After 5 years of my own research, including observing the 9 specialists dumbfounded by my daughter’s combination of symptoms,  I understand why it took so long to find a diagnosis.

From random vomiting, painful rashes and debilitating joint pain in her knees, feet and ankles… to migraines, brain fog that caused her grades to drop, and the kind of irritability that made her want to destroy things…..Hannah was suffering on a daily basis, completely void of her control. 

Every time I filled out the “reason for visit” on a new patient form, I felt like I was making a random grocery list. The combination of “complaints” made no sense to anyone and while it seemed like we were narrowing things down, over an entire four year period,  no one ever mentioned celiac. Not once.

By the grace of a  DNA kit, gifted to me for my anniversary that year, I found out I was a carrier for ….. you guessed it. CELIAC. And, it showed both of my parents are also carriers.  And, the rest is history.  

Hannah was tested (properly) for celiac and was off the charts. To say I got lucky is severely understated. That kit saved her. But not everyone has that luck. 

        Since our first experiences living with celiac right up until this moment, I am sure of this. People who don’t know they have celiac, those who do, and those who serve them in any capacity desperately need increased exposure to reliable information. Knowledge is power. This is why I was able to help Hannah. I knew I was a carrier. Knowledge. I took that knowledge and used my power to demand bloodwork from a doctor that actually said no. Unfortunately, research continues to show the majority of people use celiac-specific social media groups loaded with misinformation to care for themselves and loved ones.

               It’s clear from my training, research and experiences over the last five years that the world does NOT understand celiac disease.

                That’s why I created GlutenProof.