A MESSAGE FROM Lilli's Celiac Stickers
I was diagnosed with celiac disease at 15 after experiencing ongoing GI symptoms for several years. At the time I would have said giving up Krispy Kreme donuts, chicken tenders, and pizza was a devastating character development, but I’ve grown to appreciate everything that celiac disease has brought to me. It inspired me to study nutrition in hopes of becoming a dietitian, pushed me to start researching the gastrointestinal effects of cystic fibrosis, and taught me how to get creative with cooking and baking. It also connected me with a wonderful online community of people with celiac disease who helped me learn how to navigate celiac disease and enjoy eating gluten-free.
I struggled throughout high school to compete in cross country and track because of my ongoing anemia issues related to celiac disease. I often felt miserable while running and was devastated when I couldn’t finish out several of my cross country seasons because of it. However, my symptoms have improved quite a bit since high school and I have learned how to eat an iron-rich diet that supports my training.
I decided to join Team Gluten-Free as a way to give back to the community that supported me so much after my diagnosis. I wanted to run a marathon so that I can show up for the younger me who struggled so much to finish a 5K. Finishing a marathon would have felt like an impossible feat for me at 15, but I hope it will feel that much more rewarding with everything that celiac disease has taught me since.
I made stickers to support my fundraising effort because duh, who doesn’t love stickers? But I also made them because I used to be embarrassed to tell people that I was gluten-free. Many people acted like I was being difficult or thought I was jumping on a fad diet trend. Consequently, I had a hard time advocating for myself while eating out at restaurants and I often felt like an inconvenience to others. Luckily, I now have lots of lovely people in my life who go out of their way to make sure I can eat with them and I feel much more accepted. I hope my stickers can support you in this way too as well as help to spread awareness for celiac disease as many people still remain undiagnosed, misdiagnosed, or wait several years for a diagnosis.
Thank you for your support and know that it will help with celiac disease research, education, and advocacy initiatives!
If you would like any of the celiac disease stickers I created, please copy and paste the link below into a new browser and fill out the google form! I would love if you could donate at least $5 per sticker, but email me if you can't and we'll work something out:)
If you want to keep up with my training, my Strava is:
If you want to follow silly gluten-free and running content, my instagram is:
