From Inmates to Playdates

I have dramatic tendencies. 

I’ll give you a second to process that.

Because of that I might be just a tad bit overprotective of my children. (ahem!)

That whole overprotectiveness thing got much worse after we found out that Alex had food allergies just after his first birthday.

While trying to keep our little fella quiet during a church Christmas play we gave him five small Ritz-Bitz Crackers filled with peanut butter. We needed something to keep him quiet occupied during the hour-long play.
 
After the play, the children enjoyed hot chocolate and cookies in the fellowship hall. While the other children were piling their plates with cookies Alex hurled.

It wasn’t the whole spit up thing that one year olds often do. I mean he straight up hurled. Again, again, again and again.
 
As you can probably guess this dramatic mama does not get along well with straight-up hurling.

Knowing for sure that he had some type of super-strain-stomach-virus that would land him in the hospital, I was on edge during the ride home, silently praying to God that he wouldn’t throw up again until we arrived at home. There’s nothing that I can think of right off much worse than your kid throwing up while he’s strapped into his Government Approved Straight Jacket in the back seat.
 
After a seemingly endless drive home, we finally made it home. I bathed him and changed his clothes just in time for him to throw up again.

[Repeat last two steps]
 
And then? He was done.
 
The next day, it occurred to me that we had never given him peanut butter before that day. I immediately phoned a friend of ours whose son has a peanut allergy and I questioned her about the peanut reaction. After hearing about his straight-up hurling, she suggested that we visit his pediatrician for a blood test.

The next day, I made a call to the pediatrician (I’m probably on her biggest aggravation list). She ordered a blood test and just as we suspected, he had a peanut allergy.

The pediatrician sent us to an allergist for further testing.

That was such a treat.

Imagine trying to extract blood from a bumble bee. Alex was flippin’ and floppin’ and it was all I could do to contain him and his 25 pounds. The blood work took a sweet forever. Finally, it was over and we were sent home. The very next day the allergist called to let us know that he did in fact have a peanut allergy.

And a tree nut allergy.

And an egg allergy.

And a soy allergy.

[Remember, I said Dramatic mama]

The allergist sent us home with 2 Epipens and an instructional DVD so that we could learn how to properly use the sucker in the case of accidental ingestion, and subsequent anaphylactic shock. [Anaphylaxis is a severe allergic reaction typically marked by swelling of the throat or tongue, hives, and trouble breathing.]
 
Not knowing there was a difference between nuts, I contacted Google dot com about the subject. I found all kinds of resources, tips, suggestions, sites and horror stories. I was overwhelmed by the seriousness of a food allergy.
 
Accidental ingestion, anaphylactic shock….. if that doesn’t sound dramatic, I don’t know what does. 
 
The EpiPen contains a spring-loaded needle that shoots through a membrane in the tip and into the recipient’s body to deliver the medication quickly.  “EPI” is short for epinephrine—and epinephrine is an emergency treatment for severe allergic reactions. Fortunately, we’ve never had to use the pen, but it’s kind of like our American Express… we never leave home without it.

For two years we have faithfully carried that thing across state lines and most recently it made a trip to Cuba. We have to be very careful when we are visiting friends who may not know that he has food allergies. I’m sure that once he starts pre-school in the fall, it might be a little tougher to manage. Still I am thankful we have never had to use the thing.

Because…..

Alex + Possible Anaphylactic shock + Epipen = 1 Dramatic Nut-Case Mama

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