Joanne Szrok and showing up gluten free!

Behind every strong community is someone who once felt alone.

For this month’s Allergy Spotlight, we are honoured to share the story of Joanne Szrok — a passionate advocate, community builder and a powerful voice within the coeliac world. What began as a quiet, private way of managing a diagnosis has grown into something that creates belonging for hundreds of people. Through fayres, meet-ups, volunteering and online support, Joanne has helped transform gluten free living from an isolating experience into one rooted in connection, warmth and visibility.

In this conversation, she reflects on the moment everything changed, the importance of safe spaces, and how coeliac disease reshaped not only her life, but her sense of purpose.

Do you remember the moment you decided to move from managing coeliac disease privately to speaking about it publicly?

For many years (14.5yrs to be exact) I managed coeliac disease quietly. It was simply part of our family life – something we privately adapted to, without trying to make a fuss.

There was a moment when things unexpectedly became public. Something was said about coeliac disease and about the way our family handled it, and it sparked a much wider conversation than I ever imagined.

What struck me the most wasn’t any of the negativity – it was the overwhelming support from the coeliac community . Messages from strangers. People standing up for something they understood deeply.

In that moment, I realised two things.

Firstly, how misunderstood coeliac disease can still be.
And secondly, how powerful this community is when it comes together.

That was the shift for me.

I didn’t want to just receive support; I wanted to contribute to it. I wanted to bring warmth, education, and visibility to something that is often reduced to inconvenience or preference.

So, I started my Instagram page, I wanted to give something back to our amazing community.

That decision has shaped everything that has followed.

In those early days, what did you feel was missing for the coeliac community that you wanted to help create?

In the early days, I felt a lot of isolation.

There was information, but not always connection. I was so blessed to meet a friend locally via a Facebook group. That connection helped me massively, but not everyone has that opportunity.

I did attend a couple of local gluten free fayres, which at the time were incredible. They all stopped, I believe due to covid and they didn’t start again. I remember how included I felt, and having a room full of gluten free goodies felt like a haven. When I joined this community, and I heard about the Free From Festivals, I booked my ticket without hesitation. I met some of the most incredible friends and I felt so accepted.

I wanted to help create this warmth, to try and reach and help more people, help locals, and small businesses, who work so tirelessly to bring us incredible goodies.

That’s why I became a volunteer for Coeliac Uk, a member of the Wessex Coeliac group, an Ambassador for the Allergy and Free From show, and started organizing Fayres, quiz nights and bimonthly meet ups.

I wanted people to walk into a room and feel safe, included. Because living gluten free shouldn’t mean living small.

How did founding and hosting the Gluten Free Fayre change your own relationship with your own diagnosis?

Hosting the Gluten Free Fayre completely reframed my relationship with coeliac disease.

For years, my diagnosis felt like something I had to manage alone. But by advocating louder, it became something I could use for good.

It shifted my mindset from “why me?” to “how can I help others?”

Coeliac disease stopped being just a personal challenge and became a platform for inclusion and community. Which I feel so passionately about.

What has coeliac disease taught you about yourself that you may never have discovered otherwise?

Oh gosh, great question. It has taught me resilience in ways I didn’t expect. Don’t get me wrong, I still have ‘moments’ and ‘bad days’

But it has taught me to plan, to advocate, to speak up – not just for myself, but for others.

It’s taught me empathy. When you live with something invisible, you become much more aware that everyone is carrying something.

I am also very rich now, rich with support and friends, building a community is truly beautiful. I wouldn’t have chosen this path, but I am proud of the things I have accomplished so far in my journey.

Joanne’s story is a reminder that advocacy does not always begin with a plan — sometimes it begins with a single moment of being seen and supported.

What she has created goes far beyond events or online content. It is a feeling. A room where someone newly diagnosed can walk in and know they are not alone. A space where small gluten free businesses are celebrated. A community where people feel safe, understood and included.

Living gluten free should never mean living small — and through Joanne’s work, it doesn’t.

We are incredibly proud to shine a light on her journey this month and to celebrate the warmth, resilience and connection she continues to bring to the coeliac community every single day. 💛