Kelli's True Story
It was around 12 noon and I was glad to be home on maternity leave with my 13-month-old son Jimi (now 4) and my newborn Nicolas (now 3). I was just putting Nicolas down for a nap when I heard Jimi asking for M&Ms.
I did not have any M&Ms in the house to give him. I noticed on the counter my husband had Resees Pieces candy. He had M&Ms before and knew exactly what they looked like. I thought to myself, well, they look the same. Maybe he will not notice. I put 3 of them into a cup and gave them to him. He put one in his mouth, took a bite and started spitting and making a face of disgust. I immediately took the rest away and within seconds his face had a red rash and started to swell. There was no hesitation, I knew something was wrong. I first thought he was choking on the candy. I knew I only gave him 3 and when I took them from him, there were 2 in there and I saw him spitting the other one. I knew at that point he was not chocking and I had to get to the hospital.
My heart was racing. I started to shake. I couldn’t think. All I could think about doing was getting him to the hospital. I grabbed Jimi and Nicolas and put them into the truck. My heart was racing really, really fast. I couldn't breathe. All I could think about is “GET TO THE HOSPITAL, GET TO THE HOSPITAL” that was about 10 minutes away. This was the WORSE decision I made. I was driving to the hospital shaking, nervous, and both kids NOT in car seats (I just went as fast as I can). I should have just called the ambulance.
When we arrived at the emergency room, it was packed with people. They took one look at Jimi and took him right in. They saw I was a total mess and carrying an infant along too. They sent a nurse to talk to me and calm me down. They gave Jimi Benadryl and a shot. His swelling and rash dissipated within 20 minutes. He looked the way he usually did at this point. I felt relieved to have my son’s life saved.
After explaining everything that he ate they advised me to see an allergist and that it was possible that he was allergic to peanuts. We went on the 1st appointment available about 3 days later. These were the 3 longest days of my life. The entire time I was still nervous something was going to happen until I had him checked.
I will NEVER be without an Epi-Pen. This might be the only chance my son has if it ever happens again.
The good news, we had Jimi skin tested the other major allergens. He came back negative to all except for Peanut. I am still hopeful that one day he’ll grow out of it. However, the allergist does not think that is likely. But, until then, we are teaching Jimi everything he needs to do to be safe. We are surviving, learning, spreading awareness and living life as normally as we can.
Does your child have severe food allergies?
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