Last week I had the worst experience – I got glutened. I went out to eat at a place I’d never been, recommended for safe GF eating by a friend (whom I do NOT blame) who’d never gotten sick when eating there. I called ahead and talked with manager, talked with server and manager on arrival. But, you’re always taking a chance when you eat any food you, yourself, didn’t make.
I’ve had slight reactions before – some stomach discomfort, etc. and a pretty bad reaction once, but it only lasted several hours. This time was horrendous. It started out with an overwhelming sense of exhaustion, followed quickly by a blazing headache and bringing up the rear was bathroom runs. (pun intended) As the afternoon wore on I felt worse and worse.
The next morning I felt horrible. It was like the worse hangover you’ve ever had combined with the flu. I could barely function. I laid down around 9am to take a rest. It was surreal. It was like I couldn’t fall asleep, but then the next thing I know it’s two hours later! I hadn’t eaten up to this point and around 4pm I decided to eat a bit and started to feel a tiny bit better.
The foggy brain aka gluten brain and stomach issues are still hanging on. I never imagined it could be so bad and that the affects would last so very long.
At this point I NEVER want to eat out again. Unless I can visit a 100% Gluten Free Restaurant. Which I fully intend to make happen in the near future. I just found one Posana Cafe – it is about 3 1/2 hours away. I found this using this link. If you know of another list please share it!
That’s awful!! Eating food other people make is a huge fear for me. It is hard for people to understand, myself included before being GF, how serious cross-contamination is. They don’t understand that once you touch gluten with a knife/spoon and then put it back in something, it now contains gluten and will make us sick.
It’s great to have people who understand and take it seriously.
Thanks for sharing your story!
I got glutened last weekend at my daughter’s house. She had made red beans and rice from a mix, and told me I would like it. It took one small bite and I knew I should have read the label on the box. One bite and I was dizzy and nauseated. I slept a lot that night! The next day I put some Earth Balance on my morning bagel and as I was eating it, started to feel sick. I found out that everyone was using my designated spread and peanut butter. Not a good weekend at all. At least now everyone is more careful, but it can be a real struggle, even with family members. I have been luckier eating out than eating with friends and family!