My story starts back in third grade.

I remember feeling tired often, even after a good night's sleep. When I said something to my Mom, she thought it might be because we are vegetarians and don’t get enough iron. So, she took my brother and me to get our iron tested. My iron test showed I was not deficient in iron, but that I was borderline anemic. The doctor told us to take a multi-vitamin with iron and to try to eat more iron-rich foods. I started to take the vitamin, but my tiredness continued.

All through fourth grade, I was taking the iron pill but every morning I would wake up feeling extremely tired. Throughout the day, I never felt really awake.

Throughout fifth grade, my favorite breakfast was waffles. Every single day before school I ate waffles. About 15–20 minutes after eating breakfast, I would start to feel tired again and my stomach felt like there were lots of bubbles popping inside it. My Mom thought I might be nervous about going to school. My stomach was always bubbly. It would lessen at times and I learned to ignore it, but I never really wanted to eat. I would always offer my lunch to my friends because I just never felt good.

After school I was so exhausted that I could not do my homework.

At the same time, my brother was in seventh grade and had stop growing. My parents had him tested for Growth Hormone Deficiency. After a series of test, it turned out that he did have a Growth Hormone Deficiency. Because this is hereditary, my parents had me tested. One of the first tests they give when testing for Growth Hormone Deficiency is the blood test for Celiac Disease. They test for Celiac because Celiac Disease can cause short stature. I tested positive for Celiac Disease in late May of 2005. Over that summer, I had a series of tests to confirm the initial diagnosis.

Now that I have been on the gluten-free diet, I have definitely been able to see a change. My stomach is no longer bubbly. I am nowhere near as tired as I was before. I have started to grow taller. My iron level is better. Now there is no pain in eating.