September 9, 2025 • 41 mins
Kayla King (@celiacwithkayla) joins us on Don't Feed the Fear this week for an open and candid conversation about the realities of living with celiac disease. Kayla is a young celiac influencer who speaks candidly about her experiences growing up with celiac disease. Together, we explore the challenges and triumphs of dating, traveling, and developing self-confidence while managing a chronic condition. She also opens up about her journey with binge eating disorder and the connection between celiac and mental health.
This conversation is full of honesty, courage, and resilience — and I’m deeply grateful for Kayla’s willingness to share her story so openly. Whether you’re a parent, a young adult with celiac, or someone who wants to better understand the emotional side of living gluten-free, this episode offers valuable insight and hope.
Trigger warning: This conversation may be a difficult listen for those whose lives have been impacted by eating disorders.
Follow Kayla @celiacwithkayla
FAACT Allergy Summit
Gluten-Free Expos & Events - Wicked Gluten Free
Special thanks to Kyle Dine for permission to use his song The Doghouse for the podcast theme!
www.kyledine.com
Find Dr. Whitehouse:
-thefoodallergypsychologist.com
-Instagram: @thefoodallergypsychologist
-Facebook: Dr. Amanda Whitehouse, Food Allergy Anxiety Psychologist
-welcome@dramandawhitehouse.com
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Kayla King (00:00):
I started going to a psychologist and talking through
food issues and why I felt theneed to overeat, which led me to
kinda discovering that I had aproblem with binge eating.
I never had labeled it that everbefore.
But some of the things that wediscovered during that process
was like, a lot of it wasrooted.
(00:21):
In the fact that like thesefoods, um, that I was
discovering that weregluten-free, that I couldn't
have before were being put onlike a pedestal.
So they were, um, a delicacy tome.
Speaker (00:35):
Welcome to the Don't Feed the Fear podcast, where we
dive into the complex world offood allergy anxiety.
I'm your host, Dr.
Amanda Whitehouse, food allergyanxiety psychologist and food
allergy mom.
Whether you're dealing withallergies yourself or supporting
someone who is, join us for anempathetic and informative
journey toward food allergy calmand confidence..
(00:56):
For this week's episode of Don'tFeed The Fear, we are diving
into something that I haven'ttalked about much here on the
show yet.
When I started the podcast,everything that you read says
niche down, niche down.
Get as specific as you can.
So I got as specific as I knowabout, which is food allergy.
But really in my work as apsychologist and in my therapy
sessions, I work with the fullrange of chronic diseases, with
(01:18):
an emphasis on all the foodallergic diseases, including
Celiac, later this month.
I'll be speaking at the WickedGluten-Free Expo, and so I
decided to dedicate this month'sepisodes to talking about Celiac
too, since I haven't addressedit on the show too much yet.
I'm really honored to have KaylaKing with me as a guest on the
show.
She is a powerful voice in thisceliac community, and she is
(01:40):
someone who has built anincredible platform and audience
by sharing her story withhonesty and vulnerability.
We'll be talking about what lifewith Celiac disease really looks
like beyond just the gluten-freelabel, and specifically how
Celiac lifestyle intersects withmental health.
And the unique ways that livingwith Celiac can shape our
relationship with food in thatconversation.
(02:02):
Kayla also opens up about herhistory with disordered eating
and how her medical needs andlived experiences influence
those patterns and the way thatthey developed.
It's a conversation that reallygets to the heart of how chronic
conditions like Celiac don'tjust affect our bodies.
They can impact our emotions,our identity, and our sense of
safety.
So my hope is that this episodehelps you to feel seen,
(02:23):
validated, and a little lessalone.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (02:26):
Kayla, I am so excited to meet you and
have you here on the show totalk about all things related to
your life and celiac andeverything that everyone loves
you sharing on social media.
Thank you for being here.
Kayla King (02:36):
yeah, I'm very excited to be here.
It's a topic that I'm verypassionate about mental health
and how it affects celiacdisease,
Amanda Whitehouse, Ph (02:43):
Obviously you're connecting with people.
You have a huge following.
Is that something that you setout to do or did it happen
accidentally?
Kayla King (02:51):
Yeah, I mean, I originally created my social
media because I, at the time wascreating a business to help
people eat out more comfortably,and so a lot of that was very
much focused in mental healthbecause restaurants growing up
was one of the.
Biggest things that I personallystruggled with and the thing
(03:12):
that affected my mental healththe most.
So that was like a big portionwhy I started the business.
And then naturally, throughsocial media and just talking
about my journey, it kind ofcame up a lot in conversation
because I am definitely notalone in that.
I think it's probably one of thehardest parts, um, of having
celiac disease is that mentalhealth piece.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (03:34):
Yeah.
Yeah.
So you set out to grow thebusiness, but people actually
really just connected with youas a person it sounds like.
Kayla King (03:39):
Yeah.
That is basically what happened.
Yeah.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (03:42):
you were diagnosed really young, it takes
a lot of time for a lot ofpeople to figure out what's
going on with Celiac when kids'that young,
Kayla King (03:49):
so my diagnosis story, my brother has type one
diabetes.
He got diagnosed when he was sixyears old and we lived in
Chicago at the time.
That's where I grew up.
So really thankful.
Chicago was one of like thefirst.
States in the entire countrythat actually had a celiac
center.
So I was working with, Dr.
Guandalini.
He's like a really famous celiacresearcher.
(04:09):
And so he was the one whodiagnosed me.
We basically just ran a panelfor autoimmune conditions
because we were trying to ruleout diabetes.
And then I got diagnosed reallyquickly, came back negative with
diabetes positive for celiac.
So.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (04:23):
What kind of symptoms were you
having?
I mean, obviously your parents,were on guard because of your
brother's health issues already.
Kayla King (04:29):
Yeah, I mostly manifested with my stomach pain,
so I was like having sharpstomach pains all the time.
That was my main symptom beforediagnosis, and then as I cut it
out, my symptoms did get moresevere when Ihen I actually did
have a reaction, so now I'm moreso like vomit, nausea, brain
(04:54):
fog, like definitely moreinvolved.
It's more severe.
And I think that is natural anddoes happen that once you cut it
out, when it gets introduced,it's just, um, a much more
severe reaction'cause yourbody's not used to having it.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (05:09):
What do you want people to know about
The mental health impact ofCeliac.
Kayla King (05:15):
Yeah.
So I think I originally, when Iwas a kid, I always struggled
with.
Portions.
That was like a big thing forme.
And I actually remember my momdid bring me to a nutritionist
at one point because I wasn't aoverweight kid, I would say.
But I definitely would eatmyself past the point of being
(05:36):
full.
And I didn't really understandwhy, and I actually did not
figure out why until myadulthood.
So as I was a kid and went tothe nutritionist, they.
Basically just put me on thisvery structured meal plan and
they were like, eat A, B, C.
I was a kid so I didn't know anybetter.
So I was like, okay.
But it didn't really work for meand it wasn't sustainable long
(05:56):
term.
So then got older and couldunderstand nutrition and my
mental health a little bitbetter, that's when I started to
like dive into what are otherways of eating?
How do I count macros?
Like how do I.
Fix this portion control issue.
In my whole life, that's what Ihad been told, that it's a
portion control issue, likenobody had mentioned mental
(06:17):
health at all.
Um, and so as I began my ownresearch into that journey, I
was like, oh, maybe mentalhealth is a big part of it.
Um, so then I started going to apsychologist and talking through
food issues and why I felt theneed to overeat, which led me to
kinda discovering that I had aproblem with binge eating.
(06:39):
I never had labeled it that everbefore.
Um, but not until I like startedreally looking into it, talking
about it with my psychologist,was I like, oh, I probably,
that's like a, that's adisorder, that's a binge eating
disorder.
Um, but it's, you have to like,recognize it first.
And so I did end up going tolike a binge eating disorder,
dietician and working with her.
(07:00):
And that like completely changedmy life.
But some of the things that wediscovered during that process
was like, a lot of it wasrooted.
In the fact that like thesefoods, um, that I was
discovering that weregluten-free, that I couldn't
have before were being put onlike a pedestal.
So they were, um, a delicacy tome.
And so when I went to arestaurant and I got like a
(07:22):
really good gluten-free pasta orpizza or something like that, I
felt the need to eat the wholething because I was like, when
am I ever gonna get this in mylife again?
And now it's a little bit betterbecause there's a lot more
options.
But imagine like 8-year-old me.
Finding a pizza somewhere, likethat's really uncommon.
Um, and so it cycled into thisthing where I just felt like I
(07:47):
had to finish it all of thetime.
Um, and so a lot of my likeeating recovery was around like.
Introducing those foods into mydiet more and honestly, like
eating out more and kind ofgetting over that fear.
And that's what really made adifference for me.
And that's a big thing that Ifocus on, on my page is like
(08:08):
confidence and how to eat out.
Um, and how to enjoy all ofthese things in your life.
Um, because I think when peopleget diagnosed with celiac
disease, it's a big thing wherethey're like, oh, there's so
much lack in my life now, andthere really doesn't have to be.
And so that's really.
The big message that I try topush on my page.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (08:26):
Thank you so much for sharing that
it's.
Something that hardly anybodytalks about, especially with the
perspective of, you being anadult now and having worked
through this with some mentalhealth support and looking back
on that and seeing how, thepuzzle unfolded and for those
who are just listening thatcan't see my face, I'm cringing
as I'm sitting here listening toyou talk about this like,
structured diet and you know,obviously all meaning well your
(08:48):
parents meant well but we knowis it can be so detrimental, to
young people
Kayla King (08:53):
yeah.
Yeah, it's definitely hard and Imean there's so many like
nutrition professionals outthere and I think now there's a
lot more awareness about it, butat the time, like.
We wouldn't have thought to goto like a specialist that like
understands eating disorders.
'cause we didn't really think itwas, we didn't think it was an
eating disorder.
Like that's, it was neverlabeled as that until I like
(09:14):
started really discovering whatit was.
