Anyone here have celiac disease AND peri or post?

[soni63]

If anyone on this board has celiac disease, how do you know when symptoms like brain fog are attributable to hormones or a reaction to gluten? I've been feeling that awful foggy brain and off-balance for days but don't know if it's celiac or hormones. I'm 50 and nearly a year post.

Thanks!

[stumpy]

Stumpy xx

[soni63]

Hi, Pinky --

Sorry I'm just getting back to you now. I was feeling miserable for a few days and then I had to take my daughter to the emergency room a couple of days ago in the middle of the night. She has gallstones...I never thought it was possible for a 13 year old to have gallstones but there you have it. We're now looking for a G.I. who will accept our insurance plan to discuss treatment options in an effort to avoid surgery.

Anyway, yes, I did know that menopause can trigger celiac. You have to have the celiac gene, of course, and it's activated in about 1% of Americans who carry the gene. I was one of the unfortunate 1%. Common events that can activate the gene are: puberty, pregnancy, menopause, serious illness and severe stress, among others. Notice that the first three are all hormone-related.

There's no cure for celiac and currently the only treatment is to avoid gluten. The good news is that the damage done to the small intestine is reversible over time. I've been gluten-free for nearly seven months and saw a huge improvement in my symptoms within a couple of months, including the raging anxiety, brain fog and loss of balance. But the brain fog, loss of balance and anxiety all returned with a vengeance a couple of weeks ago and I couldn't tell if it was a reaction to an accidental glutening or simple hormonal fluctuations. That's why I hoped someone else on this board was also dealing with celiac and meno and could enlighten me.

An additional issue is that celiac is an autoimmune disease, and when you have one the likelihood of developing another one increases. My biggest fear is MS, so when the brain fog and loss of balance returned my mind immediately latched onto MS and my anxiety went through the roof.

I'm not on HRT but am considering it as one of my options. My therapist has gently suggested temporarily taking AD's and/or benzos for the anxiety but I really don't want to go that route. I've had two horrifying reactions to AD's on two separate occasions, and benzos are notoriously addictive.

Thanks for your good wishes.