Six months ago, Mama and I found out that we were both
Gluten Intolerant. This discovery
changed our lives. I now know why, for
years, I’ve had an increasing struggle with fatigue, why my body ached
constantly, and I lacked the energy to carry out the duties of normal
life. This isn’t the Susan Liana we
know, you might say, but it was the person I was at home. I could put on a good front, pour all of my
energy into an event, or person, or visit, but the next morning I would hardly
be able to get out of the bed. I wondered
what was wrong with me. Did I have
Chronic Fatigue? I wondered if I would
live the rest of my life like this. I
knew that feeling as I did I would never be able to keep up with children, or
manage a household well. That’s when I
realized that we had to do something.
Anything. All my life, all I’ve
ever wanted to be is a wife and mother, and I could see that dream slipping
away from me.
That’s when we sought the help of an old friend of
ours who, in the years since we knew her, has become a Naturopath. Mama and I were both tested, and consequently
learned that we are both Gluten Intolerant (Wondering what gluten is? Check out this article). Eating gluten creates inflammation in our
small intestine, which destroys the villi which line it. This interferes with our ability to absorb
nutrients from our food, because the villi are responsible for absorption. We
are also intolerant to a number of other foods.
Those intolerances (dairy, soy, and more) are most likely caused by the
gluten intolerance and may, over time, if we carefully avoid all of the foods
that we are intolerant to, go away. They
might, or they might not. Almost
certainly, I’ll live the rest of my life without eating any more gluten. Does this bother me? Am I upset by this? Not at all.
On the contrary I am very thankful.
Thankful to know, at last, what causes my fatigue, and most thankful
that there is something that I can do about it.
I’m thankful to know that a sovereign God designed my body and that my
being Gluten Intolerant fits into His plan for my life. Of course I miss foods that I used to love
and can no longer eat, but those foods were destroying my body, and no food is
worth that. A simple diet change has
changed my life, and it is completely worth it.
I've got a long way to go before I’m back to normal. It can take years to heal the damage done to
my body, but already I feel so much better.
It is becoming easier to get up in the morning. I can now get through the day without a nap,
and I actually feel excited by the prospect of housework. I can see glimpses of the girl who liked to
get up early, to do laundry, to make dinner.
In short, the girl who liked to make plans, work hard, and accomplish a
lot. I have a brighter outlook on life
and I’m excited to see what the future holds.
Changing the way we eat has of course changed the
way we cook. It has been a big learning
curve for Mama and me, but it is actually forcing us to learn more about
cooking. We are even learning to enjoy
eating vegetables! Expect future blog
posts on Gluten Free cooking, because that’s a big part of our life now.
“I praise you, for I am fearfully and
wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works;
my soul knows it very well.” Psalm 139:14
Joyfully,
Susan Liana
