It started when she was a week old and had a lot to spit up. Granted she liked to eat, so I thought her body just couldn't handle the amount of food she was consuming. Then she got the normal baby acne, which never really went away, but I chalked it up to the extreme humidity that summer. After that, she had snot. Lots of it. But of course, she was teething, you know? And here we are, a year and a half later, and if I hadn't thought twice, she'd still be teething according to her symptoms.
But no, she's not teething. She is sneezing. And itching. And whining. And coughing. At least she's not screaming when she goes #2 like she did for the first year of her life...
After she started drinking whole milk at age 1, she had her first prick test to check for allergies. She tested positive for an allergy to dairy and eggs. We didn't test for environmental allergies because "she had only been through one season," according to the allergist. We took her off milk and eggs, but continued to give her other dairy products. A few weeks later, she had a massive breakout and I had enough. No more mac 'n cheese, no more yogurt, no more of that beloved, pumped-with-hormones milk. We started soy.
Horrible idea. Don't ever do it.
2 more months go by, diarrhea every day. I finally get my act together and switch to almond milk. No, I wasn't worried about her growth. She eats everything that walks. I didn't have another alternative, beside $40/can formula (gag me). Almond milk has served us well. So has almond milk yogurt, Tofutti Sour Cream and Cream Cheese, Rice Cheese slices and shreds...until now.
A month ago, she started breaking out again. Her back was raw for a week - to the point I put those big, square band-aids across her diaper line to keep her from scratching. It worked. She was off all her trigger foods?! What was the deal?!
Insert note: I let her cheat once a week at church so she can have Cheddar Bunnies in her class. Pretty sure it's the highlight of her week.
I made an appointment for her to see Dr. Fowler at Fowler Allergy. The first opening was June. Better late than never. 2 weeks later (last week), they let me know they had a cancellation and we found ourselves there for 3 hours yesterday. Lots of talking, lots of poking, lots of information.
Here's some things I learned:
- Viruses and bacteria love mucus. They grow well there. No wonder my kid is always sick.
- Food products containing allergens that area also in the environment are a double whammy. For example, we're eliminating tree products in spring and fall because she's allergic to trees and grasses. This should be fun.
- Kids (and adults) can get allergy drops under the tongue in lieu of shots these days. Neat.
- There's something called a T-Fighter Cell that tells your body to calm down when it comes in contact with an allergen. Ali, and those like her, have lazy T-cells. They need a boost to jumpstart them again to start doing their job.
- All my lovely Vegan products have soy in them. Great. No more Super Sour Cream for Ali.
Tonight Joel and I had an "Ali Care Meeting" to decide what course(s) of action to pursue. Luckily, Dr. Fowler didn't push any type of treatment or any timeline. I appreciate that today, especially in the medical field. Here's our plan:
- Purchase a new mattress, pillow, pillow and mattress cases, and Air Purifier (HEPA filter)
- Ditch the tree products for now. Almond stuff, stuff that grows on trees. Pretty much half her diet. Ugh. Thank goodness she likes meat and veggies. We'll go to Rice or Coconut milk if we stay on milk. I'm leaning toward going off altogether, all of us.
- Make my own laundry soap and fabric softener. I'm actually excited. I read a lot of great reviews, and almost all recipes have 3 or fewer ingredients, last forever, and cost less than $10.
- Wash her bedding and vacuum her room once a week at least. No, I don't do this now. Shoot me.
- Increase her daily Zyrtec dose. If you want to know what to, I'll tell you privately.
- 1 Tum a day for Calcium (even though I'm not concerned about this)
- Rotate her menu, mostly lunch and breakfast, M-F. So she'll have PBJ one day, hot dog one day, spaghetti one day, etc, etc. This will help her not be exposed to a lot of one food she may be sensitive to many days in a row.
I wish I would've known then what I know now (or didn't know now, if you're a country music fan). Thank goodness God's timing is perfect. He has a plan. I'm thankful for a brain and for the Internet and for doctors and for Alice Jane.
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| Her little face... |
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| This was her "normal" look |
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| It was days like this that I felt we weren't getting anywhere |
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| The beginning of Hand, Foot, Mouth - which of course, on her, got infected |
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| I don't actually remember what this was. It was after HFM and Roseola |
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| And even today, her reaction 24 hours after her 2nd skin prick test. Poor kid can't catch a break |
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| What a trooper |