So, um, it's like no fault ofanybody's, it's just kind of how
it unfolded.
But I think it's a reallymessage for other people to
understand.
Um, especially for kids that arediagnosed young because.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (09:29):
Yeah,
Kayla King (09:29):
I feel like there's a lot of adults now that are
diagnosed with celiac disease,but the mental health impact on
young kids is like really,really important to talk about.
Amanda Whitehouse, (09:38):
absolutely.
kids who were diagnosed withceliac before 18 are four and a
half times more likely todevelop an eating disorder,
which is astounding.
Kayla King (09:45):
That's
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (09:46):
Yeah.
Kayla King (09:46):
mean, it doesn't surprise me, but
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (09:48):
Well, well, and it makes sense.
I think what you explained isone big piece of the puzzle, at
least for a lot of people I workwith, like this is special.
When am I gonna get it again?
I've also heard if you have thisfood and you know it's safe and
you actually feel safe and yourbody and trust it, the way that
you eat and approach and consumeyour food is so different than
other times when you are carefulor unsure.
Do you feel that too?
Kayla King (10:10):
Yeah, it is different.
I mean, when you feel safe in afood like you, again, like I
could see it and for me it didlead to lead to over consumption
just because when you're used tofeeling anxious around certain
foods, you have a tendency tolike eat less of them or like I
(10:30):
even see that.
if my like body isn't doing it,sometimes my mind like makes me
not hungry.
So like if I'm at a restaurantand I felt nervous of how the
server replied or whatever, andmy food comes out and I like, am
pretty sure it's safe, but I'mlike not a hundred percent sure,
I will naturally like eat lessof my meal and be like, oh, I
(10:51):
don't wanna finish.
I'm not hungry.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (10:53):
Mm-hmm.
Kayla King (10:53):
like, if I really, really enjoy a meal, I like
don't wanna stop.
And so I think there's thatpsychological component that.
Um, normal people like don'talways understand, but your bo
your mind can really trick yourbody into like affecting its
hunger signals.
Um, and then I think the otherthing that happened to me
specifically when I was a kidwas like, I felt a lot of guilt
(11:18):
around food.
So like if somebody brought me awhole thing of cookies.
And like nobody else was sharingthem with me because I was the
only one expected to eat thewhole thing of cookies.
I felt this guilt where I'mlike, oh, I need, they need to
see me eating their cookies sothey know that I'm grateful that
(11:39):
they did that for me.
Even if I don't want thecookies, even if like I'm not
hungry for them.
And so I think that wassomething that was really hard
for me to get over as a kid aswell, is that this like.
Somebody else is doing somethingspecial for me and I need to
show I'm grateful by eating whenI sometimes don't want to.
(11:59):
So it, it was like I was totallybypassing my hunger signals, um,
from like an emotional place.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (12:06):
That is such a big point to bring up
because I don't think that mostpeople who haven't lived it
understand that guilt and shameare the two like biggest factors
associated with eatingdisorders.
And that's a good example ofwhere it starts, like how nobody
meant to make you feel that way.
Obviously they were doingsomething nice for you, but you
interpreted it like in terms ofwhat I, I should do or how I
(12:27):
should act.
Kayla King (12:28):
yeah.
Absolutely.
And I think it, a lot of it doescome from this place of like
being.
Included in the same way thatsomebody else would.
It's like always like if amanager comes to the table and
they call you out, or ifsomebody brings something
special for you, like these aresuch great and nice things to
do, but especially for a childlike that can feel really scary
(12:52):
that somebody is like isolatingyou.
Um, and so I think, again, likepeople have these really good
intentions, but sometimes it canmanifest differently if it's
like happening over and overagain.
You don't have the capacity yetto like fully understand why
you're feeling that way.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (13:08):
One of the misconceptions is that if
you have a binge eatingdisorder, it's always binge and
purge, and that's not always thecase.
Kayla King (13:14):
Yeah, I did not purge, I did not wanna throw up
at all, so I mostly just binged.
I think part of the reason was,like I throwing up, has always
been very violent for me, therewas one time when I was in
college where I like drank abunch, got really hungover and
then threw up because ofalcohol.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (13:34):
Mm-hmm.
Kayla King (13:34):
And I remember like after that incident being like,
oh, that, that's what throwingup is supposed to be like,
that's not that bad.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (13:42):
Because you had like a normal throwing
up episode compared to.
Kayla King (13:46):
I had like a normal throwing up versus like when you
throw up for celiac, it's like10 times worse.
Like it's, it's not like.
normal circumstance, you feelit, like you throw up past the
point there being like anythingin your body.
My binge eating was mostly justthe bingeing.
(14:07):
Um, but yeah, it definitely,like, I have a big fear of
throwing up because the reactionto my celiac is like, so, so
violent.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (14:16):
Yeah.
One of the other things that Ithink is important to mention,
and maybe you'd be good atdescribing this.
You talked about how your mindcan take over your hunger
signals, and then also there's alot going on in your digestive
system.
Obviously, if there's beendamage from the Celiac, and as
far as like reading the signalscoming from our bodies and our
digestive system, that can getinterfered with as well.
Kayla King (14:36):
Yeah, absolutely.
I mean, if you are like bloatedthe night before, like maybe
had, I see this mostly when Iget gluten, like when I actually
get sick.
Um, but.
When I eat something that hasgluten in it by accident, it
doesn't happen a lot, butobviously it's happened in my
life.
(14:57):
I've had it for 19 years, likethe next week or two weeks.
I like my hunger signals likewould definitely go way down.
And I like, don't wanna eat, Idon't wanna go out, I don't
wanna do anything.
Um, because I'm terrified thatit's gonna happen again,
especially if it was like aviolent reaction.
What actually.
Is happening in your bodydefinitely affects the way that
(15:18):
you have like a relationshipwith food as well.
'cause you're like theseconstant up and downs,
especially you have been,especially at first when you've
been diagnosed and you likedon't understand what to do.
Like you may be getting sickmore often or you may be
learning.
Um, and so.
If you do get sick every time aflike for weeks after, you may be
(15:42):
like screwed up and not know howto, to manage your hunger.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (15:47):
Right, right.
It's so complicated and I thinkpeople don't understand how long
and how real that physicalresponse and discomfort is in
the body, and, you know, thelong-term damage that can
accumulate too if you don'tmanage it., Where are we at in
terms of people taking itseriously and getting it.
Kayla King (16:02):
Yeah, I think there's three different types of
people.
Um, I definitely see a littlebit of over management at this
point in some of the folks thatI talk to on social media.
Um, so much so where it likescares people into not doing
anything.
I don't think that is healthyeither.
(16:24):
So there is like definitely anamount of hyper vigilance that
can cause.
eating in a different way, um,and not allow you to like come
from a point of like evidenceand facts, but just from a point
of like living with fear.
And then there is people that ofignore their celiac and just eat
(16:47):
whatever they want to eat anddon't pay attention to cross
contact.
And that's not great either.
Um, I kind of like to sit in themiddle ground where it's like I
assess.
Risk on a case by case basis.
I still will go to Chipotle andI still will go to, um, you
know, travel to Germany and Asiaand all of these places.
(17:12):
Um, but I assess my risk basedon.
How comfortable I am.
Um, and also from understandinglike the education around like
what is and is not safe.
Um, so like for example, I did apost today around like shared
equipment.
There's a lot of people thatwould not touch an oven or touch
a shared microwave or, you know,touch these types of equipment
(17:36):
that are totally safe.
And so like the hypervigilanceside.
I feel like the middle ground isunderstanding like.
I can use a toaster, but I needa toaster bag or like can use an
oven.
I just don't wanna use it whenit's on the convection setting.
'cause you know, it circulatesair.
So that education piece is likeso important.
(17:58):
'cause if you don't have theeducation, it does lead to just
like hyper vigilance and thenthat really impacts your quality
of life and your mental health.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (18:06):
With unnecessary restriction and
avoidance.
Yeah.
For parents who now have kidswho might be struggling with
weight, portion control, or whomight already be showing signs
of some disordered eating.
I wonder what you would tellthem.
'cause people I don't think knowwhat to look for.
Kayla King (18:23):
Yeah, I think that one thing that probably would've
made a big difference for me isjust like, as much as possible
trying to include your childrather than like isolate them.
So, um, for example, if it'spossible.
To like cook a dinner altogetherrather than having like two
(18:43):
separate pastas or two separatebreads.
Um, I know that can be very hardwith siblings, which is why my
parents chose to do like twoseparate things because they
wanted my siblings to be able toenjoy the regular versions.
Um, I just think like balancingthat and trying as much as
possible to like include them insituations, um, definitely
(19:06):
helps.
And then also.
Teaching them like about foodand how it affects your body, I
think is really helpful.
Education in general, so likenutrition was never like a topic
we talked about when I was akid.
It was kind of just like likehere's food.
Consume the food so you don'tdie.
(19:28):
Um, but I never like understoodhow food works and how to like
build a balanced plate.
Um, and I never like talkedabout mental health around food.
So like if you can get yourchild to kind of like open up
about how they're feeling aroundfood, if they are feeling guilty
like me, maybe they let you knowthat because that conversation
(19:49):
is like open and it's beingtalked about again.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (19:52):
Okay.
Kayla King (19:52):
just things that never.
Got brought up because I wasnever asked about them.
Um, but if you like, make aneffort to try and have those
conversations with your kidwhere it's like they're eating
something and they're like, howdo you feel about that?
Um, make an effort to try andhave those conversations.
I actually, I feel like that maybe helpful and give them space
(20:12):
to open up a little bit more Ithink it's hard sometimes for
kids to like bring that up.
So even if like they're not ableto talk to you about it, maybe
you can do something with themwriting it down, or make it a
fun activity.
Or talk about like how you, youknow, your Confident Celiac self
is a superhero.
What's your superhero name?
Like there are other fun thingsyou can do with kids to help
(20:34):
them.
