What Gluten Taught Me About Holistic Health

Holistic health isn’t about quick fixes. Here’s how cutting out gluten transformed my anxiety, bloating, and perspective on true healing

We live in a world where health has been reduced to lab results, prescriptions, and quick fixes. But health isn’t just the absence of disease; it’s the way our bodies, minds, and spirits work together as a whole. That’s what holistic health really means: looking at the bigger picture instead of just chasing symptoms.

The trouble is, somewhere along the way, we’ve lost the plot. Instead of asking why something is happening, we often settle for masking it with a pill or numbing it with distraction. I learned this lesson firsthand through something as simple, and surprising as bread.

My Accidental Gluten-Free Journey

A couple of years ago, I accidentally became gluten-free.

I had once taken a continuing education class on celiac disease that made an impression on me. The speaker shared study after study, plus personal stories of people whose lives had been derailed by gluten—the protein that gives bread its elasticity. I learned how celiac disease doesn’t just cause bloating and GI issues; it’s also associated with a higher rate of seizures, infertility, miscarriages, and even psychological disorders. Serious stuff.

I remember thinking: That’s tragic, but it doesn’t apply to me.

I carried the weight of how underdiagnosed this condition is, though. Few doctors fully understand it, and treatment isn’t a pill or a procedure. It’s all diet. No quick fixes, no pharmaceutical profit; just the hard discipline of avoiding gluten altogether.

Meanwhile, I carried on with my usual diet of cereal, bagels, pasta, and French bread. I tucked the information away in the back of my mind, only vaguely aware that my own bloating and strange “episodes” might be trying to tell me something.

The Symptoms I Ignored

For years, I would experience waves of anxiety that would suddenly descend... followed by bloating and discomfort. I chalked it up to anxiety, maybe poor breathing habits. I tried breathing exercises. I’d lie down until it passed.

It became such a normal part of life, I barely questioned it anymore.

The Turning Point

Then one day, I decided to challenge myself to cut out bread. I was already working on eating more whole foods, and bread was my last holdout. For a couple of weeks, I stuck with it, replacing carbs with sweet potatoes and other nourishing foods. And to my surprise, I actually felt better.

Until I “rewarded” myself.

I went to breakfast with a friend and ordered toast with my omelet. Hours later, the anxiety, bloating, and stomach pain hit me hard. I brushed it off—surely one slice of toast couldn’t do that. It had to be a coincidence. But soon after, a meal at Panda Express (hello, soy sauce) proved me wrong.

Bit by bit, through trial and error, the truth became undeniable: my quality of life was significantly better without gluten. My anxiety was gone. My stomach pain was gone. Even my skin looked better. Now, years later, I don’t even crave it. I've never had another weird "episode" either.

The Bigger Picture

So why am I telling you this?

Because my story is a reminder of how easy it is to chase symptoms instead of asking deeper questions. I could have gone to the doctor for anxiety meds, or bloating meds, or both. Instead, the root cause turned out to be something I was putting on my plate every day.

That’s the heart of holistic health. It’s not about quick fixes. It’s about zooming out, asking “what’s really going on here?” and making room for lifestyle changes that treat the person, not just the symptom.

Final Thought

Holistic health invites us to stop masking symptoms and start listening, because sometimes the smallest shift can bring the biggest healing.