Bill: September 2005 Archives

It's been 12 years since I was diagnosed with Celiac Sprue by a very thorough endocrinologist. And I made immediate improvements in my well-being by being ferociously careful about searching out and avoiding the wheat-rye-barley universe of food products. It took me nearly 5 years to gain weight and to get my blood chemistry more or less normal. But I'm sure this is a normal experience for many folks diagnosed in middle-age. It was a long, slow decline in nutrition, and a long, slow recovery.

I've made changes in my eating habits. I don't miss the gluten-based products I used to eat: bagel, pasta, and lots of homemade bread (oh, and the cookies). Rice, potatoes, and corn are very adequate replacements.

What I have noticed most is that I don't eat desserts. I've become accustomed to considering the meal done when the entree is finished. I don't look at dessert as a necessary part of a meal. I do love imported bittersweet chocolate, and I like ice cream, and I have them occasionally. They're special treats for special times. And I like that.

Technorati Tags: Celiac, celiac_disease, GlutenIntolerance

This weblog is just an online place to talk about living with celiac disease, a.k.a. gluten intolerance. I'm using it to write about my experiences, and to collect some pointers to others experiences.

I plan to see what else is out there, but mostly to keep it personal, at least for now.

Maybe a gluten-like network of links will emerge? It's an empirical question.

Technorati Tags: Celiac, Celiac Sprue, celiac_disease

Just the other day, at lunch with my wife, I order a gluten-safe favorite (burger with salad, hold the bread) at our local bistro. I've been there many times before, and I'm (usually) pretty good about informing the server and making sure they know what the problem foodstuffs are.

But when the food shows up there is an English muffin sitting right on top of the burger and resting on the salad. I tell the server that I need to speak to the person who took our order. She asks what the problem is, and I say that I can't eat anything with wheat, and that the entire meal needs to be re-cooked and re-plated -- without the muffin. She disappears and a few minutes later the server who took the order shows up and asks what happened. When I tell her she is very apologetic, tells me that she put the information on the order (say, do you ever wonder what these computer managed orders look like in the kitchen?), and that she'll be speaking to the manager. A minute or so later the food arrives. It looks like a new order, but I'm not sure how to know this. But by this time I'm pretty hungry and I just eat it. It's a leap of faith or a foolish risk. The burger is overcooked. Life goes on.

I don't know how many times that I've had to send food back, but each time it happens at a restaurant I frequent I lose confidence in their work practices. I'm used to being vigilant, I understand that communication isn't easy. But still, every time there's a mistake I'm disappointed and discouraged.

And you? What's it like to eat out and feel confident the food is gluten-free?

Technorati Tags: Celiac, Celiac Sprue, GlutenIntolerance