Hi and welcome to the board. I have been gluten free for about eight months and it does get easier, although you may not think so right now. I recommend that you check out kinnikinnick white bread-imho, the best of them. Also, there are a lot of recipes here (see Laurie under recipe thread)and in books that make life easier. I also recommend that you don\'t eat out until you heal and know what places are accomodating to the diet.
You are not alone in this and I know you will soon be feeling soooo much better. It is worth it, believe me to take good care of your health now so you don\'t have complications later.
You may notice that at first dairy might bother you. This happens a lot. After you heal, you may be ok with it. Also, soy is an irritant to some as well while healing. Just to be aware, it may not be the case for you.
I recommend \"The Gluten Free Kitchen\" by Roben Ryberg, and the book \"Dangerous Grains\" . These two books have helped me the most. Remember food is not life, you eat to live, not live to eat--gluten is not everything and there are many substitutes for most foods, so it will get better, I promise.

Hi Heather - welcome! I am not sure how many \'younger\' celiacs are here, but I\'m twenty-three so I am a little closer to your age to relate to some of those commonalities. Feel free to message me any time! I\'m glad you got a diagnosis. The earlier, the better! You have a great attitude. :)

Welcome!!! You may also want to check out www.celiac.com. There\'s a section there dedicated to teanagers with Celiac. This website and that one have been a lifesaver for me. It does get easier, the first few months are the hardest. Be sure that all your personal products are gluten free (shampoo, soaps, lotions, makeup, etc). This was the biggest thing that made me start feeling much better. Now I feel like I lead a relatively normal life. Celiac doesn\'t come up very often around here. I cook probably the same things you eat and they are delicious and most importantly they are GLUTEN FREE!!! If you have any questions, feel free to ask. The Celiac community is a very open and caring group of people. If you have a question, it is likely that someone here will have the answer. Good luck! Keep us posted on your progress!

Hi Heather!

I wanted to second Guhlia\'s recommendation of celiac.com. On the home page if you look down on the left side column you will see \"message board\". That\'s what you want to get into. There are many other teens signed up over there that post on the teenage section. Many adults often answer questions as well.

You want to try and keep your diet simple as you learn the ropes. Naturally gluten free foods....meats, fruite, veggies, nuts, seeds, beans&legumes. Note that I didn\'t mention dairy and soy. Dairy and soy tend to cause a lot of problems, especially in the beginning. It is recommended to go off dairy for 6 months while you start healing because if your villi are damaged it would interfere with processing the dairy. Soy can cause villious atrophy as well so should be limited if consumed at all. I have an article posted over on the celiac.com message board about that in the Leaky Gut and other Intolerances section.

Also as mentioned, check personal care products (including feminine hygiene), any meds you may be taking, and vitamins if you are taking any.

Andrea - this doesn\'t apply to me, but i am curious what fem-hygeine products need be checked? I would assume they are all gluten-free?

Thank you guyys so much ! I REALLY appreciate it~

There was a thread that mentioned this on the Celiac.com forum....glutenfreeforum.com.

I know they mentioned that Always wasn\'t safe. For those that have a tendency to break out with DH it is bad.

Thanks - odd!

I think it\'s just the one Always pad with an absorbant core. I can\'t remember. I\'m pretty sure it wasn\'t all of them though.

I don't know about this... makes me wonder how coating the skin with plant extracts, etc. and wrapping up in cloths would actually work. Sounds like just another quick fix gimmick. Reminds me of how ladies used to wrap theirselves up in saran wrap back in the 1960s. Some claimed that worked, too.

Quality video.
I'm old enough to remember buying the original Tears for Fears song.
I prefer this version cos it's more true to the lyrics.Donnie Darko was one of the first films I watched in BP

Thanks for sharing!!!

Now...have you seen Paul Potts on YouTube.

THAT is amazing!!

Pal

Love Donnie Darko.

thank you!!

made me a little sad..especially about the kids...the birthdays...

very cool and well done

i love this song, it has helped me work through so many issues.