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Hi All--

This post has been in the making for some time now. I am not writing for
sympathy, nor am I advocating that people who find the gf diet difficult
give it up, but I am writing as a "heads up" for those people who are
just beginning their gf life - especially those who are single. Also, I
hope to address the question of being gf and the quality of life, or how
we perceive it. I suspect I'll get a number of angry responses and some
people will simply hit the "delete" button when they come to something
that doesn't fit their experience. You all have been wonderful and I
can't imagine a more caring and supportive group. I do not intend to
anger anyone, I just want to add a perspective all of us have probably
had at one time or another, but that I haven't seen addressed on this
list.

I am not a confirmed celiac. The blood work and biopsy came back
negative, but my GI advised me to go on the gf diet to see if it made me
feel better. It did - at least for a while; now we're not sure what is
causing my discomfort - perhaps I'm getting gluten somewhere I'm not
aware of, or perhaps I'm not celiac at all. Regardless, in these few
months I've been gf, I've lost friends I've had since 1969 - through
crises, wonderfully happy times, tragic times...truly good friends that
I considered family. The gf diet is not just hard to navigate, it
affects every corner of one's life. For single people, like myself, who
do not have the support of a spouse or children, it can be devastating.
And for those of you who are the only ones in your family fighting
celiac, or the spouse of a celiac, it strains marriages and families -
I've heard from a few of you.

Someone on this list asked not long ago if anyone had gone back to
eating gluten after being gf. It is a legitimate question, whether those
of you who react violently to gluten will admit it. My father was
diagnosed with cancer in 1977 and stopped chemotherapy after one dose.
He knew he would die without the therapy, but his quality of life was so
severely compromised by the drugs, he didn't have a life anyway.

We're all bombarded by conflicting information about foods, drugs,
eating utensils, body soaps, cosmetics. I realize that remaining gluten
free is not a choice for most people on this list, but for some, maybe
just a few like me, losing friendships and spending all of one's time
trying to keep abreast of what foods contain what is compromising their
quality of life. Life is ultimately important, but it's also too
precious to ignore its quality. (Imagine, all of this deep monolog and
I've just managed to make decent gf bread!)

I apologize if I've offended anyone. I've come to watch for posts from
many of you and consider the information you all impart to be valuable
and thoughtful. I plan to continue subscribing to the list, but I've
found I spend more time worrying about what I'm eating than is healthy
for me. In anticipation of being inundated by responses, I don't know
how I will manage them. I would hope that if some of you have
suggestions for me, you would post them to the list - against rules, I
know - but someone else like me might truly appreciate your insights - I
did.

Ayn.