What a Difference

What a difference a year makes. Exactly a year ago, we had a very sick and miserable little boy on our hands. He had been sick for most of the winter, threw up often, had diarrhea for the whole month of December, and we were at the doctors office at least once a week.

At the beginning of February, he got really sick and a strange rash broke out on his arms, legs, and finally all over his face. It's hard to even look at these pictures - they actually made me cry today because I realize now how awful he must have been feeling. But I like to look back and see how far he has come and how healthy he is now - that gets me smiling for sure!

After being at the doctor's office twice, the urgent care center on the weekend, and finally back to the doctors on Monday, they sent us to the ER. Matthew was breathing so fast - over 60 times a minute, he had RSV, pneumonia, and this awful rash persisted. He was admitted over night and the combination of breathing treatments and IV steroids got him feeling a lot better very quickly.

But it was the news we got the day after he got out of the hospital that really helped us get him feeling better. The pediatrician had done blood work to check for food allergies, and sure enough we found out he had tested positive for several foods including eggs, peanuts, tree nuts and soy. Thank goodness the soy one turned out to be a false positive :) Those early days of just finding out about his food allergies were so very overwhelming, but now it is just a part of life and although I think about it all the time I don't worry about it all the time anymore. Carrying an Epi-pen everywhere we go, reading every single food label multiple times, and learning to cook without egg or milk somehow became our new normal.

Looking back it is so painfully obvious to me that he is allergic to eggs. I suspected but I didn't know much about food allergies and so I didn't realize that food could be making him so sick. I hate that we fed him things that made him feel so bad, even though I know I just didn't know.

After several more months of battling with eczema, we figured out he also has a milk allergy. Once we got that sorted, though, and made sure he didn't get any milk or eggs in any of his foods, he has been like a new child! It has been amazing to watch the transformation and to realize how much better he feels now. He is so much happier! Plus, the puffiness he always had around his eyes (even in his referral picture from five months old) is finally gone!!! I may be biased but I think he looks pretty amazing :)

I'm so thankful that those days of sickness are behind us and now Matthew is healthy and happy. It is one of the hardest things I've ever experienced to see my little boy so sick. I praise the Lord for all He has done in helping us keep our boy healthy. Such a wonderful change!