Alex’s Allergy Testing…

I completely forgot to update on the allergy testing the other day while I was on here.  So, here I am.  (Another break of course.)

We had Alex’s appointment with the allergy/asthma specialist last Monday morning.  During this appointment he did some lung testing and the skin allergy testing.

The lung testing went well.  He scored well on the blockage test indicating there is no blockage.  The inflammation test did not go as well & he does have inflammation in the lining of his lungs.  He will take the Serevent (that was originally as needed by his regular doctor) daily for a month.  After a month we will switch to a different inhaler that must be taken daily.  Ideally this will help the inflammation to go away & not return. 

The skin testing…

He had 69 pokes.  2 were for controls.  The other 67 were allergy things.  3 of those were for food… Strawberries, Tomatos and the Squash family.  64 were environmental allergies…. Dogs, Cats, Birds, Molds, Trees, Weedes, Grasses.

He was not allergic to strawberries.  But due to the reactions he’s had in the past (hives on his face & itchy skin) she said she’d still limit them as the testing isn’t always exact & he could have a sensitivity to them.

He was very allergic to tomatos & squash.  The tomatos I had begun to expect.  In the last year or so he’s began developing a hive type rash after tomato products at all… Spaghetti, Lasagna, Chili, Ketchup.  Anything with tomato.  This was very positive.  The squash was just out of curiousity as he broke out at Halloween this year after carving a pumpkin.  This was also a positive. Pumpkins, squash, zucchini, etc.

Alex is my very good eater.  I’m so extremely sad to see both of these items go.  The doctor said I could continue to limit them on occassion but she would recommend he completely cut them out as you never know when a reaction may suddenly become very severe.  This means NO tomato or squash based food.  Do you have ANY idea how many things tomatos are in?  Everything.  I eat a LOT of tomato based products.  Many of Alex’s favorite foods involve tomato base… PIZZA!!  It’s rather devastating.  We can do it though. I’ve found a recipe for tomatoless ketchup I’m going to try.  And pizza will have to be alfredo sauce.  Or nomato sauce.  We will try it all & see what the verdict is.

He wasn’t allergic to Dogs, Cats or Birds.  This is a great thing as it means Alex won’t have to move out 😉

He was extremely allergic to just about every other test.  Almost every mold, tree, grass, weed was positive.  (I think the verdict was 52 came back positive out of the 67.)  He should really live in a happy little bubble.
 

We will begin allergy shots soon.  He will receive the shots 1-2 times a week.  The shots are basically made out of all the + allergies he had.  They are then injected slowly each time & you slowly build up a tolerance.

There are some pretty scary side effects, but overall the doctor feels he’s severe enough that it will be worth it & improve his quality of life.  I’m nervous but praying it works well. 

He’s still on a ton of meds… Singulair – 1x/day, Zyrtec – 1x/day, Pulmicort – 2x/day, Serevent – 2x/day, Flonase – 2x/day.  Albuterol nebulizer’s as needed.  Ventolin inhaler as needed.  Tsomething lotion for eczema.  He also puts a heavy layer of the Eucerin lotion on each day.  And an Epipen the doctor just prescribed as needed (hopefully never).  And we’ll swap out the Serevent for Symbicort or something similiar in a month.  Keep that all straight?  (I barely can.)

So, we’re doing all these meds daily.  I’ve completely cut out tomatos & he hasn’t had any form of a tomato product in 10 days.  (10 days ago he had a pizza stick.)  And he rarely ate squash products so none of that.  Amazingly his breathing is great.  And his skin is clearing up.  It’s no longer raw hamburger looking & I think in another week it may be completely clear.  So, not only was the tomato causing the hives on his face, but the constant itching on his poor legs.  We should start the allergy shots sometime after the new year as they were behind because of the holidays & said it would take a little while to get the shots mixed up. 

Now we just need prayers it all goes well. 

The camera — I’m not sure of exactly what it is.  I know it’s a Nikon.  Okay, I searched… Nikon D3200  http://www.nikonusa.com/en/Nikon-Products/Product/Digital-SLR-Cameras/25496/D3200.html  It really is amazing.  And it has a user guide type thing on it that helps you figure it out as you go.  And as you figure it out you can always buy more and more complex lenses if you are loving it.  🙂  And the pictures it takes of the kids sports is AMAZING.  That’s one of the BIG reasons I want it.  It takes incredile action pictures. 

Alright, things to do!

Happy New Year to alll of you if I’m not on again before then! 🙂