I am sitting here in my local library and my four year old son with severe allergies, is downstairs…alone…without me. Let me start from the beginning.
I signed my son up for story time yesterday. We used to come last year all the time. I thought nothing of it when I enrolled him. So here we are in the childrenās room waiting for story time to start. The teacher asks “Everyone here for story time come line up at the door!” So he and I go hand and hand walking to the door. Then I notice something. None of the other parents are lining up. Then I hear the teachers saying that the parents stay upstairs as the children go downstairs. He looks at me, and I look at him. We stand there for three seconds as reality sinks in…weāre being separated!
Iām sure the look on my face is shock. I want to yell “but he has food allergies!” but I quickly grab a hold of myself. I approach one of the teachers and quietly ask if itās okay if I go downstairs too because my son has severe food allergies. Iām sure sheās think Iām borderline crazy (could possibly be the look of terror I have on my face). She explains that parents are not allowed in the room and I can go downstairs and look through the window of the closed door if I would like.
After explaining my sonās allergies to the teacher, I stand there in the middle of the room as they walk away and I think “What if one of the other children had peanut butter sandwiches for lunch?”, “what if he starts coughing and having a reaction to SOMETHING and they donāt know what to do?”, “what if he is just as scared as I am at this very moment?” All of the “what ifs” go through my head. I am so used to being at my sonās side ‘just in caseā that I am in a state of shock.
Let me remind you that ALL of this happens within two minutes. When I finally snap out of it, no one is staring at me, no one finds my behavior odd, no one suspects a thing. All of this dialog that Iāve had in my head for the past two minutes is just that…all in my head. As I slowly walk towards the other section of the library Iām already convincing myself that heāll be okay. Iām already reminding myself that Iāll be right here in the same building, just up the stairs.
As I walk towards the public computers ,already knowing that I MUST get to my blog ASAP to write down my feelings, another realization hits me. Iām free!!! Holy crap I have 45 uninterrupted, quiet time to myself…in a library! WOO HOO!!!! For those of you who donāt know me, a library is on my top ten list of my most favorite places to be…and now I get 45 minutes a week…ALL TO MYSELF!!!!
I wonder if everyone will be staring at me if I get up and do a little jig? hehehehehehe… well the looks on their faces sure would make a great picture to put at the top of this post…too bad Iām a wimp. š
Ahhhhhhhh…I survived another day of being an allergy mom.
-Elizabeth DiBurro
Easy Breezy Life
with food allergies and EoE
Jenny G says
Are you planning on sending him to preschool or right to kindergarten or homeschool?
Elizabeth DiBurro says
Hi Jenny, He is in preschool now. It's for two hours, twice a week. I just happened to find a place that is VERY strict with allergens. His teacher has a son who is allergic to milk. His class is a nut free and milk free class. Almost too good to be true! š As for first grade…I guess I'll just have to wait and see. I am investigating home schooling. But I haven't made any decisions yet. What about you?
janelle says
I'm so happy that I have found your blog - I can totally relate with you. My son has sever food allergies too and I've had my share of separation anxiety. He's now 5 and in kindergarten, I've made it VERY, VERY clear about his food allergies and his teacher is amazing and very careful. I great to meet other parents that understand the stress of having a child with food allergies. Just had to stop by and say hi š
Janelle
Elizabeth DiBurro says
Hi Janelle! I'm glad you find my blog helpful. I agree, it's great to find other parents that understand. š What type of allergies does your son have?
Thanks for stopping by,
Elizabeth
janelle says
Christopher's food allergies is: Dairy, Nuts, Eggs, Wheat, Garlic, soy. He eats alot of fruit (oranges, apples, grapes, watermelon, etc) He main meals are chicken (glazed with orange juice), all natural turkey dogs, turkey burgers, served with rice, rice noodles or white sweet potatoes fries. I have found some cookies at the health food store as a treat and I usually have an extra box at school for when they have birthday parties š
I'm very hesitant to try new recipes cause I don't know if he'll have a reaction š but it's so encouraging to see your recipes, so maybe I'll give it a try. I've had to be very creative for his birthday cake - I used watermelons, here's one example. http://janellestepoffaith.blogspot.com/2011_04_01_archive.html
Well, it's been such a pleasure meeting you. Have a blessed evening,
Janelle
Elizabeth DiBurro says
Hi Janelle,
Sounds like Christopher and my Ryan have very similar allergies. So strange…I'm finding more and more 4-5 year olds that have the same allergies. I can't help but wonder what the connection is. Hopefully some day they find out. In the meantime I hope you can use some of my recipes for your son. š
Elizabeth
janelle says
Good Morning! I was thinking about the same thing about how many 4-5 years old and the amount of allergies they have. Christopher has a friend at school who has similar allergies. Wonder what we can do to figure it out . . .
I'll keep you informed with my food trial š
Janelle