Allergy Update

Friday brought a second visit to the allergist, the two year check up.  After several pricks, pokes and prods, it was determined that I am allergic to everything out there... except dairy.

I thought this simply could not be.  I even made them test it again.  Pres and I sat and watched the little spot on my forearm where they scratched the poisonous dairy test.  Nothing happened.  Fifteen minutes passed. Still nothing happened.

For the past two years, I've joked about what I would do if my dairy allergy went away.  I would only eat cheese pizza and buttered bread.  I wouldn't even bother with any other type of dairy but good cheese and salty butter.  Never mind deserts, forget milk.  Maybe I would allow some blue cheese dressing and a few chocolate milkshakes, but only if they taste just right.

But when the test came back negative, I was confused.  What have the past two years of cashew sauces and soy ice cream been about?  Was that all a waste of time?  I'm not even allergic to dairy!  It was a mistake; the other allergist was wrong and here I've been, not eating dairy for two years because of it.

However, this is not the case.  I did have an allergy.  I'm not crazy!  I remember the allergy attacks.  Most food allergies come and go.  There is a reason they test for them every two years.  They go away.

I asked the doctor if I could go eat a cheese pizza now, since I'm not allergic to cheese anymore.  He said that we should do a food challenge.  THis means that I should go get a cheese pizza and take it tot he allergist's office early in the morning.  I would then proceed to eat this slice of pizza at the doctor's office, very slowly.

We didn't do this.  Mainly because I've never had an emergency reaction to food before.  Instead, I ate a few crumbles of blue cheese with a salad from Pot Belly's.  And later, half a small chocolate milkshake.  And the next day, bread with a few dabs of butter on it.  A cupcake in the afternoon (which was risky because the egg allergy is still questionable)  And at dinner, a few chips covered in queso.

The best part, well, that was the buttered bread, but the second best part was that I ordered beef fajitas without butter on the meat, but didn't have to worry if they really had put butter on the meat or not, didn't have to think about if the grill may have had butter left on it or if the chips and tortillas were made at the same time as something with butter on it.

And besides everything tasting amazing, nothing has happened.  No allergy symptoms.  It's wonderful!

The egg allergy is still there, as well as an allergy to everything else in the world.  But this is a definite improvement.  Oddly enough, I haven't had pizza yet.  I don't think I could take it so slowly when faced with a cheese pizza.  There would be no "just eating one piece" about that scenario.  I am restricting myself to one item of dairy per day at the most for now.  I'm taking it slow.  I've already had buttered toast this morning, and I could eat it all day.