About Me And Why I Am Now Gluten Free

So I decided to do this blog because of a change in diet and lifestyle that came about this year.  First of all, let me tell you about me before I got into this gluten free lifestyle......I am a big foodie. I eat everything. I love food. I love to cook. I grew up watching my mother, father and grandmother cook. Not only my family got me into cooking, which was mostly traditional Filipino food and whatever my parents can afford at the time, I was in love of my two favorite cooking shows in the 80's(yes before the food network!), The Frugal Gourmet and the most well renowned Julia Child. I loved PBS!  I first made a flourless chocolate cake with raspberry puree and chocolate ganache for my friend's 10th birthday party. And I think that was when I just wanted to cook. So why not go to cooking school you ask? My parents raised me to graduate high school, go to college and get a degree and become a successful doctor or lawyer or mathematician(because my mom knew how much I love math).  So I did. I worked from a Fortune 500 company to a small web company that was less than 20 employees setting up websites, making GUI designs, yadda, yadda, yadda......I HATED it! Cubicles....YUCK!!! Now, I'm a nurse and I love it!. My free time consists of being outdoors and cooking and baking and trying and tweaking out recipes and going out to upcoming and new restaurants. Life was good.

Now, as a big foodie, why did I turn to gluten free?????  Well it started over a year ago, I had this huge stomach issue. Not to gross you out but having everything coming out the wrong way for three days and finally was slowly getting better three months later was such a horrible thing for me. I ignored it and continued to do my "foodie" adventures as usual. The beginning of this year, it happened again. I decided to try different GI(gastrointestinal) diets that I would read in health magazines or look up in websites, but it never worked. Finally, I talked to one of my ER doctor(now you know what department I worked for), and he said, "Try a gluten free diet."

"No way!!!", I said, "I love bread and pasta and so many gluten yummy goodness!" After a week of resisting, I surrendered and started the gluten free diet. My first week was so hard and horrible. What was I thinking?!??!! I was on vacation in Austin and I started this diet?!!?!?  And...... going to restaurants was the worst. I wanted to die, but in the end, after the first week of gluten free of my life, I LOVED it! My stomach felt better.

As a disclaimer....so why didn't I see a GI doctor? Yes, I still should and still meaning to make an appointment, but my stomach is 100 times better, I feel healthier and I have more energy, and I love this new diet. Yes, I still need to do more research, but what I have going now, it works. Of course I miss my sandwiches and pastas, etc, etc, but this is working for me. And I will still see a GI doctor.  I know I don't have a gluten allergy, I think it's more of a sensitivity. All I know is that when I eat gluten, I don't like it...or in actuality, my stomach HATES it!

Now, to be up to date. I have created and experimented with recipes from friends, cookbooks and online and made them my own. I also would try to substitute certain ingredients to make them lactose free or people that have nut allergies to accommodate my friends and family. I'm still a foodie and have cheated twice so far and eaten gluten products. But this is my new diet/lifestyle. I love it and I want to share it with you. So hang tight. I'm, new at this and hopefully there will be more to come. I hope you will like it.