Why Cracked Over Crackers?

About this time four years ago, I started getting sick almost every time I ate. I felt nauseous and my stomach would feel like someone was stabbing me. Obviously, this served as the most effective crash diet of my life; I dropped 20 pounds in around a month. With my mother's Crohn's Disease in mind, I was rushed off to the doctor, where I was poked, prodded, stuck and tubed within an inch of my sanity. Finally, around September, I was diagnosed with Celiac Sprue, an autoimmune disease that causes me to have highly unpleasant side effects any time I eat anything containing gluten, a compound found in wheat, barley, rye, and all sorts of other sneaky things. If I wanted to be able to eat without excruciating pain again, I was going to have to change my entire diet.
At that point, had it not been for a good friend, whose daughter had been living gluten-free for several years, I would have starved. I viewed every bite of food that went into my mouth with fear, and hadn't a clue what foods at the supermarket were safe and at the same time didn't taste like dirt. My friend was my providing angel. She gave me a big bag full of gluten-free food, complete with homemade goodies, and a book that detailed what I needed to know about going gluten-free.
I've now been gluten-free (conditionally) for three years and some change. I decided that I'd like to share what I've learned over the past couple years with others. So if you're interested, stick around!

A little side note: the reason why this blog is called "Cracked Over Crackers" is because of a breakdown I had early on in my gluten-free experience:
Me (out of nowhere, breaking into hysterical tears)
My mom: What's wrong sweetie?
Me (still crying hysterically): I'm so hungry! And all I want is a cracker that doesn't taste like a friggin ricecake!
My boyfriend (when hearing about this later): So you're telling me you cracked over crackers?