Books I read when I was first diagnosed with celiac disease - Part 1

Recently I've been asked "What did you do when you first found out you had celiac disease"? Now that is a great question. It can be both a happy and scary time right after you are told you are a celiac. Finally you have an answer to why you feel so lousy, and feeling better is under your control - you just have to eliminate gluten out of your diet. Yeah!!!! But, was it that easy? Nope it wasn't for me. There is a mourning period as you realize no more gluten means no more chewy french bread or spontaneous trips to a restaurant, there is label reading to wrap your head around, and then you have to be your own advocate which is hard, but does get easier over time.

So, what was my answer to this question? Well, I turned to books and I read, researched and pushed to see a dietitian. I joined a celiac association and researched and read some more. In the photo above are some of the books I read that helped me understand what celiac disease is and how to navigate through the rest of my life with it.

Over the next little while I'll be writing a short review of the books I read. Starting with the very first book on celiac disease I bought!

'A Patient-Expert Walks You Through Everything You Need to Learn and Do - The First Year Celiac Disease and Living Gluten-Free' by Jules E. Dowler Shepard was a life-saver! It answered many of my questions and provided some great gluten-free recipes. The one thing that made my celiac life easier was Jule's gluten-free flour mix recipe. When I was diagnosed in 2013 there were no gluten-free flour blends to buy where I lived, but with a bit of work I could find the ingredients needed to make this gluten-free flour blend and I did have success with some of my baking which was great! I could bake my family's favourites again!

I don't use the mix so much anymore, as now I have access to many gluten-free flour mixes at my local grocery store. How things have changed since 2013! If you are newly diagnosed I recommend this book.

The book is divided into the first week after diagnosis and then each chapter is a month. It provides a tremendous amount of information in a way that is easy to understand. I found being diagnosed as a celiac overwhelming at first and this book helped me immensely. It broke down the many things I needed to know in small easily digested parts. Now it is written from an American perspective, so as a Canadian not ever part of the book applied to me, such as the list of celiac associations by state, but the majority of the information in the book applies to any celiac anywhere. I loved the FAQ's at the end of the book and the individual celiac's stories that were interspersed throughout the book.

If your not into buying books, your local library is a great source of books on celiac disease. I found this book here after I bought my copy. Do check out Jule's website for more recipes, information, products and other books she has written at www.gfjules.com.

How about you? What book helped you when you were first diagnosed?

Stay tuned for my next book review.

Note: My blog posts are my personal experiences and opinions. Always seek out a medical opinion for medical concerns.