Some time ago, I mentioned the infant reflux Mason was battling along with our discovery of his food allergies. Back then, I said I would talk more about that later, and before it becomes a whole year later, now seems like the time.
Breastfeeding for a new mother is a challenge. Any mother will tell you that the rewards are great, but fine tuning this very specific skill is difficult. Don't let anyone tell you it's easy, because it's not. Without getting into the specifics of should you or shouldn't you or debating the benefits of breast milk over formula I'll share my journey with you in relation to Mason's reflux and his milk allergy.
While pregnant with Mason, I craved milk. Couldn't get enough of the velvety white elixir. Now this is strange because I myself have a milk allergy and can't tolerate more than 1/2 c. without feeling ill. Pregnancy afforded me the pleasure of consuming a half gallon during my lunch hour. It was so delicious!
Weeks after Mason's birth, after trips to the Pedi and a brief visit with a Lactation Consultant, we were told I was doing everything right. Some how, Mason wasn't gaining weight as quickly as everyone had hoped. He wasn't in danger of being underweight, but I was asked to breastfeed(BF) as often as possible and to wake him every 2 hours overnight, just to make sure he was getting all the needed nutrition.
No matter what position I tried, how many times I burped him, what position he was left in after a feeding - Mason expelled most of what he ate. We used receiving blankets as burp cloths and I always leaned against a bath towel while nursing and burping because I knew it wouldn't stay in him long. I changed shirts at least 3 times in a day, and sometimes had to change all my clothes because the volume of "spit up" was so much.
Not only did the volume seem extreme for such a little bundle, but the behavior while BFing and after was concerning as well. Mason would writhe and arch and scream as I brought him in close to nurse. I tried every position short of standing on my head and nothing seemed to be comfortable for him. I felt awful. I was failing him. I couldn't make my body do what it was made to do.
I mentioned the volume and the behavior to his Pedi at the time. Like I was expecting, I was first brushed off as a new mother, who just didn't know what to expect or had unrealistic expectations. And as long as he's gaining some weight, he should be fine. My heart couldn't take watching my baby go through this ordeal. Meal time is supposed to be a pleasurable experience for a baby, and Mason was definately not in a state of pleasure.
I did some research in my Infant Development books and some more digging online. Everything that Mason and I were experiencing sounded an awful lot like reflux. So, I pushed the issue with his former Pedi. I couldn't believe it when he told me, "We can try this antacid. It won't hurt him if he doesn't have reflux and if it does work, then we know that's the problem." It was as if I was getting the Rx like a pat on the head. I was furious, but satisfied that I could at least try something to ease Mason's discomfort.
First dose and there was a huge difference. He didn't arch or wriggle, he latched for much longer. And although there was spit up with burping, it was just that... spit up. It wasn't vomit, he wasn't screaming, and it wasn't all over me. Yay!! Finally, we could establish a pleasant BF experience - for the both of us.
It wasn't long after the reflux was managed that I noticed the reaction to my milk intake in Mason. I quickly cut out dairy and it was smooth sailing in the BF realm from there on out.
Moral of this story: Give yourself more credit. You know your child better than any one. Sometimes Dr's don't know it all and need to be knocked back down to the human level.
Needless to say, we no longer see that doctor for Mason's care. Our current Pedi is fabulous and the one we eventually went to about Mason's food allergy concerns. He continues to be a source of support and guidance for our family and I hope we are able to call on him for years to come.
January 26, 2009
January 25, 2009
Apologies to all who follow this blog. I am the first to admit I'm a horrible blogger, but do realize that this may be an important resource for some and so I continue.
Living day to day with a food allergic child becomes second nature. Always reading labels at the grocer for fear that because the package has a new badge on it, that they've gone and changed the ingredient listing too. Always washing hands and face after every meal or cup of coffee. Never letting your guard down or getting too comfortable. SCCCCchhhhhrreeeeeeccccchhHHHH!
