Almost There

The gem cannot be polished without friction, nor man perfected without trials.
Chinese Proverb

We have been on our quest for answers and results, for a week. It has been a roller coaster, to say the least. We have encountered a lot of trials, many positive results and a lot of people who share our struggles with this monster. There were moments that my heart ached, so badly, to watch my son battle the desire to eat like everyone else, or suppress his urge to completely lose control and beat on a sibling. He is trying. He really is. We are all trying and that is all we can do.

Tomorrow will be the milk allergy testing day. I have not given Daniel any milk products for 6 days. Tomorrow morning, he will eat only milk products for breakfast. I have to monitor his behavior and physical reaction, to find out whether is allergic to milk. Some of the signs I will be watching for are:

• marked hyperactivity
• compulsive actions
• mood swings
• abdominal pain
• diarrhea
• reddening of the ears
• nausea
• runny nose
• swelling
• vomiting

These signs of allergic reaction will be visible within 20 minutes to an hour after consumption. If he displays any of these signs, then an allergy to milk is highly possible and will be eliminated from his diet. Then, we will move on to the next possibly allergen...nuts.

On a side note:

Daniel did well in sticking to his diet, this weekend. He went to see a movie for his friend's birthday. I spoke with his friend's mom and gave her the list of no-no foods. She seemed to understand. However, I found out that he had pink lemonade. Pink lemonade has red food dye in it. It just goes to show that many people do not consider the possibility of food dye in most items, unless they are put in a similar position that forces them to be more conscious. I cannot possibly be upset, of course. I need to better educate Daniel on how to be vigilant of food dye. I am going to make it seem like a detective case, so that he will be more willing to participate. A large part of getting kids to cooperate in anything, is to make it seem like a game or challenge. We shall see how well it works in this case!