Another trip the the ER!

[lilmermaid]

Ahhhhh DD2 sure keeps us on our toes! We took another trip to the ER tonight due to another allergic reaction. We had her in the ER a couple months ago for an allergic reaction to some bug bites.
This time though we think it was almonds or cashews. She has had both of these in the past 6 months with no reaction. The ER Doc said chances are she will also develop asthma which I find hard to believe. There is no one on either side of our family that has allergies or asthma! This seems to have come out of the blue but DH said she could have been having smaller reactions that we never noticed too!
We are now armed with Epi Pens and she has her 4 yr check up this coming Thursday. So I'm sure we are off to an allergist to get things figured out.
I welcome any allergy advice you have and I'm so glad to have those of you who have gone through this to help me out!!!!!

[Sus]

wow.... dang it all.... I've got nothin.... sorry!!! But TAKE NOTES... And write down your ?? first... that's the ONLY way I remember stuff from important meetings.

Good luck. . .

[cissy]

Yes allergies can happen after time and can get worse. Keep Benedryl on you, if you can stop the reaction with the use of that do so. If you use the Epi-pen you have to go to the ER.

[cissy]

The asthma thing...... i think drs think with allergies comes asthma, maybe maybe not. I do not think a food allergy automatically means asthma.

[merrr]

Start a food log. As I was eating a pear from an employee picnic several years back my mouth began to itch and my face/throat were hot. I was having an allergic reaction to a food item I had eaten ALL of my life. Turns out that the tree allergies I developed after pregnancy cross over to several types of fresh fruits.
In regards to cashews, they are a member of the poison ivy family. My dad can't have cashews as he is deadly allergic to them. It really is just a matter of learning what your DD can/can't have and sticking to it. Good luck!

[dara1012]

So sorry to hear about your sweet DD having allergy issues. They are so scary!

When I was 7 I was diagnosed w/ asthma - no one else in my family has ever had it. I developed mild seasonal allergies in my early teens. then in my mid 20's I had 2 anaphylactic reactions to what it turns out was a reaction to ibuprofen. I had taken ibuprofen for years w/o an issue. The allergist said that you can develop allergies that get worse over time to things you never had a problem with before. This is what makes allergies so scary to me. Looking back we realized that there had been some minor reactions earlier.

Then after DS was born I started to have hive reactions out of the blue. I know need to take claritin daily to have a low level dose of anti histamine in my body at all times. The allergist was no help w/ the hive reactions, there is nothing that it seems to be triggered by.

You will have to pay close attention to small things to see if she is developing more allergies and write them down.

good luck!

[JazzyMaxie]

I know that I gave my two cents on FB, but I have one more penny for you. Visit a pediatric allergist! It has been my experience that pediatric specialist are better equipped to work best with children, the impact that allergies can have on a child's life, and just all around better "character" for the kids. We have only had to visit the allergist once for "official testing" and the pulminologist actually takes care of his allergy scripts as well. But, I thought that it was really cool that they had Gameboys for the kids to play while the waited for the skin allergy test to complete. (I would hope that they have moved up to DSs now.) Anyways, when I had my skin allergy test done about 5 years ago...it wasn't a pleasant experience as they pricked my back full of stuff, and then left me in a room to sit by myself. I would have much rather had a video game to play!

[mnmommy2]

Try to get him tested for allergies food or not ASAP! You can't play around with allergies. I have a severe Tree Nut Allergy and Fish Allergy and have Epipens for them. Ironically I was camping in late August and had a reaction to some insect bites on my feet as well. My feet swelled up so bad, I was thinking oh it will go away, but I had to go to the doctor and get some Prednisone and special ointment to take the horrible itch and swelling down. I still am not sure what bit me, it was on both feet. I also have Asthma and several bad Outdoor allergies like Ragweed, Cats, Pollen Dust Mites, etc. I did allergy injections for several years before having children.

[lilmermaid]

Thank you for all the info and advice!
I did get her in today for her 4 yr well check and to discuss the allergy. They gave her prednisone for 5 days and she is having a hard time choking it down. I'm hoping my Dr will change the last 3 days to the liquid version that they usually give for kids!

[JazzyMaxie]

Prednisone as a liquid has an absolutely horrible taste! I was ecstatic when they switched Langston to the pills! There are two types of prednisone that can be prescribed...one tastes much better than the other. I can't remember the names of the two, though. I have also found that Target does the best job of flavoring the yuck....but it still isn't very good. We always have to chase the Prednisone with an Oreo...because it leaves an icky after taste.

[cissy]

If we have a nasty need to take med we chase it down with something he really wants just so he will take it. I think he had the liquid prednisone before.

[lilmermaid]

She doesn't have to take any more Prednisone, just benedryl. Her appt with the Peds Allergist is set up for Nov. 7th so not that far away!

Thanks for all the advice, I really appreciate it! I will keep you posted!

[cissy]

Make sure you find out how long you have to go before the testing without any benedryl or allergy meds. They will effect the tests.

[merrr]

A future tip for taking nasty pills, hide them in yogurt.

[cissy]

I only wish that worked for my kid Merrr he notices them.