My Allergy Kid

Mason is currently allergic to Dairy, Egg, Peanuts, and Tree Nuts. He also suffers from asthma and eczema, which are common ailments in allergy patients.

Mason was born September 11, 2005 at 37 weeks gestation. He seemed perfectly healthy and came home from the hospital with no problems. He was strictly formula fed from birth. About one week after he was born, he began projectile vomiting with every feeding and developed eczema patches on his face and chest. I took him straight to the doctor where it was determined that he had a milk allergy. We started soy formula and he was fine. We delayed the introduction of solid foods until he was about 8 months old where we then introduced things very slowly.

On his first birthday, we got him a giant cookie cake of which he loved, until shortly after, when the vomiting began again. We took him to the doctor who referred him to an allergist. A simple skin test showed that he did indeed have a dairy and egg allergy and we were to avoid them at all costs. We were not aware of how severe they were or how difficult living with food allergies really was. Epi Pens, inhalers and Benadryl became normal diaper bag items.

We succeeded in avoiding the allergens to the best of our ability. We continued check ups with the pediatrician and allergist. Another skin test later revealed that his egg allergy was getting worse, but the dairy appeared to be getting better. The allergist offered to let us go through with an allergy challenge to see if we could force the body to rid of the allergy. We agreed and made the appointment. That was the day we would learn just how severe his allergies really were. Standard allergy challenges to dairy are pretty simple. They give the patient a small amount of milk, usually 1 teaspoon, wait 15 minutes for a response and then up the amount and so on. The test usually takes about 3 hours. The allergist gave Mason 3 DROPS of milk on his tongue and within seconds, Mason started crying, grabbed his throat and then began gagging, struggling to catch his breath. The doctor administered epinephrine, diphenhydramine, and a steroid and we watched as he regained his ability to breathe normally over the next several minutes. He was then diagnosed with “Severe allergies resulting in Anaphylaxis”. After several hours of observation, we left frightened, yet determined to do all we could for our little boy.

Through all of this, Mason is a champ. He has become accustomed to his soy foods and his other “special foods” just for him on his own shelf in the pantry. He occasionally shows interest in our food, but he understands that he can’t have it.

During recent blood work, it was determined that Mason has other allergies to foods that we were not aware of. He is allergic to Peanuts and Tree Nuts in addition to Milk and Egg. He continues to experience eczema to the point that he scratches until he bleeds. We’ve been through 4 prescription creams, none of which relieve his itching. We carry a special emergency medicine pack for Mason where ever we go that includes his Epi Pens, benadryl, as well as his inhalers and spacers.

Since Mason’s allergies are also contact related, he can’t even touch the allergen without breaking out in hives and itching. He is unable to touch things that most parents don’t even think twice about letting their kids touch. We can’t sit him in a grocery cart or let him touch playground equipment, because of the fear of cross contamination. You never know when someone has had a picnic with peanut butter sandwiches and then touched the playground equipment.

It has been concluded, that Mason does not have an immune system disease or a genetic disorder causing the allergies. His allergies are the result of an underdeveloped immune system from being born too early. He will continue seeing the specialists every 6 months for further testing,  preventative care and medication maintenance for his asthma and eczema.

Mason’s environmental allergies include: mold, grass, dog and cat dander.