4 Years Gluten Free and GFF Appreciation Post!

Helloooo friends!

This week I am starting to feel the stress of finals weighing down on me, but I am trying my best to keep in mind that Christmas is in just a few weeks, which means so many GF baked goods to chow down on! Words cannot describe how excited I am to bake up a storm when I get back from college!

As it is now December, I decided I should dedicate a post to my 4-year anniversary of being gluten free; I was diagnosed with Celiac Disease (an autoimmune disorder where indigestion of gluten causes damage of the small intestine and a variety of other short and long term health issues) in

December of 2014, at 16 years old. I went to the doctor after having frequent stomach aches, which caused me to miss the first few periods of school multiple times a week.

After a blood test and an endoscopy (google it if you dare), I learned that gluten is most certainly not my friend. I was devastated when I found out that I could no longer indulge in my favorite foods; pizza, cupcakes, pasta, bagels, cookies, etc. Of course I know now that there are multitudes of GF substitutes for any regularly gluten-infused foods, but back then it was a nightmare to even think about living without gluten. I felt like it was an especially hard time in my life to get diagnosed because it was a) right around the holidays, the most gluten-filled time of year and b) during junior year of high school, the year of high school that is arguably the most important.

As time went by, I was able to navigate my gluten free diet much better than when I started. I found wonderful gluten free snacks in the grocery store, experimented with gluten free baking, and discovered that gluten free foods are just as good if not better than non-gluten free foods. Even though it is still a challenge, especially when it comes to eating out (beware of the cross-contamination risk!) it got so much easier with time and practice.

I also found a unique gluten free community once going gluten free-- I coined the term "GFFs" or Gluten Free Friends about 2 and a half years ago, and I have to say it's one of my favorite things that I've ever made up. I made 2 GFFs at school, Ethan and Maggie. Once or twice a semester we go out on gluten free excursions in New York City and treat ourselves to foods that we normally can't eat anywhere else. Senza Gluten, Lilli and Loo, Sprinkles Cupcakes, and Hell's Chicken are among our favorite spots :). If you are gluten free and a college student, I highly encourage you to find your own GFFs. It makes life a lot more fun and it's fantastic to have people to talk to about GF related problems!

I also have incredible GFFs at my summer camp in Vermont. Each summer, there are usually at least 10 staff members and campers that follow a gluten free diet, and by the end of the sessions (there are two per summer) we usually know each other pretty well from going into the kitchen and waiting for our special GF food to be ready. I have had a few GF campers in my cabin since becoming a leader, which is always fun because we always form a special bond. Although us camp GFFs miss out on a lot of desserts, we do have special perks for being gluten free; our brownies and 7-layer bars (a camp STAPLE)  are always bigger than the regular ones.

In the summer of 2017, I deemed it necessary that the Camp Kiniya GFFs make their stage debut. I gathered the GFFs together after lunch one day, and they were all enthused by the idea. That night, I wrote a gluten free themed song to the tune of one of our most loved camp songs. We performed it in the Wednesday Night Show, our weekly talent show, and the entire camp loved it. We had an encore performance in the summer of 2018, with a brand new song to the tune of the "F.U.N. Song" from Spongebob.

2018 GFF Performance:

2018 GFF Song Lyrics:

G is for Gluten we cannot eat it

F is for free of bread

F is for friends who wait in line together down here at Camp Kiniya

Gluten Free Friends

We are so awesome

We love our glutinos

Celiac or sensitive or choice it doesn’t matter

We can’t eat what’s on the platter

G is for Gluten we cannot eat it

F is for free of bread

F is for friends who wait in line together down here at Camp Kiniya

(Spoken) Shoutout to our cousins the DFFs!! The Dairy Free Friends!  

That's all for now, folks! If you were recently diagnosed with Celiac Disease or you have to go gluten free for other reasons, just know that it will get so much easier with time. You will learn to love your new lifestyle! I challenge you to make some GFFs because bonds with other GF people are like no other.

Your GFF,
Mary💖

                                Hosts of the 2017 Wednesday Night Show, Linda and Kissy!