Allergy Free Christmas!

IT’S CHRRRRIIIIIIIIIIIIIISSSSSSTTTMMMMAAAAAAAAAAAAS! :D

Okay so I’m a bit late but lots of exciting stuff has all been happening at once and I haven’t had a chance to sit down and write yet!  In the last few weeks of term everyone was rushing round to see each other, there were parties and carol services and now I’m home there are more people to visit, more parties and carol services and essay deadlines are creeping closer! Being at Uni is strange, when you come home in the holidays it feels like you have two different lives, but that’s kind of nice though :D

At Christmas it’s always fun to think back over past years and thinking back I’ve realized how things have changed for me allergy wise. Although my allergy has become more severe I feel like I’ve learnt to cope with it better and that every year yet more amazing dairy free food has been unveiled!

The fun started back in the first week of December when I got to open my advent calendar! When I was younger they didn’t make dairy free chocolate advent calendars but my mum got me a giant felt one with pockets which she filled with sweets (I totally didn’t peek ahead and eat my favorite ones first…). About three years ago though dairy free chocolate ones appeared and I got to have my first ‘proper’ advent calendar!! This year someone from my church gave me one as a present and so me and my flat mate opened them together to count down the days until Christmas, how festive! :D 

We decided to have a Christmas meal together as a flat :D Together we cooked roast chicken, roast potatoes, parsnips, sweet potato mash, brussel sprouts, broccoli, pigs in blankets and stuffing! There are only four of us. We still managed to eat it all :D We used all my equipment and made sure hands and surfaces were well cleaned so that there was no cross contamination. My flat mates are really understanding of my allergy and we cooked together so that I could double check everything.

 Whilst the final bits of food were cooking I decided to use the opportunity to do some epipen training with them. I have a terrible confession to make : I have been friends with these guys for almost a year and a half now and had still not shown any of them how to use an epipen! It sort of defeats the point if you carry around epipens and then don’t show any one you know how to use them. Whenever I have gone into anaphylactic shock I have become too faint and disorientated to use my epipen. Once when I was at a restaurant with my friends from Sixth Form I had an allergic reaction but none of my friends knew how to use my epipen. A waitress said that she had a younger brother with diabetes who she helped to inject his insulin and so she did the epipen for me. Unfortunately she held my epipen the wrong way up so that when she tried to stab it into my leg she actually ended up stabbing herself in the thumb! Apparently this is quite a common thing to happen! It resulted in us both being carted off to hospital in an ambulance, her to have her thumb drained of the adrenaline so that she didn’t have to have it amputated and me having medicine pumped into my vein in the ambulance because I hadn’t had my epipen and was even more ill than usual! It was horrible seeing my poor mum’s face when I arrived in A and E almost half an hour later than her, and I would have been far less ill than if one of my friends had been able to inject me correctly from the beginning.

I have an epipen trainer kit with a practice epipen in it, so that when I show people how to use an epipen they can actually have a go!

Here are the steps for how to use an epipen, in my own words:

1. Keep calm- I know it sounds obvious but panicking really is the worst thing to do! Just stay calm and follow the steps carefully. After you have used the epipen chat with the person whilst you wait for the ambulance

2. Pull out the blue cap and hold the epipen in your firmly in your fist

3. Draw a cross with your finger on the person’s thigh so that you know where to aim for on their thigh (where the points of the cross meet)

4. Stab the epipen firmly into this point on the leg and listen for a click

5. Hold it in for ten seconds and then pull it out. Massage the area for a couple of minutes.

6. Call 999, ask for an ambulance and state anaphylaxis (If there is more than one of you there then one person should call the ambulance whilst the other one injects)

Encourage the person to lie down with their legs elevated or to sit down. The ONLY place you can inject an epipen is in the thigh and you must ALWAYS call an ambulance even if they seem okay. Keep calm and keep chatty :)

I’m going to make it a goal for myself to epipen train as many people as I can this year, not just for me but for anyone else who carries an epipen :D

That was Uni Christmas; home Christmas has also involved a lot of food! When I was a little girl I remember holding hands with my dad on a walk when my family all bought ice cream and I had a Calypso and saying to him, ‘I given up on some food because I know that I’ll never be able to have it. I really want to try them but I won’t ever be able to’. If only I could back in time (Ghost of Christmas past-style) and tell seven year old me, ‘Don’t worry, the future holds Dairy Free Cornettos and Chocolate mousse!’ Here is just some of the beautiful dairy free food I’ve been able to stuff myself with this holiday- take note of the aforementioned chocolate mousse which will be accompanying me to family gatherings and the gorgeously fat Chocolate Father Christmas! (My first ever one!)

