My apologies to anyone who has tried my blog thinking they would get lots of new survival tips, because AS YOU CAN SEE, I disappeared off the blog grid for about a year and a half. Truth of the matter is, everything got way, way worse until it got better. It only got better about a month ago. Thus the sailor-language title.
What prompted my return? My triumphant recreation of creamy ranch dressing, that's what. I pulled it off last night, had happy dreams and have been dancing all day. I think I must share this with the world, because pulling off creamy ANYTHING when the allergies include both dairy and soy is something beautiful to behold. I don't have an exact recipe yet because I just threw stuff together until it tasted pretty familiar to those beautiful Hidden Valley Ranch days when we didn't know that prepackaged mixes were killing us. So, I will work on it and post the recipe!
Facebook has been my survival tool for the time I've been gone. There is an incredible corn allergy support page there that has been a lifesaver more than once, even if for only screaming and pulling my hair out to people who understand. I've also been blessed to be linked there with good friends from throughout my life who have been cheerleaders when we've had a victory. Sometimes that's been some of my only interaction with the outside world, apart from doctor visits, shopping for food, and church when I can make it. I'm not even kidding.
When I first started this blog I thought I could share with people what we learned along the way, but the truth is, I was so overwhelmed with the huge learning curve I was on that half the time I felt paralyzed. Between that and handling some very scary allergic reactions that took lots and lots of recovery time, I didn't even know where to start posting. I think that now I'm up to it, though, and hopefully this can become a meaningful resource. My daughter pointed out that I have over 1,400 page views and I was both shocked and felt bad that there hasn't been more here to offer. So please, bear with me and stay along for the ride. Who knows You might enjoy the zany humor we've developed around here along the way, as well as learn some things that will help.
One thing that has really hit home to me from our experiences is that corn allergies are not understood the way they need to be yet, and they are still discounted by the majority of people as being as serious as they are. I have to tell you, though, just from the swell in numbers we've seen on the Facebook allergy page, I feel strongly that this is going to be the next "big one" in America as people finally figure out the root to so many of their health problems. And we, as people, have to be our own advocates because the medical field still doesn't get it. The allergy specialists don't even understand it. I've been in the position of having to stand my ground with professionals who didn't want to hear that a simple Mom might know more than they did about something, and if I hadn't my daughter would have died. Simple Mom intuition, I have learned, is one of God's greatests gifts to women. I never doubt it anymore. When I get a nudge I follow it, whether it makes sense at the time or not, and whether or not anyone around me agrees or thinks it makes sense.
Okay. Rant over. Hey, this feels good--stay tuned, because I have a feeling you are in for a lot more as I tell more of what the past year and a half has brought. It's been a crazy, insane, scary and yet in the end exciting journey as we have made discoveries and learned more than we ever thought we would about so many things.
Recently at my church, our women's group had an activity where they wanted people to bring or talk about something they accomplished during 2012. I wasn't able to attend the activity, but I told my husband that if I were to go, I was tempted to bring my daughter's picture, hold it up and say, "2012 is the year I kept my daughter alive." Nuff said.
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