Communicate their emotions thataren't, um, aren't just talking,
if that's not working as well.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (20:42):
Right, which usually doesn't, sitting
down with a kid face to face,eye to eye and just asking them
how they're feeling.
Almost never are they able toexpress it.
Right.
But yeah, through activities andand fun conversations, it's
important to listen.
Kayla King (20:55):
Yeah.
Yeah.
I'm sure you would know morethan me, you are the
professional.
But those are some of the thingsthat I've done with kids that,
um, have come to me, like tryingto open up.
And that's the other thing islike sometimes they don't wanna
talk to you and they might talkto somebody else.
And so like putting them incircumstances, like there's
celiac mentorship programs wherelike teens will talk to younger
kids.
(21:15):
Um, there's a lot of like celiacnonprofits, so potentially like
getting them involved in those,so maybe they can open up to
somebody else if they aren'tfeeling comfortable opening up
to you as well.
Amanda Whitehouse, (21:25):
Absolutely, because like you described when
you were a child, no one'strying to put them on you, but
you have these expectations andI don't wanna hurt their
feelings.
I don't want them to be mad atme.
And so the same goes withtalking about your feelings.
It's hard for kids to tell theirparents, I feel sad when you
guys all eat regular pasta, andI have my own bowl of.
Gluten-free,
Kayla King (21:42):
yeah, absolutely.
Which like, that's a greatexample of like maybe, you know,
they're in a mentorship programand they talk to.
teen that experienced that sameemotion.
And so I think there was ofresources out there.
Now, when I was a kid, theredefinitely wasn't.
Um, but now we do live in aworld where there are resources
(22:02):
and programs and so I would saylike definitely take advantage
of them.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (22:06):
Yeah.
Well, and you are creating someof those yourself..
You talked about, your coachingprogram, and I know you're doing
some stuff with travel, tellpeople about what you are
putting out there and, andoffering to the rest of the
community?
Kayla King (22:18):
Yeah, absolutely.
So I mean, my Instagram isobviously free resource, has
lots of information on it.
Um, always happy to like, answerquick questions in my dms.
And then some of the otherthings that I'm doing is like,
I'm really passionate abouttravel and restaurants, as you
can probably tell.
Um, so that's a big source oflike where I started this
(22:39):
journey from.
And so I have been doing, like,I just launched a international
group trip to Italy and then I'mtrying to potentially do another
one to Greece.
Um, so I want to like.
You know, do these more curatedexperiences.
Um, and I also potentially doanother one to Greece.
Um, so with some people, youknow, do kids coaching
(23:00):
sometimes, um, I am also puttingtogether there.
And so, um, I wanna be able tolike curate that as well.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (23:19):
Tell everybody where they can find
all of that stuff, please.
Kayla King (23:23):
Yeah, absolutely.
So Celiac with Kayla is myInstagram and my TikTok.
Um, on my Instagram, if you dogo on the link in my bio, you
can sign up for my newsletterjust to like know when I'm doing
events and things like that,especially if you live in the
Denver area.
Um, so that would be the bestplace to like stay in touch.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (23:39):
Okay.
So I know you love to talk abouttravel, so tell us about that.
Tell us about what it's likewhen you're actually out there
trying to, experience the world.
Kayla King (23:48):
Yeah,, on Instagram obviously i'm trying to find the
best restaurants and like postabout them, but the reality of
travel, like before I startedposting on Instagram is that
it's not always like that.
One of the most difficult celiacexperiences that I've had.
I lived in a suburb of Thailandand then I traveled all around.
(24:10):
Um.
If I was like planning one tripto one destination there, I
think it would be easier and Icould definitely make it more of
a foodie trip.
specifically the way that I wastraveling was like I would go to
a new country every single week.
Um, and so I very much likedidn't plan my food anywhere
that I traveled to, and thatwould scare a lot of people with
(24:32):
Celiac, but.
I think that's where it comesin.
Like just being really confidentin yourself and your ability to
find food.
Like you can go to a grocerystore, you can get fresh whole
Foods.
Um, you can bring a translationcard.
Like it's not impossible.
You're not gonna starve.
There's food everywhere you goin the world.
Before my Instagram, I used tolike just take off and go
(24:56):
wherever.
So
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (24:57):
How did it shift?
Was it becoming more educatedalong the way, or how did it
change over time?
Kayla King (25:03):
I think it was just really what changed was like
people wanted to know where Iwas eating, and so I now I do a
little bit more of a combo ofplan and find gluten-free
places.
But yeah, when I, before Istarted my Instagram, when I was
just like traveling forstudying, studying abroad, I
would just like.
Cook on a hot pot.
Like I think my funniest travelstory was were like at this one
(25:27):
restaurant and I was like tryingto communicate back and forth
with this guy who spoke noEnglish.
And he was like so confused andI was like, I don't, I just need
food.
And he had me come back into thekitchen and like.
with him and I was
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (25:42):
Oh my gosh.
Kayla King (25:43):
Getting like a personal cooking experience
because
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (25:46):
Where was this at?
Kayla King (25:47):
understand me, so he just gave me the ingredients.
He's like, right here, pan.
And I'm like, awesome.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (25:53):
This one's good.
This one?
No.
Kayla King (25:54):
Yeah,
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (25:55):
were you at?
Kayla King (25:56):
we were like on an island somewhere in Thailand.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (26:00):
Oh my gosh.
What did you cook?
Do you even know what you endedup making or weren't?
Kayla King (26:05):
Yeah, they gave me like a wok and like some rice
noodles and
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (26:09):
Oh my gosh.
Kayla King (26:10):
I just like did it without soy sauce and yeah, it
was good.
It was fine, but
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (26:14):
That's great.
Kayla King (26:15):
be creative when you have celiac disease.
And I think like a lot ofpeople, are scared to do that.
But it's like once you do it andyou do it over and over again,
it becomes less scary.
And then, you know, so muchfreedom opens up in your life.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (26:29):
Yeah.
Well, and it sounds like whatyou're saying is like if you
wanna go there and you want theexperiences, you can plan.
Right.
But if you end up like, maybe Ican't.
Have a great meal tonight, but Ican go to a grocery store, I can
get some fresh fruit, you mightnot always end up with the best
meal, but if you're willing totake that trade off, is that
kind of how you view it?
Kayla King (26:46):
Yeah.
I mean, if you wanna go to thatplace and you want to have a
little bit more of a spontaneouslife like I do, then those are
kind of just the things.
That you have to do.
And I think that there is fun inthat like, my problem solving
abilities have become betterbecause of my celiac disease.
Because I'm, you know,constantly put in these
(27:07):
situations where I have to bereally creative and figure out
like where my next meal iscoming from.
I just, I think it's anadventure, so,
Amanda Whitehouse, Ph (27:15):
Challenge each time.
Kayla King (27:17):
yeah.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (27:17):
You're engaged, and now you have a
travel buddy, I hope.
Does he get to go with you?
Kayla King (27:21):
Yes, I do have a travel buddy.
Um, yes, my fiance is wonderful.
We have a dedicated gluten-freehome now, but we definitely
didn't always.
and we do talk about thissometimes'cause we do hear from
other people that they strugglewith dating when they have
celiac.
was really never something Iever struggled with.
(27:43):
And I think a reason for thatwas because I always like owned
my celiac.
Like even before I startedposting about it online, like if
somebody met me, like a, if Iwas dating somebody, I would
just be like, yeah, this is justwho I am.
I have it.
that's that.
And like I managed it, right?
Like I didn't push it on otherpeople.
(28:03):
Like I self-managed it.
I would go out to restaurants, Iwould talk, but like I was never
somebody that was embarrassedabout my celiac disease.
Um, and I think a lot of thatlike came from my parents.
Like my parents were just verylike.
Confident people like my mom's,like corporate America, like
don't mess with her.
She like, got the bestcommunication skills on the
(28:23):
planet.
And so I think from a young ageI saw that like behavior being
modeled.
And so it was never a big deal.
It was always just like, oh,this is part of who I am, this
is what I have.
And so going into that, whenyou're dating somebody, it's
like immediately from the momentthat you meet them, like they
know that about you.
And so it's not like a barrier.
(28:43):
Like if somebody, if I were toever enter into a dating
situation and like I brought upmy celiac and then they had any
like bad reaction to it, I wouldbe like, Like, your problem?
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (28:59):
Mm-hmm.
Kayla King (29:00):
We, we cannot be friends then, you know, like if
you're gonna have a problem withme.
So I just, I think like settingyour boundaries really early
kind of helps with those things.
Um, where I see it go haywire asif like, you're embarrassed
about your celiac disease, youdon't wanna talk about it, you
don't set those boundaries, thenobviously people will, you know,
it opens up the door for them towalk all over you.
So, um.
(29:22):
think that's like where thatconfidence piece comes in.
But yeah, when I met Josh it waskind of just like, oh, this is a
thing.
And also at the time when I metJosh, like I was bodybuilding
and so because I wasbodybuilding the psycho ness of
my diet around bodybuilding,like overweighed anything
related to my celiac
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (29:42):
It was more about that than celiac.
Kayla King (29:44):
Oh yeah.
Like I went to a family holidaywith like his entire family the
second week that we were dating,like all extended family.
And I had to like bring my ownfood in like a container.
And they were, they were so niceabout it, but it was like I
wasn't bringing my own foodbecause of my celiac.
I was bringing it because of mybodybuilding.
So then like anything after thatrelated to Celiac, his family
(30:06):
was like, oh yeah, no problem.
So, um.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (30:09):
That seems way less extreme
Kayla King (30:10):
Yeah, bodybuilding was definitely more extreme.
Yeah, so I think like just fromthe beginning.
was always like veryunderstanding of it.
And then obviously it became abig part of my life as I started
posting about it online andbeing a content creator.
And so then like all of myfriends just kind of started
knowing me as the gluten-freechick and everybody respected
it.
And anytime they had questionsor a friend with Celiac, they
(30:32):
would ask me about it.
Um, so I definitely feel luckyto like have a lot of support
and people who understand celiacdisease in my life.
