Autoimmune Disease: A Chef’s Dilemma

The Gluten Gamble: When Trusting a Restaurant Menu Goes Wrong

I have this habit of going to the market for my weekly groceries and immediately feel the need to eat out after dropping a hundred dollars or so at the store. Ya’ll do that too, I know it! Rewind then, back to June. I had just wrapped up a big Trader Joe’s haul, loaded up the truck, and realized I was starving. I was so hungry that the thought of driving home, unpacking and putting away groceries, and then cooking myself a meal felt arduous. There’s a sushi joint conveniently located right next to Trader Joe’s. Sushi is often a safe bet regarding my food sensitivities, and as long as I stay true to what I know, I can eat. So, when this restaurant handed me a gluten-free menu, I was excited and ordered a bowl of noodles.

It was simple- rice noodles, gluten/dairy/soy-free broth, and vegetables. When the bowl arrived, I received these dark green noodles, not the rice noodles I was expecting. I stared at it momentarily, thinking this was not like anything I’d ever seen. I often make ramen noodles at home made from rice, but they have a different texture than the ones I looked at in this bowl. Naturally, my hyper-vigilance kicked into high gear, and I asked the server, “Are you sure these are gluten-free noodles?” He assured me. I asked again. He assured me. I said, “You are triple sure these are gluten-free? Because I will get REALLY sick if they aren’t.” He assured me. I had to trust at that point, and despite my better judgment, I took a bite, a second, and a third. It tasted so good. I panicked and realized that these noodles were NOT gluten-free. There was no way. So I called the waiter back, and he assured me AGAIN!! I said no way are these gluten-free. Can you please ask your kitchen for the box that these arrived in from your seller? He brought the box, and I kid you not, the first ingredient was WHEAT.

The Aftermath 

So, what happens when I eat foods that I am allergic to or sensitive to? Of course, some must carry an Epi-pen because of peanut or shellfish allergies because they will go into immediate anaphylactic shock. And then there’s those of us who have reactions that are, at first, much more subtle. Here’s what happened to me. Remember that this was in June, and I am writing this piece in September (and I’m STILL sick). First, it started with gas and bloating, the uncomfortable and painful kind, where my stomach looked and felt like I was 9 months pregnant. Clothes not only hurt, but they didn’t fit. I couldn’t zip my jeans or stand the feeling of yoga pants, and it hurt so much I’d rather just lay in bed without clothes, but guess what? I have a business to run and have to wear clothes and be around people and pretend like I’m not miserable.

Next comes the bowel movements, or lack thereof. For the first week, I cycled through diarrhea or constipation. This is about the time when my immune system has gone to war with itself, launching an epic attack on my own body, and things just got worse. My entire body, stomach, arms, and legs were all swollen and uncomfortable. I was then susceptible to falling sick because my body was too busy fighting itself, so I ended up with a random bladder infection. A few days later, I watched a rash break out all over my body. I went to urgent care more than once. I was given antibiotics (the worst idea with a bad gut, because antibiotics just wipe out anything in there that was good) to fight both the rash and the infection. Then, I just went to sleep for the next 3 weeks. After sleeping, I came down with a cold.  Since then, I have not been able to eat anything at all without being in excruciating pain. Just think about it: all of this over three bites of gluten from a restaurant staff member who was utterly negligent, and my body just trying to help but making it worse.

A Long Journey to Diagnosis

In 2020, after struggling for a few years with my health, I finally received a loose diagnosis that explained a lot of my struggles. I was told that my blood work was pointing toward Hashimotos, an autoimmune disease that damages the thyroid. It hadn’t quite reached a point where medicinal intervention was necessary. Still, it was among the highest recommendations to eliminate gluten and dairy from my diet to heal my gut and reduce my symptoms. At that point, I was getting so sick from eating that it was an easy shift for me. I quit eating gluten and dairy and quickly reduced unfavorable symptoms, in addition to changing my bloodwork results. I also took a food sensitivity test, and the results were pretty unsettling. Nevertheless, I cut out everything that showed up on the test, and the list was long.

The world of autoimmune diseases seems primarily uncharted unless you’re practicing functional medicine. We see our primary care physicians and receive no answers, are told our suffering is in our head, are misdiagnosed, or simply brushed off after some basic blood tests that show up as “fine.” The thing is, it’s not OK. So many of us are suffering silently, unheard and undiagnosed. I have learned through the years of this journey that I have to be proactive; I have to speak openly about it, I have to be honest with myself and my doctors, I have to press and press and push mostly, I have to educate myself so much, that I know the right things to demand from my doctors to hopefully, open their eyes to the significance of the suffering so many of us are enduring. 

