hi kim, thanks for checking in on me ... i'm not doing all that well. not feeling much better and not eating LC. just eating whatever doesn't make me sick - right now that's mainly popcorn, luna bars, a few veggies, and some beans.

i had the upper endoscopy last thursday - it was not bad as i thought. i was totally sedated. good drugs, then slept all day.

got the results of my biopsy yesterday. not good news. apparently i have the most severe class of celiac. (class 4 is the worst on a scale of 1 to 4, and i have class 4.) the doctor was so shocked that i had gone this long in life w/out being diagnosed. soooo, now i meet w/ the nutrition specialist so i know how the heck to follow a stupid gluten-free diet. but get this - my insurance (which costs me an arm & a leg each month) does not cover dietary consultations unless you are diagnosed w/ anorexia, bulimia, or diabetes. and each visit w/ this lady is $196 .... no kidding. i'm not real happy, as you might suspect. so that's the latest ....

one good thing - i have still been able to maintain my exercise ... so i've been releasing stress (and calories) by running 6-7 miles a day and lifting weights.

oh man.. when it rains it pours, eh kiddo? dang...
kinda sucks about the insurance.. i know MINE only paid for a few months of any diet related meds... not that i used them, but it kinda ticks me off that they want to treat AFTER the fact, but not causes..:(
hang in there kiddo..
((((((((carrie))))))))

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kims SECOND journal is HERE
kims new blog
KIMS BLOG !!
SUGARFREE BLOG

Oh gee Carrie! Sorry about teh severity of the celiac and the health insurance denying responsibility. You should fight it. sometimes you win.

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I was just thinking of you dear Carrie and thought I'd stop by. When I was diagnosed with diabetes they wouldn't cover the dietary consultations either AND I was pregnant. What is with these insurance companies anyways? They know you have a condition and don't they want you to know how to treat it? The world can be a crazy place! I think I just made payments to the dietition but it was well worth the visit. Let us know how it goes and what you learn. I'm so glad that you are able to still work out some stress with exercise. Good for you!

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Carrie, I was reading in the August 2006 issue of Good Housekeeping and there is an article of a lady that has celiac sprue. I thought I'd let you know in case you wanted to pick up an issue. I read in the issue that with this genetic disorder you can't have wheat, rye and barley you poor thing! I saw that it was in packaged foords and even in nonfood items like oipstick and envelope glue! I didn't realize that gluten was in so many things. They gave a website of celiaccentral.org incase you wanted to peek there too. Have a good one and take care of yourself!

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Dr. Mercola

Carrie - I don't know how you feel about Dr. Mercola or even if you know who he is. But the link above has some promising information re:celiac.

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kim, heather, rob ... thank you guys SO much for your enouragement. i will definitely check out the websites you've provided. you are all so sweet ... thank you.

i am doing ok. i have NO idea what i'm doing w/ my diet. i don't see the dietician until 8/14, so i'm trying to educate myself - but it is much more overwhelming than i expected. it does seem that gluten is hidden everywhere. last nite i thought i had eaten a gluten-free meal, but i got sick almost immediately after dinner. :( it's interesting b/c now i know exactly what is causing the symptoms - so i am more "in tune" w/ what's going on, how my body is reacting and why.

some good news - i got a new car! my first new car EVER ... so that's kind of exciting. a brand new VW rabbit - they just brought them back to the market this year. it is perfect for city driving - it is a 2 door hatchback stick shift. the exterior is "black uni" and the interior is sort of a dark charcoal color.
here are the website photos of a white model: http://www.vw.com/rabbit/photos_ext.html
i am really happy - and the payments aren't TOO bad, but it will take some adjusting to get used to the new expenditure each month.

guess that's about it .... oh, BF's 33rd bday was last friday - so the weekend was like a four day party. we had a great time. i had a lot of fun surprises planned for him - like a nice dinner, a german bar, cubs game, and his favorite pizza. also got him some nice gifts - new shorts, some fun t-shirts, a new bike helmet, etc. he was very appreciative and really enjoyed spending the time w/ me. warm fuzzies.

I couldn't bring up the photo. Maybe it is an error and I'll try again later though. Congrats on the new car!! And your FIRST new car too! That really is special.

Glad you had fun with your BF. He sounds pretty spoiled . Glad he is appreciative - he sounds real nice.

You can't get in until 8/14 to the dietion you poor thing! I'm just curious - what have you been eating that has been working for you so far? Are you able to take a multi-vitamin everyday to make sure you get all the nutrients you need? The article that I read in the Good Housekeeping magazine said that the lady was losing her hair and people thought that she was anerexic because she was so thin. This is something so serious that I'm glad that is starting to get some notice for those out there that might be suffering and not know why.

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Congratulations on the new car! Sounds like you got a really fun one, too.

I hope you can get a handle on your diet and find the food choices that make you feel good, and not terrible. It isn't fair that food can make us ill, is it? You keep working on it, and we'll watch your progress.

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Nita

Nice car Carrie! Congratulations. I've never had a brand new car. Best I've done is a one year old model. Sounds like you need to stick with meat and veggies with nothing added (except oils or butter).