Um, but I feel like, again, itstems from like that don't be
ashamed of your disease.
There's nothing to be ashamedof.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (30:45):
Right.
For people who are strugglingwith that, what do you think is
helpful for people to workthrough it especially like those
teenage years I feel like arerough for a lot of people.
Kayla King (30:54):
Yeah.
Yeah.
I mean, I think that like as aparent, if you have a child with
celiac disease, like modelingthat behavior is really
important.
I always say like if you make ita big deal, your child is going
to think it's a big deal.
So like.
I see all of the times, like, Iknow it comes from a good place
(31:14):
of like parents being reallyworried, where they like go into
a restaurant and they're reallyterrified that the, their
child's gonna get sick or like.
They find a product in thegrocery store and they're not
sure if it's safe.
And so they're really nervous,but it's like kids pick up on
that energy.
so now that's gonna be theirperception where they're gonna
be like, oh, when I go into arestaurant, I get nervous.
(31:35):
Um, because they kids like, see,and they model off of their
parents so similarly, like mymom would go into a restaurant
that I couldn't really eat at,and she would like pull the
manager out.
Be like, okay, here's what we'regonna do.
You're gonna take a pan, you aregonna put the chicken in the
pan, you are gonna put salt andpepper on it, you're gonna bake
(31:56):
a baked potato in the oven on aclean thing.
And the manager was like, okay,ma'am, I got you.
I'll go do it.
I'll do it myself right now.
And so I saw that behavior beingmodeled and I was like, okay,
mom.
Like go off.
And then that was now thebehavior that I modeled because
I saw her do it.
I saw how confident she was.
She wasn't caring about how theperson thought of her.
(32:18):
And so I was like, okay, likethat's the behavior that I'm
going to model now for the restof my life.
So,
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (32:24):
Yeah.
She wasn't apologetic about it.
She was confident.
She knew what needed to be doneand she was willing to
communicate it to them.
Kayla King (32:30):
yeah, so I
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (32:31):
Awesome.
Kayla King (32:31):
the, for a child at least, like modeling behavior is
like.
One of the most important thingsyou can do as a parent, which I
know is like really hard ifyou're a people pleaser or like
you're nervous yourself.
Um, so I know that candefinitely be like a really big
challenge if that's like not apart of your personality, but
you know, it does make a bigdifference.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (32:53):
What you just described as a great
reason.
Like get yourself some supportor some therapy if you know that
that's something that youstruggle with for your child.
Kayla King (33:00):
Yeah, absolutely.
And I think, like I went totherapy for binge eating
disorder, but I really think ithelped with my celiac as well.
Like I'm a big proponent oflike, if you can afford therapy,
definitely do it.
I think it's so unbelievablyhelpful.
Um, it helps you like discoverthings about yourself and really
just like build that confidenceback up.
(33:21):
Um.
Especially if you like find apsychologist that like is a
little bit more action oriented,like that's the type of
psychologist that I to workwith.
Um, and I think can be helpfulfor celiac disease.
And I mean that's like the wholereason we're here in what you do
and um, like finding somebodythat does specialize in celiac
and understands it, I think islike really rare to find and
(33:43):
super helpful.
But, um, yeah, I definitelyrecommend therapy.
And then I also think likestrategies of just like.
Looking at yourself in themirror and like practicing can
help.
Like if you are more of a timidperson and you don't like
conflict, like literally roleplay with yourself in the
mirror.
Like, it's the same thing forlike practicing the skill of
(34:06):
like how to talk on camera.
Like people who are scared totalk on camera and like sit at
home and talk to your camera andthen you don't have to post it,
you don't have to do anythingwith it.
But it's like it's a skill thatyou have to learn.
Not everybody is just like bornnaturally with it.
I learned it by my, my parentsmodeling it.
But if you don't have yourparent to model it, then you
(34:27):
have to, you know, flex thatskill yourself and practice it
in the mirror.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (34:31):
Yeah, absolutely.
Just a, just a muscle that needsto be exercised and, and
practiced over and over until itbecomes more automatic.
Kayla King (34:38):
Yeah, it's not supposed to feel comfortable at
first, so.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (34:43):
So what else do you do now?
I mean, you're, you're in such agood spot, obviously not, not
struggling with those issuesanymore.
How do you maintain good mentalhealth?
Kayla King (34:52):
I definitely like try to prioritize good
nutrition.
I mean, I am at the end of theday, like I did.
Go to school for nutrition.
I'm a nutrition coach, so like Ireally value like whole foods
and making sure that you havefood to nourish your body.
I think a lot of, um, peoplewhen they get diagnosed, they
have a tendency to go towardscertified gluten-free products.
(35:15):
Um.
Which really doesn't help with,uh, just like general nutrition
because a lot of Whole Foods arenot gonna be certified
gluten-free.
They're not out of a box.
Um, and so I think there's this.
Fear that like, oh, is chickengluten-free or is apple's
gluten-free?
(35:36):
and I hear that all the time,but it's like, yes, like most
whole foods are gonna begluten-free.
It doesn't matter if the cow waslike fed wheat.
It doesn't, doesn't work likethat.
It doesn't go that far back.
Um, and so definitely likeprioritizing those whole foods
and really educating yourself tounderstand like.
That those foods are safe, um,and you can feel comfortable
eating them, I think isimportant.
(35:57):
So, um, that's one thing I do.
I also like prioritize workingout.
Um, I'm a big, like move inwhatever way you can kind of
gal.
Um, I think all fitness is greatfitness, walking, hiking,
biking, sitting on the floor anddoing leg lifts.
Like there are so many ways todo movement that aren't.
(36:21):
Intense.
Um, and I think especially ifyou have an autoimmune disease
or you're still recovering, itcan be hard to include movement.
And so understanding that likeyou don't have to go be a
bodybuilder.
Like you don't have to go likelift intense weights.
Like if you're bloated, youdon't feel good.
Like you could do an, at like areally easy at home work
workout.
Um, you could go on a walk, youcan um, you know, do a casual
(36:44):
bike ride with a friend.
Like there are other ways to getmovement in besides just like.
Doing something really likeintense.
Um, and then other things I dois like if I'm having really
hard time with mental health,I'll like journal when I can.
I'd like to journal more than Ido.
I think like getting words outon paper at least for me can be
(37:04):
really helpful.
Um, and then, yeah, like gettingas much sun as possible, like
getting outside.
I think there are likeramifications that I put on
myself with social media wherelike.
I have an app that like blocksme from social media.
My screen time used to be likeridiculous, like 12 hours a day.
Now I've gotten it down to likefive hours a day, which I'm
really proud of.
(37:25):
Um,
Amanda Whitehouse, P (37:26):
Especially when that's your job, that's
impressive that you can.
Kayla King (37:29):
yeah, so I mean, I'm constantly trying to like help
my, help myself, but I thinklike mental health again is
like, it's a practice.
Like I put so much energy intomy mental health.
Almost more energy than likeanything else I do.
Um,'cause I think it's reallyimportant, but it's not
(37:49):
something I'm, I'm just like,wake up happy.
Like,
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (37:53):
Right,
Kayla King (37:53):
to like, put in work and you have to like build
habits and routines, um, inorder to like get to that point
where you feel comfortable.
And then even then you're gonnahave up and downs and, you know,
that's normal.
So.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (38:05):
right, right.
Oh, that's really helpful.
Thank you so much for sharingall that so clearly.
Kayla King (38:10):
The most important thing is it's like a constant,
like you have to like havehabits
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (38:15):
Yeah,
Kayla King (38:15):
takes time to build and it's never like, it gets
easier, but it's never justlike, you don't just like exist
in a, you know, good mentalhealth state.
I think for most people it'svery normal to.
Have to like, you know,continually have it be something
that you work on.
Amanda Whitehouse, (38:32):
absolutely.
So what else do you wanteverybody to know before we wrap
up?
This was such a good chat.
Kayla King (38:37):
Yeah.
If you wanna stay tuned with allthe stuff that I'm doing, my
Instagram page will kind of staythe true source of everything
that I do.
And, um, yeah, would love if youfollowed there and became a part
of my community.
So.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (38:51):
Awesome.
Well thanks for all you sharethere.
I think you're spreading a lotof really good information and
positivity and we all appreciateit.
Kayla King (38:57):
Yeah.
Thank you so much.
As always, I wanna leave youwith three action steps that you
can take away from today'sconversation.
Number one.
Find Kayla if you don't alreadyfollow her.
Celiac with Kayla is her handleeverywhere.
It's so powerful and validatingto see someone living with the
same things and talking aboutthe same challenges that you're
managing in your own life.
It helps us to develop a senseof community and find connection
(39:20):
and support.
Number two, if it's apossibility for you, you could
consider coming to meet Kaylaand me.
We will both be at the FAACTconference in Oakbrook,
Illinois, October 2nd throughfifth.
I'm not being paid, it's not anadvertisement.
It's just a great organizationwhere you can really find
support in community.
And their website is foodallergy awareness.org, and
you'll find the informationabout the summit there.
(39:40):
Kayla will be speaking there andfor those of you who are
professionals in related fields,there are continuing education
credits available.
And then I will be speaking atthe Wicked Gluten-Free Expo in
Fitchburg, Massachusetts onSeptember 20th.
Their website is wickedgluten-free dot com and this is
in 2025.
So if you missed this and thoseevents are over, follow both of
(40:01):
those organizations to find outabout whatever events they have
coming up at the time that youcatch the episode.
And last if you are.
Experiencing your owndifficulties with eating, or if
you're a parent raising a childwith Celiac and you're noticing
concerns or complicated feelingsabout food, remember that they
are not personal failings.
They are a response to livingwith invisible or stigmatized
(40:23):
medical needs And to having toso closely and carefully monitor
what we consume and whether it'ssafe.
If you have any concernwhatsoever, please talk to your
provider.
Seek support and resources inyour area.
The sooner you do that, thebetter chance of keeping things
healthier, both mentally and inyour diet.
