Cashew allergies can be as dangerous as peanut allergies, I found out shortly after the incident. Now, I always have to carry around 2 epi-pens in case she accidentally eats something she's not supposed to. She's lucky in that she needs pretty direct contact with the allergen to have a reaction. She's also great about generally checking to be sure something is safe before eating it. She didn't even eat the cookies offered at camp because she was afraid they'd have nuts in them! I made sure to give her a yummy cookie when I'd pick her up so she wouldn't feel totally deprived. I'm really proud how good she is about managing her allergy, for the most part.
She went almost 3 years without a reaction. Unfortunately, she did have an allergic reaction this past Sunday. We went to get frozen yogurt as her treat for going through the week without any tantrums. Thank goodness she didn't pile on a gazillion toppings onto her yogurt! She just had strawberry banana yogurt with fresh strawberries and M&Ms added as toppings. After she was done eating, we realized she had swelling under one of her eyes. We didn't even think it was an allergic reaction at first. But after we got home, her eye was itching badly and she tried to wipe a wet washcloth on it for relief. I then noticed hives breaking out on her face. Overall, however, the reaction didn't seem as bad as the one 3 years ago. So, instead of using the epi-pen, I gave her some Benadryl. It worked immediately, and she felt better.
Since Sunday, we've been giving her all the foods she had at the frozen yogurt place to be sure she didn't develop a new food allergy. She passed the strawberry, M&M, banana, and strawberry banana yogurt tests with flying colors. I have to assume there was some cross-contamination with tree nuts. Thank goodness the reaction was so mild!
I guess we got kind of cocky about the allergy. I encourage anyone who has a child with an allergy to remember to keep the epi-pens current. Also, make sure your Benadryl hasn't expired. Benadryl also makes pre-measured dosages that are easy to keep with the epi-pens. I bought some today. Previously, I just assumed I would have to use the epi-pen, but the reaction may not be severe, so the Benadryl sufficed!
As a side note, I have a lot of family visiting me this week, so it hasn't been easy getting to a computer. It's ironic, because they're giving me such great material to blog about!
I'm sorry she has to go through that. I'm glad though you didn't have to use the epi-pen, I get all woozy with my son's (bees). And YEA Benadryl, the wonder drug!
ReplyDeleteMy boyfriend's daughter has a nut allergy, and those frozen yogurt places where you add your own toppings always scare me. I guess I have reason to be concerned! Glad your daughter is ok and it was only a mild reaction.
ReplyDeleteHi I'm visiting from SITS tonight. I sure don't envy you having to deal with an allergy to nuts. I believe that has to be one of the hardest ones. I've seen the scoopers at those yogurt places and the cross-contamination can be pretty easy. I'm glad you were able to treat it quickly. Good luck and hang in there.
ReplyDeleteGreat advice Cheryl and I'm glad all she needed was Benadryl. But you bring up a good point about not becoming complacent and keeping those meds handy.
ReplyDeleteMake sure and save up that good material. I love laughing at someone else's family instead of only mine.
ReplyDeleteBenadryl has been often used at our house. We don't have severe allergies but enough that an occasional dose saves a lot of pain and suffering. My mother-in-law said you used to have to go to the hospital to get it, before it was over-the-counter. Just one more reason I'm glad I was born when I was.
I am so glad your daughter was fine. Way to be on top of things.
Visiting from 31DBBB. What a great message with this post. I work with DayCare Centers and it always amazes how complacent some parents are with their children's allergies. We send home an expired epi-pen and they don't bring in another until we tell them their child can't return with out. We call them to tell them that their child may have been exposed and they say or well just keep an eye on her. I do think that the lack of episodes make parents forget how important it is to be prepared.
ReplyDeleteI know EXACTLY what you went through. My son has a sever nut allergy and it's Epi-Pen city here with the Benadryl as well.
ReplyDeleteIt stinks, I have to read every label and he sits at the "allergy" table at school - I'm hoping someday he'll outgrow it.
look forward to reading your future posts since family is giving you a lot of things to blog about. I have never had any experience with food allergy but it must be freaky.
ReplyDeleteWow, that's scary. I developed an allergy to penicillin a couple of years ago - I went from being fine with it, to going into anaphylactic shock!
ReplyDeleteI also can't have epi-pens, because adrenalin causes a seperate reaction in me! So I use piriton to control my allergies!
I'm hoping Chipmunk doesn't develop anything like that. It's so great that your daughter is able to manage her allergy so well, a lot of kids would not be so good at that :)
I'm sure that there was cross-contamination with the toppings...I'm always dubious of those and we don't even have allergy issues. Everything is in such close contact and scattered everywhere as they go to scoop them out....I'm always thinking how hard it must be for those with nut allergies and happy that we don't have them. Way to be vigilant as always!
ReplyDeleteDoes she just have cashew allergy? because m&ms can contain peanuts (I'm talking about the plain ones) so my son can never ever have them. Allergic reactions are terrifying. Glad benadryl did the trick. Also, toppings are tough because of cross-contamination issues.
ReplyDeleteThose allergies scare me to death. I am very impressed with her turning down a cookie! Smart girl.
ReplyDeleteYour story mirrors my sons - peanut allergy here. I too had gotten "cocky" since he hadn't had another reaction since he was 3 (now almost 8). Well, a few weeks ago, he ate a sugar cookie at my husband's office - must have been baked with peanut butter cookies. I felt so horrible for him because he is so good, but Daddy said OK (he felt horrible too, but I'm afraid he isn't as paranoid as me :-) One ER visit later and all is fine.
ReplyDeleteWe were scheduled to fly that next week and I was thinking I would leave the Epi behind just not to bother with the airport screening - NOT a problem by the way - but that little incident taught me the same - keep the Epi and Benedryl handy and up to date! You never know. Darn it.
So glad things worked out well in the end for your daughter. Food allergies are the pits.
my oldest has/had nut allergies. throat swelling, epi pens, whole nine yards. she was 1 when she had her first reaction and we went to er due to breathing difficulty...i recently let her have a bit of something with nuts and she was fine. i think she outgrew it. she's 12 now.
ReplyDeleteI'm so scared of this that I haven't let my 2 year old go anywhere near nuts or nut products. Good for you for staying on top of the epi pen and meds just in case. I know, isn't it heartbreaking when you tried to treat your daughter only to have her get a reaction? I'm sure you made it up to her!
ReplyDeleteStopping by from SITS... have a great day!
Wow, that's some pretty scary stuff! You sound like you handle things really calmly, and that is such a good thing! Great post!
ReplyDeleteNuts and family ...they can be similar they both are nutty! Blogs are great therapy for the post family visits. I am glad you posted about keeping Benadryl b/c till a fellow mom with allergies told me about it I had never thought of it and only kept the epi pen for my daughter. I hadn’t thought of a mild reaction. now I carry both!
ReplyDeleteThat is scary stuff! Thank God we don't deal with nut allergies in our house. Lactose intolerance, an allergy to pineapple, and gluten issues are it.
ReplyDeleteSo glad to hear your daughter's doing well. Peace. ;)
Michelle @ greenearthbazaar.com