Food allergy- DAIRY ALLERGY & LACTOSE INTOLERANCE; Peanut;soy,wheat & gluten allergy; Allergy vs. Anaphylaxis vs. Intolerance; Asthma (including cough variant & exercise induced); many related areas of allergy and sensitivity (products, skin, mold, dust, seasonal allergies, pets, etc.). I have a basic knowledge of Sprue, Celiac, Crohn’s and other illnesses that show similar symptoms to food allergies.

Safer home product use for 'sensitive' children and adults including some site information for products/sites we use in our household

Schools: I have worked with our local school district to incorporate my daughters severe dairy allergy into her daily life at school (she became allergic at age 9). We also set up programs to deal with her severe anxiety after prolonged illness following the sudden onset of this allergy. School district has a 504 plan in place to cover her food/allergy/etc. needs. District is very progressive with allergies and they have been great about working with us from the principal, the school psychologist, the cafeteria, teachers and school nurse!

Household: Can offer support/suggestions for allergy proofing in the house; finding the best doctors; reducing cleaning product use for ‘sensitive’ children and adults; Epi-Pen’s; Rotation diets; typical allergy medications; and/or nontraditional medical care

I can give SUPPORT when you are frustrated and frazzled. Believe me; I’ve been there in the last two years. Many times I’ve left a shopping cart parked and gone out to sit in the grocery store parking lot crying because the label reading was so overwhelming before going back inside to read MORE labels so my daughter had food to eat. It’s been a painful journey, made more difficult because she was an ultra-picky eater before she got sick! Sharing my experience makes the pain a little more bearable now that we’re functional again.

Experience

Experience:

Myself: I have fibromyalgia, lactose intolerance and multiple food and seasonal allergies. I am allergic to many medications including analgesics and most antibiotics. I have been through major brain surgery, a pulmonary embolism and most recently a serious collapse with metabolic acidosis (cause by undiagnosed and untreated lactose intolerance)

I have been full time caregiver for my 10 year old who became horribly sick 18 months ago with a severe dairy allergy. Feeding her is still a full time job. There were so many issues that came with her sudden onset allergy from missing 1/2 year of school to severe anxiety problems to lack of understanding from people around us. Feeding her has been a full time career. I had to redo our kitchen and learn new ways to cook and store foods. I also had to teach her to read labels, shop and care for herself so she can be independent and feel secure about eating without getting sick. I’ve had to stand up for her when I knew I was right so we could get what she needed(be her strong advocate).

Other family: My son has cough-variant, exercise induced asthma that he has mostly outgrown by late teens. He has sensitive skin. My daughter has ‘sensitive everything’ in addition to the dairy allergy so we have to watch household chemicals, food additives, bug killers, etc. My husband has been treated for Hepatitis C and virus free for almost 10 years. My husband and my son have significant ADHD symptoms (diagnosed and are being treated) and I’ve worked hard at home and with school to use behavior modification with my son with outstanding results.

Extended family: Most of my family suffers with severe allergies ranging from seasonal allergies, pet allergies, dust, etc. to dairy and some very strange food allergies (my nephew is allergic to fresh fruits and veggies but cooked are ok). My niece has severe Crohn’s disease. My mother and brother have food allergies and both are allergic to Benedryl.

Other experience: My best friend has a life threatening anaphylaxis reaction to shellfish - even a whiff of steam blowing past can close her throat right up. We've spoken many times about the difficulties she faces.