Allergy Report

On Monday, we took Isaac to an allergist to have some testing done. I had been putting it off for quite some time because I knew it would be expensive and we hadn't touched our deductible yet this year. Thankfully, it actually cost much less than I expected--only $125 (the doctor graciously gave us a 25% discount after I told him we hadn't met our deductible for the year).

But the experience held some surprises I wasn't prepared for. Up until this point, I had seen what I thought to be allergic responses in Isaac to milk, soy, rice, bananas, peaches, oranges, and tomatoes. I was also suspicious of corn. And even though I hadn't seen any reaction to wheat, I was really hoping I hadn't missed something there. So we tested him for these, plus a few other items: peanuts, almonds, and two types of dust mites. There were actually 15 items he was tested for, but I can't remember what the last two were.

The nurses came in and first wrote on Isaac's back with a pen codes for all the different allergens. To help him not freak out, the nurse first drew a smiley face on his hand so he would know what she was doing on his back. That really helped, and he stayed perfectly still and didn't make a peep while she wrote on his back. (Unfortunately, however, I have had to stop him from writing on his hand with a pen multiple times in the last few days. ha ha) Here is the before picture:

Then, as I held him on my lap, they quickly pricked his back one by one with small needles that had been dipped in allergen serum. During the first few pricks--at the top of his back-- he was fine. But as they went lower, where the back is more sensitive, he started to jerk and burst into tears. Soon it was done though, and we had to watch and wait for the results. Within just a few minutes, it was already clear he had a couple reactions. And because the reactions were labeled with codes, we waited anxiously to find out what was what.

It turns out that the biggest reaction was to peanuts. I was shocked. There is no history of peanut allergies in either of our families, and although I've been dealing with allergies since Isaac was born, I haven't had to worry about life-threatening allergies. Peanuts are a whole different ball game.

After fifteen minutes, here is what his back looked like:

The reaction on the upper left is the positive control. I have no idea what they use for a positive control since it has to be something that everyone is allergic to, but he definitely was. The reaction next to F79 is peanuts. Milk is 17 and orange is under that. He also reacted slightly to corn, which is the c in the middle of his back. I was grateful he didn't react to anything else including rice, wheat, and almonds.

The doctor explained, however, that gastrointestinal responses to things aren't signs of allergy, but could be signs of intolerance. So, if I give Isaac rice and it gives him diarrhea, I obviously shouldn't give it to him. We're going to have to just test things as we go along.

The doctor also said that allergy testing for fruits is very inaccurate. He said that it's better to test with fresh fruit. So, next time we test--in about a year-- I will bring in fruit to do a more accurate test.

It was hard for me to tell what was a slight positive reaction and what was considered a negative reaction because every place he was poked turned red. But what the nurses looked for was the redness around the dot. Then they measured the size of the welt and the size of the red rash around each welt/hive. These measurements will be a base for future testing to see if he is growing out of his allergies or not.

After a while, Isaac's rash started to spread up his neck, so I quickly got someone to come. They gave him liquid Zyrtec and wiped off the allergens and sprayed his back with what I think may have been a cortisone spray.  It was amazing that in just a few minutes, all of his reactions were gone.

The doctor didn't have a lot to say about the peanut allergy, as far has how severe his allergy will be or whether or not he will grow out of it. The truth is, with allergies, it is mostly guess-work. But he did say we need to avoid all foods with peanuts including the "May contain" and factory warnings on foods. And he gave us a prescription for an EpiPen and said we need to keep it with us at all times. (Big sigh.)

On the drive home, I felt pretty overwhelmed.

And I'm still somewhat in denial. I still haven't thrown away the peanut butter in my pantry, or done any online research about peanut allergies, or picked up the EpiPen from the pharmacy (although the fact that I got the stomach flu/ food poisoning yesterday also has something to do with that).

It will be interesting to see what the future holds. But for now, no peanuts for us.

Toddlerhood: A Different Ball Game

Isaac is almost 18 months, and I can't believe how much he's changed just in the last few weeks. He's finally transitioned to one nap a day (usually from noon to two-ish), which frees up a lot more time--time that needs to be filled. Hanging out at home is not his activity of choice. If that happens, I get tortured. :-)  In fact, every day around 9:00 am, he says, "Bye, bye? Bye, bye?" or goes up to the front door and cries. He wants out.

And for a good reason: this kid is filled with energy. He's had running mastered for a few months, so of course he's on to developing the next skill. Unfortunately, that means climbing. Now, all dining room table chairs must be pushed in at all times. And I know it's a matter of weeks until he figures out how to pull them out and climb up anyway. He stomps, he runs, he jumps, he dances, he attacks things. And he now tries to snatch my glasses off my face and has almost broken them. A big no-no.

But the biggest no-no of all is that, yesterday, he hung on the door to the oven (while I was cooking a pizza) and put his feet up, as if to climb up spiderman style. And his weight opened the door to the oven. AHH!!! Luckily, I was standing right there, and it only opened a few inches before I slammed it shut. I gave him a very firm, "No, no," and took him out of the kitchen, but a minute later (when I was not right next to the oven) he did it again. I don't think I've ever heard myself scream, "No!" like that. It was scary. Thankfully, it startled him and he jumped off before the oven fully opened. But that was the end of that. We bought a baby gate that very night. He is no longer allowed in the kitchen whenever the oven is on.

Yesterday he was also quite a terror at the library story time. He threw crayons everywhere and screamed during the quiet coloring time before it began and wouldn't sit still for one minute during the story time part. Instead, he ran around the room laughing and squealing. Even though there was general mayhem during the reading portion, we left half-way through because he was being so disruptive. I guess he's not ready for it. And I'm definitely not.

Never a dull moment with a toddler. And today was no exception: he got his first goose-egg-- right smack in the middle of his forehead right at his hairline. He ran full speed into a corner. I didn't see it happen, but my friend who was visiting did, and her reaction was pretty intense. So, after she left we watched "Bob the Builder" while I fought to get ice on his head for three seconds at a time.

And today we couldn't find any of his pacifiers. His paci has been one of his most treasured possessions since about 6 months old. I've limited its use during the day, but he knows he can have it when he sleeps, and he asks for it. He also asks for it when he wakes up, and I let him have it for the first few minutes to get through that waking-up grogginess. But I couldn't find it when he was crying after hitting his head. And I still couldn't find it at nap time. How they disappear, I know not. We had three just two weeks ago. But I'm sick of buying more, so I reluctantly decided that this would have to be it.

Luckily, he went down fine anyway. It helps that he's just as attached to his Teddy as his paci. But when he woke up, he said, "Paci? Paci?" with a sad, anxious face. And when I said it was, "All gone," he made the sign for "All done," (which he thinks is the same as all done) and wailed, "Ga-gone? Ga- gone?" And when I said yes, he cried really hard. Poor little baby.

He asked for it a few times this afternoon, but tonight--miracle of miracles-- he didn't ask for it. It took him over a half hour to fall asleep, but he didn't cry! He just talked happily until he drifted off. Of course this is just day one, but this is all going much better than I expected! Hallelujah! Now, I hope we don't find it.

To end on a happy note, I must say it is so fun to see him learning. His vocabulary is growing by leaps and bounds! Just this week, he began calling his books by name: "Go" for Oh, the Places You'll Go, "Doggie" for Go, Dogs! Go!, and  "Vroom, vroom!" for his book, Trucks. He has also been labeling things a lot more: shoe, hat, key, meow (for a cat), ball, teddy, and of course his paci that is no more.

As much as he wears me out, I wouldn't trade him. He's my treasure.