If you have been reading my blog for a while you know that Ela is a overall happy go lucky
Around three months Ela developed Eczema. For those that don't know it is basically excessively dry skin caused by irritations such as allergies or pets. This was back in the Ozzy days...little did we know that we would find out he was the cause less than a year later.After a few trips to the dermatologist and a suspicion <who was I kidding looking back all of the signs were there> of allergies, we figured out how to control it and now lotion Ela regularly. The eczema went away when we moved to our new apartment but so did Ozzy.
Ela turns 1! Shortly after her first birthday she started daycare and immediately began to enjoy it! She made alot of friends and enjoyed playing. About a month into daycare, I was feeding Ela and she had a severe allergic reaction to Sesame! I gave her Tahini sauce and after the worst scare of my life, we ran straight to the allergist. After a skin test it was confirmed that Ela was allergic to Sesame, Peanuts, TreeNuts and dogs. She was a little too young for skin test, but any knowledge was better than none.
As if I had a magic ball, my progressive "googling" predicted the future.<I now have my Google Doctorate> Each time I would research either the eczema or the food allergies the website would say that most children with exema or food allergies usually have asthma. .
UGH! Asthma runs in my family and I suffered in my late teens. Sure enough after months of a recurrent night cough Ela was diagnosed with Asthma. At the beginning we thought it was just being constantly sick from daycare. That was the majority of it, but in kids with asthma, colds are the trigger for attacks. After a rough allergy season,we figured out Ela did have asthma. She was started on an inhaler which instantly did wonders. As the fall allergy season progressed we started seeing the coughing again. Flash forward to last night and we were in the ER for an asthma attack. Poor girl was still giggling and playing but could not breathe.
So that leaves me sitting here typing this post. I am full of emotions; the biggest one is amazement.With all this little girl has been through how is she honestly is the happiest smiley girl. She loves life and most days although she is not 100% ,you would never know. Then I feel sad. I wish I could take on all of her allergies and asthma so she would never have to feel this discomfort. Then I feel grateful. So many other mothers deal with a their child having a life threatening disease or disability. I feel grateful this is so manageable and controllable. Then comes hope. Will she grow out of the asthma? Will she grow out of the food allergies? Back to sad. How am I going to feel when she is at a birthday party and cant eat the cake for fear the bakery accidentally let a peanut sneak into the cake? The last emotion bothers me the most. Did I cause this? I ate apples and peanut butter everyday while pregnant. If it was not apples and peanut butter was it the Sesame bagel with strawberry cream cheese <yes I was pregnant> that I frequented? My family history has both allergies and eczema. I know I will never know what caused the inseparable three but I sure am going to try to conquer them.
On the hopeful side....
*60% of children grow out of asthma especially if diagnosed before 2 years of age. Those that don't outgrow asthma show reduced symptoms with the onset of puberty.
*6-8% of children have food allergies. High chance of growing out of it by age 4. Although most kids with peanut allergies do not grow out of it.
*Asthma is the most common illness that sends children to the ER. This seems silly to be hopeful but it is one of the most understood and treatable illnesses. There is alot of information and hopefully a full cure in the future.
So where does that leave us now?
*We purchased a air purifier today. I hope to get ahead of the triggers to reduce the medicines. And alot of dusting! (No more Ozzy either)
*Back to the allergist. Now that she is older we can have her tested more accurately and again...get ahead of the triggers.
*Continue to teach our family, friends and daycare about the signs of asthma and food allergies in addition on how to use the rescue inhaler and epi pens.
*And on a personal note for me; stay positive it could be worse- Much worse
I do not know anyone personally that has a child effected by the Inseparable Three. I am going to start looking online for "Toddler with Asthma" support groups similar to a Mom group I currently belong to online. It is a great resource and area to get advice on prevention and treatment. <"Does this medicine make your child hyper too" >
Does anyone out there have any advice for a Mom trying to manage the Inseperable Three and a toddler not letting her illness get in her way?
Does anyone out there have any advice for a Mom trying to manage the Inseperable Three and a toddler not letting her illness get in her way?
