Gluten in the Working World

This weekend was the first that I have worked since starting to eat gluten free (GF). My usual shift is 6am to 2pm so usually eating really isn't that bad, if I eat right before I go to work and then have something at work for my lunch. However, I was also working the 10am to 2pm shift which threw a wrench into my normal routine. Because I was awake a good bit before even going to work there was a span of time between eating and getting to work that usually isn't there. And the shift spans over lunch and dinner creating more reasons for me to feel hungry and want / need to eat.
Having worked at my current job for all but three years I have fallen into a routine. I have foods that I will eat if I need breakfast, as well as foods for throughout the day. Most of these foods are not GF. Of the 10 or so foods that we usually make, only two are GF. And these foods are chosen because I don't have to pay for them. The need to eat GF then creates an issue where I would need to buy everything that I want to eat. Thus in an attempt to not buy excess amounts of food packing and bringing snacks is in order.
Friday night Kate made spaghetti with the tomato sauce that she made, which I love. She made a point to make extra so that I could take it with me to work on Saturday. We also had supplies for sandwiches. Walking into work on Saturday my arms were full with options. I had coffee as well as carbonated water. Due to its effects on my stomach I can no longer drink either the coffee or from the soda fountain anymore. Food wise I had a sandwich and leftover sushi. On top of this I had an early riser which was the one thing that I ate that I did not bring with me. An early riser is essentially a hash brown or potato cake that also has bacon and egg. Since I have started eating GF I have noticed that I am hungrier quicker and eat more sporadically, so I knew that I would have to take multiple things if I did not want to purchase anything. Sunday I ended up bringing coffee, spaghetti, and leftovers from the night before, the chicken from our dining out experience. My only purchase was an air head which I ate cause I felt the need for some sugar and I also had another early riser.
It turns out that my coworkers are very nice about eating GF. One of my coworkers even eats GF herself so it was good to talk to her. She recommended Gluten Free Mall's website which has been very interesting (http://www.glutenfreemall.com/). The gentleman that I was working with Sunday joked about getting rid of my temptations as he threw out one of the foods that I would previously always eat when it was available (tornado). My justification for this particular item is that I should not be eating this food anyway. My body has set a limit of only one tornado at a time, if I eat anymore my stomach bloats and hurts which is very uncomfortable having to stand on my feet for a few more hours and having the need to move around constantly.
Overall, I think that this weekend was a success. And, I think that having the need to bring things for two days in a row was a good thing. Shortly, I will be working full time so I will be working for many days in a row so practicing it now is definitely a good thing. While I may have wanted to eat some of the food that are not GF I did not miss them and succumb to eating them. Hopefully this attitude will continue.

~ Brooke