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My computer finally let me pull up the picture and I love your new car.

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hi guys! thanks so much for stopping by ....

heather, i'm glad you like the car! i love it - it's so fast and cute. BF and i are going for a short trip this weekend and i actually volunteered to drive!

as for the celiac, i have been feeling ok. i was a little sick on mon nite, but last nite was ok. for breakfast i have been having either gluten free cereal (made w/ rice) w/ some skim milk or a gluten free proten/energy bar. lunch is typically a frozen meal made by "amy's" organic food company. they are quite healthy - low in salt, no cholesterol, most are low fat/low cal, high in fiber, and best of all - NO gluten! dinner has been the hardest ... i've been having tomato/mozzarella salad (w/ olive oil and basil) or chickpeas or just chicken, etc.

so as you can see, this is not really a LC diet right now. i'm trying to make LC choices whenever possible - and pick things w/ lots of fiber. tonite i think i'm going to make a gluten free mexican lasagna for BF and myself. it's basically comprised of salsa, LF sour cream, some cheese, and TONS of fun veggies. hope it's good.

anyway, heather - you mentioned the woman in GH ... how she was very underweight and losing her hair. i have read that a lot of celiacs have these symptoms! but believe me, no one would mistake me for being anorexic. i still would like to get rid of about 10-15 lbs. i have read that celiacs can actually be quite overweight (before diagnosis), but i have no idea how/why ... ? anyhoo, i'm really hoping that the new gluten free diet does not make me GAIN weight. uggggh. i just can't wait to see the dietician ... i am going to pay for one session (out of pocket) - b/c i just don't think i can do this w/ internet research alone. :(

guess that's about it ... i'm keeping up w/ my workouts. headed to the gym now ....
have a good nite!

You're probably tired of talking about it but just wondering how you are feeling lately. It's getting closer to your dietition appointment which I'm sure will be great. I'm hoping you'll be able to find a wide variety of foods you can eat that you weren't sure about. Most of the stuff you can't eat we really shouldn't eat anyways so you're going to be that much healthier then the rest of us. Hope I'm not anoying you. My dh says it's just sick I can look on the bright side of anything. This coming from the world's biggest pessimist.

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heather, you are so sweet! thanks for checking in on me. it is so nice to know that someone cares. hey, by the way, how are YOU feeling?? glad you went to the doctor ... hope you're getting the rest you need.

i am feeling pretty well. i have been sticking to foods i know are gluten-free, and i have not had any of the bad symptoms i used to have. i met w/ my GI doctor on wed for a follow-up (after the biopsy), which was a waste of time AND money. he basically said "well, you have celiac." (which he had already confirmed on the phone, LOL.) and then he just gave me a bunch of websites and info (which i had already found on my own) and asked if i had any questions. so i started asking him some specific questions, and he didn't have the answers. he kept saying, "that's something you'll want to ask the dietician." ugggh, totally pointless appointment. AND he was 20 mins late showing up.

anyway, they also weighed me at the doctor's office - and i was not happy. thus, i am starting south beach again on monday. (maybe sunday.) phase 1 of SBD can be easily gluten free. in phase 2, you can start adding back some grains and fruits. my grains will have to be made primarily from brown rice and/or corn. no big deal. one of my best friend's wedding is on 8/26, and i MUST drop some of this weight before that event. i will be angry at myself if i look bloated and uncomfortable in all of her photos. i want to feel GOOD about myself again. i am tired of the waist bands on my pants feeling just a little too tight ... i am tired of seeing a protruding belly where it used to be flat!!! i am just tired of crappy carbs making me feel crappy.

i started back to school last nite ... i'm taking microeconomics. this was my undergrad minor, so i'm hoping i won't have too much trouble w/ this class. the professor is excellent. but we have to form our own groups w/ other students to work on team assignments together ... and i do not know many people in the class. i did not have a team when i left class last nite, and i am worried i will be left out. i am so shy ... i HATE it when the profs make us form our own groups. :( makes me feel like such a nerd ... like the last kid picked for kickball in gym class, LOL. i emailed one guy i know in class to ask if he has a group yet ... i hope to hear back from him soon.

not much else going on ... BF and i are staying in tonite to watch the movie "cache." it is supposed to be quite good. sat nite i have my friend's bachelorette party (for aforementioned wedding), which should be interesting.

Carrie - have fun at the bacherlette party. Don't go to crazy. I remember mine, I was underage but a good friend had a little party for me with some of our close friends at her house. We played games that make my face turn red like drawing a man's ummm...unmentionable. They laughed at my drawing so hard because I had no real idea what one looked like. Like I ever studied one before. Hope I'm not making you uncomfortable with my memories. The other memory was my friend baked a cake that looked like one too! Perverts!

Sorry about your dr appt. Hate appointment's like that. Had a dr who swore that a body rash was spread from a yeast infection when it actually was an infection from strep throat that developed into scoriasis.

I was always shy too Carrie. I hope that you get a great partner that will actually help out and not let you do all the work. I'll be thinking of you and waiting to hear about how your dietion appointment goes too.

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