Today I ask that you please don't judge me. I am that mother you see at the little stand of antibacterial wipes (you know the ones, when you first walk into the store...by the carts?), or breaking out my own wipes. I will in fact wipe down the grocery cart before I put Liv into it. Yes, at almost 5 years of age, she does ride in the cart still. She rides in the cart to avoid the many dangers a grocery store can present to us. You see, if you sat your child in a cart before us, or you yourself just ate a peanut/tree nut/egg containing food and without washing your hands touched this cart....well, that could be a potentially disastrous trip to the store for us. If she is not in the cart and walking next to me then touches something that has cross contamination...again, we're looking at disaster. Please, the next time you see that mom frantically cleaning her cart...stop looking at her like a crazy germ-a-phobe nut-case, thanks. That mom MIGHT just be taking life saving precautions for her precious child.
Today I ask that you don't tell the parent of an FA (Food Allergic) child (with no doubt in your mind at all) that their child will outgrow their allergies. There are several reasons for this...first reason: We typically have been through the ringer and then some with our FA kids. A good number of us do in fact have a support system in place and well, sadly....we HOPE for the best, but expect nothing to change. It's just better that way. Oh, getting back to why not to do this... Secondly: if you say this to a parent and their FA child is in earshot and hears you...*sigh* well, YOU try being a parent that has to then tell said FA child that for right now, they are NOT growing out of their FA's. Yep...it's heart breaking for both parent and child. Pleasant...right? And the final reason that I will list (there are definitely MORE reasons), it's just plain aggravating to hear this from somebody other than an Allergist or Immunologist. Don't get me wrong, I understand that people mean well, I do, but to most of us, this is an old hat. We are all to aware of the odds we're up against and when.
Today I ask that you please don't think we are trying to infringe on you or your child's rights. I don't love going into a school and asking the powers that be for a peanut/tree nut and egg free environment for Liv. I know this means that you can no longer bring in baked goodies for your child's birthday or holiday parties and I don't love that one bit. You might think this to be an inconvenience in your life, but let me tell you what it means to ours. These restrictions mean for me; that I have to take on the task of monitoring what foods are in MY child's classroom each and every single day. I do not have room for error in my food monitoring...not even in the slightest. These restrictions mean that I do surprise visits to the school (or send friends/family members to do my 'dirty work') to monitor foods, cleaning habits AND verifying that my child's Epi-Pen is wherever she is. Yes, I DO and will ask the teacher or PERA to see her Epi-Pen. They don't like it, I don't like it and YOU don't like it...but please, don't hate me for trying to keep my child alive and thriving in a normal functioning life. Thank you.
For today in this moment....these few things are all that I ask.
**How can I NOT fight to protect THIS precious face?**
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