Search Results for: Celiac disease

Are You Losing Your Mind?

September 4, 2015 By Karen Leave a Comment

Do you ever have days where you’re feeling super forgetful?

Like not remembering the name of your favorite book, or movie, or that ‘thingy’ you’ve been meaning to buy for weeks – what was that called again?

Maybe you’ve realized that the lines have blurred over the sequence leading up to an event that – even though it happened years ago, used to be so clear in your mind.

A ‘Brian Williams’ moment, if you will.

Then again, maybe you’re thinking one thing, but the words don’t come out quite right.

What the heck is that all about?

Are you losing your mind?

Hitting the Road

July 24, 2015 By Karen Leave a Comment

Don’t you just love vacations?

Or, do you find vacations and travel challenging – especially when it comes to navigating your special dietary needs at hotels and restaurants?

It can be challenging, no question about it!

However, after awhile, it usually becomes second nature – once you’ve learned to recognize some of the common pitfalls you’ll want to watch out for.

As it happens, I’ve just wrapped up a ten-day vacation in Eastern Washington – which for me means piling everything in the car and hitting the road.

It’s a perfect way to travel!

The great thing about a road trip, in my humble opinion, is that you can take everything you need with you – without having to deal with limits on excess baggage, or airport security.

And for anyone who has Celiac Disease, or is dealing with food allergies, that makes a road trip ideal.

Because you can simply bring everything along, relying on local grocery stores to stock up on fresh produce and whatever else you might need.

Of course, that also means you might not exactly be traveling light.

In fact, if you’re like me, the words “travel light” might not be in your DNA.

But that’s exactly what makes a road trip so ideal!

5 Simple Ways to Kick-Start Your Health

July 10, 2015 By Karen Leave a Comment

Sometimes it can feel downright overwhelming to get your health back on track!

You want to eat better – and you’ve tried – but despite your best efforts it still isn’t happening.

You try to go to bed earlier, but get sidelined watching a favorite late-night show on TV.

Or, you’re convinced that you do your best work late at night. (more on that later)

You have days, perhaps, when you really feel like crap – and that’s when you tell yourself (again) that you really, really need to get a handle on things.

We’ve all had days like that, right?

Yet even when you know better, it’s often hard to begin.

My advice?

Slow down. Take baby steps.

Pick one of the following, to start – yes, just 1! (After all, you have to start somewhere).

Jump-start your digestion

Hardly a day goes by, that I don’t hear another tip for what you absolutely MUST do first thing in the morning.

Do You Have A Shag Carpet?

June 30, 2015 By Karen Leave a Comment

While it’s true that my background is interior design, this is not a post about how to choose the best carpet for your home.

Rather, it’s about those little soldiers that line the interior of your small intestine – the ones that have the appearance of little shags. In other words, they literally look like shag carpeting!

The medical term for those little soldiers is “villi”.

Their job is to be super vigilant about any intruders that might enter your digestive tract, and dispose of them immediately.

When they’re doing their job properly, they’re readily visible – waving about in the breeze.

However, as most anyone with Celiac Disease can tell you, what’s happened is that those villi have completely worn down – as in totally atrophied. Which means they are no longer able to do their job.

The only cure is strict adherence to a gluten-free diet.

That’s the good news!

While the condition is not permanent, it does require vigilance.

If you are struggling post-diagnosis to adhere to a gluten-free diet, you might want to consider working with someone who can provide support and accountability during this challenging time.

But wait – there’s more good news!

Options for bringing out change are available to you – and it makes no difference where in the country you are located.

(The hardest part is simply finding the time in your busy schedule).

Filed Under: EAT, HEALTH & WELLNESS Tagged With: Celiac disease, gluten-free, shag carpet, shags, small intestine, villi

Is Removing Gluten Always the Answer?

June 12, 2015 By Karen Leave a Comment

Should you remove gluten from your diet?

I get asked this question a lot.

And the short answer is “It depends”.

It depends on what’s going on in your body.

It depends on the signs and symptoms you’re experiencing.

And it also depends on your test results!

