Both of my beautiful daughters have severe food allergies. Our oldest daughter was diagnosed at 4 when I was 8 months pregnant and she ate a macadamia nut. She started vomiting, then choking, her lips swelled up and her body was instantly covered in a strange red rash that looked like sunburn. She could breathe and I thought she had some nut stuck in her throat so rather pathetically drove her to the nearby Emergency Department. She is anaphylactic to tree nuts and we have since found out sesame and poppy seeds. Six months later, our baby girl was 5 months old and had anaphylaxis to baby food that contained diary. It took me months to get an Immunologist appointment and it was only through constantly calling every practitioner in Adelaide that one kind soul took pity on us and tested her. She was allergic to dairy, eggs, nuts, wheat, soy, beef, lamb and pork. She then had an adverse reaction to 6 month vaccinations and developed massive lumps in her groin lymph nodes. We ended up in Oncology with suspected cancer; she was operated on twice, on a central line IV with high dose antibiotics for 3 weeks and no eventual diagnosis. This experience taught me how much worse things can get than food allergies when watching children with cancer. I have never been so grateful as the day we walked out of that ward. She is turning 4 this weekend and is now only allergic to dairy, eggs, nuts, beef and lamb. We have fortunately only had a couple of accidental exposures resulting in epi-pens and ambulances.
Managing the allergies day-to-day put a significant strain on my marriage. My husband felt I was over-protective and did not share my vigilance over food exposure. We could not go out to eat anywhere or buy takeaway and attending social functions was highly stressful with a toddler who did not understand allergies. Sadly, my husband left the family last year, and I worry every weekend the girls are with him that something is going to happen. He returned our youngest daughter one day and she was having an anaphylactic reaction that he had not noticed, after having given her fritz some three hours prior. Fortunately, she is reaching an age where she is aware of her allergies and more careful with food.
Friends and their children have been wonderful and so very careful with the girls, as have their school. There seems to be a growing awareness of food allergies, coupled with a growing prevalence. Hopefully, research will show the reasons for this and treatments will follow in the future.
Samantha Young
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