(no subject)

[the_rck]

Due to a change in the symptoms, Scott's now guessing beef contamination in last night's dinner. That's a relief in one way, because it means nobody else is going to get sick, and upsetting in another way because that makes this an allergy reaction.

He's added benadryl to the peptobismol he already took and is trying to nap through the worst of the experience. He describes this part as feeling like sandpaper in his veins.

I always worry when this happens, a couple of times a year, that this is going to be the time when the reaction crosses into the truly dangerous. I haven't been able to bully Scott into keeping his epi-pen prescription current (or into carrying the damned thing with him. It sits in the medicine cabinet where it will do damn all if he has trouble when we're not at home. I could put it in my purse, but that would only help if I'm with him), and I can't rush him to the ER if there's a problem requiring rapid response.

I also end up pushing away a lot of other worries in this situation. The idea of losing Scott while Cordelia's still a child really terrifies me. I'm not sure that, given my disabilities, she and I could continue living independently, and that's without looking at finances. I expect that I'd find a way to make things work and to avoid having to move in with my in-laws or my parents, but.... That's the kind of subject on which it is utterly possible for me to catastrophize.

::sighs:: If it came to that, I'd probably bully my brother into moving in with us. He keeps saying that he wants to go to nursing school here at the U. He'd miss Kalamazoo and his whiffleball league, though.

Comments

[presterjon.livejournal.com]

Scott is allergic to beef? We must compare notes, I thought I was the only person in the world with this malady.

[the_rck]

I suspect Scott would be interested in comparing notes. We've not encountered anybody else with the allergy, either. Most people assume, on hearing it, that we're mis-speaking and mean 'dairy allergy.'

[evalerie.livejournal.com]

Funny... when I say "food allergy" people immediately rush to reassure me that the food is all nut-free. If only it were that simple....

[the_rck]

I wish it were, too. Not that 'nut-free' assurances are reliable in general. I think many people don't realize all of the potential sources of problems.

We're lucky with Scott's allergy because beef, though it's a rare allergy, isn't something that's hidden in everything. We still read labels and look dubiously at 'flavorings.' There are a few snack foods out there that have made Scott sick in the past. We don't know for sure that there's beef in the flavoring, but we suspect.

[evalerie.livejournal.com]

Right, but what I mean is that nobody in my family is allergic to nuts, and yet when I say "allergy" people immediately assume that it's a nut allergy. I especially find it frustrating when teachers do that, because it makes me feel very unsure that they'll keep my kids safe. Sigh....

[the_rck]

Right, but what I mean is that nobody in my family is allergic to nuts, and yet when I say "allergy" people immediately assume that it's a nut allergy.

I did get that part. I just promptly wandered off in another direction entirely. Sorry about that.

I'd be very hesitant to trust teachers to keep Cordelia safe from food problems. It would be hard because, when one sends one's kids to school, one has so little direct control and has to trust. I think that, with issues like your family's, I'd be very tempted to home school for the first few years, until I was sure that Cordelia was old enough to remember not to eat anything that we hadn't provided for her or vetted in person.

[the_rck]

Scott says he'd love to compare notes. If you don't have his e-mail address, e-mail me. I believe mine is in my user profile.