Dr. S. took one look at my sweet one and said "Allergies! Let's test her for allergies." Well, duh. We'd tested her very early on because of some bad eczema, but only tested for wheat and dairy, both of which she tested negative. I wish I'd been persisting all this time. He noticed her very dry and irritated skin, dark circles under her eyes and flakiness around her eyes and knew immediately that allergies were to blame. Now here's the part where I feel like such a bad mom - why didn't I notice all these things? I guess I see her everyday and they'd become the norm. Sad. Actually, compared to how her skin WAS, it's been a huge improvement lately.
Here's where I'm going to interrupt this story to tell you about the funny sense of humor God has. You see, back in my shallow, list-making days, I decided I wanted a husband with no allergies. Yep, that's right. Because, you know, what a HASSLE that would be having to keep up with what he can and cannot eat, where he can go and do, etc. I mean, SERIOUSLY! Don't worry, I came to grips with things long before I was married - or engaged for that matter - and ended up marrying a man who could have a few allergies (we're not sure), but worse than allergies, is picky and won't eat more things than a simple food allergy would have kept him from in the first place. Go figure. LOL! So here I am... years and years later, with a daughter who quite possibly has some severe allergies. The Lord is truly teaching me patience, humility and compassion through this. I'm eager to see what else He has in store.
So anyway, we went back the next day to get her blood drawn to test for dairy (again), cow's milk, eggs and dog dander. We should get the results back this week, and I'm very anxious. On our way through the parking lot into the hospital, Emma got stung by a BEE! She screamed and wriggled her hand out of mine and flailed about in a panic. Strangely, I wasn't panicked at all and we calmly (okay, there was no "we" in the calmly part) went in to get an ice pack. Emma soon learned that an ice pack earns you TONS of attention and lollipops. I guess bees aren't so bad afterall!
Two tubes of blood and a TON of screaming later, Addie's blood was drawn and we were on our way home. I just had to laugh when I looked in the backseat and saw Addie's two bandaids from her shots the day before, a big bandaid and cotton from her bloodwork, and a puffy arm with an icepack on Emma. I felt the Lord with me through all of it. It's the only way I stayed so calm!
Here's Emma and her bee sting (it's a red mark on her upper arm... LOL... look closely!):
I LOVE that look on Emma's face.
ReplyDeleteOh my! What a day! Look at poor little Emma's face!
ReplyDeleteI'll be anxious to read what the doctor says about Addie's test results. I'm starting to think Savannah has some form of allergic reaction to dairy because of her constant tummy aches, thus the quest to eat & drink healthier. She has excema also as does Josiah so I feel your pain with that. I remember wrapping Ace bandages around Savannah's knees and wrists to keep her from scratching. The skin was literally open and oozing. Ewwww. It's so hard to see your child hurting when you don't know the cause. I hope you guys get some answers.
I enjoyed your comment on my Whole Foods blog. I never would have gone by myself. Grab yourself a buddy that wants to eat healthy or just wouldn't mind coming along for the ride and go! If your store is anything like ours there are a million things to look at. I'm learning so much as I go along! It's fun and overwhelming at the same time.
Oh, and one more thing, Jeanette told me that the flaxseed oil may help excema. It's supposed to rejuvinate (sp?) skin and she suggested even putting some right on top of the itchy areas. I'm not sure if babies can have it, though.
~Rebecca