Introduce Yourself - We're Glad You Found Us!

[ajasfolks2]

Hello and welcome to all of our newbies and returnees!

Wondering if we should split out the questions about travel?  Or best to leave here so newbie can find?

[catsliva]

Hi my name is Catherine, I am 18 years old and I have been living with peanut allergies my entire life. I thought it would be nice to be able to have the chance to talk to other people that share the same allergies that I have and how they have affected their lifestyles.

[Ketti]

 

What a relief to find this forum!  I have been struggling with adult onset allergies (anaphylaxis and all) for the past several months. 

Best,
Ketti

[rebekahc]

So glad you found us, but sorry you had to!  There are several active members with adult-onset food allergies to commiserate with you!

[pa5075]

My doctor ran the Maridian Valley E95 Basic Food Panel which shows that I have a severe reaction to egg,dairy, gluten, peanut etc.  I am overwhelmed and do not know what steps I should do now.  I have had gas, bloating, fatigue, muscle aches, constipation/diarrhea, stomach pain,headaches.  I have had my gallbladder removed and have had recurring accute pancreatitis in the past.  Where do I go from here?  I went to my general doc...he gave me vicaden and blew me off.  I have been going to an internal medicine doctor who is associated with a homeopathic doc.  I have been seeing both.  He just ran the E95 and sent me the test results in the mail. I have an appointment scheduled in three weeks.  What is the appropriate path from here?
thanks

[rebekahc]

Unfortunately, that test is not a good indicator of true allergies. If you believe you have allergies, you really should see a board certified allergist with experience in food (not just environmental) allergies.  Since many of your symptoms are digestive in nature, it might not be a bad idea to see a GI doc to rule out a GI disorder as the possible cause for your symptoms as well. 

It would be terribly difficult to remove all those things from your diet and not the best choice nutritionally if you don't really need to do so.  The symptoms you describe are not typical of true food allergies. I do think your symptoms are pretty common and difficult to pin on any diagnosis, so some doctors grasp at straws and run tests that suggest "allergies" are the culprit. I sometimes think they do so just to give their patient something to focus on - avoiding that many foods while still eating a complete and healthy diet is pretty demanding and requires a lot of attention.  Some people also have food intolerances and through a process of elimination and reintroduction of foods can find that avoiding certain triggers does help some of their symptoms.

[pa5075]

Thank you for your advice.  I have been to the GI docs.  Can you tell how I locate a Board Certified Allergist in my area that specializes in food allergies?

[rebekahc]

To locate an allergist, other than word-of-mouth, you could call a few and ask about their experience in diagnosing/treating food allergy or use the physician finder from http://aaaai.execinc.com/find-an-allergist/.  I don't know that even they list whether an allergist specializes in food allergies, but you could read the bios and somewhat narrow it down before you call.

[loveshenryjames]

I am new to this. I am honestly not even sure if I am posting in the correct field. haha I am a momma of a 8 month old baby boy and we recently had our first trip to an er, pediatrician, then allergist to discover that our little man has SEVERE milk, egg, and peanut allergies. I am just looking for people in the same boat and suggestions. It is manageable right now because my monkey is still on formula (nutramigen) and baby foods. I am just worried for when he hits a year trying to manage his/our diet.

[sarahj]

Hi, Ive just found this page through 'sulphite Free in Indy blog' as I have a severe allergy to Sulphites... im looking for more information and help! If anyone can point me in the right direction Id be very grateful indeed.
I have found out so much my self by self-diagnosing and have some very useful infomation regarding what not to eat etc but I need some hope!
Many thanks Sarah UK

[SilverLining]

Welcome to the forum.

loveshenryjames, be sure to check out the specific allergy area of the forum, as well as the main area.  Christmas is coming, and family gatherings always include food.  You may find you want some help/suggestions from other parents who have been through holidays with children with food allergies.

sarahj, we have a part of the forum for sulphite allergies.  It's not been very active since we moved here, but this thread Unexpected Sources of Sulfites does list some things to avoid with that allergy.

[EmmaWeimer]

Hello all, I joined this forum in hopes of helping a friend who is popping up with so many allergies that she is afraid to eat. we go to the grocery store and can't find much of anything. She is allergic to corn, soy, wheat, latex, tree nuts, some fruits and vegetables. As I said the list is growing, she has yet to see the allergist. She is getting a referral to the allergist but wants to eat in the meantime. Any takers??

Emma

[PurpleCat]

Hi Emma and Welcome!

Lots of people here can share with you. It's a holiday week so don't be discouraged if the group is quiet. 

Your friend has different allergies than my DD so I won't be much help at the moment.  There are some specific allergen threads below that might be a good place to start while you wait to hear from others.

[John McGillin]

Hi, my name is John McGillin. I am an industrial design student at the Savannah College of Art and Design and for my Senior thesis project I am designing an EpiPen case for the active user.

An EpiPen is a small medical device shaped like a pen used to deliver doses of epinephrine (adrenaline) to people severely affected by allergies, and I'm talking about life or death situations. I myself have an allergy to poultry so severe that after contact, within 15 minutes I will be in anaphylactic shock.

This is why it's important for users to carry an EpiPen on their person at all times, at every meal. For active users that enjoy running, rock climbing, cycling and playing basketball like myself, it's a real drag to carry & properly store an Epi-pen...

My goal is to design a sleek, convenient method of carrying an EpiPen through any activity. Help me give freedom back to active users by answering 10 quick questions.



Thanks for your help!


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[Ra3chel]

John, you might want to start a new thread for that, or ask a mod to.