Bonnie

1 Celiac Disease doesn’t seem like a big deal but it involves every mouthful of food, which makes it a big deal. 2 Eating at home is the only time food is not a stressful occasion. 3 Paranoia over the safety of food becomes a part of life when eating out, going to a social event, even going to a friends. Many develop social anxiety because of this which extends beyond occasions with food. 4 When you say you understand what Gluten-free means, it is still very hard to trust that because we’ve likely been glutened by people who’ve said this in the past. So know it’s a big deal if we feel safe with your food/cooking. 5 There is no such thing as a spontaneous “let’s go grab a bite to eat”. All food/trips/places needs to be planned, researched, and prepared. We miss life before Gluten-free very much. 6 We often feel very left out, awkward, different at events when we can’t eat the same as everyone else or had to bring our own food or worse (and yes it’s happened) when we have to watch others eat because we couldn’t eat anything served. 7 Worrying about being glutened is on our minds whenever we have to eat someone else’s food. 8 It’s not only about staying off gluten, it’s the constant vigilance of avoiding it. 9 We normally continue to suffer with other autoimmune conditions, nutritional deficiencies, or damage from gluten years after 10 Gluten exposure happens, and when it does, we are sick. How that looks for each celiac is different. You can’t judge one from another. As careful as we are, it’s impossible not to happen.