Thanks again to Kayla King forher openness and sharing her
life experiences with us today.
(40:44):
And thank you for listening.
If this episode resonated withyou or you find the podcast
helpful, please consider givingme a rating or leaving a review
and sharing it with somebody whomight also need to hear it.
the content of this podcast isfor informational and
educational purposes only, andis not a substitute for
professional medical or mentalhealth advice, diagnosis, or
(41:04):
treatment.
If you have any questions aboutyour own medical experience or
mental health needs, pleaseconsult a professional.
I'm Dr.
Amanda Whitehouse.
Thanks for joining me.
And until we chat again,remember don't feed the fear.
I started going to a psychologist and talking through
food issues and why I felt theneed to overeat, which led me to
kinda discovering that I had aproblem with binge eating.
I never had labeled it that everbefore.
But some of the things that wediscovered during that process
was like, a lot of it wasrooted.
(00:21):
In the fact that like thesefoods, um, that I was
discovering that weregluten-free, that I couldn't
have before were being put onlike a pedestal.
So they were, um, a delicacy tome.
Speaker (00:35):
Welcome to the Don't Feed the Fear podcast, where we
dive into the complex world offood allergy anxiety.
I'm your host, Dr.
Amanda Whitehouse, food allergyanxiety psychologist and food
allergy mom.
Whether you're dealing withallergies yourself or supporting
someone who is, join us for anempathetic and informative
journey toward food allergy calmand confidence..
(00:56):
For this week's episode of Don'tFeed The Fear, we are diving
into something that I haven'ttalked about much here on the
show yet.
When I started the podcast,everything that you read says
niche down, niche down.
Get as specific as you can.
So I got as specific as I knowabout, which is food allergy.
But really in my work as apsychologist and in my therapy
sessions, I work with the fullrange of chronic diseases, with
(01:18):
an emphasis on all the foodallergic diseases, including
Celiac, later this month.
I'll be speaking at the WickedGluten-Free Expo, and so I
decided to dedicate this month'sepisodes to talking about Celiac
too, since I haven't addressedit on the show too much yet.
I'm really honored to have KaylaKing with me as a guest on the
show.
She is a powerful voice in thisceliac community, and she is
(01:40):
someone who has built anincredible platform and audience
by sharing her story withhonesty and vulnerability.
We'll be talking about what lifewith Celiac disease really looks
like beyond just the gluten-freelabel, and specifically how
Celiac lifestyle intersects withmental health.
And the unique ways that livingwith Celiac can shape our
relationship with food in thatconversation.
(02:02):
Kayla also opens up about herhistory with disordered eating
and how her medical needs andlived experiences influence
those patterns and the way thatthey developed.
It's a conversation that reallygets to the heart of how chronic
conditions like Celiac don'tjust affect our bodies.
They can impact our emotions,our identity, and our sense of
safety.
So my hope is that this episodehelps you to feel seen,
(02:23):
validated, and a little lessalone.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (02:26):
Kayla, I am so excited to meet you and
have you here on the show totalk about all things related to
your life and celiac andeverything that everyone loves
you sharing on social media.
Thank you for being here.
Kayla King (02:36):
yeah, I'm very excited to be here.
It's a topic that I'm verypassionate about mental health
and how it affects celiacdisease,
Amanda Whitehouse, Ph (02:43):
Obviously you're connecting with people.
You have a huge following.
Is that something that you setout to do or did it happen
accidentally?
Kayla King (02:51):
Yeah, I mean, I originally created my social
media because I, at the time wascreating a business to help
people eat out more comfortably,and so a lot of that was very
much focused in mental healthbecause restaurants growing up
was one of the.
Biggest things that I personallystruggled with and the thing
(03:12):
that affected my mental healththe most.
So that was like a big portionwhy I started the business.
And then naturally, throughsocial media and just talking
about my journey, it kind ofcame up a lot in conversation
because I am definitely notalone in that.
I think it's probably one of thehardest parts, um, of having
celiac disease is that mentalhealth piece.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (03:34):
Yeah.
Yeah.
So you set out to grow thebusiness, but people actually
really just connected with youas a person it sounds like.
Kayla King (03:39):
Yeah.
That is basically what happened.
Yeah.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (03:42):
you were diagnosed really young, it takes
a lot of time for a lot ofpeople to figure out what's
going on with Celiac when kids'that young,
Kayla King (03:49):
so my diagnosis story, my brother has type one
diabetes.
He got diagnosed when he was sixyears old and we lived in
Chicago at the time.
That's where I grew up.
So really thankful.
Chicago was one of like thefirst.
States in the entire countrythat actually had a celiac
center.
So I was working with, Dr.
Guandalini.
He's like a really famous celiacresearcher.
(04:09):
And so he was the one whodiagnosed me.
We basically just ran a panelfor autoimmune conditions
because we were trying to ruleout diabetes.
And then I got diagnosed reallyquickly, came back negative with
diabetes positive for celiac.
So.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (04:23):
What kind of symptoms were you
having?
I mean, obviously your parents,were on guard because of your
brother's health issues already.
Kayla King (04:29):
Yeah, I mostly manifested with my stomach pain,
so I was like having sharpstomach pains all the time.
That was my main symptom beforediagnosis, and then as I cut it
out, my symptoms did get moresevere when Ihen I actually did
have a reaction, so now I'm moreso like vomit, nausea, brain
(04:54):
fog, like definitely moreinvolved.
It's more severe.
And I think that is natural anddoes happen that once you cut it
out, when it gets introduced,it's just, um, a much more
severe reaction'cause yourbody's not used to having it.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (05:09):
What do you want people to know about
The mental health impact ofCeliac.
Kayla King (05:15):
Yeah.
So I think I originally, when Iwas a kid, I always struggled
with.
Portions.
That was like a big thing forme.
And I actually remember my momdid bring me to a nutritionist
at one point because I wasn't aoverweight kid, I would say.
But I definitely would eatmyself past the point of being
(05:36):
full.
And I didn't really understandwhy, and I actually did not
figure out why until myadulthood.
So as I was a kid and went tothe nutritionist, they.
Basically just put me on thisvery structured meal plan and
they were like, eat A, B, C.
I was a kid so I didn't know anybetter.
So I was like, okay.
But it didn't really work for meand it wasn't sustainable long
(05:56):
term.
So then got older and couldunderstand nutrition and my
mental health a little bitbetter, that's when I started to
like dive into what are otherways of eating?
How do I count macros?
Like how do I.
Fix this portion control issue.
In my whole life, that's what Ihad been told, that it's a
portion control issue, likenobody had mentioned mental
(06:17):
health at all.
Um, and so as I began my ownresearch into that journey, I
was like, oh, maybe mentalhealth is a big part of it.
Um, so then I started going to apsychologist and talking through
food issues and why I felt theneed to overeat, which led me to
kinda discovering that I had aproblem with binge eating.
(06:39):
I never had labeled it that everbefore.
Um, but not until I like startedreally looking into it, talking
about it with my psychologist,was I like, oh, I probably,
that's like a, that's adisorder, that's a binge eating
disorder.
Um, but it's, you have to like,recognize it first.
And so I did end up going tolike a binge eating disorder,
dietician and working with her.
(07:00):
And that like completely changedmy life.
But some of the things that wediscovered during that process
was like, a lot of it wasrooted.
In the fact that like thesefoods, um, that I was
discovering that weregluten-free, that I couldn't
have before were being put onlike a pedestal.
So they were, um, a delicacy tome.
And so when I went to arestaurant and I got like a
(07:22):
really good gluten-free pasta orpizza or something like that, I
felt the need to eat the wholething because I was like, when
am I ever gonna get this in mylife again?
And now it's a little bit betterbecause there's a lot more
options.
But imagine like 8-year-old me.
Finding a pizza somewhere, likethat's really uncommon.
Um, and so it cycled into thisthing where I just felt like I
(07:47):
had to finish it all of thetime.
Um, and so a lot of my likeeating recovery was around like.
Introducing those foods into mydiet more and honestly, like
eating out more and kind ofgetting over that fear.
And that's what really made adifference for me.
And that's a big thing that Ifocus on, on my page is like
(08:08):
confidence and how to eat out.
Um, and how to enjoy all ofthese things in your life.
Um, because I think when peopleget diagnosed with celiac
disease, it's a big thing wherethey're like, oh, there's so
much lack in my life now, andthere really doesn't have to be.
And so that's really.
The big message that I try topush on my page.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (08:26):
Thank you so much for sharing that
it's.
Something that hardly anybodytalks about, especially with the
perspective of, you being anadult now and having worked
through this with some mentalhealth support and looking back
on that and seeing how, thepuzzle unfolded and for those
who are just listening thatcan't see my face, I'm cringing
as I'm sitting here listening toyou talk about this like,
structured diet and you know,obviously all meaning well your
(08:48):
parents meant well but we knowis it can be so detrimental, to
young people
Kayla King (08:53):
yeah.
Yeah, it's definitely hard and Imean there's so many like
nutrition professionals outthere and I think now there's a
lot more awareness about it, butat the time, like.
We wouldn't have thought to goto like a specialist that like
understands eating disorders.
'cause we didn't really think itwas, we didn't think it was an
eating disorder.
Like that's, it was neverlabeled as that until I like
(09:14):
started really discovering whatit was.
So, um, it's like no fault ofanybody's, it's just kind of how
it unfolded.
But I think it's a reallymessage for other people to
understand.
Um, especially for kids that arediagnosed young because.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (09:29):
Yeah,
Kayla King (09:29):
I feel like there's a lot of adults now that are
diagnosed with celiac disease,but the mental health impact on
young kids is like really,really important to talk about.
Amanda Whitehouse, (09:38):
absolutely.
kids who were diagnosed withceliac before 18 are four and a
half times more likely todevelop an eating disorder,
which is astounding.
Kayla King (09:45):
That's
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (09:46):
Yeah.
Kayla King (09:46):
mean, it doesn't surprise me, but
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (09:48):
Well, well, and it makes sense.
