Gluten free frustration

I was talking today on a support board for low carbers about how difficult it is to be assertive and wondering why it is such a challenge for me. Many things came up that really only confirmed to me why it is difficult; that asking what is being served at someone's house is being "high maintenance", that such a request could lead to not being invited back. The one that wounded me most was made by a friend who is a nurse. It was, basically, that Celiac Disease is nothing like Diabetes in that it is "only" some "gas and diarrhea". Seriously? A NURSE said that? Now, I am new to the whole Celiac thing, so I am just getting used to how people perceive us. Frankly, I find it discouraging. First of all, I have a disease. This disease caused my thyroid to stop functioning, my joints to swell and a host of other things. If she doesn't thing Celiac Disease is serious enough, would thyroid cancer do it? Because I am now, thanks to having Hashimoto's Disease, at higher risk for thyroid cancer. Oooh, what about cancer in the bowels, because unmanaged Celiac Disease puts us at higher risk for that too. I guess the possibility of Cardiomyopathy and a host of other inflammation related issues are just not that serious. This conversation lead me to finally start a blog. I hope that I will find a support board out there for people with Celiac disease. One where I am not allowed to make excuses or feel sorry for myself, but where I also am allowed to be honest about the difficulties I face on a daily basis with autoimmune issues. Is that too much to hope for?