If you’re reading this, I’m so happy you are here. I’m Hannah, Sunni’s daughter (in law). Back in 2013, I was diagnosed with Celiac disease. Let me give you a little backstory on how this came about. For as long as I can remember, my stomach has always hurt. It didn’t matter what I ate, how much I ate, or when I had a meal.
“No meals an hour before bed”.
“Just eat as soon as you wake up”.
“Try some snacking throughout the day”.
Nothing helped.
After going the GI route (gastroenterologist), I was diagnosed with acid reflux, with no other findings. That did not explain the constant stomach aches, instant headaches, and chronic fatigue after meals.
The next thing I decided to do was a food allergy test. After having tested over 20 allergens, guess what? Nothing came back positive! I was allergic to nothing! I was so shocked and could not believe that was the case.
I started talking to my mother-in-law about my test and how nothing was showing up positive, so she suggested I get a gluten test done. She has had Celiac disease for decades and knew my symptoms sounded familiar. I had never heard of anything like Celiac disease and didn’t know it was a serious problem, so I booked my next doctor’s appointment for a celiac test. After some time, those results came in. My doctor called to tell me the findings had resulted in a positive for Celiac disease.
Once I found out about the diagnosis, I took a deep dive into cutting out the foods that contain gluten. Little did I know it was not just gluten in food that I needed to look out for (we will get to this a little later).
After being gluten-free for a total of three years, I was still experiencing a strange symptom after eating. What was that symptom, you may wonder.. Feeling like I had had one too many alcoholic beverages, feeling like I was about to be put under for surgery… What in the world is happening to me? All I did was eat! I’ve cut out gluten, and I’m living a healthy lifestyle. What else could be going on?
Well, the other major food group/allergen I never thought about was dairy!
Oh no, please don’t tell me I’m allergic to dairy too.
That’s how I make my baked potatoes better, with butter and cheese. What about macaroni? My favorite food.
At least with gluten, I could make gf noodles. I felt like dairy was going to ruin everything I put into my diet and make eating so much harder for me.
That’s when The Free was born. After an emotional phone call and having spent time with my mother-in-law shopping for groceries, cooking for the holidays, and having many meals out at restaurants, we decided to put our heads together and come up with a way to educate and support those who choose to be gluten-free, have celiac disease, are dairy-free, or are dairy intolerant.
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