Our Road to Allergy Freedom....

My journey in the world of food allergies and asthma was one I had not expected, having grown up without allergies and barely even knowing anyone who had them. My how that changed when I gave birth to my daughter 17+ years ago.  She was diagnosed with eczema and an egg and dairy allergy by her first birthday.  This soon followed with positive allergy testing to various tree nuts.  My next 2 children also had egg, peanut and tree nut allergies.  I was thrust full throttle into this world of having food allergic children.  For anyone who has been there, it does not make for a simple life.  

 

I had always felt that there had to be something outside of the disappointment felt after coming from our annual allergy appointments. Nothing was changing for us and we often felt hopeless. Another year of, “We’ll see you in 12 months, until then continue to avoid your allergens.”  Easier said than done.  Armed with our epipens, back into the world we would go.  There I was, ready to micromanage everything that went into my kid's mouths for the next year.  That’s A LOT of food and snacks and playdates and birthday parties and holidays.  But we did it and at the time that was all we could do. 

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That is why I will never forget the moment when a friend on the playground told me about A.R.T. and a woman in Lexington named Amy Thieringer who was curing food allergies.  This was exactly what we had been praying for!  I was all excited when I filled out the new patient info sheet for my kids to be seen by Amy and start A.R.T.  I didn’t even let it get me down when I found out that it could be 3 YEARS before I could see her.  This was the most hope I had felt about my kids overcoming their food allergies in what felt like forever.

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Luckily, about 2 years later and still on Amy’s waitlist, I found she had trained another practitioner who had just started taking clients who carry epipens.  This is when I met Susie Lee Snell and our lives all changed for the better.  Susie was nothing short of amazing!  We settled into our routine of weekly visits quite easily.  Our school system was so supportive as they allowed me to pull my kids midday once a week to attend our appointments.  They understood the journey we were about to embark on was an education in itself.  

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As we progressed through the process, my kids allergies started to disappear before my eyes.  Susie helped my kids use their mind body connection to overcome the fear often associated with eating foods they had so long been told to avoid.  She also worked with me to overcome my own fears as we journeyed through the process.  My kids looked up to Susie.  I can think back to my son, 5 years old at the time, attending a birthday party and when the kid next to him could not eat cake, he looked him straight in the face and said “You need to go see Susie”.

 

There are so many firsts my kids went through that were giant milestones...from that first ice cream cone or donut at Dunkin Donuts to not telling a server at a restaurant someone at our table has allergies.  I could go on and on.  Most vividly I recall the moment I looked over at my daughter as we were driving home from an allergy appointment where she had been given the green light to eat a certain candy bar.  She had tears in her eyes as she took the first bite.  I asked, “What was wrong?” and she said, “I had always wondered what one of these tasted like.  I have always watched other people eat them and I thought I just never would.”  She had been so good about not complaining about her allergies, I never knew she felt this way.  The impact of this change does not get any more satisfying than that!

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Soon after finishing A.R.T., I learned that Amy had decided to train some new practitioners.  I knew this was my chance to make a difference.  At the time, there was only ONE Amy and ONE Susie and MANY adults and kids suffering with food allergies and related conditions.  This is now my passion, an unpredicted journey that I have been on for almost 2 decades.  Now, I am ready to make the same commitment that I made to my children to YOU and YOUR loved ones.  I hope you’ll join me and start writing your own story of success!