I can't believe that I have to carry one of these around with me wherever I go now. Yes...one of my children has a peanut allergy. Poor Topher had a really bad reaction to a peanut butter and jelly sandwich a couple of weeks ago. I gave him the sandwich and within 5 minutes he had hives all over his face. They started moving to his arms and then his eyes started to swell shut. After giving him benedryl I ran him to the ER and they kept him there until he looked better. They told me to follow up his pediatrician. The Dr. ended up calling me at home and calling in a percription for 2 EpiPens. He told me to avoid all food with peanuts in them and foods processed in the same place as other peanut products. He says to be really strict with him for 2 years and there may be a possibility that it may go away when he's older. I'm keeping my fingers crossed. Does anybody have any advice or suggestions for me?Wednesday, May 20, 2009
I Can't Believe It
I can't believe that I have to carry one of these around with me wherever I go now. Yes...one of my children has a peanut allergy. Poor Topher had a really bad reaction to a peanut butter and jelly sandwich a couple of weeks ago. I gave him the sandwich and within 5 minutes he had hives all over his face. They started moving to his arms and then his eyes started to swell shut. After giving him benedryl I ran him to the ER and they kept him there until he looked better. They told me to follow up his pediatrician. The Dr. ended up calling me at home and calling in a percription for 2 EpiPens. He told me to avoid all food with peanuts in them and foods processed in the same place as other peanut products. He says to be really strict with him for 2 years and there may be a possibility that it may go away when he's older. I'm keeping my fingers crossed. Does anybody have any advice or suggestions for me?
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16 comments:
Oh my!
I don't know if you know Heather Eilertsen (sp?), but she has a son with severe peanut and other sever food allergies. She knows a lot, and actually has a cooking blog with recipes geared toward avoiding her son's allergies. If you don't have her contact info, email me and I'll give you her email. I'm sure she'd love to help.
I also have a good friend here who has a son with a REALLY severe peanut allergy (he's 10 or so now, so they've got a lot of experience with it by now), and I could give you her email (or email her for you) if you want it.
Oh, here's the link to the cooking blog for food allergies.
Bummer! My nephew Dylan is allergic to peanuts too. Now that we've learned to deal with it it's not a big deal. The biggest thing is being sure EVERYONE knows. Primary teachers, babysitters and especially siblings. It's easy to forget at first. Now he's 3 and he tells everyone he meets that he can't have nuts. It's actually kinda cute. Good luck!
Yup...eat those peanut butter cups in the closet now! heehee. I am glad that everything is okay and that there is a chance little T will be able to enjoy peanut butter in a couple years (I bet you he will!)...but if not, that's a-okay too! There's so much good stuff to eat, he won't miss a thing. Speaking of good stuff to snack on...I just want bite Toph's cheeks ten times each!!!
What the heck?! Poor Topher:( I wish I had advice but I do not. Keep us posted on how he is. We miss you!!!
I can't believe it either! That stinks! No more peanut M & M's I guess huh! I sure hope he grows out of it, and more so that you never have to use that pen...poor Toph! Poor you, thats stressful to always have an extra eye on whats around!
Ahh man that's scary! I'm glad he's okay...I hope it goes away!
Epi Pens are great when you need them and hopefully you won't (I always carried one when I was a teacher.) Sometimes they grow our of it, sometimes not. Jane is in the Peanut-Free class this year and it doesn't seem any different at all. You'll just have to be careful come nursery too.
Oh no!!! poor little guy. I was going to sugest Heather but celia did so definatly talk to her! i'm so sad for him and you! hope he grows out of it!!
That is scary, glad that everything turned out okay.
I have a friend who's little girl has peanut allergies. The biggest thing she said is to make sure people are AWARE and CHECK the labels on everything. Peanuts are 'processed' on a TON of things that you wouldn't suspect; rolls, granola bars, etc...
I'm sure all will be fine...
Vanessa~
Wow! That is no fun to have to go through that! You are a wonder mom! Good luck and let us know how he is doing! Poor topher!
Miss you and love ya!
Kristen
My family was just talking about this very subject the other day. How frustrating for you! I hope he does outgrow it. My oldest had a reation when she was 18 mo., and thankfully, she's fine now. I'll keep my fingers crossed for you!
