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Hi All,

  I am a 24 yr old who has had a host of different
helath issues ever since I developed post-tramatic
stress disorder (a psychiatric disorder) at the age of
eighteen.  Few doctors have been willing to admit that
there is any connection even though PTSD is officially
said to cause immune system problems.  I have a lot of
different food allergies, which started at eighteen,
but only recently developed problems with gluten.  Its
been eighteen months since I developed these problems.
I brought them up with my progressive medicine
doctor...the only doctor I could find that was able to
medically treat my whole system. I had been to MD's
that didn't believe it was connected, and I had been
to naturopaths who told me to eat more garlic or try
meditating but this was the only doctor I found who
could explain to me the connection between the stress
I had been through, how that had wiped out my adrenal
glands and intestinal bacteria, and how things were
happening in my body now.  He did take blood tests for
my food allergies and determined that I am allergic to
a whole long list of things.

   When I went to see him about the problem I was
having with eating wheat he told me about gluten and
told me I had to follow a glutenfree diet. He also
told me to take 3 multivitamins a day. He didn't
really explain why. he told me not to go see a
gastrointestinal doctor because they would probably
put me on lots of drugs. He wants me to get a biopsy
of my small (?) intestine done AFTER I have been on a
gf diet for two months.

   Last week I went to see my allergist about my
asthma and all my environmental allergies. She asked
me about my food allergies and I explained that I was
on a gf diet. She told me that it was very important
to have a biopsy of my intestine done and to be
postively diagnosed. This means that you have to have
gluten in your system. She told me there are other
things that have to be monitored when you have
celiac's, which is why you need a positive diagnosis.


  I feel like I am stuck in a grey area. I mean, I
have been told to stay on a gluten free diet but no
one's really told me what that is beyond not eating
grains. I had to find out for myself that natural
flavors are bad, annatto is dangerous etc etc. Because
I don't have an "official" diagnosis it doesn't even
seem real to me. i go out to restaurants all the time
but after asking them questions I go ahead and eat the
food. And I get sick.  Not deathly ill. Just some
diarrhea for a few minutes and some stomach pains.
I've had that for so long that I'm used to it. I have
no idea if I am really harming myself by not taking
better care of my diet.

   I have so many other issues both mental and
physical that it can get lost in the shuffle of
keeping up. I feel like I am not "that sick."  Well,
at least...I feel that way until I eat something with
gluten in it. Then I do feel pretty sick.

  I need this community so much. Everyone on this list
has already given me so much information that has
helped to change my life. I just...don't even know how
seriously I should be takingt his...so how can I let
other people know?

   If the people on this list could give me
information on how to get diagnosed, what procedures
you've used, what kind of doctors you saw, etc. It
would be so helpful to me.  I do know an MD who
initially suggested that I might have celiac's but she
made me give a stool sample at that point and it came
back negative.

Help!
Thank you and I apologize for such a long email.
Brie/VT

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