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Hi, I just joined this list, and find it very helpful.  I've been told I
don't have celiac disease, but my symptoms seem so consistent with celiac,
I'm wondering if my tests were accurate, and if there is anything I
can/should do next.  Here's my story: Due to my food allergic toddler, I had
been off and on wheat since Feb'99, and had started eating real wheat again
in December.  I started having constant bloating and abdominal pain (which
had been intermittant in the past). I was bloating so much, my clothes
wouldn't fit.  I also had a few episodes of sudden painful cramps, and
diarrhea (felt like food poisoning, but only lasted a few hours)  After
three days, I tied it to the wheat, and stopped eating it.  I read about
wheat allergy and celiac.  In reading about celiac, I recognized other
symptoms (mouth ulcers, stools that float, and history of anemia).  By then
I realized that to be tested for celiac, I had to be eating gluten.  I
started eating lots of wheat, and within 6 days had 5 very painful sores in
my mouth, along with worse bloating.  I saw a GI doc who also thought it was
celiac, and ordered bloodwork and a biopsy.  I stayed on wheat until then (a
total of about 3 weeks of eating wheat).  Two weeks later I met with the
doc, and he told me all of my tests were negative.  Since I was already
feeling better (10 days off wheat again), and my bloating was already
reduced, I decided to stay off gluten to see what would happen.  After 6
weeks, my bloating was minimal, and my stools stopped floating.  Then, last
weekend, I went to a function and felt pressured to eat (all gluten laden
goodies), so I ate about 5 bites of a scone.  For the next three days,
anytime I ate I had pain, and my bloating got worse.  And then the stools
started to float again.  Is it possible that this is celiac even though the
tests said it wasn't?  Since I had been on and off wheat for so long
(although eating oats), I asked the GI doc if this might have affected the
test results, but he just told me the tests are very accurate.  Is there
anything I can do now?  If it is celiac, it would be nice to know,
especially for my son's sake (and might explain his many food allergies).
BTW, four of my sisters have similar GI problems, and one was told its IBS.
None wants to consider celiac, or giving up wheat.

Teresa S.