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Hello everyone,

I'm new to the group and have been amazed with all the interesting
things I've been reading since I first signed on last week.  I haven't
been officially diagnosed with Celiac Sprue.  I need to contact my
gastroenterologist because I'd like to know if he did find it during the
colonoscopy I had while in the hospital or whether his offhand comment
changed over a decade of pain.  I had asked about Ensure and he said not
only is it lactose free (I am lactose intollerant), but it's gluten
free.  I asked why that mattered and what gluten was in and after he
rattled off a lot of types of products, I started really looking at what
I eat.

I'm a vegetarian, so all my meat substitutes were pure gluten - no
wonder I was so violently ill afterwards.  Even my vegan cheese have
small bits of casein and even that is starting to bother me.  So I've
cut gluten out completely, it's been about 6 weeks now, but I'm
terrified to eat.   Beans are too hard on my stomach, I will eat Kosher
fish, but that's my only source of protein now (hence my question about
the Ensure). I'm afraid to eat nuts again or anything too heavy.  I
could count under 15 foods I juggle to turn into "meals".  (If this
helps any, I started on the BRAT diet because other than the blanket
diagnosis of IBS, doctors found gastritis via an endoscopy - bananas,
rice, applesauce and tea/toast - then I've added fish, rice pasta,
cooked broccoli, carrots & zucchini, apple as long as it's peeled, vegan
"cheese", potatoes, rice bread - hate it, too heavy, soy yogurt -a
spoonful here and there, and that's really it.)

I was hoping someone might have some good recommendations for me in
terms of what to start with and what's easy to build on.  If I could get
back to salads, that would make things easier.  I'm so tired from all
the cooking I now have to do.  I'm not saying I was queen of take-out,
but I was never a big eater because everything made me sick (diarrhea).
I have searched through all the sites I've come across and found a
wealth of information, but I guess I'm looked for something when you're
starting from square one.  Sort of like when you have a baby.. you start
slowly, see what the baby can tolerate and slowly move up.. well, that's
the way I'm looking at how I have to treat my stomach right now (I don't
want to wind up back in the hospital), but I'm not sure what to start
with.  The best bet would probably be to talk with a nutritionist,
however, my insurance won't cover anyone but MDs and my illness made me
agoraphobic, I'm working on that now, but still can't get most places (I
can't even do my own grocery shopping, so thank goodness for the all of
the information online so I know what to ask for from those who do shop
for me).

BTW.. I am taking a number of medications (more than ever in my entire
life) if this will make any diference in assisting me:  Levoxyl & Ortho
Novum (I have a thyroid problem that's still not under control - I'm on a
baby dose and increasing makes me ill - Synthroid gave me heart attack
symptoms - and my menstrual cycles are far from normal); for my stomach -
Librax, Prilosec & CholestID (supposed to help hold water as a side
effect, I had my gall bladder removed when I was 20), Ativan if I can't
manage my anxiety attack, and then Calcium+D suppliment, FiberCom,
Centrum one-day- vitamins, and I take the Fiber +FOS Ensure approximately
once every other day.

Any recomendations would be gratefully accepted!  Sorry for such a long
read.  I see most people summarize to the group, so if I receive any
responses, I will do my best to do that.

Thanks in advance,
Aviva
Chicago area, IL