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Home » Freedom Feature » Freedom Feature: Kristina Schumacher "Ms. Modify"

Freedom Feature: Kristina Schumacher "Ms. Modify"

Published: Oct 27, 2016 · Modified: Jul 23, 2017 by Rebecca Pytell · This post may contain affiliate links.

Connecting the celiac disease and food allergy/intolerance community together by sharing our stories to food freedom. From our beginning struggles to striving after a diagnosis, we can all relate and help each other out by sharing what we’ve learned and our unique personal journeys.

The Freedom Feature | Strength and Sunshine @RebeccaGF666 Sharing our stories to food allergy freedom

Another Freedom Feature for you this week! Today we're welcoming the lovely Kristina Schumacher, the celiac blogger behind Ms. Modify! I know you'll find Kristina's story very relatable. Her path to diagnosis, concerns, and difficulties are ones I hear all too often from celiacs. But there is hope and her story reinforces the fact that we are not alone and we have the ability to modify, adapt, and keep on living a joyful life!

Freedom Feature: Kristina Schumachar "Ms. Modify" | Strength and Sunshine @RebeccaGF666 Connecting the celiac disease and food allergy/intolerance community together by sharing our stories to food freedom.

background: who are you?

I’m Kristina, a Behavior Analyst by day, a cooking lover, Pinterest obsessed, reality TV watching, Pure Barre loving girl by night. In February I married my best friend in the Bahamas in front of our closest friends and family! Did I mention I have celiac disease? Yeah, I have celiac disease. It took me a while to be able to say those words. It’s been quite a roller coaster ride over the past five years, to say the least. But I’ve figured it out and I’m here to share my journey with you!

what was life like before your diagnosis? 

Life was rough before diagnosis! I always remember having stomach issues and getting sick a lot with random things, like strep and ear aches, often as a kid. But then things really changed. My senior year of high school I had surgery for a non-cancerous tumor in my breast and after that I swear my body was never the same! My stomach issues started getting worse and worse. My doctor even told me to keep a food journal to see a pattern, but when I did he couldn’t figure it out since nothing seemed the same (since gluten is in a lot of different things!). I did food allergy testing and had none!

It was to the point where I would be nervous to eat out because I’d play the waiting game to see if I’d get sick. I knew it was food related, but not sure how. Looking back now I can laugh about it, but I literally created a list of random things I thought I was allergic to including alcohol, liquid smoke (ha), orange chicken from Chinese restaurants, and many other things (hello gluten!… beer, certain bbq sauces, and soy sauce!).

how did you finally find the right doctor and get tested?

There was a time when I didn’t trust doctors because they couldn’t figure out what was wrong. Interestingly, my mom is an infusion nurse for autoimmune diseases. I can remember calling her one day, crying, saying something is so wrong with me, I think I’m dying. My symptoms were getting worse. Everything from bad stomach issues to headaches, insomnia, fatigue, joint pain, and hair loss! My mom made it her mission to take me to every specialist in Southern California, but sadly they couldn't figure it out. I heard so many things from lupus to rheumatoid arthritis to social anxiety (What?! Ya!)…. it was such a scary and frustrating time. I was in graduate school at the time and so many doctors kept telling me I was under a lot of stress and it was making me sick. No joke, one day I was watching the Dr. Oz. show and he did a segment on celiac disease. When I saw the list of symptoms I immediately called my mom and said, “I know what’s wrong, I have celiac disease.” After that day I went to my doctor and insisted he test me for it. I remember he didn’t know that much about it and really thought I wouldn’t have it because I didn’t have the classic “celiac look” (yup, he said that!). Once all my testing came back, he personally called me to tell me I had it and apologized for saying that.

Freedom Feature: Kristina Schumachar "Ms. Modify" | Strength and Sunshine @RebeccaGF666 Connecting the celiac disease and food allergy/intolerance community together by sharing our stories to food freedom.

how did life change after the official diagnosis?

