Happy Food Allergy Awareness Month! Did you know May is also Mental Health Awareness Month? That is no coincidence in my book. In celebration of this annual intersection, All Things Allergies is extending beyond our usual trauma-related content into another chapter of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders – Feeding and Eating Disorders.Continue reading “Food Allergy Linked to Disordered Eating & Body Image”
Author Archives: allthingsallergies
Southwest Airlines Discontinues Their Pre-Boarding Policy for Food Allergies in September – Backpedals in November
In direct violation of the Air Carrier Access Act, as of September 2022, Southwest Airlines no longer offers pre-boarding for peanut allergies. When Southwest Airlines made the decision to stop in-flight service of peanut products, my family became loyal customers – Religiously recommending the caring and accommodating staff at Southwest to anyone and everyone. NowContinue reading “Southwest Airlines Discontinues Their Pre-Boarding Policy for Food Allergies in September – Backpedals in November”
Anxiety, Or Anaphylaxis?
Exploring the physiological + psychological similarities between anaphylaxis + panic attacks, and how the perceived gap in professional literature may perpetuate somatic trauma responses in the food allergy community. “We have learned that trauma is not just an event that took place sometime in the past; it is also the imprint left by that experienceContinue reading “Anxiety, Or Anaphylaxis?”
It All Started With A Mouse: Wishing Upon A Star at Walt Disney World
“In bad times and in good, I’ve never lost my zest for life.” – Walt Disney Do you believe in magic? After a Disney trip full of three course allergy friendly meals, specially prepared + delivered dishes, and safe desserts after safe desserts… We certainly do! Orlando’s Walt Disney World earned itself a household ofContinue reading “It All Started With A Mouse: Wishing Upon A Star at Walt Disney World”
New Heights: Flying Safely with Peanut Allergies
Much to my dismay, peanuts have become just as synonymous with flying on commercial airlines as they are with American baseball games – And its a travel nightmare. According to a recent publication for the Center for Food Allergy and Asthma Research (CFAAR), 98% of respondents reported some level of anxiety about airline travel dueContinue reading “New Heights: Flying Safely with Peanut Allergies”
Exposure Therapy: Conquering Food Challenges After Years of Food Anxiety
After receiving my negative skin + blood tests from Chicago Family Allergy and Asthma, I was given the “all clear” to food challenge tree nuts, seafood, and legumes at home for the very first time. Given my undetectable IgE levels, Dr. Katie Tanner felt confident in conducting my taste tests outside of their Lincoln ParkContinue reading “Exposure Therapy: Conquering Food Challenges After Years of Food Anxiety”
And Then There Was One
And in August of 2021, after twenty four years of embodying the identity of “the allergy kid,” my laundry list of food allergies narrowed itself down to just… one. Rewind In preschool, my parents taught my teachers how to properly administer an auto injector in case of emergency. In elementary school, I sat alone atContinue reading “And Then There Was One”
Invisible Consequences of Anaphylaxis: My Personal Struggle with Mental Health and Food Allergies
The Reaction During the summer of 2014, as a 17-year-old incoming senior in high school, I took a walk with friends to a local ice cream shop that would unknowingly change the course of my life forever. Half of a brownie flurry later, I was reaching for a bottle of Benadryl in our medicine cabinetContinue reading “Invisible Consequences of Anaphylaxis: My Personal Struggle with Mental Health and Food Allergies”
My COVID-19 Vaccination Experience
As a training mental health clinician in Illinois, I recently qualified for the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. Despite a history of severe anaphylactic reactions, I safely received my vaccination on Saturday January 23rd through Loyola Medicine. Pre Vaccination Upon hearing the news that the revolutionary COVID-19 vaccine capable of producing 95% immunity withContinue reading “My COVID-19 Vaccination Experience”
Allergy Friendly Restaurant Guide: Columbus
Home of The Ohio State Buckeyes, and my home for almost four years. The capital of Ohio, and the fourteenth largest city in the United States. Likely not your first vacation destination, but I’m looking to change that. I’ve had a whole bachelor’s degree worth of time to hunt down the city’s safest and mostContinue reading “Allergy Friendly Restaurant Guide: Columbus”
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