I was in the Hospital - Now I'm Home!

[Karen]

Hey, play a game, assume you can eat EVERYTHING again. What will you eat first?

Soooooo not gonna do that, that's for sure! I really dislike being sick. And some of the ones I have are actually food allergies and are not to be trifled with. I carry an EPI pen but never want to have to use it. Tree nuts, cranberries, chickpeas, broccoli - sadly off my diet forever.

Once I am completely recovered, and have spoken with my own primary care doctor, I may start slowly introducing things back in, but just one at a time. So that precludes a big plate of spaghetti and meatballs, because that would be at least three things (beef, garlic and olive oil) that make me sick ...

But if I DO discover things I can eat again, each one will be a BIG victory.

[Lillycat]

......hoping you find lots of food choices......

[Cataholic]

I am confused, your allergies weren't confirmed by an allergist? Have you not been eating foods a long time??? Lol..that is horribly ungrammatical. But it seemed like you were allergic to tons and tons of things. Who told you you were allergic/intolerant all these years??? Hope not the same gp you are checking in with!

[Karen]

I am confused, your allergies weren't confirmed by an allergist? Have you not been eating foods a long time??? Lol..that is horribly ungrammatical. But it seemed like you were allergic to tons and tons of things. Who told you you were allergic/intolerant all these years??? Hope not the same gp you are checking in with!

Some of my allergies were confirmed by the allergist through blood tests. Others did not show up on blood tests, but when I described a reaction to her, she'd say, "Well, not all intolerances show up on a blood test, so we're not gonna bother doing a test every time something new makes you sick, just avoid that substance." We have not done the extensive blood tests for years, as getting results takes several weeks, and also requires me to be off all allergy meds for 3 days beforehand ... so is annoying to schedule, given my environmental allergies are prevalent year 'round.

My Primary Care doctor relied on the allergy doctor for my food issues, as my allergy doc has been working in the field longer than my doc has, an has a good reputation ... I will be talking to my Primary Care doc well before I talk to the allergy doc again. This will all be very interesting, to say the least!

There are foods I have not eaten for years, as the list just grew and grew. Sigh. The longest-existing one I can pinpoint the date - almonds (which could kill me, causes anaphylaxis reaction) was first noticed when my nephew was 12 - he sold me the popcorn with almonds in it. He's now 26 years old, so that allergy is 14 years old.

[Cataholic]

With the very long list of foods you are/were allergic/intolerant of, I would want to know what is what! Lol...no way would I just give up half my food likes, with this crazy development. Maybe whenever the season is less allergy-y, you could get re-tested. But..that is just me. I love food, and eat lots of stuff (just no meat).

[Karen]

With the very long list of foods you are/were allergic/intolerant of, I would want to know what is what! Lol...no way would I just give up half my food likes, with this crazy development. Maybe whenever the season is less allergy-y, you could get re-tested. But..that is just me. I love food, and eat lots of stuff (just no meat).

There are foods I have just been loving from a distance ... not loving any less, just not ingesting them! I am figuring that, at some point in the future I will get retested, as I know people's allergies change over time, anyway. And there are some I am guessing (besides the anaphylaxis ones) that I'll still have, as I have them in common with at least one or two of my siblings and their kids. Wanna guarantee you end up with lots of leftover birthday cake at a Peterson function? Cover it with shredded coconut!

[Fausts_folly]

I'm so glad you're feeling better.

Dad and Uncle Fred told me about your surgery. It's odd that you've been misdiagnosed for so long, but incredibly glad that things are looking up for you.

~Jessi

[pomtzu]

Wow Karen. That would be great if you could really start eating some of the foods you like but have been avoiding. That would make this whole gallbladder issue worth while, even tho it wasn't pleasant. I've never been tested as being allergic, but a couple of years ago I broke out into one big itch all over, after eating a crab cake topped with shrimp. I thought I would go insane with the itching and it took 10 Benadryl over the course of just over an hour for me to get relief. I haven't eaten any shellfish since, even tho I love seafood, but I'm scared to try it as I don't want to go thru that again.

Rest up and dream of all the things that maybe you'll be able to eat again!