Don't have celiac but...

Was having pain radiating thru my back from my stomach & intestinal problems. Endoscope & biopsy showed chronic inflammation in my stomach and I was told this was increasing my cancer risk. Doctors tested me for celiac - negative. They wanted to put me on prescription acid blocker. Instead I eliminated wheat and dairy from diet. Months later had endoscope again and this time no inflammation at all. Cured!! Guess just an intolerance - not celiac - but my body sure doesn't like the stuff. I can tolerate a little dairy wi lactaid but wheat - no way. Alway thought an intolerance was no big deal but change my mind. Haven't had wheat now for almost two years - two pain free years.

I tested negative as well, but I had been so sick for so long, and my symptoms seemed to fit so well with a problem with gluten that I decided to try GF anyway. It couldn't do any harm, and I felt so terrible already, an elimination diet seemed a pretty easy fix when everything else had been tried. I had already eliminated pasta from my diet months before they tested me for celiac because I had noticed that within 2 bites, I became so nauseated that I couldn't eat any more of any food that night. I was a bread addict too. The more whole grain it was, the more I ate. Within 2 days of cutting out gluten, my worst symptoms were significantly better and by 6 weeks, I felt like a new person. So for me, regardless of the blood test results, my body gave me the only answer I really needed. It didn't like gluten. At all. My symptoms return within an hour of ingesting any kind of gluten and last anywhere from 3-7 days, depending on the quantity I'm exposed to.

The blood test I was given was a tta/IGA but my results never gave the actual number, just said that the normal range was 0-19, and that I was within normal. For all I know, I was at the top of the range. I get so sick, I'm not willing to go back on gluten to re-test in order to find out if I had a false negative. When I told my doctor of my results with the GF diet, he told me to stick to it because obviously despite the test, I am intolerant of it and results speak for themselves. He also said he has had several patients reap similar results despite negative blood work.

I'm glad you also were able to find your own answer! As helpful as doctors can be, sometimes it doesn't take a medical degree to find the answer.