I am so scared, Venture trip to Smokies with 2 highly allergic kids

[TravelingChris]

It is so hard to have highly allergic kids.  My dd is extremely allergic to wasps and also to citric acid.  She was is charge of the food for more than half of the trip and went shopping with the other girl in charge so they really made sure not to bring anything either kid is allergic to with a few expections that they are noting and informing.  So my dd knows not to eat tomato sauce and one night there are two desserts- one that all can eat and one that the other allergic child can't eat.  SHe has already been told to eat the apple crisp dessert and has already made alternate arrangements for when they eat cinnamon rolls.  My dd won't be drinking the gatorades/powerades= just drinking water.  I am making sure she carries salty food with her too so when the others get the sports drink, she will have water with some salty food.  

 

Anyway, since my dd is so allergic and they will be backpacking for three days out of this week long trip and other days they will be biking and rafting, she is bringing lots of epipens and the new kind of epinepherine system (with talking instructions), She recently went to the er after getting an anaphalactic reaction and even though she had a very, very small amount of citrus inhaled (not sure if actual citrus, citrus oil, limonene or what since it was labeled as fragrance and it was part of a Chapstick) and not only self administered her emergency medication pack of two benadryl, 40 mg, of prednisone, and had already taken singulair and zyrtec less than an hour before the reaction, she also used an epipen and had to use her inhaler and still needed more epinephrine at the hospital, plus more antihistamines and more steroids and her blood pressure was too low for hours.   She isn't even as allergic to citric as she is to wasps.  Last year during allergy shots, soon after she had a few anaphalctic episodes with citrus or citric items, she had two in a row with her allergy shots even when at a dose of less than 1/10 of a normal wasp sting.   SHe has been able to restart the wasps shots but is nowhere near immunity yet. So to keep her alive, she would need an epipen every 15 minutes and since they are backpacking, she has enough to keep her alive for about two hours before getting to a hospital.   While we were checking to make sure they weren't expired,  she noticed it said to keep them within 66-86 degrees,  So I called the pharmacist and was told that it was better for them to be colder than hotter so now they are having to pack instant ice packs too in case they are hiking in the sun or it gets warmer than predicted.

 

My dh who has had first responder training will be there as will a retired dentist who is the main adult leader.  There will be at least one other adult leader who has had first aid training too plus most of the Venture crew has had it too.  I didn't let her go last year on the trip which turned out to be a very good decision since she ended up with a strange stress fracture but since my dh is going with her (and can help her carry some of her equipment), I am letting her go.  One other reason I am scared for her is that she has very loose joints.  Just this February, she severely dislocated her knee and had to be in a whole leg brace (stiff) for over a month.  Many of her joints subluxate all the time and sometimes dislocate.  She will be having knee and ankle flexible braces along with wrist braces.  However, there is nothing to do for her shoulders and another reason I wasn't so keen on letting her backpack.  At least with dh there, he can carry some of her stuff too.  He is an experienced backpacker (he used to do it with my son when he was a Boy Scout and has done it since with him just as a pleasurable outing. 

 

None of it helps that dd is having a low blood pressure episode right now  (she tends to have low blood pressure and she is having a bigger reaction to one of her medications that she forgot to take for a few days)and she really needs to be packing for the trip tomorrow.  I just told her to take a 20 minute nap and then back to work. 

 

I will be keeping busy planning for my teaching which starts this August so maybe I won't fret too much.  I am not an overly protective mother at all but this just makes me scared.  It is something she has really wanted to do and we are Christians so we know that death is not the end but it is nervewracking.  She has missed so much over her 16.5 years because of years having osteoporosis, a few years having reactive arthritis, and since last winter, so many foods she suddenly couldn't eat that she loved.  I feel like I have done everything I can to help her be safe but it is still making me very nervous.

[Dana]

Oh yikes!

 

You're being incredibly brave to let her go and not to let your fears (while very valid) rule her life.

I've still been a bit too afraid to let my son get on an airplane since his anaphylaxis. It helps that we can't really afford a trip.... ;)

I'm working up to it and getting closer.

 

Sounds like you're doing a great job and everything is being thought of.

Lots of hugs to you and wishes for just an enjoyable trip for the kids.

[LifeLovePassion]

:grouphug:

 

It sounds like you are as prepared as possible.

[ElizabethB]

:grouphug:

 

My food allergies are multiple, but not quite that strong. Praying. I take my epi-pen everywhere.

[Starr]

:grouphug:  :grouphug:  :grouphug: 

[Granny_Weatherwax]

:grouphug:

 

Please update when she returns or if you hear anything during her trip. 

[Cinder]

:grouphug:   I hope it all goes well for your dd and that she's able to have a good time without incident. :grouphug:

[QueenCat]

:grouphug: I would be stressed too. Just how I roll........ even though my dh is usually there.

[Sparkle]

:grouphug:

 

[Harriet Vane]

:grouphug:  Your stress and fears are valid and understandable. I'm sorry it's so hard, and I have a lot of respect for the fact that you are trying so hard to help your dd achieve this goal.