Christmas is a time when we remember that Jesus came into the world as the light to defeat the dark things. Having an allergy can feel like a very dark thing. In the past I have lived in a world of fear unable to properly take part in events because I’ve spent the whole time terrified of the feeling of my throat swelling shut. But I know that I don’t need to live this life of fear because God defeated fear when he sent his son into the world to die and rise again, he wants me to live a joyful life!

I’m heading off now to eat my hundredth dairy free mice pie and watch ‘Love Actually’:D

Speak soon,

The Allergy Student xxx

Eating Out

Hey There! :D

So this time I thought I’d write about a topic that has been a major issue for me in the last few years… EATING OUT! :O

It’s amazing how much of our social lives revolve around food! This is a good thing because food is nice, as I may have mentioned before. Not so long ago though I developed a real fear of eating out, which was difficult because I soon realised how often I get invited to events involving food! Birthdays, weddings, just going to a friend’s house, going out for coffee, BBQ’s, church meals and probably the one I dreaded the most, buffets :O My fear wasn’t completely irrational. Most of the reactions I’ve had have come from eating out where it is a lot harder to control what has happened to your food. Despite making it very clear in two different restaurants about the severity of my allergy I still ended up having anaphylactic shock and being carted off to hospital. It was disappointing but a big relief when I went to see the immunologist and he told me I should never risk eating out again. After these two reactions I went through a period of being completely terrified of my allergy. It felt like something that controlled me, I questioned every single bite of food and so didn’t enjoy food as much. As time has gone by however my attitude towards eating out has changed. As a Christian I believe my life shouldn’t be ruled by fear because Jesus has defeated the dark things of the world and he wants me to live a life of hope. I shouldn’t have to waste time panicking and worrying when I could be having fun with my friends! I’ve realised that I can be careful and enjoy eating out. So Without further ado here are some of the ways I’ve found have helped me when I’ve eaten out.

In the past if I was invited to go to a restaurant I would make sure I’d eaten before I went. Since coming to Uni though it occurred to me that when I’m with a group of friends who are paying for food the restaurant shouldn’t mind me bringing my own. I tried this out with a few restaurants in Newcastle. I decided to email them in advance to warn them and explain to them why exactly I needed to bring my own food. I thought this would be polite but would also educate them about the severity of allergies. Sitting in a restaurant with an empty plate in front of you is weirdly isolating, I don’t know why but when I ate before I came as soon as the food arrived I felt like I couldn’t properly join in conversation. The restaurants I sent the email to answered me straight away saying I was welcome to bring food! The staff were really helpful, they even brought the wine out for me to check the ingredients to see if it had milk in it. (This may sound crazy but I have found it’s been made in a factory with milk before!) It was great being able to eat with everyone else and I felt so much more included.

Something else I think is important is to enjoy creating the meal you are going to take. I always try and go with the same type of thing everyone else is eating, so for example if I was going to an Italian place I’d make pizza or pasta or if I was going to a Chinese restaurant I’d probably take noodles. If you’re unsure of the type of food the restaurant serves then just check out there website, they aways put up loads of pictures of their food. On the other hand you could take whatever you want! That’s one good thing about my allergy- I always know I’ll like the food I get ;) I think it’s worth putting the effort in to create something really nice that looks appetising. When you’re making it the night before you might not be too bothered but when you sit down in the restaurant and you see everyone else’s food you’ll want something good!

 I have also become weirdly obsessed with Tupperware! It might sound odd but I think if you bring your food in a box or bag that looks interesting it feels less weird than turning up with it in a carrier bag. It involves being more organised- I am not a very organised person but having to always plan food ahead is actually teaching me to be! It’s not just eating out at restaurants, at Uni I often stay behind for societies and events and so I have to remember to take my food with me.

As for taking food to people’s houses I’ve found that all my friends are very understanding. If I’m sleeping over I need to remember to take food for each meal as well as snacks to share, I always have so many bags! People often offer to cook with me but it’s just too risky. I need to use separate cooking equipment and check that absolutely every ingredient hasn’t been anywhere near milk. I love the fact that my friends are so desperate to include me but it’s always better to stay safe.

 On a final note, even though I know the chances are very slim of me having a reaction when eating out as I always take my own food, I never leave my epipen behind. Wherever I go I always take two with me just in case J The size of your handbag isn’t something you’d think having an allergy would effect but trust me it does! I always have to make sure when I buy a handbag that’s it’s big enough to fit two epipens, an inhaler, my tablets as well as purse, keys and phone!

 This has made me wonder though what guys with allergies do with all their medication? I just wondered if there’s anyone out there on the Internet who has the answer to share with others? Do you take a bag, or do you buy trousers with huge pockets??? Comment below and let me know :D

Well that’s it for this post, it was a bit of a long one!

Speak soon, love from,

The Allergy Student

xxx

Moving to Uni!!!

Hey there! Welcome to post number two!

