each and every
meal (didn't know this was the way it was supposed to be), my life
isn't controlled any longer by my stomach and the nearest bathroom,
no longer anemic, female problems have cleared up (and the list goes
on and on), and that given all the research he had done, I had passed
the greatest test and could be properly diagnosed with Celiac Disease
without the need for a biopsy.
 
I firmly believe that this doctor saved my life, but I also find it
very sad to have lived most of my life "sick" with everyone, including
myself (as the symptoms are so varied, how could this possibly have a
name), believing a lot of it was in my head and a "nervous stomach".
 
I do not wonder if I have Celiac Disease, I know.  I need no biopsy to
prove that to me.  The term Celiac does not strike the fear of God in
me or make afraid.  The term Celiac to me means life and health and
peace of mind.  I am proud to be a Celiac.  For being Celiac has given
me back my life and I have truly learned to live.
 
My husband and children may not "like" the breads I am learning to
bake; they may not "like" my pasta; they may not "like" the food I eat,
but they "love" this new wife and mother that they've found and don't
ever wish gluten on me again, and have been and are willing to support
me in every way possible.
 
I know this has been pretty long, but my question is this:  According
to my doctor, you can be "confirmed" without either a biopsy or a blood
test and with only the results of a gf diet if the results are as
dramatic or numerous as mine.  I do not dispute this, but I'm wondering
if there is anyone out there that is dealing with this same history or
a like history and that has a doctor that has concurred with mine.
 
Brenda C. Davis
Covington, GA