What was that I said? Never? Well, almost never. See when you're on vacation, your every being goes on vacation. I've come to learn that as long as we have reactions, I will never be on vacation from my son's food allergies. Mason is almost 2 now and I'd like to think that his father and I have a handle on what's safe and what isn't. What we've come to learn time and time again, is that we can never be perfect. We cannot protect him from everything. We cannot avoid exposures 100% of the time. Even we slip up.
Over the Thanksgiving holiday, we traveled to The Sea Ranch to enjoy the sand and sea with family. It was a very relaxing vacation, enjoyed by all. Especially Mason! He's enamoured with the Ocean. Couldn't get enough of watching the waves crash on the rocky shore.
Mark & I left Mason with his grandparents so we could have some quality time together, being thankful. As always, even though the grandparents are well aware of the "rules", we left the rules with them and flitted off into town for lunch. The time away was nice. We breathed sighs of sheer relaxation and before heading back, stopped into the local market to replenish snacks for the rest of our stay.
On more than one occasion I've picked up some Snap Crisps. The original version, I first found at our favorite - Trader Joe's. It's a salty, but milk free crunchy alternative to a cracker and delicious all on it's own.
Well, in my bliss of relaxation, I spotted some on the shelf at this small market and snatched them up, not realizing the packaging looked a little odd than I remembered, and home with us they went.
Fast forward to a few hours later & Mason was asking for a snack. I obliged happily as I served him a small bowl of Snap Crisps for us to share. I don't know what made me think twice, but after about 7 of them had made their way into his mouth, I decided to look at the bag one more time. Yup, I grabbed the Caesar variety, which wouldn't ya know, contains milk in the ingredient list. After a quick assessment of Mason for any signs of reaction (the salty residue was all over his face & fingers), and before the guilt for having such a cavalier lapse in judgement, we found no reaction at all.
You see, Mason's milk reaction is a little different than Joe Blow would assume. He doesn't experience upset stomach or lots of gas. His is a skin contact reaction. Where ever he is exposed to the ingredient, his skin reacts. It becomes puffy and red, eventually gets bumpy, then whiteheads appear - I'll spare you the rest, just trust me, it isn't pretty and it isn't comfortable. And because what goes in, must come out, we have the pleasure of treating two reactions with one exposure.
Back to the story. I figured playing with fire was dangerous enough and didn't allow Mason any more Caesar Snap Crisps. He wasn't too happy about it, but it was soon nap time. Time for him to rest and time for me to worry imagining the worst waiting for me come diaper change time. Mark & I decided that with such a small exposure and with plenty of Benadryl on hand, that we would treat this as a Food Challenge, so we did not dose him before his nap. Much to our surprise, grandparents included, there was no reaction in sight when he woke up. Nothing on his face, nothing in his diaper.
Whew! Crisis averted. Since then, I haven't been brave enough to challenge again. Especially not with pure dairy. I'll leave that up to his Pedi or Allergist. My heart can't take the stress I inflict upon myself.
So there's hope for the future. Lots of hope that Mason will grow out of his Dairy Allergy before he starts public school. Hope that his Peanut Allergy won't grow at all. Hope that we can eventually take that well deserved vacation from Food Allergies.
Until then, I've got big plans to help my Food Allergic community. Since our household is already set up and dealing with Dairy Allergies, and because I've always longed to stay at home with my children, I've found a way to use what we've got to suit my desire. I plan to open up and run a Family Childcare accommodating children with food allergies. It's so far been a long process, but that's my own doing. I'm never one to jump head first without a helmet and paramedics standing by, just in case. Considering the rising statistics of infants and toddlers with food allergies, I figure my target audience will be an appreciative one at the least.
I hope to continue posting here with our experiences. I hope that some will read and learn. I hope that some will read and know they aren't alone. I hope that some will read and teach me. I hope that some will read and I'll know we aren't alone.
Living day to day with a food allergic child becomes second nature. Always reading labels at the grocer for fear that because the package has a new badge on it, that they've gone and changed the ingredient listing too. Always washing hands and face after every meal or cup of coffee. Never letting your guard down or getting too comfortable. SCCCCchhhhhrreeeeeeccccchhHHHH!