That said, I’ve finally found an excellent functional medicine doctor who recently ordered every test under the sun, from my thyroid functions, the vitamins I’m lacking, my hormones, food sensitivities, and so much more, and we have answers and plans. Hashimotos still shows up, and I’ve discovered how common it is for celiac and Hashimotos to co-exist. She taught me the significance of loving my body despite how much pain I’m in, to meditate and visualize my stomach and intestines loving what I’m giving it, turning it into energy and vitality, rather than the contrary. I’m learning about the significance of the many layers of our trauma, be it physical injuries or emotional traumas, and how our bodies can keep score. We have to be as die-hard about our healing as we are with our demands to our doctors or waitstaff. I am trying to be all these things, in addition to being die-hard about Denver Cooking Classes and the menus we offer our guests. 

How Does This Fit with Denver Cooking Classes?

Over the last five years, I’ve been busy growing Denver Cooking Classes, and refining menus have been and is a top priority. With this new lifestyle I was taking on, I had to look at my menus through a different lens-that is, not necessarily what is decadent and mind-blowing, but visualizing things through a scope of understanding, understanding that I wasn’t alone on this journey. I wanted everyone to be able to experience my cooking classes, so I had to develop my menus in a way that could accommodate ALL dietary restrictions and allow them to reflect how much it meant to me. 

Denver Cooking Classes remains incredibly busy throughout the year. We feature in-home classes and welcome large groups to our kitchen for team-building events. Sometimes, we will see 60 guests for one event! You can bet that many of our guests will require some dietary accommodation. It’s up to me, the owner, to see to it that not only every guest is accommodated, but that every guest remains SAFE from negligence, lack of concern, forgetfulness, or a misunderstanding of our guest’s specific needs. I have worked tirelessly to develop our menus in a way that excludes no one, despite their restrictions or preferences.

Denver Cooking Classes offers its guests ten different menus. I can assure you that every menu is built to cover almost every requirement, from vegan to celiac. I see to it that every one of my staff members understands the severity of this subject, knows the repercussions of overlooking any dietary need, and is educated about conditions like Celiac Disease or Hashimotos and even preferences such as being vegan, paleo, vegetarian, AIP, or keto. It matters to us. 

Where I Am Today

Once my tests returned, Dr. Christine sat down with me to discuss my results and organize a plan for supplements, lifestyle shifts, exercise ideas, sleep, and emotional wellness. She spent more than an hour with me explaining each test and its meanings and impact on my body. The diagnosis is Hashimotos (with minimal damage to my thyroid),  some dysbiosis, and mineral deficiencies. In order for me to get the inflammation down caused by that noodle bowl, I took it upon myself to do what’s called the Autoimmune Paleo Diet, where I eliminated all triggers including coffee, alcohol, nightshades, nuts, and seeds, and stuck to eating only grass-fed beef, pasture-raised chicken, game meats, organ meats, wild-caught fish, and steamed vegetables. I stuck to this strictly for two weeks, and the results were almost instantaneous. I dropped around 8 pounds, all of which was inflammation; I started sleeping better, had more regular bowel movements, and had the energy to get out of bed and cook meals.

Currently, I am sticking to a paleo diet, although I’ve cheated a few times, and it sends me right back into a laundry list of symptoms. I’m learning that cheating isn’t worth it, cross-contamination is real, and this is one of the lifestyle shifts I have to stick to if I want to feel good. I am sure to go to the gym at least three times a week, where I swim a few laps and sit in the infrared sauna. I make nightly sleep meditations, morning tea, and a hot bath to promote relaxation. I try and take walks, practice yoga Nidra (I can’t recommend this enough-I love it so much I did a level 1 and 2 teacher training!), and enjoy grocery shopping and planning meals. I take the recommended supplements and work hard daily to tell my body it’s doing great.

I’m not perfect but I’ve become more gentle with myself when I slip up. I’ve become so much kinder in my self-talk, which makes a difference. I have a lot of hope, and sometimes I feel lost and frustrated. It takes a lot of discipline and courage to make changes, but it’s all worth it, especially if my story can help others. I’ve included some information and resources in this blog. Still, please remember to contact your doctor before making any decisions about your health!