NoBread, NoProblem
Growing up I was always sick. Strep throat once a month, the flu twice a year, and seasonal, unexplained “allergies” plagued me. Moreover, I always had a sore throat, I constantly had stomach pains, and I felt, well, awful. As rough as my younger years were, constantly in and out of doctors offices, I accepted the hand of cards I was dealt. I figured everyone had his or her ‘thing,’ and this was mine- feeling sick.
At last, when I was 19, my body reached its breaking point. I woke up covered in unexplained hives… and the hives didn’t go away. Traditional doctors prescribed me every medicine in the book, but nothing was working! My body clearly had hit its breaking point, and mentally and emotionally I was hitting mine, too. I needed answers.
And then I found them. I met an alternative doctor on Long Island who I credit with (excuse the dramatics) saving my life. He looked at me and told me that from that day forward, I had to be gluten, dairy, and soy free. Within weeks my hives cleared up, and within months I was feeling better on a day to day. I haven’t had the flu since going gluten-free, and I’ve only had strep throat once in the last seven years!
I started NOBREAD as a guide to help myself dine out at restaurants. My life was being affected by my condition, but I didn’t want my lifestyle to be. Using social media as a platform to connect with others in my situation has been amazing, and helping others maintain a ‘normal’ lifestyle is the most rewarding aspect of NOBREAD. Little did I know my passion project would help transform the way restaurants cater to people with gluten allergies and dietary restrictions.
Over time, I realized that dining gluten-free as it pertains to restaurant dining was too small of a scope. When I first went gluten-free seven years ago, gluten-free packaged goods and brands took up a single aisle or shelf at supermarkets and stores. Now, there are COUNTLESS brands that are dedicated gluten-free or have come out with a gluten-free alternative. Moreover, there are dedicated gluten-free supermarkets! I’m amazed now that not only can I find so many GF options, but they are so delicious!! (WAY better than the first GF snacks I had years ago).
People always ask me if they should go gluten-free. My response? Try it! What do you have to lose? Elimination diets are a great way to see if the eliminated item is the culprit to your problems. I always recommend trying an elimination diet under the care/watch of a health practitioner. There is a method to the madness of removing and reintroducing foods, and you don’t want to cause yourself any more pain then you already feel! And if it isn’t the gluten that is making you feel the way you do, try another culprit. Maybe it’s dairy! Or maybe, and it pains me to say it, it’s sugar! I believe in eating the foods that make your body feel good, and removing those that don’t.
At the end of the day I was right. Everyone has their thing. But thanks to my new lifestyle, feeling sick is no longer mine. Embracing each day as a healthy individual is now mine, and I’m excited to watch the gluten-free industry continue to grow and develop!