I think what you explained isone big piece of the puzzle, at
least for a lot of people I workwith, like this is special.
When am I gonna get it again?
I've also heard if you have thisfood and you know it's safe and
you actually feel safe and yourbody and trust it, the way that
you eat and approach and consumeyour food is so different than
other times when you are carefulor unsure.
Do you feel that too?
Kayla King (10:10):
Yeah, it is different.
I mean, when you feel safe in afood like you, again, like I
could see it and for me it didlead to lead to over consumption
just because when you're used tofeeling anxious around certain
foods, you have a tendency tolike eat less of them or like I
(10:30):
even see that.
if my like body isn't doing it,sometimes my mind like makes me
not hungry.
So like if I'm at a restaurantand I felt nervous of how the
server replied or whatever, andmy food comes out and I like, am
pretty sure it's safe, but I'mlike not a hundred percent sure,
I will naturally like eat lessof my meal and be like, oh, I
(10:51):
don't wanna finish.
I'm not hungry.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (10:53):
Mm-hmm.
Kayla King (10:53):
like, if I really, really enjoy a meal, I like
don't wanna stop.
And so I think there's thatpsychological component that.
Um, normal people like don'talways understand, but your bo
your mind can really trick yourbody into like affecting its
hunger signals.
Um, and then I think the otherthing that happened to me
specifically when I was a kidwas like, I felt a lot of guilt
(11:18):
around food.
So like if somebody brought me awhole thing of cookies.
And like nobody else was sharingthem with me because I was the
only one expected to eat thewhole thing of cookies.
I felt this guilt where I'mlike, oh, I need, they need to
see me eating their cookies sothey know that I'm grateful that
(11:39):
they did that for me.
Even if I don't want thecookies, even if like I'm not
hungry for them.
And so I think that wassomething that was really hard
for me to get over as a kid aswell, is that this like.
Somebody else is doing somethingspecial for me and I need to
show I'm grateful by eating whenI sometimes don't want to.
(11:59):
So it, it was like I was totallybypassing my hunger signals, um,
from like an emotional place.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (12:06):
That is such a big point to bring up
because I don't think that mostpeople who haven't lived it
understand that guilt and shameare the two like biggest factors
associated with eatingdisorders.
And that's a good example ofwhere it starts, like how nobody
meant to make you feel that way.
Obviously they were doingsomething nice for you, but you
interpreted it like in terms ofwhat I, I should do or how I
(12:27):
should act.
Kayla King (12:28):
yeah.
Absolutely.
And I think it, a lot of it doescome from this place of like
being.
Included in the same way thatsomebody else would.
It's like always like if amanager comes to the table and
they call you out, or ifsomebody brings something
special for you, like these aresuch great and nice things to
do, but especially for a childlike that can feel really scary
(12:52):
that somebody is like isolatingyou.
Um, and so I think, again, likepeople have these really good
intentions, but sometimes it canmanifest differently if it's
like happening over and overagain.
You don't have the capacity yetto like fully understand why
you're feeling that way.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (13:08):
One of the misconceptions is that if
you have a binge eatingdisorder, it's always binge and
purge, and that's not always thecase.
Kayla King (13:14):
Yeah, I did not purge, I did not wanna throw up
at all, so I mostly just binged.
I think part of the reason was,like I throwing up, has always
been very violent for me, therewas one time when I was in
college where I like drank abunch, got really hungover and
then threw up because ofalcohol.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (13:34):
Mm-hmm.
Kayla King (13:34):
And I remember like after that incident being like,
oh, that, that's what throwingup is supposed to be like,
that's not that bad.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (13:42):
Because you had like a normal throwing
up episode compared to.
Kayla King (13:46):
I had like a normal throwing up versus like when you
throw up for celiac, it's like10 times worse.
Like it's, it's not like.
normal circumstance, you feelit, like you throw up past the
point there being like anythingin your body.
My binge eating was mostly justthe bingeing.
(14:07):
Um, but yeah, it definitely,like, I have a big fear of
throwing up because the reactionto my celiac is like, so, so
violent.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (14:16):
Yeah.
One of the other things that Ithink is important to mention,
and maybe you'd be good atdescribing this.
You talked about how your mindcan take over your hunger
signals, and then also there's alot going on in your digestive
system.
Obviously, if there's beendamage from the Celiac, and as
far as like reading the signalscoming from our bodies and our
digestive system, that can getinterfered with as well.
Kayla King (14:36):
Yeah, absolutely.
I mean, if you are like bloatedthe night before, like maybe
had, I see this mostly when Iget gluten, like when I actually
get sick.
Um, but.
When I eat something that hasgluten in it by accident, it
doesn't happen a lot, butobviously it's happened in my
life.
(14:57):
I've had it for 19 years, likethe next week or two weeks.
I like my hunger signals likewould definitely go way down.
And I like, don't wanna eat, Idon't wanna go out, I don't
wanna do anything.
Um, because I'm terrified thatit's gonna happen again,
especially if it was like aviolent reaction.
What actually.
Is happening in your bodydefinitely affects the way that
(15:18):
you have like a relationshipwith food as well.
'cause you're like theseconstant up and downs,
especially you have been,especially at first when you've
been diagnosed and you likedon't understand what to do.
Like you may be getting sickmore often or you may be
learning.
Um, and so.
If you do get sick every time aflike for weeks after, you may be
(15:42):
like screwed up and not know howto, to manage your hunger.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (15:47):
Right, right.
It's so complicated and I thinkpeople don't understand how long
and how real that physicalresponse and discomfort is in
the body, and, you know, thelong-term damage that can
accumulate too if you don'tmanage it., Where are we at in
terms of people taking itseriously and getting it.
Kayla King (16:02):
Yeah, I think there's three different types of
people.
Um, I definitely see a littlebit of over management at this
point in some of the folks thatI talk to on social media.
Um, so much so where it likescares people into not doing
anything.
I don't think that is healthyeither.
(16:24):
So there is like definitely anamount of hyper vigilance that
can cause.
eating in a different way, um,and not allow you to like come
from a point of like evidenceand facts, but just from a point
of like living with fear.
And then there is people that ofignore their celiac and just eat
(16:47):
whatever they want to eat anddon't pay attention to cross
contact.
And that's not great either.
Um, I kind of like to sit in themiddle ground where it's like I
assess.
Risk on a case by case basis.
I still will go to Chipotle andI still will go to, um, you
know, travel to Germany and Asiaand all of these places.
(17:12):
Um, but I assess my risk basedon.
How comfortable I am.
Um, and also from understandinglike the education around like
what is and is not safe.
Um, so like for example, I did apost today around like shared
equipment.
There's a lot of people thatwould not touch an oven or touch
a shared microwave or, you know,touch these types of equipment
(17:36):
that are totally safe.
And so like the hypervigilanceside.
I feel like the middle ground isunderstanding like.
I can use a toaster, but I needa toaster bag or like can use an
oven.
I just don't wanna use it whenit's on the convection setting.
'cause you know, it circulatesair.
So that education piece is likeso important.
(17:58):
'cause if you don't have theeducation, it does lead to just
like hyper vigilance and thenthat really impacts your quality
of life and your mental health.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (18:06):
With unnecessary restriction and
avoidance.
Yeah.
For parents who now have kidswho might be struggling with
weight, portion control, or whomight already be showing signs
of some disordered eating.
I wonder what you would tellthem.
'cause people I don't think knowwhat to look for.
Kayla King (18:23):
Yeah, I think that one thing that probably would've
made a big difference for me isjust like, as much as possible
trying to include your childrather than like isolate them.
So, um, for example, if it'spossible.
To like cook a dinner altogetherrather than having like two
(18:43):
separate pastas or two separatebreads.
Um, I know that can be very hardwith siblings, which is why my
parents chose to do like twoseparate things because they
wanted my siblings to be able toenjoy the regular versions.
Um, I just think like balancingthat and trying as much as
possible to like include them insituations, um, definitely
(19:06):
helps.
And then also.
Teaching them like about foodand how it affects your body, I
think is really helpful.
Education in general, so likenutrition was never like a topic
we talked about when I was akid.
It was kind of just like likehere's food.
Consume the food so you don'tdie.
(19:28):
Um, but I never like understoodhow food works and how to like
build a balanced plate.
Um, and I never like talkedabout mental health around food.
So like if you can get yourchild to kind of like open up
about how they're feeling aroundfood, if they are feeling guilty
like me, maybe they let you knowthat because that conversation
(19:49):
is like open and it's beingtalked about again.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (19:52):
Okay.
Kayla King (19:52):
just things that never.
Got brought up because I wasnever asked about them.
Um, but if you like, make aneffort to try and have those
conversations with your kidwhere it's like they're eating
something and they're like, howdo you feel about that?
Um, make an effort to try andhave those conversations.
I actually, I feel like that maybe helpful and give them space
(20:12):
to open up a little bit more Ithink it's hard sometimes for
kids to like bring that up.
So even if like they're not ableto talk to you about it, maybe
you can do something with themwriting it down, or make it a
fun activity.
Or talk about like how you, youknow, your Confident Celiac self
is a superhero.
What's your superhero name?
Like there are other fun thingsyou can do with kids to help
(20:34):
them.
Communicate their emotions thataren't, um, aren't just talking,
if that's not working as well.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (20:42):
Right, which usually doesn't, sitting
down with a kid face to face,eye to eye and just asking them
how they're feeling.
Almost never are they able toexpress it.
Right.
But yeah, through activities andand fun conversations, it's
important to listen.
Kayla King (20:55):
Yeah.
Yeah.
I'm sure you would know morethan me, you are the
professional.
But those are some of the thingsthat I've done with kids that,
um, have come to me, like tryingto open up.
And that's the other thing islike sometimes they don't wanna
talk to you and they might talkto somebody else.
And so like putting them incircumstances, like there's
celiac mentorship programs wherelike teens will talk to younger
kids.