I’m a different person now! I feel great, no more stomach aches or any of the other symptoms, which has been life changing. I remember actually being excited when I got diagnosed because that meant I knew what was wrong and could avoid gluten and start living life again! The one thing that I was not prepared for was how hard celiac would be on the other aspects of my life. Yes, I feel better which is huge! But, life is different now. I can’t go out to dinner with friends without planning ahead of time, traveling is much harder than I ever thought it would be, even buying cosmetics, I now have to take a double look at things. I’ve always been a planner, perfectionist, type-A person… but celiac took it to the next level and I was not prepared for that.

why did you start your blog and what did you hope to achieve with it?

Getting diagnosed with celiac was harder than I thought it would be. I went from being sick in bed, to being in denial and still feeling sick while just going through the motions. How is it I change people’s behavior for a living, but couldn’t seem to change my own?!

Finally, I decided celiac disease was no longer going to have control over me and made a promise to change my diet and my life…while celebrating and embracing all that I’d been given and start living each day to the fullest. That is how I developed Ms. Modify.

In addition to changing my diet, I’ve had to modify every aspect of my life. I’ve learned a lot by researching online, but mainly through trial and error. I began making small changes to live a healthier and happier life. I started applying these principles in order to adapt to my illness, but then I realized many of these lessons apply to all aspects of my life. Modifying has become a new way of thinking and living! Whether that means making healthier lifestyle choices, becoming a bargain shopper, or even a DIYer.
There are so many wonderful gluten free food and health blogs out there that I love, but they weren’t meeting all my personal needs. I used to spend so much time researching different things in order to accommodate my new life, that I figured others were doing the same. I started Ms.Modify as a one-stop place to help make life easier, whether that’s for people living with celiac or just for people that want to learn how to modify their life to achieve a healthier and happier one!
what makes your blog unique and what do you hope it adds to the community?
My blog isn’t strictly dedicated to food, health issues, or living a completely organic/preservative-free/sugar- free/etc life…It’s about being able to live life to the fullest and enjoy all the things you used to; just making small modifications in order to accommodate your new needs. I try to follow the motto in life “when life gives you lemons, make lemonade”, so I hope my blog is a place where you can learn to make the best out of any situation you’re faced with!
do you have a celiac/food allergy tip to share with us?
I used to be embarrassed of packing my own food or explaining to people why I asked the waiter a million questions. As soon as I accepted my new life and opened up to people, it decreased my stress and made life easier. Open up…allow people in your life to know what you’re going through. So many people think celiac just affects the way you eat, but it’s so much more than that and yes, it’s hard! Let people in and create a support system for yourself!
what's your favorite allergy-friendly food brand/product?
Hands down Schar!
Freedom Feature: Kristina Schumachar "Ms. Modify" | Strength and Sunshine @RebeccaGF666 Connecting the celiac disease and food allergy/intolerance community together by sharing our stories to food freedom.
do you have a favorite recipe to share with us?
I used to hate breakfast food, but looking back it was because it used to always make me feel sick! Now I love making my Baked French Toast Casserole.
what do you hope to see in the future, for yourself and the celiac community?
My hope for the future is that better labeling will be required and enforced for gluten free products. The food industry as a whole could make celiac easier if they'd adopt a consistent labeling system, because as we all know grocery shopping is difficult and time-consuming! I also hope that in the future if a restaurant has a gluten-free menu, they will be required to be trained and have separate kitchen space for gluten-free food. I would rather have less options on where to eat out at, but know they’re safer options!

Thank you so much, Kristina! I think the biggest takeaway here is to be open, honest, and accepting of the modifications that you'll have to make with a diagnosis. May it be celiac or another food allergy, know that it will all be okay! Seek support, don't hide, and modify one thing at a time!

Make sure to follow along with Kristina on her blog, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram!

So tell me:

+ What was the hardest part about accepting your diagnosis/new diet?

———————————————-

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Honestmum

    November 05, 2016 at 12:00 pm

    Really inspiring and interesting post!

    Reply
    • Rebecca @ Strength and Sunshine

      November 05, 2016 at 2:48 pm

      Thanks for reading!

