Welcome to my blog on dealing with a child with allergies

I am the mother of a five year wonderful girl named Morgan who has numerous food and environmental allergies. She is anaphylactic to eggs, nuts, peanuts and peas; her other food allergies include all dairy, soy, sesame, oats. In addition, she is allergic to almost all animals, dust, mold, latex, grass, most trees and the list goes on.  Morgan also has severe eczema which is a reaction to allergens. So far, she does not have asthma.

When we first discovered Morgan’s allergies, we didn’t even know where to go to begin learning about how to deal with them — physically and emotionally. Today, several years later, we know a lot more, but honestly we continue to learn all the time. I am starting this blog to create a space where I can share things I’ve learned as well as things I’ve felt dealing with a child with severe allergies and I hope others will share back. It’s amazing how much we as parents of children of allergies can learn from one another.

To start the first issue, I thought I would share a life altering moment for me. Back in November 2005, Morgan was in a bad spot physically. We thought we were managing her allergies well; we thought we were managing her eczema well. We had Morgan with great doctors –allergists, dermatologists, pediatricians, etc. But we couldn’t keep up – her skin was a mess, she (at the age of 4) still hadn’t slept through the night even 2 nights in a row, she was always uncomfortable and itchy. That November I asked Morgan what she wanted for Christmas. She said “Mommy all I want for Christmas is new skin.” I cried and my husband and I knew at that point, there must be more we can do for her.

 I am happy to say that Morgan is in a much better spot now. At 5 1/2 years of age, she sleeps through the night most nights, her skin is supple, she is able to focus on discovering the world and learning, rather than only focusing on how she feels. She is happy and hasn’t once even thought to ask for new skin.

So what changed? Many things in fact, including new doctors, new medications, new diet, changes in the home environment, changes in behavior and changes in our mindset. If you’re reading this and you have a child who suffers from severe allergies and eczema, I hope you know now that there are ways, often one small step at a time, to improve the life of your child.

TIP FOR THE DAY:

In each blog, I hope to also offer a tip that I’ve learned. We actually travel nationally as well as internationally with our children. Traveling with children with allergies can be very scary… will the airline serve peanuts even though they know a child who is anaphylactic to peanuts is on board? can I trust the food in other countries to be as well labeled as those in the States? can I bring all of my own food with me? How can I bring my child’s allergy medications on the plane? How can I make my child safe on the plane?

When we travel with Morgan, I travel with the following items: all of her medications in plastic see-through bags of course, a doctor’s note listing all of the medications, another set of her medications with a copy of the doctor’s note in the checked luggage, antibacterials wipes, crib sheets, rice milk (which is also listed on the doctor’s note) and all of her snacks. Always notify the airline that your child has a severe allergy to nuts. Some airlines will let you pre-board to wipe down your seating area. I put a crib sheet on the seat where my daughter will sit and the seat next to hers. My daughter always sits in the seat (with a crib sheet on it) next to the window, after I have wiped down the window, the tray (both sides), the arms of the chairs, the seat if it’s leather, the seat back in front of her (if it’s leather) and the seat belt.

Kathie Johnson