Valentine's Day, Peanut Allergy, and Crushing Disappointment

It's 5:30 am on a Sunday and I just realized it's Valentine's Day! Happy Valentine's Day! I hope you're going to be with someone you care about today and that you've found safe treats to share with the peanut allergic person in your life.

It was a rough week around here. I've been dealing with some difficult people this week and it's been stressful for me. I wont go into too many details here, but suffice it to say: I am a strong believer in karma and there are some people in this world who are going to get a swift kick in the butt in the future.

Another hiccup was B's annual appt with her allergist last Wednesday. She has been adamant that she didn't want to go to the doctor and was under no circumstances going to have a skin test. Being the naive parent that I am, I thought she was just being dramatic and that everything would be great at her appointment. Sure she'd be a little uncomfortable, but wasn't it worth it to see how her levels would be this year?

Boy was I wrong. She complained the whole car ride there. Thought of every excuse in the book as to why she shouldn't be there. And couldn't I just call his office and tell him she was sick and wouldn't be making it today? Oh, how cute, I thought to myself - she's so strong willed. Ahem.

Actually, she WAS fine during the first few minutes of chitchat. But once she saw the skin test come out she LOST HER MIND. As in I had to physically hold her while they administered the test. All while she was screaming and crying.

And when the test came back, her wheal size had doubled from the previous year.

I. Was. Crushed. As in, wind-knocked-out-of-me, are you flipping kidding me? And you don't need to leave me a comment about how it's not about me and I should be strong for my child, blah blah blah. I KNOW that. I'm not a moron. I had on my best poker face and not a single tear was shed. I just couldn't believe it.

I was seriously expecting her to not have a reaction. What the hell was that bump doing there? That was the control or the histamine, right?

Wishful thinking on my part.

Then we heard the same thing her allergist says every year. That he is sure she'll outgrow this. He even offered to schedule a food challenge right then and there. B gave her wholehearted response right away: NO!

She just doesn't care about it. I feed my feelings into it more I guess. I am way more bummed about it than she is. She doesn't know anything different, so what does she care? It's just one food to her (I guess all my reinforcing has worked).

In the grand scheme of things, having one peanut allergy isn't the end of the world and we've been managing it really well. And we'll continue to do so. But it breaks my heart as a mother that the window of her outgrowing this seems to be just out of our reach and closing a little more each year.

So after that bummer of an experience (for me), I had people (who ironically are from the FA community) being really difficult. Being an advocate for food allergy isn't a competition for me, but apparently it is for them. I'm striving for a common goal of helping people, not having the most followers. Have I helped one of you out there or made you feel less alone? Then this little blog of mine is worth it. I'll leave it at that.

It just never ends.

Anyhoo, I hope you have a great Valentine's Day. Big hugs and smooches to you all!

In the SF Bay Area? Join us at our support meeting tonight!

We have a truly great meeting set up for Nov 5th: Practical techniques for dealing with Stress: something that is a constant for everyone these days, and especially so those dealing with food allergies.

Our speaker is Renee Burgard; she is a therapist, an educator, and specializes in teaching others how to deal with daily stress.

Time, Location and More details on the topic:
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Renee's talk will start at 7.30pm, so please arrive 10 minutes earlier - OR - if you'd like to chat with other members before the talk begins, the room is booked from 7pm!

As always, the meeting location and time are on the front page of our home website: sffoodallergy.org We also have a page for this month's topic.

Let us know!
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Let us know if you can make it by updating our online poll.

This speaker is not to be missed! See you there.

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FAAN Walk: San Francisco!

Saturday was the FAAN Walk for San Francisco. It was amazing. Rainy (can you believe it?), but amazing. Our support group, SF Food Allergy, had a table there. We had some super cute buttons made up (I'll post a photo soon), gave out literature, and spread the word about the support we offer folks in person on the SF Peninsula and online via our Yahoo Group.

So why was the walk amazing? You mean besides the fact that there was parking right there, even though we were in Golden Gate Park :)?

All joking aside, it was amazing to meet so many parents of allergic kids and talk with them (albeit briefly) about the challenges they face day-to-day. It was amazing to see so many allergic kids running around, having a ball, and just being kids at a party they were definitely included in and where they were safe. It was amazing to meet other allergy bloggers too (Hi Alison!). I hate to sound sappy, but it was such a unifying experience. Literally every person you met there 'got it'. I got a bit teary at times when I spoke to people.

We (I'm speaking for you Connie) were proud to be a part of the vendors/groups at the walk. They included:

• Dey Corporation (Makers of the EpiPen)
• TwinJect
• Peanut Free Planet - who gave away samples of many of the products they sell and also offered caricatures of the kids - so cute!
  
• Enjoy Life Foods - their new Choco Boom bars are SO good - they were giving away samples of them as well as a good variety of their other products at their table. The kids (um, and us adults) were loving the chocolate bars and cookies. I'm not a huge fan of their baked goods (sorry, just being truthful here), but I would eat their rice crisp Choco Boom bars over a Nestle Crunch Bar any day of the week. Honestly!
  
• Crayon Sports Drinks - not only were the drinks tasty, the staff were wonderful too.
  
• FEAST (an online East Bay support group - no link, sorry - i googled and couldn't find one. Leave me a comment if you know their URL or online group link)
  

But that wasn't it! There were bounce houses, face painting, balloon animals, clowns, music, hula dancers, and a Mad Scientist demonstration. Kudos definitely goes to Lynda Taschek who co-chaired the event. She did a super job and was just so darn nice! I'm looking forward to next year's walk and our group's presence there. I already have lots of ideas for next year's event (Lynda, we should talk!).

Lastly, it's not too late to join a walk near you. Visit the FAAN site for a location near you. And if you can't participate, you can always donate.

p.s. So if I wasn't totally lame and had actually charged the battery of my camera, you'd see a gorgeous shot of me and Connie at our table at the walk. Someone from FAAN took a photo, so I'll try to post it once something's live.

Under the Weather

It feels like forever since I last posted. My apologies! I'm feeling a bit under the weather today. I should be back in action and blogging more about Peanut Allergy tomorrow.

In the meantime, check out the website that my friend Connie made for our SF Allergy Support Group. Nice job Connie!

Talk to you all tomorrow~

1st Peanut Free Parent Meeting This Friday...

If you live on or near the SF Peninsula, I am meeting with another mom to try and get a support group going. If you'd like to join us, we're meeting this Friday (March 7th) at 10 am. Email me at peanutfreemamaATgmailDOTcom for the location if you are interested.

Starting a Peanut Allergy Support Group

Update: I just started a Yahoo!Group here. Join if you are interested - everyone is welcome!

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I think the wheels might actually be in motion for a SF Bay Area Peanut Allergy support group. It's unbelievable to me that there isn't already a presence.

Want to join us? Email me at peanutfreemamaATgmailDOTcom - we'd love you to join us. Also, if you currently belong to a support group, can you let me know what's working (and what isn't) for your group?

p.s. The closest food allergy support group that I currently know of is in the Sacramento area. Am I wrong? Email me at peanutfreemamaATgmailDOTcom.

Peanut Allergy Support Group in Bay Area

I can't seem to find a support group for Peanut Allergy in the SF Bay Area.

Can you suggest one?

If not, would you like to start one with me? Email me at peanutfreemamaATgmailDOTcom.