Awakening the happiness of the self revealed

A look back on gluten-free living

It’s been almost a year since I was told that my body hated gluten and had to be gluten-free for… well, ever. As someone who grew up with Italian food and worked in a bakery for years, this wasn’t exactly the easiest thing to do. Not to say my eating habits have been atrocious ( I like to think I’ve been eating healthy ), but cutting out some of my favorite meals was no easy or fun.

But then I started finding alternatives and what to keep an eye for whenever I shop for food or eat out. Something that felt impossible became very possible. Does it suck that I still can’t eat some foods? Yes. Eating out is still a tricky thing, but it’s getting easier. I still feel out of place when I go out with friends and they all order appetizers for the table that I can’t even touch. But no one has judged me because of it. In fact, I went to a Halloween party last year where all my friends made gluten-free yummies so I could eat.

And there are some studies out there that say going gluten-free does a lot more than making your digestive system happy. It apparently helps out with your mood, depression, and even makes your cholesterol awesome ( or so my doctor said. She was freaking happy when she found out about my new diet ). And I know I’ve felt a lot better since I’ve gone gluten-free. I swear there are some days I just want a bagel with cream cheese, like the real damn deal, but having healthy alternatives makes me just as happy.

I think I made a comment sometime last year about how all the yogi people seem to be healthy eaters or have something going on with their bodies that requires them to have a strict diet. Never before have I seen a slew of people who were health conscious and/or allergic to something random. I never figured out what that was: were people like this drawn to yoga or does yoga breed that mentality? I mean, not the allergy part. That would suck if yoga made you allergic to like, eggs or something. But I find it interesting how this all falls into place within a yogic lifestyle. I feel like I do my yoga even when I’m cooking and I feel better for it.

So here’s to almost a full year of healthy eating habits and a WAY less cranky digestive system!