Commiserate, Celebrate!

A friend and I were talking recently. She has food allergies, as do both of her children. Naturally, they all are allergic to different things. And each has a list of things that they cannot eat rather than one or two items. As a mom, it is quite a feat to put dinner on the table under such circumstances. She told me that she liked reading my blog but wished that she could eat more of my recipes. I told her that most of the people that find me seem to have varying allergies. And as much as I would like to, it would be impossible for me to suit each person's needs. Some are here because of nut allergies, others for gluten intolerance, and still others are avoiding shellfish. No matter what people's circumstances are we all seem to be here for the same thing: to commiserate. And my primary message has always been that it is possible to live a fulfilling life, even though we might be limited in our choices. It has been such a joy for me to meet many of you and to hear your stories. As challenging as this situation is for me and my family, it helps to know that we are not the only ones dealing with this madness. When an allergy diagnosis is first made, it is natural to feel isolated and to think, "How am I ever going to do this?" The Internet closes that isolation gap; it is a beautiful thing!

Here is an article that one of my Twitter pals posted. ("Managing Food Allergies Like a Pro and Having Fun Doing it" by Gina Clowes.) I love it because it expands on the theme that I was just talking about. It is so wonderful to hear stories of people connecting, building friendships and moving beyond the initial stages of allergy related grief.

As usual, thanks for reading!