(21:15):
Um, there's a lot of like celiacnonprofits, so potentially like
getting them involved in those,so maybe they can open up to
somebody else if they aren'tfeeling comfortable opening up
to you as well.
Amanda Whitehouse, (21:25):
Absolutely, because like you described when
you were a child, no one'strying to put them on you, but
you have these expectations andI don't wanna hurt their
feelings.
I don't want them to be mad atme.
And so the same goes withtalking about your feelings.
It's hard for kids to tell theirparents, I feel sad when you
guys all eat regular pasta, andI have my own bowl of.
Gluten-free,
Kayla King (21:42):
yeah, absolutely.
Which like, that's a greatexample of like maybe, you know,
they're in a mentorship programand they talk to.
teen that experienced that sameemotion.
And so I think there was ofresources out there.
Now, when I was a kid, theredefinitely wasn't.
Um, but now we do live in aworld where there are resources
(22:02):
and programs and so I would saylike definitely take advantage
of them.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (22:06):
Yeah.
Well, and you are creating someof those yourself..
You talked about, your coachingprogram, and I know you're doing
some stuff with travel, tellpeople about what you are
putting out there and, andoffering to the rest of the
community?
Kayla King (22:18):
Yeah, absolutely.
So I mean, my Instagram isobviously free resource, has
lots of information on it.
Um, always happy to like, answerquick questions in my dms.
And then some of the otherthings that I'm doing is like,
I'm really passionate abouttravel and restaurants, as you
can probably tell.
Um, so that's a big source oflike where I started this
(22:39):
journey from.
And so I have been doing, like,I just launched a international
group trip to Italy and then I'mtrying to potentially do another
one to Greece.
Um, so I want to like.
You know, do these more curatedexperiences.
Um, and I also potentially doanother one to Greece.
Um, so with some people, youknow, do kids coaching
(23:00):
sometimes, um, I am also puttingtogether there.
And so, um, I wanna be able tolike curate that as well.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (23:19):
Tell everybody where they can find
all of that stuff, please.
Kayla King (23:23):
Yeah, absolutely.
So Celiac with Kayla is myInstagram and my TikTok.
Um, on my Instagram, if you dogo on the link in my bio, you
can sign up for my newsletterjust to like know when I'm doing
events and things like that,especially if you live in the
Denver area.
Um, so that would be the bestplace to like stay in touch.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (23:39):
Okay.
So I know you love to talk abouttravel, so tell us about that.
Tell us about what it's likewhen you're actually out there
trying to, experience the world.
Kayla King (23:48):
Yeah,, on Instagram obviously i'm trying to find the
best restaurants and like postabout them, but the reality of
travel, like before I startedposting on Instagram is that
it's not always like that.
One of the most difficult celiacexperiences that I've had.
I lived in a suburb of Thailandand then I traveled all around.
(24:10):
Um.
If I was like planning one tripto one destination there, I
think it would be easier and Icould definitely make it more of
a foodie trip.
specifically the way that I wastraveling was like I would go to
a new country every single week.
Um, and so I very much likedidn't plan my food anywhere
that I traveled to, and thatwould scare a lot of people with
(24:32):
Celiac, but.
I think that's where it comesin.
Like just being really confidentin yourself and your ability to
find food.
Like you can go to a grocerystore, you can get fresh whole
Foods.
Um, you can bring a translationcard.
Like it's not impossible.
You're not gonna starve.
There's food everywhere you goin the world.
Before my Instagram, I used tolike just take off and go
(24:56):
wherever.
So
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (24:57):
How did it shift?
Was it becoming more educatedalong the way, or how did it
change over time?
Kayla King (25:03):
I think it was just really what changed was like
people wanted to know where Iwas eating, and so I now I do a
little bit more of a combo ofplan and find gluten-free
places.
But yeah, when I, before Istarted my Instagram, when I was
just like traveling forstudying, studying abroad, I
would just like.
Cook on a hot pot.
Like I think my funniest travelstory was were like at this one
(25:27):
restaurant and I was like tryingto communicate back and forth
with this guy who spoke noEnglish.
And he was like so confused andI was like, I don't, I just need
food.
And he had me come back into thekitchen and like.
with him and I was
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (25:42):
Oh my gosh.
Kayla King (25:43):
Getting like a personal cooking experience
because
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (25:46):
Where was this at?
Kayla King (25:47):
understand me, so he just gave me the ingredients.
He's like, right here, pan.
And I'm like, awesome.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (25:53):
This one's good.
This one?
No.
Kayla King (25:54):
Yeah,
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (25:55):
were you at?
Kayla King (25:56):
we were like on an island somewhere in Thailand.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (26:00):
Oh my gosh.
What did you cook?
Do you even know what you endedup making or weren't?
Kayla King (26:05):
Yeah, they gave me like a wok and like some rice
noodles and
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (26:09):
Oh my gosh.
Kayla King (26:10):
I just like did it without soy sauce and yeah, it
was good.
It was fine, but
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (26:14):
That's great.
Kayla King (26:15):
be creative when you have celiac disease.
And I think like a lot ofpeople, are scared to do that.
But it's like once you do it andyou do it over and over again,
it becomes less scary.
And then, you know, so muchfreedom opens up in your life.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (26:29):
Yeah.
Well, and it sounds like whatyou're saying is like if you
wanna go there and you want theexperiences, you can plan.
Right.
But if you end up like, maybe Ican't.
Have a great meal tonight, but Ican go to a grocery store, I can
get some fresh fruit, you mightnot always end up with the best
meal, but if you're willing totake that trade off, is that
kind of how you view it?
Kayla King (26:46):
Yeah.
I mean, if you wanna go to thatplace and you want to have a
little bit more of a spontaneouslife like I do, then those are
kind of just the things.
That you have to do.
And I think that there is fun inthat like, my problem solving
abilities have become betterbecause of my celiac disease.
Because I'm, you know,constantly put in these
(27:07):
situations where I have to bereally creative and figure out
like where my next meal iscoming from.
I just, I think it's anadventure, so,
Amanda Whitehouse, Ph (27:15):
Challenge each time.
Kayla King (27:17):
yeah.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (27:17):
You're engaged, and now you have a
travel buddy, I hope.
Does he get to go with you?
Kayla King (27:21):
Yes, I do have a travel buddy.
Um, yes, my fiance is wonderful.
We have a dedicated gluten-freehome now, but we definitely
didn't always.
and we do talk about thissometimes'cause we do hear from
other people that they strugglewith dating when they have
celiac.
was really never something Iever struggled with.
(27:43):
And I think a reason for thatwas because I always like owned
my celiac.
Like even before I startedposting about it online, like if
somebody met me, like a, if Iwas dating somebody, I would
just be like, yeah, this is justwho I am.
I have it.
that's that.
And like I managed it, right?
Like I didn't push it on otherpeople.
(28:03):
Like I self-managed it.
I would go out to restaurants, Iwould talk, but like I was never
somebody that was embarrassedabout my celiac disease.
Um, and I think a lot of thatlike came from my parents.
Like my parents were just verylike.
Confident people like my mom's,like corporate America, like
don't mess with her.
She like, got the bestcommunication skills on the
(28:23):
planet.
And so I think from a young ageI saw that like behavior being
modeled.
And so it was never a big deal.
It was always just like, oh,this is part of who I am, this
is what I have.
And so going into that, whenyou're dating somebody, it's
like immediately from the momentthat you meet them, like they
know that about you.
And so it's not like a barrier.
(28:43):
Like if somebody, if I were toever enter into a dating
situation and like I brought upmy celiac and then they had any
like bad reaction to it, I wouldbe like, Like, your problem?
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (28:59):
Mm-hmm.
Kayla King (29:00):
We, we cannot be friends then, you know, like if
you're gonna have a problem withme.
So I just, I think like settingyour boundaries really early
kind of helps with those things.
Um, where I see it go haywire asif like, you're embarrassed
about your celiac disease, youdon't wanna talk about it, you
don't set those boundaries, thenobviously people will, you know,
it opens up the door for them towalk all over you.
So, um.
(29:22):
think that's like where thatconfidence piece comes in.
But yeah, when I met Josh it waskind of just like, oh, this is a
thing.
And also at the time when I metJosh, like I was bodybuilding
and so because I wasbodybuilding the psycho ness of
my diet around bodybuilding,like overweighed anything
related to my celiac
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (29:42):
It was more about that than celiac.
Kayla King (29:44):
Oh yeah.
Like I went to a family holidaywith like his entire family the
second week that we were dating,like all extended family.
And I had to like bring my ownfood in like a container.
And they were, they were so niceabout it, but it was like I
wasn't bringing my own foodbecause of my celiac.
I was bringing it because of mybodybuilding.
So then like anything after thatrelated to Celiac, his family
(30:06):
was like, oh yeah, no problem.
So, um.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (30:09):
That seems way less extreme
Kayla King (30:10):
Yeah, bodybuilding was definitely more extreme.
Yeah, so I think like just fromthe beginning.
was always like veryunderstanding of it.
And then obviously it became abig part of my life as I started
posting about it online andbeing a content creator.
And so then like all of myfriends just kind of started
knowing me as the gluten-freechick and everybody respected
it.
And anytime they had questionsor a friend with Celiac, they
(30:32):
would ask me about it.
Um, so I definitely feel luckyto like have a lot of support
and people who understand celiacdisease in my life.
Um, but I feel like, again, itstems from like that don't be
ashamed of your disease.
There's nothing to be ashamedof.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (30:45):
Right.
For people who are strugglingwith that, what do you think is
helpful for people to workthrough it especially like those
teenage years I feel like arerough for a lot of people.
Kayla King (30:54):
Yeah.
Yeah.
I mean, I think that like as aparent, if you have a child with
celiac disease, like modelingthat behavior is really
important.
I always say like if you make ita big deal, your child is going
to think it's a big deal.
So like.
I see all of the times, like, Iknow it comes from a good place
(31:14):
of like parents being reallyworried, where they like go into
a restaurant and they're reallyterrified that the, their
child's gonna get sick or like.
