Wheat-free Diary

My first really bad reaction to wheat was when I almost choked to death.  I was highly motivated not to eat wheat, and I did very well.  As time went by, I saw that eating a little wheat didn't kill me; so I lost my resolve bit by bit.  At other times, I felt angry at the whole situation.  I was exhibiting a self-destructive attitude by saying to myself, "What's the dif, I'll eat it anyway."

When I eat at a fast food restaurant, I ask for my hamburger with no bun.  Nobody has refused me yet, although a while back someone on the list was actually asked to pay extra for this service.  At sit-down restaurants, I ask for the bun on the side.  Somehow that seems to go over better with the cook.  With the new low-carb diets popular, however, a lot of people are asking for no-bun hamburgers.

I have successfully made my own pizza but some times I am too lazy to do it.  I make such a mess when I cook!

After my post on Tuesday, I have managed to stay almost wheat-free.  Yesterday I do believe that I accomplished it.  Last night I had this extreme craving for some toast, or even bread and butter.  I am afraid that I haven't lost my pleasure in smelling wheat products.

I decided to have a couple of slices of cheddar cheese, and then I saw some tostado shells that were in the cupboard from a year ago.  They were delicious with the cheese.  I broke them up like taco chips, but they seemed lighter and sweeter.  These were made from corn and cooked in soybean oil.  Since I had been good all day, I even read the label to make sure.  Tasty!

Today I woke up with a new resolve to take care of myself.  I do feel incredibly better today, and one of my most unpleasant side effects from eating wheat is gone.

When I first started going wheat-free, the doctor sent me to a nutritionist. She was very strict about me not eating *anything* with wheat. That included foods that contained vinegar because white vinegar is made from wheat grain. That meant no pickles, relish, or catsup to name a few.

There is not a definite consensus whether vinegar is okay or not, so you need to be your own judge about it. There are times that I will start sneezing as soon as I get the first taste of the catsup. Other times I don't notice anything. I think the reaction depends on how good I've been (or not been).

The doctor, on the other hand, didn't seem to be as strict as the nutritionist. When I asked him, "Can I eat a little bit of wheat (like catsup and relish)?"

He said, "It depends on whether or not you can live with the consequences."

So that left the choice squarely on my shoulders. Sometimes I get terrible reactions, vomiting, hives, choking, and other times not so terrible. Nobody is making any rules for me except me. I've been thinking about this a lot today. Nobody ties me to a chair and force feeds me wheat. When I do eat it, I am eating it voluntarily. The hard part is going against the flow of the other people in my life, as well as ignoring my cravings.

I am ashamed to say that I haven't been as conscientious at staying away from wheat as I was when I was first diagnosed..  Since I started the wheat-free group, I feel a certain responsibility to set a good example.  On the other hand, who do I think I am?  ...certainly not superwoman (although at one time I tried to be. ;)

I learned a new word from the group, grucky.  That should be a motto for us here at wheat-free living.  The challenge to "not feel grucky!"

Yesterday, I stayed wheat-free. I was downtown, too, and I could have easily swooped into a drive-through and ordered a Big-Mac-a-No-No. For some reason, I didn't feel hungry when I was downtown. I had drunk a bottle of orange juice on my drive to town. I don't know if this was what helped keep me away from temptation or not.

I didn't crave wheat yesterday at all. I was hungry, and even though it was Menu Monday, I didn't feel like cooking. I had planned to make wheat-free fried chicken, but I forgot to thaw out the chicken from the freezer. After two doctor's appointments, I didn't have the energy to wrestle with a frozen chicken.

So I had some wheat-free chocolate pudding (the prepared variety), and a dish of ice cream and went to bed.  My husband tried to tempt me with some teriaki that he was eating.  Oh, I did have a bite.  I have no idea if it was wheat-free or not, but I am figuring, not.  So I guess I wasn't all that wheat-free yesterday after all.

So it goes... ~sigh~