What was that I said? Never? Well, almost never. See when you're on vacation, your every being goes on vacation. I've come to learn that as long as we have reactions, I will never be on vacation from my son's food allergies. Mason is almost 2 now and I'd like to think that his father and I have a handle on what's safe and what isn't. What we've come to learn time and time again, is that we can never be perfect. We cannot protect him from everything. We cannot avoid exposures 100% of the time. Even we slip up.
Over the Thanksgiving holiday, we traveled to The Sea Ranch to enjoy the sand and sea with family. It was a very relaxing vacation, enjoyed by all. Especially Mason! He's enamoured with the Ocean. Couldn't get enough of watching the waves crash on the rocky shore.
Mark & I left Mason with his grandparents so we could have some quality time together, being thankful. As always, even though the grandparents are well aware of the "rules", we left the rules with them and flitted off into town for lunch. The time away was nice. We breathed sighs of sheer relaxation and before heading back, stopped into the local market to replenish snacks for the rest of our stay.
On more than one occasion I've picked up some Snap Crisps. The original version, I first found at our favorite - Trader Joe's. It's a salty, but milk free crunchy alternative to a cracker and delicious all on it's own.
Well, in my bliss of relaxation, I spotted some on the shelf at this small market and snatched them up, not realizing the packaging looked a little odd than I remembered, and home with us they went.
Fast forward to a few hours later & Mason was asking for a snack. I obliged happily as I served him a small bowl of Snap Crisps for us to share. I don't know what made me think twice, but after about 7 of them had made their way into his mouth, I decided to look at the bag one more time. Yup, I grabbed the Caesar variety, which wouldn't ya know, contains milk in the ingredient list. After a quick assessment of Mason for any signs of reaction (the salty residue was all over his face & fingers), and before the guilt for having such a cavalier lapse in judgement, we found no reaction at all.
You see, Mason's milk reaction is a little different than Joe Blow would assume. He doesn't experience upset stomach or lots of gas. His is a skin contact reaction. Where ever he is exposed to the ingredient, his skin reacts. It becomes puffy and red, eventually gets bumpy, then whiteheads appear - I'll spare you the rest, just trust me, it isn't pretty and it isn't comfortable. And because what goes in, must come out, we have the pleasure of treating two reactions with one exposure.
Back to the story. I figured playing with fire was dangerous enough and didn't allow Mason any more Caesar Snap Crisps. He wasn't too happy about it, but it was soon nap time. Time for him to rest and time for me to worry imagining the worst waiting for me come diaper change time. Mark & I decided that with such a small exposure and with plenty of Benadryl on hand, that we would treat this as a Food Challenge, so we did not dose him before his nap. Much to our surprise, grandparents included, there was no reaction in sight when he woke up. Nothing on his face, nothing in his diaper.
Whew! Crisis averted. Since then, I haven't been brave enough to challenge again. Especially not with pure dairy. I'll leave that up to his Pedi or Allergist. My heart can't take the stress I inflict upon myself.
So there's hope for the future. Lots of hope that Mason will grow out of his Dairy Allergy before he starts public school. Hope that his Peanut Allergy won't grow at all. Hope that we can eventually take that well deserved vacation from Food Allergies.
Until then, I've got big plans to help my Food Allergic community. Since our household is already set up and dealing with Dairy Allergies, and because I've always longed to stay at home with my children, I've found a way to use what we've got to suit my desire. I plan to open up and run a Family Childcare accommodating children with food allergies. It's so far been a long process, but that's my own doing. I'm never one to jump head first without a helmet and paramedics standing by, just in case. Considering the rising statistics of infants and toddlers with food allergies, I figure my target audience will be an appreciative one at the least.
I hope to continue posting here with our experiences. I hope that some will read and learn. I hope that some will read and know they aren't alone. I hope that some will read and teach me. I hope that some will read and I'll know we aren't alone.
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