They find a product in thegrocery store and they're not
sure if it's safe.
And so they're really nervous,but it's like kids pick up on
that energy.
so now that's gonna be theirperception where they're gonna
be like, oh, when I go into arestaurant, I get nervous.
(31:35):
Um, because they kids like, see,and they model off of their
parents so similarly, like mymom would go into a restaurant
that I couldn't really eat at,and she would like pull the
manager out.
Be like, okay, here's what we'regonna do.
You're gonna take a pan, you aregonna put the chicken in the
pan, you are gonna put salt andpepper on it, you're gonna bake
(31:56):
a baked potato in the oven on aclean thing.
And the manager was like, okay,ma'am, I got you.
I'll go do it.
I'll do it myself right now.
And so I saw that behavior beingmodeled and I was like, okay,
mom.
Like go off.
And then that was now thebehavior that I modeled because
I saw her do it.
I saw how confident she was.
She wasn't caring about how theperson thought of her.
(32:18):
And so I was like, okay, likethat's the behavior that I'm
going to model now for the restof my life.
So,
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (32:24):
Yeah.
She wasn't apologetic about it.
She was confident.
She knew what needed to be doneand she was willing to
communicate it to them.
Kayla King (32:30):
yeah, so I
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (32:31):
Awesome.
Kayla King (32:31):
the, for a child at least, like modeling behavior is
like.
One of the most important thingsyou can do as a parent, which I
know is like really hard ifyou're a people pleaser or like
you're nervous yourself.
Um, so I know that candefinitely be like a really big
challenge if that's like not apart of your personality, but
you know, it does make a bigdifference.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (32:53):
What you just described as a great
reason.
Like get yourself some supportor some therapy if you know that
that's something that youstruggle with for your child.
Kayla King (33:00):
Yeah, absolutely.
And I think, like I went totherapy for binge eating
disorder, but I really think ithelped with my celiac as well.
Like I'm a big proponent oflike, if you can afford therapy,
definitely do it.
I think it's so unbelievablyhelpful.
Um, it helps you like discoverthings about yourself and really
just like build that confidenceback up.
(33:21):
Um.
Especially if you like find apsychologist that like is a
little bit more action oriented,like that's the type of
psychologist that I to workwith.
Um, and I think can be helpfulfor celiac disease.
And I mean that's like the wholereason we're here in what you do
and um, like finding somebodythat does specialize in celiac
and understands it, I think islike really rare to find and
(33:43):
super helpful.
But, um, yeah, I definitelyrecommend therapy.
And then I also think likestrategies of just like.
Looking at yourself in themirror and like practicing can
help.
Like if you are more of a timidperson and you don't like
conflict, like literally roleplay with yourself in the
mirror.
Like, it's the same thing forlike practicing the skill of
(34:06):
like how to talk on camera.
Like people who are scared totalk on camera and like sit at
home and talk to your camera andthen you don't have to post it,
you don't have to do anythingwith it.
But it's like it's a skill thatyou have to learn.
Not everybody is just like bornnaturally with it.
I learned it by my, my parentsmodeling it.
But if you don't have yourparent to model it, then you
(34:27):
have to, you know, flex thatskill yourself and practice it
in the mirror.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (34:31):
Yeah, absolutely.
Just a, just a muscle that needsto be exercised and, and
practiced over and over until itbecomes more automatic.
Kayla King (34:38):
Yeah, it's not supposed to feel comfortable at
first, so.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (34:43):
So what else do you do now?
I mean, you're, you're in such agood spot, obviously not, not
struggling with those issuesanymore.
How do you maintain good mentalhealth?
Kayla King (34:52):
I definitely like try to prioritize good
nutrition.
I mean, I am at the end of theday, like I did.
Go to school for nutrition.
I'm a nutrition coach, so like Ireally value like whole foods
and making sure that you havefood to nourish your body.
I think a lot of, um, peoplewhen they get diagnosed, they
have a tendency to go towardscertified gluten-free products.
(35:15):
Um.
Which really doesn't help with,uh, just like general nutrition
because a lot of Whole Foods arenot gonna be certified
gluten-free.
They're not out of a box.
Um, and so I think there's this.
Fear that like, oh, is chickengluten-free or is apple's
gluten-free?
(35:36):
and I hear that all the time,but it's like, yes, like most
whole foods are gonna begluten-free.
It doesn't matter if the cow waslike fed wheat.
It doesn't, doesn't work likethat.
It doesn't go that far back.
Um, and so definitely likeprioritizing those whole foods
and really educating yourself tounderstand like.
That those foods are safe, um,and you can feel comfortable
eating them, I think isimportant.
(35:57):
So, um, that's one thing I do.
I also like prioritize workingout.
Um, I'm a big, like move inwhatever way you can kind of
gal.
Um, I think all fitness is greatfitness, walking, hiking,
biking, sitting on the floor anddoing leg lifts.
Like there are so many ways todo movement that aren't.
(36:21):
Intense.
Um, and I think especially ifyou have an autoimmune disease
or you're still recovering, itcan be hard to include movement.
And so understanding that likeyou don't have to go be a
bodybuilder.
Like you don't have to go likelift intense weights.
Like if you're bloated, youdon't feel good.
Like you could do an, at like areally easy at home work
workout.
Um, you could go on a walk, youcan um, you know, do a casual
(36:44):
bike ride with a friend.
Like there are other ways to getmovement in besides just like.
Doing something really likeintense.
Um, and then other things I dois like if I'm having really
hard time with mental health,I'll like journal when I can.
I'd like to journal more than Ido.
I think like getting words outon paper at least for me can be
(37:04):
really helpful.
Um, and then, yeah, like gettingas much sun as possible, like
getting outside.
I think there are likeramifications that I put on
myself with social media wherelike.
I have an app that like blocksme from social media.
My screen time used to be likeridiculous, like 12 hours a day.
Now I've gotten it down to likefive hours a day, which I'm
really proud of.
(37:25):
Um,
Amanda Whitehouse, P (37:26):
Especially when that's your job, that's
impressive that you can.
Kayla King (37:29):
yeah, so I mean, I'm constantly trying to like help
my, help myself, but I thinklike mental health again is
like, it's a practice.
Like I put so much energy intomy mental health.
Almost more energy than likeanything else I do.
Um,'cause I think it's reallyimportant, but it's not
(37:49):
something I'm, I'm just like,wake up happy.
Like,
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (37:53):
Right,
Kayla King (37:53):
to like, put in work and you have to like build
habits and routines, um, inorder to like get to that point
where you feel comfortable.
And then even then you're gonnahave up and downs and, you know,
that's normal.
So.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (38:05):
right, right.
Oh, that's really helpful.
Thank you so much for sharingall that so clearly.
Kayla King (38:10):
The most important thing is it's like a constant,
like you have to like havehabits
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (38:15):
Yeah,
Kayla King (38:15):
takes time to build and it's never like, it gets
easier, but it's never justlike, you don't just like exist
in a, you know, good mentalhealth state.
I think for most people it'svery normal to.
Have to like, you know,continually have it be something
that you work on.
Amanda Whitehouse, (38:32):
absolutely.
So what else do you wanteverybody to know before we wrap
up?
This was such a good chat.
Kayla King (38:37):
Yeah.
If you wanna stay tuned with allthe stuff that I'm doing, my
Instagram page will kind of staythe true source of everything
that I do.
And, um, yeah, would love if youfollowed there and became a part
of my community.
So.
Amanda Whitehouse, PhD (38:51):
Awesome.
Well thanks for all you sharethere.
I think you're spreading a lotof really good information and
positivity and we all appreciateit.
Kayla King (38:57):
Yeah.
Thank you so much.
As always, I wanna leave youwith three action steps that you
can take away from today'sconversation.
Number one.
Find Kayla if you don't alreadyfollow her.
Celiac with Kayla is her handleeverywhere.
It's so powerful and validatingto see someone living with the
same things and talking aboutthe same challenges that you're
managing in your own life.
It helps us to develop a senseof community and find connection
(39:20):
and support.
Number two, if it's apossibility for you, you could
consider coming to meet Kaylaand me.
We will both be at the FAACTconference in Oakbrook,
Illinois, October 2nd throughfifth.
I'm not being paid, it's not anadvertisement.
It's just a great organizationwhere you can really find
support in community.
And their website is foodallergy awareness.org, and
you'll find the informationabout the summit there.
(39:40):
Kayla will be speaking there andfor those of you who are
professionals in related fields,there are continuing education
credits available.
And then I will be speaking atthe Wicked Gluten-Free Expo in
Fitchburg, Massachusetts onSeptember 20th.
Their website is wickedgluten-free dot com and this is
in 2025.
So if you missed this and thoseevents are over, follow both of
(40:01):
those organizations to find outabout whatever events they have
coming up at the time that youcatch the episode.
And last if you are.
Experiencing your owndifficulties with eating, or if
you're a parent raising a childwith Celiac and you're noticing
concerns or complicated feelingsabout food, remember that they
are not personal failings.
They are a response to livingwith invisible or stigmatized
(40:23):
medical needs And to having toso closely and carefully monitor
what we consume and whether it'ssafe.
If you have any concernwhatsoever, please talk to your
provider.
Seek support and resources inyour area.
The sooner you do that, thebetter chance of keeping things
healthier, both mentally and inyour diet.
Thanks again to Kayla King forher openness and sharing her
life experiences with us today.
(40:44):
And thank you for listening.
If this episode resonated withyou or you find the podcast
helpful, please consider givingme a rating or leaving a review
and sharing it with somebody whomight also need to hear it.
the content of this podcast isfor informational and
educational purposes only, andis not a substitute for
professional medical or mentalhealth advice, diagnosis, or
(41:04):
treatment.
If you have any questions aboutyour own medical experience or
mental health needs, pleaseconsult a professional.
I'm Dr.
Amanda Whitehouse.
Thanks for joining me.
And until we chat again,remember don't feed the fear.
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