Today, I’ve got about 3 articles started, but none completed. Just one of those days, so I’m going to give you guys the potpourri of what I’m thinking about…..

At home testing – if you are in the process of getting tested for celiac, want to get tested for celiac, or simply want to know where you are on your gluten free journey, it might be time to take a look at the at home testing options. ImAware has tests for people who are curious about getting a diagnosis and for monitoring their gluten free diet. They are the same tests and cost the same, so you can get either test. I’m going to the gastroenterologist on Friday and I’m sure he will want to run the standard celiac panel. I’m going to order an ImAware test to see if they come up with the same answers as my test from the GI. I would expect them to be the same.

Non compliance with gluten free diet – I’ve seen several posts over the last few days about people with confirmed celiac diagnosis talking about not eating a gluten free diet. It is awful and heartbreaking to read these posts. I just have to scroll by because I cannot. The worst was the one that the woman had been diagnosed years ago but chose not to eat gluten free because of no symptoms. Now she wants to get pregnant. Being pregnant is really hard on a woman’s body and then having untreated celiac and trying to get pregnant is asking for disaster. Before I let it really rile me up, I had to stop. I cannot control what someone else does with their body. Just please, if you have a confirmed celiac diagnosis, please protect your long term health and well being and eat as close to 100% gluten free as possible.

Gluten free essentials – For me, it is Red Lobster Cheddar Bay biscuits and gluten free flours. I do a lot with each of these.

Post from Monday about being at my daughter’s pediatrician – My husband reads my posts. Part of the reason I started this blog was because he got really, really tired of me talking about celiac disease all the time. (He’s a good guy. We all get tired sometimes. I get tired of hearing about UVA basketball. We all have our “things”.) Anyway, this morning he asked if I was okay understanding I was worried about my health. Potentially facing a refractory celiac diagnosis, thinking about going to a celiac center of excellence, and with the post from last week about people with celiac having a higher death rate just put me on my heels.

This is just a quick note to my husband saying that I appreciate the support. And to all of the supportive spouses, friends, and family out there, we really appreciate you. We know it can be difficult to constantly listen to our complaints, read labels, only eat at places where we can get safe options, and supporting us when we are sick. It isn’t easy being involved with someone who has a disease that affects such a big part of our lives. We really appreciate all that you do for us even when it is easier to do something else. We also know that during this time it can be especially stressful with what is going on in the world. So, thank you.

Anyway, those are the 4 topics I have partial posts on and now they are one big one. In case you haven’t noticed, I’m struggling to keep this fresh. I feel like I post about the same things over and over again or there is nothing new on the celiac research front. So, I’m willing to look into things if you have questions. It might take me a day or two, but I will get there.

Stay safe out there – wash your hands, practice safe social distancing, wear a mask in public, and follow the instructions from your local public health officials.