I am a Registered Nurse.
I am a Celiac.
I am the mother of a Celiac.
I am the daughter of a Celiac.

In order to explain my inspiration for beginning Celiac Service Dogs Inc, and CeliacSniffer.com I must recount some difficult times.

I’ll quote a journal entry I wrote once, “It’s a truly dire experience to live through horror, the fear of your child’s demise. I could continue on for days about the trials and tribulations of raising Bear in his first three years. I could list each test, our insecurity, our total confusion as to his symptoms and his progression…but I will never be able to bring myself to do so.”

Our son, Bear, who is now 5, choked on his food for the first three years of his life. We couldn’t explain it. We tested, and tested, and tested some more. He had countless procedures and examinations, specialists, one surgery, and the best medical care great insurance and an RN for a mother could find. And yet, I performed the Heimlich on him upwards of 20 times.

To find out that this was all caused by Celiac was shocking and since his diagnosis he has thrived.

I myself was treated for a rather complex heart arrythmia and taking massive doses of beta-blockers to control it at the age of 27. Again, after many years of doctors not believing me, I self-diagnosed Celiac, and to my great surprise my arrythmia went away — nearly immediately. I was weaned off my heart medication within two weeks of going gluten-free.

Not long after my diagnosis, my father, then 59 years old was diagnosed with Celiac. Thankfully, he had a more typical case of digestive distress. But his quality of life is greatly improved as will his longevity as a result of a proper diet.

We’re all thriving now. But that is only because of all the research, and effort we have put into changing our diets and minds.

My inspiration for seeking out the accurate symptoms of others, a new means to protect ourselves (service dogs), and to establish a forum to share our experiences is not difficult to understand. My entire life is affected by this disease, and the lack of true understanding by physicians and the public alike means there is a lot of work to be done.

 
This website is focused on assisting others to protect themselves, heal, and find wellness. Perhaps a sense of community will also come out of this grass-roots URL.

Time will tell. Thanks for visiting.

-Sarah Ryan, RN /Mother /Activist / Celiac