Thursday, March 31, 2011

No, he didn't escape...the curse is upon my son as well

Allergies. My daughter has suffered terribly with allergies and they were the reason for us starting to homeschool. Now, for the past few months I am watching my son get more and more allergic. He doesn't have eczema like his sister, and he doesn't have asthma (yet), but he is clearly allergic. We'll have to allergy proof his room. He has nasal symptoms in the mornings and lately his little cheeks look bumpy with little hives. His sister is quite upset about this as she is terrified he'll go through what she endured. And that was a nightmare. Missy's eczema is mostly gone now. She has a patch of KP (Keratosis Pilaris on her belly) and some eczema rash that comes and goes on her upper thighs (precipitated by underwear I think). Bear has KP on his upper arms and knees, nothing to be concerned about, but since KP is a form of eczema I am worried he might still develop it. After all, he has a 25% chance of getting eczema too.  I put on a brave face but inwardly I am afraid too. Non- lethal allergies may not take your life but they can certainly take the quality out of it and they are certainly life altering.

4 comments:

Eva said...

I'm sorry to hear about your son, Marlis. Have you ever thought about cutting out all dairy? We've had problems with allergies and the first recommendation we always got was to cut out dairy. Some books and magazines have also been helpful. Do you know the book Is This Your Child?. It's a great book on all kinds of allergies. Another book you might be interested in is Disease-Proof Your Child. An interesting magazine is Living Without.

Marlis said...

Thanks Eva, I will look up these book at my local library. He seems to get a bit rashy eating strawberries. Food allergies are not much of an issue for us (thank goodness). My husband is allergic to shellfish and that's about it.

A Homeschool Story said...

My heart goes out to you, allergies are no fun, as we well know too. It is good and bad to be dealing with this for the second time. My girls both have asthma, and it is easier to help the second one as I know what to look for, what to expect and what to remember to bring with me.
On a positive note; my boys hardly have any allergies at all, just a little eczema and a dairy intolerance. I hope the same for you.

Marlis said...

Thanks Angela. As much as allergies are a curse i always keep in mind that there are people so much worse off. Granted, my daughter is 99% better than she used to be but I still feel blessed.