Please Consider a 504 for Food Allergies in School: A Plan for Inclusion, Safety, and Prevention
There is a false assumption that schools already have adequate policies and procedures in place that cover the specific needs of all children with food allergies. I have been guilty of this assumption myself, before my daughter started public school. You hear that a school has a “nut free" lunch table and you assume that they understand how to manage all food allergies. Yet, I soon learned that In Massachusetts, the guidelines for food allergies in public schools are voluntar
My First Experience with a 504 Plan for my Preschooler
She looked at me with her almond eyes full of thought, as if she understood everything. After a long pause she softly said, "It's okay, Mommy. I won't care if no one sits with me at lunch time." My heart broke for her. At four years old, she was exceptionally perceptive. I could tell she was sad, but she didn't want me to worry about her. I wanted to cry; she was trying to take care of me, but I was the mom. I had just explained to my daughter the plan that we created with he
Making Cupcakes: The Lemonade of Life for the Food Allergy Mom
When I was growing up, I was told: If life gives you lemons, make lemonade. My young daughter's food allergies are a pretty sour lemon in our life right now. Every event we go to is darkened by the looming fear of an anaphylactic reaction, by the planning for a reaction, and by the preventative steps we must take to keep her safe and included. It can be exhausting, stressful, and emotional at times. If you don't live this life, it can be hard to understand, but another food a
Finding My Village and My Voice After Anaphylaxis
I still remember all the details from that fateful day; the heaving, the crying, my baby calling out to me from the back seat of my car, which was filled with that thick sour smell. I could feel my pulse pounding in my ears, and my poor little girl was petrified, sick, and unsteady, as we sat at a rest stop on our way home from vacation. I had already driven nearly 4 hours without much sleep the night before, when I realized my two year old daughter was going into anaphylaxis
