The Coeliac Bubble
.You can only really understand what it’s like when you are in the coeliac bubble.
You don’t know unless you are in it. Seeing the problems that my daughter & your coeliac child could face when out and about in normal daily life. It can be a lonely place for your child.Sitting round the lunch table at school.
A friend sitting there, accidentally knocking over the friends pasta bowl, sending it spilling, sauce & pasta flying.
Someone sitting there munching away on their gluten cake, making crumbs, spreading them around as they munch & talk. Normal everyday things to them, but they put my child on edge.
What if that pasta or sauce got into her lunchbox?
What if some of those cake crumbs end up near her, flicked into her crisp packet or anything she’s eating, which could then make her ill.
That they just don’t get ‘it’ however good or bad a friend. It puts my child off her food & raises her anxiety.
- Makes her worry more:
- if the next time she gets glutened will it be as before or worse?
- that her friends whilst doing normal things, have no idea the effect it has on her.
- they just don’t understand as it’s normal to them but no longer normal to her.
Unless you live in the coeliac bubble, you don’t and wouldn’t understand.
Why would you.
You don’t need to think about those extra things, minimising crumbs, cross contamination, has this touched that, which spoon did I use, did I wash my hands, again…
But it is part & parcel of my day, as it is yours when you are a parent to a coeliac child. The constant wiping down. Washing hands & remembering you’ve washed your hands…again Thinking ahead, planning, checking. Finding the GF foods they like.
It’s not simple or easy but it is manageable. There are steps & strategies you can put in place, but it comes down to being aware, keeping safe & away from the muggle food & crumbs.
If you have a child at school, check out the school pack on Coeliac UK.
For more detailed help in managing cross contamination, head over to the website & check out my new printables & e-book – Coeliac Disease & Your Child – What every parent needs to know.
There’s no need to struggle on your own.