Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Dreams Coming True

I always had this fantasy of the day Max would be able to eat dairy.  I saw it as a sudden thing.  We would go into the allergist.  He would pass an oral challenge then we would go by all kinds of dairy products take him to his school and have a class dairy party.

Year after year his numbers stayed the same.  When they finally did decline his skin test was still huge.  Once that diminished we failed oral challenges two years in a row.  We were finally given permission to try milk baked in goods but by this time the fear had built in.  Yes, he could tolerate baked milk, he just didn't want to go there.

Today we had an oral challenge to cheese at the allergist.  At he age of 9 1/2 he finally passed.  So do we go home and celebrate with a plethora of cheese products.  No.  The fear is still there.  He also says he doesn't like the taste.  Nonetheless, it's a dream come true.  Something I had almost given up hope on.  At this point though it is not the glorious feeling like the heavens had finally shone bright light upon us that I had expected.  It's more of a "huh, how 'bout that."  I guess because it doesn't mean that Max is going to jump into eating mac n cheese and grilled cheese sandwiches.  This too will be a gradual process.  It may still be years before we walk into a pizza joint and get the double cheese stuffed crust pizza.  Dairy went out of our life suddenly with hives and vomiting and swollen faces.  It will enter quietly and gradually they way change usually happens.

9 comments:

Claire said...

I am so incredibly happy for you!! I can't even imagine the relief you must feel. It's not so much he can eat it...it's that it won't kill him anymore! Someday, he might be ready.
My son is only 4 and I've already given up hope that he'll outgrow anything. His numbers never change and are always sky high. You've given me a bit of hope!

Emily Hendrix said...

Sophie outgrew milk at 4 and wheat at 8. She is now 9 and eats some dairy products, some of the time, and still eats virtually no wheat. It is a huge relief not to deal with them as allergens, but a disappointment that she doesn't really eat them. I would love it if you'd check out my book and my website.
www.sophiesafecooking.com
www.sophiesafefoodguide.com
Please contact me at sophiesafe@gmail.com

Anonymous said...

Yay! I have a Max with a dairy allergy who just turned 9. I hope 9 is the year for us too, although he's still off the charts at the moment.

abner fernandez said...

Love it!!
To the point, articulate, and interesting.
Finding out what our Children are allergic to is Vital
Thanks

Anonymous said...

That's great! I sure hope we can have a class dairy party one day too.

Anonymous said...

Congrats! That's wonderful! I hope one day we're at the same place.

My 3-year-old son had severe eczema until he was diagnosed with food allergies a few months back. I have a blog that shares our family’s battles with eczema, allergies, and asthma (yes, lucky guy has that too).

I think the key is to learn from one another, so the more information out there to the masses, the better. With this in mind I’ve started a blog hop for anyone dealing with allergies, eczema, or asthma, either for themselves or as a caregiver. If you’re interested in joining, please add a comment. I’d love to welcome you to the group. http://itchylittleworld.wordpress.com/blog-hop/


Thanks.
Jennifer

Haley said...

So exciting to hear about him outgrowing his milk allergy. That is still a long lost dream of mine (my son is 4.5 and highly allergy to dairy, eggs, peanuts and tree nuts). My son's numbers seem to only ever increase but it gives me a glimmer of hope to hear about someone outgrowing it at 9.5, maybe someday it will be our reality as well. Very happy for you! Our allergist said not to lose hope until puberty, I hope we get to celebrate the dream come true long before that.

Food Allergy Bitch said...

My son is almost 17 and he just passed a baked milk challenged last summer. It's not easy! (I did write a little about it in my own blog:

http://foodallergybitch.blogspot.com/2012/01/groupthink-anxiety-and-allergy.html

Hang in there and just take it a little at a time.

Stephanie Hearts Biscotti said...

Funny.... My son has peanut , tree nut and egg allergies and our allergist told me to stop holding out for hope. He told me it was dangerous because he "will not" out grow the nut allergy ever! : (