Thursday, January 5, 2012

A Busy Year for My Son

I was just reflecting on 2011 for my 3 year old son, BJ. Man, a lot went down with him. But there were two major things:

1. We found out that he is allergic to pretty much EVERYTHING outside. 

I knew BJ had allergies since he was an infant because he was always and I mean always congested.  But because he was so small, the pediatrician was hesitant to have him tested. Well, in May of last year, I just couldn't bear to continue to see him suffer through ear infections, pink eye, infinite congestion and fevers anymore. So I bucked the system and took him to an allergist (so pleased with them, by the way). They could see right away that he was completely miserable. He was diagnosed with a sinus infection and the doctor said that he needed to be tested for allergies. After a variety of prescriptions they sent us on our way to return in a few weeks for a skin test... Ouch.

When we came back for the skin test visit, BJ was all happy go lucky because he actually likes going to the doctor....First they applied something to numb his arm and then wrapped it in saran wrap to really make it numb...



 As we waited for the numbing to take effect, they tried to distract him with toys...which worked.






But then...OUCH!!!


And more OUCH!...


Yeah, he was not happy about that AT ALL. 

As you can see from all of the raised bumps and red marks, he has quite a few allergies. Turns out he's allergic to:
  • Trees (yes, we had to get a fake Christmas tree this year)
  • Grass
  • Ragweed
  • Mold
  • Dustmites
  • Dogs
  • Cats
Yeah, pretty much everything outside....and any pet, his sister has ever wanted LOL. 

So now BJ takes medication everyday for his allergies- an oral med and Nasonex (and some other stuff, as needed). I'm not really happy about the meds everyday but he feels SO MUCH better. So I'll deal with it.



2. We found out that he needs glasses (yep, at 3 years old).

This past year, shortly after we found out he had allergies, I noticed that BJ started squinting when he was watching television- red flag #1. I thought it was strange but also remembered that a side effect of his new allergy medication was blurry vision so I blamed it on that. When it didn't go away, I called the allergist to ask about this side effect, he did not feel it was the medication so I made an appointment for him to see one of the best most popular pediatric eye doctors in Atlanta. This doctor assured us that he did not need glasses yet but to come back in six months. I believed him because he was supposedly one of the "best"- hmmmmm. 

Here is a pic of BJ when we left with the protective glasses (he just saw this picture and said they are his "rockstar glasses" and he also said "I look so serious" LOL ):



Well when school started, BJ's teacher told me that he was squinting when they would do flashcards and other activities- second red flag. This time, I did my own due diligence and found another popular pediatric eye doctor in Atlanta who really is the BEST. At this doctor's visit, QT and I found out that BJ is extremely farsighted and has really bad astigmatism. The doctor said that he felt it was necessary to prescribe glasses for BJ because he did not want his vision to hinder him from being the phenomenal little kid that he is on his way to being (yeah, he made a big impression on everyone in that office). So now BJ is rocking his glasses with no problem. I don't have to fight him about wearing them as I thought I would (although the doctor assured me that he would love them). And more importantly, he can SEE. No more squinting....plus he looks so cute in them.




Moral of both of these stories: As a mom, you know what's going on with your child. Don't ignore your gut. And if you're not sure about the first opinion, get a second. 

Although I did not want him to have any allergies and really didn't want him to have to wear glasses, I am relieved that we are finally aware of these issues and that they can be corrected. Definitely a stress reliever.
 
Does your child have allergies? Or wear glasses at a young age? Did you ever have to get a second opinion because you just felt that the first doctor got it wrong? I'd love to hear about it...Besos, P&P. 




6 comments:

  1. So true - no one knows your child like you do. Poor little man, I feel is pain. I hope he grows out of them. My allergies started as an adult.

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  2. Hi Heather! I hope he grows out of them too! Thanks for commenting!

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  3. awwwwww, sorry to hear his allergies.

    That is a really adorable picture of him with his glasses.........

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  4. Great job mom for knowing he needed to see an allergist and eye doctor! YOU know your kid best! OUCH about those allergy tests, I have had them done and they are not fun at all. What a big boy you have, so brave! I hope he is feeling better. He looks very handsome in his glasses!

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  5. Hi Jessica! Yep we moms def know our kids best. Thanks so much for the comment!

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  6. I wandered here looking for polish and kept reading. Your blog is great!

    My daughter is now thirteen, but has been wearing glasses since kindergarten. I found out she needed them when I received a note after testing in school. I honestly didn't believe she really needed glasses because, no one in my family had poor vision, she wasn't running into things and what does such a wee one need with glasses? Well, eventually I got a notice that she had to be taken for a proper vision exam, with a scary official number to call with information and proof that I'd done so.

    Come to find out, my baby really needed glasses. I guess she got her poor vision from her father (duh, why hadn't I considered that?) and has been wearing glasses ever since.

    That's my glasses story!

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Thank you so much for taking the time to comment on Pearls and Polish. It's always nice to know that someone is actually reading this! LOL...Besos, P&P.