Cause & Effect

As I said a few days ago, after a two-year experiment with SSRIs, I gave up on them and began seeking alternate remedies for my long-lived depression.  On top of that, I was getting really sick of being tired all the time and wanted to treat that problem too. I didn’t think I had Chronic Fatigue, but I definitely had chronic fatigue, and it really had my knickers in a twist. Every afternoon, from about 3:00 to 6:00, I could barely pick my head up.

My mom had wondered aloud a while back if I might have Celiac disease. Her evidence was compelling:  First, I’m a lactard, and lactose intolerance and gluten intolerance often go together. Second, last year, my iron was deficient, and there was no real reason it should be. I eat a lot of iron-rich foods, and (boys, close your eyes and ears and go “lalalalalala!”) I don’t have particularly heavy periods (OK, guys, it’s over). And last, ethnically-speaking, I come from a long line of potato-eaters, and my mom wasn’t sure if our ilk had the guts to process wheat.

A little on-line research revealed to me that Celiac-sufferers frequently have digestive issues, but occasionally, the only symptoms are fatigue and/or depression. Hmmmmm. I sat and I thunk.

That’s when I went to see an osteopath. I wanted to get his take on things. He had his nurse draw eleventy billion vials of blood from my minute veins, asked me to pee in a cup, and told me I should try a gluten-free diet to see if I felt better. I told him I’d just as soon jab my eyes out. I mean, everything that’s delicious in the world has wheat in it. I would wait to see what the blood work said.

Alas, I was positive he was going to tell me I had Celiac, and the next day, I resigned myself to my baguette-less fate. I started transitioning into my horrible new life by avoiding wheat.

And guess what. Remember that crushing fatigue? Gone. I mean, like that (snaps fingers).

The next day, meh, probably a fluke, I’d just have a little wheat…3:00 rolled around and clunk, couldn’t move. Since then, every day I’ve eaten wheat, I’ve crashed; every day I haven’t, I haven’t.

On my next visit, my doc pronounced the following:

1. I was low on B12 and would need to get a shot every week for six weeks. Boo.
2. My D was also in need of topping up, so I should take 5,000 IUs of that a day.
3. Thyroid function was borderline low. He prescribed a thyroid med and told me to start with a daily half-tablet.
4. I didn’t have Celiac disease.

Wha?!

More research! Ah, there’s such a thing as NCGS. That’s non-Celiac gluten sensitive.

There you have it, folks. I’m a lactard and a glutard. Could I be more ‘tarded?

P.S. I haven’t been able to be consistent enough to see if it’s the Magic Bullet that’s going to knock out my depression.  Keep yer fingers crossed!