Allergies

I finally took the kiddos to an allergist. We already know they are allergic to peanuts by unfortunate experiences, but I've been curious to know if they are allergic to any other nuts. Have I been avoiding all nuts for no reason or for good reason? I've also been curious to know if J is allergic to eggs. It's the one food he won't eat and complains about when he eats. He's a great eater. He eats everything, so for him to not like a food got me thinking that it must not sit well with him. J also has terrible seasonal allergies and I want to get them under control. 

First they had their blood drawn. This was done to test for all the different nuts and eggs. They did a blood test because there was already a known bad allergic reaction. J is so dang brave. He doesn't even wince. K is scared of it all - the rubber tie, the alcohol swab, the needle, and the bandaid. They were so good in their own ways.  

The next appointment they had the scratch tests done on their backs. The poking on the back isn't so bad. The sad part is the 7-10 days before going in for tests they have to be kept off every allergy medicine. It was not a fun week but they're tough little kids. The different nuts all came back positive. Eggs (whites, yolk, and whole) came back positive for J.

This is J's back literally seconds after all the pricking was done. By the end of the 10 minutes those little red spots were huge and super itchy. It's pretty obvious what he's allergic to.

K also did the back test but her dog test came back negative. I was surprised. I told them that she always has reactions with dogs but maybe it was just an asthma thing and not an allergy thing. They retested using more of whatever they prick with and sure enough dogs came back very positive. K was not happy about any part of the testing. Look at that sad face.

I have LOVED these allergy appointments. I've been learning so much about their allergies and asthma. Asthma is old news in our family. I thought I knew what I was doing when preventing and treating it. Really, I knew so little and I'm excited about what I'm learning. I hopeful we'll get it under such good control that asthma and allergies will only be a thing of their past.