Let’s be honest, there’s a lot of extra steps having Celiac Disease or a Food Allergy adds to our lives. Often times we need to be on point so we don’t make mistakes, we need to find and buy more ingredients, we need to ask more questions, and so much more. All this requires a LOT of brain power, which can be exhausting. So I recently wondered: How do we maintain focus on the tasks at hand and simplify our lives? To gain a better idea I asked around on some Celiac Disease and Food Allergen Blogger groups on Facebook as well as on my social media. These are the answers I received, broken down into accessible categories: 

Meal Planning

Before our Celiac Disease or Food Allergy diagnoses many of us didn’t meal plan. We had the freedom to wander into a store and choose what we wanted based on our desires, or the sales of course. Now we need to make sure we always have food on hand, even when traveling. What ways can we make this process easier?

Georgia of Celtic Celiac: “I used to get bogged down with meal planning because I had too many ideas bouncing around my head. I would read every cookbook I had before coming to a decision and it took forever, and the husband and I rarely agreed. Now we take stock of the fridge and pantry first and work from there using the ingredients we have on hand. It is a small change in focus, and sounds so simple but it made meal planning so much quicker. We also try to have as much fun with it as possible, and always try creative recipes to mix things up.”

Kally, Celtic Celiac Facebook Follower: “I stock up on frozen berries and almond milk to make my gluten free protein smoothies or pancakes. This is one less meal I need to cook and great late night meal instead of dinner. I also leave Udi’s gluten free bread, preservative free jelly and almond butter at work for emergencies. In case I forgot to bring lunch. These don’t perish quickly. I also stock up on my gluten free bars that I leave in my purse, work, home and in my car… just in case. Oh yeah and my 100 calorie raw cashews from Trader Joe’s!”

Food Shopping

Reading EVERY label can be a bummer sometimes, as can perusing each isle (and sometimes multiple stores) for unique ingredients. Here are a few suggestions for making this part of your day a bit more effortless.

Celeste of There is Life After Wheat: “I love online food shopping! Ordering from places like Amazon and Thrive Market, among others, can be done anytime and then it’s delivered to your door. No standing around for hours in the store searching labels with 4 kids running amuck. Then hit the grocery store for lots of fresh produce!”

Amanda of Gluten Free Miami: “Get a high quality gluten free flour. Skip the 200 different flours and find an all purpose gluten free one that you like. Saves time and the headache of mixing your own.”

Food Prep or Serving

Food Prep and serving can be difficult, especially for those of us who live in households where cross-contamination is a possibility. If we lose focus in these cases we put our health at risk, so anything that can help make things easier is beneficial. These tips are some of my favorite.

Megan of Fresh Cooking Meg: “I’ve learned keep it SIMPLE. Truly embrace simple! Eat in season. Dishes with just a couple ingredients. Ingredients that are fresh need less fussing – usually just salt and pepper. That equals less shopping for condiments. The prepared foods I do buy, I just buy the same thing – crackers, cheese, frozen french fries… Sometimes less options is way easier!”

Carrie of Chock a Baby: “The boys get blue cups and my daughter gets a red cup. We bought 6 of each one year when they were on sale and it was one of the best purchases we’ve ever made. When serving milk (regular and almond) at just about every meal, my brain can remember what kind goes in which cup even before coffee at 6:45 in the morning. The kids also know if I hand them the wrong cup and they can correct me. These are a great option from IKEA. (I also have personalized water bottles for each kid to keep the risk of cross contamination down when at school or out and about.)”

Lyndsay from Living with Cow Milk Protein Allergy: For those who have various family members in the house with different dietary requirements, I would recommend having an allergy friendly cupboard for yourself or your child. That way you have a go-to cupboard full of safe foods which can also be clearly labelled.

Overall Tips

Sometimes we need to remember overarching qualities that can help us maintain a continuous focus. These tips address this important area of overarching wellness.

Callie of Gluten Free Good Times: I remind myself of all the things I can still eat (rather than what I now can’t) to stay positive and make sure that I have a few of these ‘normal’ meals through the week – oh and it helps that I love a good supermarket jaunt I guess! I also speak to restaurants I’m interested in regularly to see if they can cater to a strictly GF diet which has allowed me to create a go-to list of restaurants and takeaways for when the occasion (birthday/anniversary/bad day at work/don’t fancy cooking/etc) calls. And a supportive other half who valiantly takes on my gluten cravings when they arise; satisfaction by association I call it.”

Gluten Free, Party of One: “Doing research and planning ahead helps me focus on the actual meal when I am eating it instead of stressing about my options. So I try to plan ahead as much as possible!”

To summarize, maintaining focus in our gluten free or food allergen lives requires a lot of planning. Planning which can become easier with some simple strategies such as the above. I hope these are helpful. Are there any tips for focusing that you would add to this list? Let me know in the comments below!