Celia told me about Topher's allergy and gave me a link to your blog.
First of all, I'm sorry you have to deal with this. To be totally honest with you, it sucks! I'm glad it's only peanuts, b/c most people (schools/drs) understand peanut allergies. Just to warn you, there is a possibility of cross-reaction (meaning if he's allergic to one he could have a reaction by eating the other)between peanuts and tree nuts, so you'll probably have to avoid nuts too.
I remember when we actually had the diagnosis from the allergist I was in total shock. We went to the grocery store and started looking at labels and just wondered what we were going to do. I just started crying in the isle. It does get better,though. Reality sinks in pretty quickly. Then, you just learn to deal with it.
I have 4 epi-pens. I carry 2 with me at all times and leave 2 at home. They are supposed to be kept at controlled room temp, and since it gets so hot in Mesa we keep one set at home so it's not exposed to extreme temps.
The best advice I ever received was from the 1st allergist that we saw. He told us to remove all the foods with allergens from our house-to have everyone on the same diet. This helps to prevent accidental exposure to the allergen (ie big brother/sister wants to help feed baby brother and shares their pb&j with him, or forgetting to read a label before feeding him, or accidentally use the same knife for the peanut butter and the jelly). It also helps with the jealousy issue when he is older. My son always wants to eat what everyone else is eating, even if he knows it will make him 'sick'.
Now, will he actually grow out of it-maybe, maybe not. I know more people that do not grow out of their peanut allergy than those that do. Those that do are actually very lucky! Peanut is usually a life-long allergy. Despite having no exposure to peanuts in the last 4 years, my son's peanut reaction keeps getting worse. Thankfully he has never ingested peanuts-he only had them put to his lips before he started screaming and refused the pb&j. Get him tested at an allergist's office every year to see how his IgE levels change. If they start to decrease, it usually means he'll outgrow his allergy. I was told that by 5 years old, they usually grow out of the allergy if they are going to. My son was about 4 when he started outgrowing some of his allergies. Now that he is almost 5, he has grown out of most of his allergies (except for the nuts, peanuts, and eggs).
There is a peanut butter alternative that we absolutely love. It is called sunbutter. It is made from sunflower seeds. You can buy it at http://www.sunbutter.com/ or if you want to buy it locally, there is a link to see what stores carry their products. http://www.sunbutter.com/landingpage_usstorefinder.php
I would not try any of the other peanut butter alternatives, like the I.M.Healthy soynutbutter. We have tried them all and they are all nasty!
I know someone else already mentioned this, but make sure you tell everyone about his allergy. Even if you have told them before, tell them again. Never leave him with anyone unless they understand that he absolutely cannot have any peanuts! Nursery is an issue. I always read every label before dropping my son off and most times I would actually sit in there while they were having snack time, just in case something happened. Have an emergency action plan posted in nursery telling the teachers what to do if there is a reaction and always leave the epipen and benadryl with him. Now that my son is actually in a primary class, we have a sign posted on his classroom door that asks everyone (including other wards) to not bring food into his classroom.
My comment was too long, it wouldn't take it in one, so here is the rest.
If he still has his allergy when he starts school, you will need to get a 504 plan. Food allergies fall under the Americans with Disabilities Act and the schools are required to make accommodations for his disability so that he can learn in a safe environment. This usually entails having a peanut-free classroom and a peanut-free lunch table.
I can't think of any other advice right now, but if you have any questions or need to vent, you can always email me at ryantaylor1956 at juno dot com or comment on my cooking blog (I think Celia already gave you the link).
Good luck. Read all labels. Be sure to laugh your frustrations away. And be sure to hug him often!
Oh, another thing I forgot is that when you eat out, always ask to read ingredient labels of everything. Even if it has been safe in the past, they can change ingredients at any time, so ask every time! One time a restaurant said everything was safe so we were getting ready to order, but I asked to read the ingredients and found out there was a cross-contamination issue. Many times people don't know how to read ingredient labels, so it is necessary to do it yourself.
My friend has a 3 year old that has a peanut allergy and boy is it a pain. Every restaurant we go to she has to ask whether the food is prepared with any peanut oil or near anything with peanuts.
She also said that you really have to push that epi pen with some force in order for it to release the medicine.
I'm sorry to hear that.
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