Coeliac UK, the charity for people with Coeliac Disease, recently asked the question "What advice would you give to someone newly diagnosed with Coeliac Disease?" on their social media accounts.
It's been interesting seeing the responses to the question and I hope it's helpful to newly diagnosed people.
Having been diagnosed in 2008 and living a 100% gluten free life since, I gave the following reply to the question:
If you have a local group then I recommend joining it to find out more and speak to other Coeliacs.
When I was first diagnosed in 2008 I joined my local group - Beds and Mid Herts - and it was brilliant to meet other Coeliacs with a wide range of experience and knowledge. Some had been diagnosed for many years, while others were newbies like me. It was great to be able to go out for meals and find out things to avoid and top tips.
It's important you form your own approach to the 100% gluten free diet as everyone is different. There are some things other Coeliacs would eat or drink that I wouldn't go anywhere near.
And always celebrate the little things (I found a lot of reduced price gluten free cakes at The Co-Op today, so will be scoffing them for the next few days 😋).
