Monday, February 01, 2010

Allergy and Teresa Jayne

A while ago, Teresa Jayne had a funny reaction to a banana.  Her tongue swelled up and went dark blue.  Michelle is very allergic to bananas so we decided we would treat Teresa Jayne as if this was an allergic reaction.  Caelyn discussed it with the Health Visitor and the GP and they agreed with that decision, even though that reaction is not typical.  The fact is that the reaction wasn't a good one, and nobody wants to see it again.

Tonight they had cod, mash and peas for dinner.  Teresa Jayne has often had mash and peas but this was the first time she had had fish.  Her face swelled, she suddenly got blisters round her mouth and became very lethargic.  

I've suggested to Caelyn that she should talk to her GP about a referral to a paediatrician for allergy testing so they can find out what to avoid and how to treat her when she reacts to something.  Allergies start off with minor reactions but they get ever more severe with repeated exposure to the allergen, and they can indeed be fatal.  I'm a 'better safe than sorry' person.  If Teresa Jayne has other as yet undetected allergies, we need to know about it sooner rather than later so that we can make plans to keep her safe.

Wendy loves bananas and Caelyn can't have them in the house, so she buys bananas and gives them to the nursery school staff to give to Wendy while she is there, so that Wendy doesn't feel deprived and Teresa is kept safe. 

Fish will be a bit more difficult because Wendy loves that too, and she isn't allowed to have it at Nursery because of other children being allergic.  My mum takes Wendy to her house for lunch before swimming on a Wednesday, so we may ask her to give Wendy a meal with fish and banana.  Fish is an important part of a normal diet, and it looks like she will have to enjoy it well away from Teresa.  We have to make plans for Wendy to have things that are good for her without putting Teresa at risk.  

There was that awful story of a girl who was allergic to bananas, and she went to her High School Prom.  At the end of the evening, she did a slow dance with a boy who had had banana at home hours before the Prom.  He had brushed his teeth - as you would if you were wanting to be sure your breath was OK - and he nuzzled her neck during the slow dance.  She went into anaphylactic shock straight away, and she died, despite attempts at resuscitation. 

We aren't at that stage with Teresa yet, but we want to do everything we can to make sure it doesn't get to that stage either.  

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