Tonight I got to go out with a friend to have dinner. I hardly ever get out and haven't had much time with her lately. So, it was much needed and just really nice. When I got home, I decided to finish my left overs. Of course, since my 20 month old was awake, I had to share my food. Once we finished, I took him to bed. That is when I realized he had some hives around his mouth. This is not the first time that I have suspected hives. I have no idea what could have caused them. He ate some french fries and pita chips. I do not believe that there was anything that he has not been exposed to before. The only new thing could be the spinach and artichoke in the dip that he did not eat. I am really hoping that this was some fluke and he was just irritated for some reason. But, upon a closer look, I noticed that it had at least one red bump with a white dot in the middle. That is the typical hive for ingesting a food you are allergic to. Gabriel sometimes gets them as a mild allergy. But, other times it is the very first sign of anaphylaxis. It is a very scary waiting/guessing game. This is a new child, with a completely different body that may react differently.
The threat has always been there. I am aware that a child with a food allergic sibling has a 70% chance of having food allergies as well. But, I have taken strict measures to try avoiding allergies.
Anaphylaxis is most likely to happen within 2 hours. But, there is something called biphasic anaphylaxis. It can be anywhere from mild to fatal. This happens in 20% of people that have an allergic reaction. It is even what causes quite a lot of the fatalities. It is unexpected and can happen up to 72 hours later! So, it looks like I will not be getting much sleep for a while!
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