Hi Daisy,

I had this nice message composed to you which I lost when our power went out! We had a snow storm last night, and the leaves are still on some trees, hanging over powerlines, I'm sure.

Anyways, the fact that you have abdominal discomfort after eating definitely points to some kind of gastrointestinal problem, IMO. Cara's The Gluten File/Diagnostic Testing page describes in detail all the testing to have done to diagnose celiac disease. You may want to write it down, and take it with to your doctor. Yeah, seems that the doc should know, but even if they don't, hopefully they'll do the testing you ask for. Keep in mind that you may be gluten sensitive and not be diagnosed with celiac disease. I think even less doctors know about this. Check out the link to "Not Celiac?" as well.

You may consider getting tested through Enterolab. This is what I did, and you don't need a doctor's order to do it. Lots of good information on gluten sensitivity on their website. I like the gluten panel, that tests for gluten sensitivity, casein sensitivity (dairy), malabsorption, and genetic testing. It's around $370 total, well worth it IMO. And, you don't have to argue with a doctor to get the test!

I understand the need to get tested to find out what's wrong. Even if you do or don't have celiac/gluten sensitivity, you could also have something else going on that is related to these conditions, like other food sensitivities or a pathogen of some sort. I just found out I have a bacterial overgrowth of the bad bacteria in my gut. I have been trying to track this down for a long time. My regular GP did not test me for this, but I kept pursuing it, because I had a feeling I had some kind of pathogen. All the other obvious parasites were ruled out. I decided to go this route first before getting scoped. I had surgery for something else in April, and I didn't want another invasive procedure!

Claire