      Reply
  2. Sherry Nappa

    November 03, 2016 at 7:38 pm

    What an inspiring article! We're going through the food allergy tests now. It's not as easy as most think to diagnosis food allergy issues.

    Reply
    • Rebecca @ Strength and Sunshine

      November 04, 2016 at 5:54 am

      I don't think people think it's easy!

      Reply
  3. Alan Herbert

    November 02, 2016 at 6:49 pm

    What a great post. I didn't realize Gluten was hidden in so many things.
    Celiac Disease is one of those things that I suppose many of us know the name but don't fully appreciate how hard it is to manage.
    You've certainly opened my eyes.

    Reply
    • Rebecca @ Strength and Sunshine

      November 03, 2016 at 6:11 am

      Yes, you don't. It's up to us celiacs to raise proper awareness and rid the disease of its "fad" image.

      Reply
  4. Lisa @ Fun Money Mom

    November 01, 2016 at 11:05 pm

    What a tough disease to deal with! It's so good to write about it though because I know that reading this can help so many others who are dealing with the same thing.

    Reply
    • Rebecca @ Strength and Sunshine

      November 02, 2016 at 2:58 am

      We are never alone!

      Reply
  5. Kate Thompson

    October 31, 2016 at 7:50 pm

    what an awesome read!! Kristina Im so happy that you were able to finally get the right diagnosis and can get the proper treatment for it! Thanks for sharing!!!

    Reply
    • Rebecca @ Strength and Sunshine

      November 01, 2016 at 6:25 am

      🙂

      Reply
  6. nadia

    October 28, 2016 at 8:20 am

    Very interesting read. Great to hear Kristina was able to get the correct diagnosis and that she's feeling much better now 🙂

    Reply
    • Rebecca @ Strength and Sunshine

      October 28, 2016 at 11:44 am

      Thanks, Nadia!

      Reply
  7. Chrissa - Physical Kitchness

    October 27, 2016 at 6:37 pm

    Gosh I really feel for all of you with autoimmune diseases and celiac. I have direct corrections to psoriasis and gluten/dairy but I don't experience nearly the rough stomach issues you all do. This is a great interview!

    Reply
    • Rebecca @ Strength and Sunshine

      October 27, 2016 at 6:58 pm

      Thanks, Chrissa!

      Reply
  8. Demeter | Beaming Baker

    October 27, 2016 at 3:16 pm

    Your Freedom Features are always such interesting reads, Rebecca. Thank you for introducing us to so many stories that truly matter. Ms. Modify's baked french toast casserole looks amazing! Can't wait for the next feature!

    Reply
    • Rebecca @ Strength and Sunshine

      October 27, 2016 at 5:28 pm

      Thanks, Demeter!

      Reply
  9. Mary

    October 27, 2016 at 12:38 pm

    Great feature Rebecca! I love Ms. Modify

    Reply
    • Rebecca @ Strength and Sunshine

      October 27, 2016 at 2:04 pm

      She is a sweetheart!

      Reply
    • Kristina @ Ms.Modify

      October 27, 2016 at 9:11 pm

      Thanks Mary! 🙂

      Reply
  10. Kristina @ Ms.Modify

    October 27, 2016 at 11:11 am

    Thanks for featuring my story Rebecca! I love connecting with others and spreading awareness of living a gluten free life! xo, Kristina

    Reply
    • Rebecca @ Strength and Sunshine

      October 27, 2016 at 11:51 am

      All us GF foodies are here in this together! Thank you for coming on, Kristina! xo

      Reply
  11. Emily @ My Healthyish Life

    October 27, 2016 at 7:50 am

    Oh a separate GF kitchen would be a DREAM. The few times I've eaten at 100% GF restaurants it's an immediate weight off my shoulders. Nice to "meet" you, Kristina!

    Reply
    • Rebecca @ Strength and Sunshine

      October 27, 2016 at 11:51 am

      I might actually eat out more then 😉

      Reply

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