We've been gearing up for an allergy review with Callum's consultant at the beginning of August, and were asked to 'trial' a couple of foods ahead of the appointment, so that repeat allergy tests could be tailored accordingly.
One of the foods is strawberry.
Previously, when Callum has been given strawberry, he almost instantly got hives on his face. A pretty obvious indication that he's having an immediate reaction.
This happened when he was 7 months old, so he's not had strawberries since!
So, this time round, I thought I'd try him on a fruit smoothie, with strawberry being only one of the ingredients. I posted the recipe last week, and it was a big hit! Callum only had a very small amount, but seemed fine, and really enjoyed it.
When trialling a food, you are advised to repeat over 3 days so you can know for definite if a reaction is occurring or not.
Friday afternoon, I decided to make an ice-cream for day 2, again using similar ingredients to what I had used for the smoothie. (I'll post the recipe for the ice-cream next week!).
We were at our next door neighbours house, they have 2 children who are very similar ages to Chloe and Callum, so they all get on really well!
The children had been playing in the paddling pool, and as it was a hot day, had the ice-cream to cool down.
Callum literally had 2-3 tastes of his ice-cream before he handed it to me, saying he wanted me to 'hold it for me mummy'. Thinking he was being his usual cheeky self, I told him to take it back because I wanted to eat one too (god did I feel guilty a few minutes later!). He refused to take it back, and then the symptoms started.
Very itchy, sore, and red eyes.
Really itchy and blotchy face.
Pulling at the throat.
Itchy ears.
Swelling of the face.
Aaaarrrgggghhhhh god dammit!!
I twigged pretty quickly what was going on (any parent to an allergic child will tell you that you are always on high alert, you can't ever truly relax!), and before my poor neighbour really realised what was happened, I checked she was ok to look after Chloe, told Chloe what I was doing (she's well used to Callum's reactions and doesn't freak out about them) scooped Callum up, and ran as fast as I could to our house, where I plied him with all of his drugs.
Then came the 5 minute wait to see if they would kick in.
Would it be epi-pen and 999....?
Thankfully, I caught it just in time!
The swelling didn't get any worse, and he stopped being quite so itchy.
Once I was certain Callum was ok, I made my way back round to my lovely neighbour, who god bless her, had started to make tea for all the children, Chloe included!
It's true what they say, when a crisis hits, you really do know who your true friends are!
(Thank you so much for your help Dette, it was very much appreciated!! x)
Callum fell asleep as we were walking round, I wasn't worried though, as he usually does this after a major reaction. His obs were fine, and he wasn't presenting with anything causing me alarm.
BUT, I am used to this, and trained! If this happens to your child, please seek guidance from a healthcare professional if you are at all unsure, it is better to be safe than sorry!
While Callum was asleep, the swelling came down, the red patches calmed, and although groggy on waking, appearances were normal.
By Saturday morning, he was back to his usual cheeky self, thank goodness!
I must confess, after him being ok on Thursday, with day 1 of trialling strawberries, I never expected him to react the way he did on day 2.
It just goes to show, you always have to be on full alert when dealing with allergies!
And one thing is for certain, strawberries are definitely staying OFF the menu!!
