Visit 5
Visit FIVE with The Southern California Food Allergy institute was a success! This visit began with a skin test to determine if Luca would need additional treatment for environmental allergens. Treating certain environmental allergies will help Luca treat some of his food allergies. They tested him for allergies to trees, grass, weeds, mold, dogs, cats, and cockroaches (?!!). Basically, they put a tiny amount of the allergen on your back and then “prick” the skin. If you are allergic, a hive will appear in that spot. These have not been fun for Luca in the past but he did so good — barely flinched and no tears whatsoever! Once they do the test you wait around 15 minutes and then they measure the wheal (raised area or “hive”) and the flare (redness around it). Anything over 3 is considered positive.
Unsurprisingly, Luca did test positive to some environmental allergens and will need something called SLIT.
SLIT (sublingual immunotherapy) is a special medication they mix specifically for each patient and their unique allergies. It will be sprayed under Luca’s tongue every morning when he gets up. He is supposed to hold the medication under his tongue for a minute or two and then wait 10 or 15 minutes to eat or drink anything. It’s an additional monthly cost and yet another thing that we have to add to his morning regimen, so while we weren’t surprised he would need this, we were hoping he wouldn’t have to do it. The immune system is very complex though, and it’s important to treat all allergies for the program to be effective AND safe.
After his skin test Luca challenged flaxseed and hazelnut. He ate a large amount of each one and exercised afterwards to get his heartrate up. He had no reactions and then went on to introduce duck egg white. After that introduction he rested for 15 minutes and everything went perfectly. Later in the week Luca also challenged denatured goat milk and pecan and passed with no issues!
This was an important visit for Luca because he introduced some big allergens! In addition to duck egg white, Luca introduced denatured cow’s milk, soy, and walnut! Luca has had walnuts in the past but has never had egg whites, cow’s milk, or soy and they are all foods he has consistently tested positive to. We were nervous but Luca had no issues in the office and we are a few weeks into treatment at home and he has been doing really well so far.
This program really focuses on safety and takes things extremely slow, which we appreciate. For the past year much of what Luca has treated have been things he could already eat. This is to prepare him to treat the foods he is actually allergic to. Luca is finally getting into treating his actual allergies and It’s so exciting (and scary!) for us to see him progress. When we head back in a couple months Luca will challenge soy and if he passes that, it will open up SO much more for him. Soy is in literally everything and is extremely hard to avoid so I’m especially looking forward to that.
We brought baby brother Rocco along with us this time and had a great week with both our boys. Luca and Rocco were both little angels on the plane and in the airport. Luca has become such a professional at traveling now and Rocco is well on his way!
The California weather was absolutely perfect this time of year so we spent quite a bit of our time at the beach and the pool. We love to grab a coffee from a local shop and walk around the cute little town before we head to the beach to let Luca play. Our Airbnb has an awesome pool to hang out at as well. They even have cabanas, which was perfect to relax in with Rocco!
We took the boys to the aquarium (and even got to touch the moon jellies!) and Noble Bird for lunch a couple of times. We even stopped at a couple breweries, Belmont Brewing Co. and Ballast Point Brewery, and enjoyed a beer on the patios overlooking the water. Luca and dad went go-karting and played putt-putt, which Luca is already talking about doing again next time we go.
One of the difficult things about food allergies is eating out. We never eat out with Luca when we are home. The number of allergies and the severity of some of them are really difficult to navigate in a restaurant and quite frankly, we’ve just never been comfortable with it. Noble Bird is the exception. They are amazing with allergies and every time we go we know we are in good hands.
The manager at Noble Bird recommended we try In-N-Out with Luca. Turns out, they have a great allergy menu online and none of their food has peanuts or tree nuts so we decided to give it a try. It did not disappoint! Gabe and I enjoyed being able to stop for something quick and convenient, which is something we are never able to do.
Luca said the fries were yummy, but it’s kind of funny. We get so excited to do something like this with Luca and I don’t think he even realizes how special it is. He’s just happy to be fed, whether that’s from a restaurant or from me at home. I honestly think he would have been just as happy with something I could have made at our Airbnb. I can’t wait to introduce him to real pizza and ice cream and the play place at Chick-fil-A, but in the meantime, I’m so glad he doesn’t feel like he’s missing out. That is something I have worried and obsessed over since he was diagnosed with food allergies and I have worked tirelessly to find and make substitutions so that he never feels left out. It’s times like these that show me he’s really doing just fine.
We had a great week out in California but we were ready to get home to our Gia! We hated having to leave her behind but she had a great week with grandma! We got quite the welcome home from her, especially Luca and Rocco. Gia is obsessed with her brothers and it was so sweet to see her hug them both and tell all of us “I misssss yewwwww.”
We had a ton of food to prep coming home — maybe the most we’ve ever had. We used to be able to bulk prep all the food in a weekend for the entire cycle and it’s not possible anymore. There’s just too much. So we will be periodically separating egg yolks, denaturing milks, and washing/drying/crushing/measuring over a dozen nuts and seeds these next few months. Luca has 16 foods to eat every morning and will do another round of bloodwork next visit to see if any of those foods can drop in frequency.
We head back to California in early November and we’re so anxious for the big steps forward Luca will take at his next appointments! He already has said he can’t wait to go back. This program continues to be a huge commitment and while I don’t look forward to the program and travel expenses, or the time we spend packing and food prepping, I really do look forward to making such special memories as a family.