Of course, if your tests come back negative, then you’re in the clear – at least for the time being – more on that later.

But it’s super important that you get the RIGHT tests!

And you don’t want to stop there, either.

How To Find Your Path & Stick With It

May 29, 2015 By Karen Leave a Comment

Is exercise a challenge for you?

If so, I hope you know that you’re not alone!

Getting regular exercise wasn’t always easy for me, either.

Yet nowadays, people often ask me how I stay so fit and trim. (They don’t know that I use to be 15 pounds or so heavier).

I wasn’t an overweight kid, but I wasn’t skinny either – as much as I wanted to be.

(My mother would describe me as cute and round. Which I didn’t like at all.)

I also wasn’t the least bit athletic.

That all changed about 30 years ago when I went to my very first aerobics class.

I was instantly hooked.

Or rather, I was SO sore the next few days – every muscle in my body ached and I could hardly move.

I decided, in that moment, that I would never again let my body get to the point where it would be so PAINFUL to get back in shape!

Regular exercise instantly became non-negotiable!

And I’ve never gone back on my word.

Looking On The Bright Side

May 15, 2015 By Karen Leave a Comment

Do you ever have days where you get caught up in negative mindsets?

Days when everything that’s happening in your life takes on a “woe is me” persona – when you end up wondering if things could possibly get any worse?

Well, I hate to break it to you, but yes they can!

(Things can always get worse – that’s the unfortunate truth).

At the same time, I totally get that – when your mind is in a funk, it’s hard to see the silver lining.

(I know – I’ve been there, many a time!)

Yes, the mind will do what’s it going to do.

However, there are ways you can ‘train’ your mind – and trick it into looking at the bright side, and the many possibilities that are just waiting for you.

Here’s my suggestion:

What’s On Your Bucket List?

April 17, 2015 By Karen Leave a Comment

You’ve heard of a Bucket List, right?

That list of things you’ve always wanted to do, but never quite got around to?

In a nutshell, a Bucket List is a way of setting some goals for yourself, namely what you’d like to accomplish in this life, before moving on.

And it’s an awesome idea!

(Perhaps you’ve even seen the movie by that name?)

Today I’d like to share with you a different sort of Bucket List.

It’s an analogy, if you will, a way of looking at the hand you’ve been dealt – your medical history, along with your entire life trajectory and challenges along the way.

In other words, everything that’s you led to where you are today.

So, here’s the thing.

Picture a bucket of water – with the water level stopping about two inches from the top.

Setting You Up for Success

March 20, 2015 By Karen Leave a Comment

Does this sound like you:

You often feel like less than a million bucks?

You have Celiac disease, a gluten- related disorder or food sensitivities?

Your doctor send you home, with nothing more than a few handouts and minimal instructions?

What I’ve come to realize over the past year, is that it really isn’t enough to simply remove gluten from the diet.

Cause let’s face it – by the time you got a diagnosis, you’re body had already been under assault for years, from the very foods you suddenly learned you were sensitive to.

So, it goes without question that, really, that you also need to repair some of that damage – and do your best to quiet down the inflammation inside of you.

Yet, the average person is given little more than minimal instructions, at the time of diagnosis – other than “Stop eating gluten.”

Sound familiar?

Sadly, this has become the #1 reason why only 30% of people with celiac disease heal on a gluten-free diet alone.

Simply put, there’s more work to be done! (Yet is anyone telling you this?)

Are You Vulnerable?

March 6, 2015 By Karen Leave a Comment

Growing up, I thought I was fairly invincible.

This would explain the concussion at age 8, from falling off my bike. (I was trying to stand on the handle bars).

It would also explain the ski accident four years later that put me in a cast for several months.

(While you might still find me on the slopes, I’ve never again skied downhill quite so fast).

When it came to food, I thought I had an iron stomach.

I was extremely proud of the fact that I could eat pretty much anything.

Fast forward a good many years, and things have definitely changed.

In fact, the older I get, the more vulnerable I seem to be.

Is this simply what happens as you get older? Or is there something more going on?