So today I thought I’d write a bit about my experience of starting Uni as a student with an allergy, I am only a little first year so it is all very much fresh in my mind ;)

I was really nervous about starting Uni because of my allergy. I felt prepared for being homesick, I knew how to operate a washing machine, I’m mad on cooking so that was all sorted, but the thought of having an allergic reaction at Uni terrified me. I also felt like it was inevitably going to happen. Student kitchens are notoriously messy and I had visions of worktops strewn in grated cheese and ice-cream. I felt really nervous about telling my flatmates that I was allergic to milk. I got it into my head that they would think I was over-exaggerating and attention seeking, that before we even got to Uni I’d be marked out as weird and awkward. I even felt a bit scared that they might slip some milk into a drink or something, I can imagine to someone who doesn’t have an allergy this sounds crazily paranoid but to me it was a terrifying thought!

The great news is that going to Uni, staying in halls and university life in general have all actually made me more confident in handling my allergy :D

There were a number of ways I prepared for starting Uni with regards to my allergy. My mum thought it would be a good idea to let Uni know about my allergy, we filled in a special form asking if I could be given a fridge to keep in my room so that I could keep my food separate. Even at home I keep some food separate, because if someone uses my margarine or jam with a knife they have spread on bread that contains milk they would then contaminate my food. Uni said yes and when I arrived at my accommodation there was my own little fridge sat in my room!

I also made sure to take all my own cooking equipment: pots, pans, chopping boards etc.. I love any excuse to go to IKEA and buying all my kitchen stuff got me really excited for Uni! I also brought my own washing up stuff (including an IKEA scrubbing brush of course) and I make sure to always do my own washing up so that none of my pans get mixed up with anyone else’s.

 

The next bit was telling my flatmates :O I was really excited to meet them but dreaded having to tell them about my allergy. Before we arrived I managed to find some of them on Facebook, and after chatting for a while I let it slip about my allergy…. I had nothing to worry about!! My flat mates were all fine about it and when we got to Uni they even asked me to show them how to use an epipen, just in case. Whenever a friend asks to be epipen trained it means a lot to me. It really shows me how much they care and want to protect me and makes me feel a lot safer J It can be a bit nerve racking telling the people you’ll be living with for the next year but as you can see people are really understanding. It’s always easier the earlier you tell people, if you leave it till later on it just becomes more awkward to go ‘by the way guys…’

The whole transition to Uni with regards to my allergy has been a smooth one, I guess its just a matter of being calm and careful. There are days when the worktops are covered in cheese and ice-cream but then I just pull on rubber gloves and sort it out ;) So far I’ve never had a reaction to milk being cooked/in the same room but I guess if your allergy does affect you like that then there should still be ways around it J Maybe you could write to Uni and explain this and then any future flat mates could be told not to bring any of that item into your flat. If people are told in advance they should be fine with it and if they’re not then they can ask to move flats and you’d probably be better off with more understanding flat mates anyway!

Thanks for reading and as always if you have any questions just comment below,

Love,

The Allergy Student
#theallergystudent #studentallergies #milkallergy #anaphylaxis #movingtouni #fresher 

A little bit about me and this blog...

Why hello there!! How nice of you to stumble across my little blog here (little being the operative word). I thought I’d tell you a bit about myself and this blog so it’s a bit less awkward for us both ;)

My name is Hannah. I’m 19 years old (even though no one believes me!) and I am a student at Newcastle University, studying English Literature and Creative Writing.  My top five loves are: Jesus (he saved my life and yours too!), my family including my crazy cocker spaniel Tilly and grumpy cat Rascal, my friends, reading and writing stories and food. Food is definitely in the top five. Sometimes I’m worried it tries to take over spot number two…

My love of food may seem completely normal (IT IS NORMAL- FOOD IS BEAUTIFUL :D ) but I guess you might not have thought that food would be something I massively enjoy if you found out….

THAT I HAVE A FOOD ALLERGY!!!!

*horror filled faces, cries of despair*

I know guys, that would probably be my reaction. I have an anaphylactic allergy to cow’s milk, specifically casein in cow’s milk.

This blog is going to be about my adventures as a student with an allergy, I searched for something similar as a teenager and before I started uni and couldn’t find anything. There is a lot of support for children, parents and adults with allergies but not much for young people- which seems crazy! When you become a teenager you have to look after yourself more and you do more things like eating out and staying away from home, therefore young people desperately need more help sorting out their allergy stuff themselves!

This blog has three purposes:

·      To offer some help to other people with allergies, particularly young adults

·      To educate others about anaphylaxis

·      To show that you can still live a crazy fun filled life with an allergy

I don’t want this to be a place where I moan about how hard life can be with an allergy or just a site of boring information, I want to use this blog to help others and have fun!

So yeah, that’s all I have to say right now, stay tuned to hear more soon!

Love,

The Allergy Student x

(Hannah)
#theallergystudent #studentallergies #milkallergy #anaphylaxis #food