Conference moira::parenting_v3

Pam,

I know how hard it is to see little tykes suffer from allergies.
It's dangerous also if they develop too many sinus infection. My
family doctor suugets the Rash (sp?) test where they draw 2 small
viles of blood and test for histimines but the allergist
looked Sam over and said that he should be kept on antihistimines
until his immune system gets more accustomed to the stuff in the
air.

Like I said, it's a fine line. Hope you anxiety survives better
than your little one. Me, I get very upset to see him all stuffy
and not be able to give him ice cream (which he loves).

cal

    Pam,
    
    I hope you can find something to help him get through this
    difficult time.  It's unfortunately true that there's very little
    they can do for a very small child because their immune systems
    are still maturing and don't always produce the right amounts of
    the substances they need.  So giving them medications to boost or
    suppress histimine function often does more harm than good. 
    
    After Kat had a bout of respiratory infections, including
    bronchitis and pneumonia, we found a certain number of
    nonmedicated things that helped.  Even if pollen is the primary
    allergan, reducing the total amount of gunk in the air for your
    son will help reduce the total stress. 
    
    These are bargain-basement techniques because at the time we
    couldn't even afford an air conditioner.  If something like this
    happened now, that's the first thing I'd do -- get an air
    conditioner  for the room to reduce the amount of outside air that
    gets inside as much as I could.
    
    We took out the carpets in her room, leaving a linoleum floor, and
    replaced the curtains with a blind.  This reduced the amount of
    dust in the room and helped her sleep better.
    
    We got an air cleaner.  This was almost 12 years ago now, and they
    have much more effective ones than we ever used.  That helped a
    lot.
    
    A humidifier to keep the air moist made it easier for her to
    breathe. 
    
    I regularly cleaned under forgotten places like the refrigerator
    and the bookshelves with an inch of space between the bottom shelf
    and the floor.  We even got rid of the cinderblocks that were
    propping up the other bookshelves -- we used plastic milk crates
    isntead.
    
    Make sure there aren't any hidden pockets of mold etc. in places
    like the refrigerator drainage trays.
    
    And we cleaned the air ducts -- not much help at this time of
    year, I admit, but a big help during heating season.  It's
    incredible the amount of dust that circulates through a forced hot
    air  heating system!  The furnace and filter were clean and in
    good shape.  I took off all the vent covers and vacuumed out the
    ducts (they were filthy), and then covered both the intake and the
    outtake vents with several layers of cheesecloth.  This allowed
    the air to flow normally but added two extra filtering layers to
    the hot air system. 
    
    --bonnie
    
    p.s. I asked Neil if he could remember any of the other things the
    doctor recommended when Kat was sick.  He said, "Double Scotch --
    for the mother."

    They ped can run the RAST test's on him.  We are just going
    thru this with Alex (4/21/87).  He's had a gazillion ear infections
    since he was 5 months old, he is allergic to the protein in milk
    and in a week we will find out about dust/pollen/trees/the great
    outdoors/cats/ etc.......  
    
    The doctor we saw suggested putting a plastic case on his matress,
    a plastic case on his pillows, removing all stuffed animals, removing
    curtains from his room, and eventually the rug.  Also told us to
    keep the bathroom(S) spotless from mold that grows on shower curtain,
    around the tub, sink, toilet.  Since mold and pollen love to grow
    in New England (specially this time of year) doctor said to be
    extra careful for the next few months.
    
    Anybody got a good maid they can recommend?????
    
    Good luck, allergies are tough..........

    I suggest that you catch my note 29.10.  The drug Rynatan was orignially
    given for allergies, since for some reason the runny nose, etc seemed to
    trigger a nasty Asthma attack and a hospital admission.
    
    As for the "sterilize the world" thinking, AJ has stuffed animals on
    his bed with his afghans and carpet and curtains as well.  Have had
    allergy "patch" testing done, even though we're pretty sure it's triggered
    by freshly cut grass and April blossoms those tests were negative.
    
    Lyn Tripp, AJ's mom (1-2-87)