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Andrew was diagnosed with an anaphylactic peanut allergy around the age of 2. He was airborne and contact sensitive, and every RAST test he had came back “over 100” for peanuts. For 13 years, we took no risks and practiced strict avoidance of any and all peanuts.
In 2013, we saw a news story about oral immunotherapy (OIT) and the success it was showing in studies and by the few allergists that were offering it in private practice. We began searching for an OIT allergist and quickly found Dr. Love at the Allergy Clinic of Tulsa, approximately 2 hours away from our Southwest Missouri home. Dr. Love was very honest with us during our initial consultation and explained the risks as well as the hopes of OIT. At the time, Dr. Love was fairly new to offering OIT and had never treated a peanut allergy patient whose RAST scores were off the charts like Andrew’s. However, Dr. Love was willing to try if Andrew was too. For the first time in 13 years, we took a risk. A BIG risk. And it paid off.
We started OIT in May 2013, which happened to be the busiest summer for Andrew, who was a 15 year old, three-sport high school athlete. His summer was already full of baseball practices and games, foo… Read more
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At the age of 16 months, I fed my son half of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Within 20 minutes he was experiencing a full blown anaphylactic reaction. I did not know it at the time. Luckily, I took him to the emergency room at the hospital where they recognized right away from the massive facial swelling and the breathing difficulties what was happening. THREE doses of epinephrine and a few hours later, along with some other steroids, he lived. He had an overnight stay in the hospital so they could monitor him. It was determined that he had experienced a severe allergic reaction to peanuts. Our local allergist confirmed that diagnosis through both skin tests and blood tests. We were given a prescription for EpiPen Jr. (.15 mg) and told to have him avoid peanuts.
I never had any idea what life with food allergies was like – until I did. We found out with a tiny bite of a walnut at our kitchen table when our second child was ~18 months old. His face turned bright red, his eyes swelled, within minutes his voice went hoarse, his chest was welting up. We had called the peds after hours number and a neighbor with a son allergic to antiobiotics. We gave Benadryl and it did nothing to help while we were on the phone. The moment his voice changed we raced out the door to the local ER / Urgent care. That was the longest mile drive of my life at the time. Then came the epi-pens, strict avoidance, endless label reading, endless fear every time the phone would ring when he was out of our care. I became the hovering mom, the endless re-checker, the list maker, the epi pens everywhere, can’t have a babysitter, terrorized, running out of meetings to take a local phone call, stressed out allergy parent. People didn’t get it. We limited where we ate out, reviewed restaurants on allergy eats, called ahead, often brought our own food, grilled the waitstaff, grilled our family and friends.
We are a family of four and live in central Oklahoma, an area known for high allergens. With no known family history of food allergy, I never expected my baby would be “that kid”; and have a severe peanut allergy. When my son, Callen, (at 16 mo) vomited after his first real Halloween candy, a Reese’s Cup, I had a slight feeling it could be food allergy. He had chronic eczema and blood tests did reveal a peanut allergy but I knew the tests weren’t black and white and didn’t absolutely mean a true food allergy was present. After all, he could eat eggs just fine and those were on his panel too. So, one day I gave him 2 mini Ritz crackers with peanut butter. He got lethargic and vomited. Just like that Halloween night. It was confirmed. My husband’s grandma has since shared that she has some reactions to peanut but not anaphylaxis.
My son Tyler is 16 and started OIT in June. I will admit that I was so nervous about this whole program even though I had been reading about it for a couple of years since the beginning stages when this sort of program was done only in a hospital setting. My son actually pushed me to make the call and set up an appointment for the consultation. He is older now and I felt that I was no longer going to have the control that I have had over the years regarding his safety. As Tyler began his teen years I started feeling my anxiety levels heighten again. The thoughts of him growing and maturing and discovering his own path in life, making choices, decisions, and mistakes for himself without us ensuring his safety ahead of time were overwhelming.. After 16 years you kind of get use to the routine which has become our way of life. These thoughts brought me back to that initial feeling of fear when we found out that he had a peanut allergy at 8 months old, amongst other food allergies at the time. I remember going into Trader Joe’s market and just breaking down into tears because he was so limited, and all I thought at the time was “What am I going to feed my son, he is just a baby!” Peanu… 
Michelle was diagnosed with a peanut allergy on her first birthday when she broke out in full body hives after lunch at a Thai restaurant where we went to celebrate her birthday. Her first year of life was riddled with random hives and eczema and now we finally had an answer on what was causing it. From then on, we tried complete avoidance (not very successfully) and she had a few instances of allergy induced puking after accidental ingestion! Year over year, her numbers got worse – she also tested positive for Cashew and Pistachio at 2 We first heard about OIT in the summer of 2013 when Michelle was 4, weeks after having an anaphylatic reaction after a meal at a restaurant. We were completely ill planned for the reaction, with barely any Benadryl on hand.
We were lucky to have had wonderful 
My daughter is allergic to peanuts, cashews, and pistachios. She has a history of MANY anaphylactic reactions simply from touching a surface with residue, and one airborne reaction at a baseball game with peanut shell dust in the air. We took many precautions, but life was scary. I remember asking our beloved allergist about OIT, and he did not recommend it for her.
Fathers Day 2010: The day started pretty simply, I had made my husband two pb&j sandwiches for lunch. As he was eating and watching sports, I was playing “tea party” in the other room with our 18 month old daughter, Emersyn “Em”. As Em and I played she would bring “tea” out to her Dad to share. At one point Em reached for his sandwich and he pulled off a tiny piece of the crust and gave it to her. As soon as she ate it she started to cry hysterically. I went to her and she was pulling at her tongue and it looked as if she had been scratched from her cheeks to her lips. At that point we headed to the ER and put a call into her pcp. The on call Dr responded and asked if she was having a difficult time breathing. “No” was my answer. She had calmed and the streaks had lightened. We were advised not go to the ER, but to give her Benadryl, and watch her. Thankfully she did not have further symptoms that day.
I’ve burned through 7 allergists. Lucky 7 was FROM OUR OIT NEWS BLOG
Umer: Listing data to copy and paste in each doctor’s listing
Mercy Medical Group: Dr. Rubina Inamdar and Dr. Binita Mandal Windom Allergy: Dr. Hugh Windom and Dr. Jean Ly Kansas City Allergy and Asthma: Dr. Derrick Ward, Dr. James Sterner and Dr. Mark Neustrom Allergy, Asthma & Sinus Care Center: Dr. Manoj Warrier and Dr. Josie Vitale Bernstein Allergy: Dr. Jonathan Bernstein and Dr. Justin … [Read More Here]
National Institute of Health: “Oral Immunotherapy Is Safe, Effective Treatment for Peanut-Allergic Preschoolers”
For Immediate Release: Wednesday, Aug. 10, 2016 Oral Immunotherapy Is Safe, Effective Treatment for Peanut-Allergic Preschoolers, Study Suggests WHAT: Nearly 80 percent of peanut-allergic preschool children successfully incorporated peanut-containing foods into their diets after receiving peanut oral immunotherapy (OIT), a clinical trial has … [Read More Here]
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