031: Becca Lustgarten on Living with Celiac Disease
Becca Lustgarten is a vocalist, writer, and classically-trained actress. A few years ago, after suffering severe digestive distress, she was diagnosed with Celiac disease. Celiac is more than an allergy – it is a degenerative disease that causes major digestive destruction if left untreated. The only treatment? To go gluten-free. Becca joins us to share her story of discovery, and how she’s worked to heal her gut since her diagnosis. Listen in as Becca shares… - that she was always a sickly child, and had physical manifestations of her emotional reactions to stimulus - that she discovered symptoms when she was working at a bakery in NYC, of all places - that while beer contains gluten, spirits don’t – even vodka and gin - that every Celiac patient has a radically different experience of symptoms – and often, as in Becca’s case, it would feel like a hangover - that Celiac patients are notoriously at risk for malabsorption because of the states of their stomachs - the availability of gluten-free foods - how getting Celiac changed her relationship to food and eating – and even drinking (bye, beer!) - restaurant etiquette when you have Celiac - feeling good and looking good – and the relationship between disordered eating and having to change one’s diet for health-related reasons - men, women, and our relationships to food, eating, and shame - boundaries – and what to do when you’re sick at work - her favorite GF foods - the importance of genetic testing - the role of CBD in managing symptoms