Let's talk about food allergies

I realized that I really haven't talked about my food allergies and what I've gone thru in the past 8 years.

I'll start with the beginning when I was first diagnosed.

I sat on the couch and cried.  I mean cried hard.  Balled my eyes out.  For about two weeks I cried.  My life with food was OVER.  OVER!  Poor Steve.  He didn't know what to do, what to say.  He just kept saying "We'll figure this out together". 

I was vegetarian at the time and when I was told NO SOY I was stumped.  Now what? Everything has soy and if it doesn't have soy it has corn.  Now what do I do? 

I put on my big girl panties and dealt with it.  That's what I did.  

I sent the food do's & don'ts to my Mom.  "Let's deal with what you can have rather than look at what you can't."

Great advice.  I took it and ran with it.  

My friends and family try to understand and be supportive.  But then I feel like a burden.  

But like any food addict that falls off the wagon they have no clue if I'm being on program or eating whatever is put in front of me.  They've dealt with both.  Currently I'm 3 weeks on program and like any addict have visions of it being permanent.

I can't really go out to eat.  Here's an example why.  

P.F. Chang's opened here a couple of years ago.  Everyone who had gone was raving about their food.  Steve choose it as his b'day lunch location.

I have business cards printed up for the server to give to the chef.  One side has what I am allergic to, the other has what I can eat.

PF Chang's has gluten free soy sauce.  But I'm allergic to soy.  So no soy sauce on anything at a chinese place.  Most of the sauces are thickened with corn starch.  So no sauces please.  

I explain this to the server and give him the business card.  (And of course I pray that the chef doesn't spit in my food because of all my restrictions.)

I order a veggie shrimp dish.  It comes out and there's a brown sauce on it.  I taste it.  Tastes like soy. So I call over the server.  "This tastes like soy. I ordered my dish without any sauce."

He takes it back.  Comes back out later with a 2nd dish.  This time it has a creamy looking sauce.  Definitely has a corn starch look to it.  "Um... Sorry to be a pain but this still has a sauce on it that looks like it's got corn starch."

Takes it back.  Comes back out & says "The chef doesn't know what to do. "  

"Tell him to just make it dry.  He can do that, right?"

Third and final dish comes out.  Still has a sauce but I say screw it.  I'm hungry, Steve's finished his lunch so I'll just eat it.  

About 3 bites in my tongue starts to swell.  I've never ever had that happen.  And to this day it was the only time it's happened.  

I stop eating.  I'm fine. I can breathe and my tongue isn't doing any more swelling.  I call over the server.

"This has something in it that is causing a reaction.  We'll take it to go.  Steve will eat it."

There's no offer of "Sorry about all this.  We'll comp the meal."  

Instead I'm treated as if the chef's incompetence is my fault.  Call the manager over.  Again no offer of comp'ing my meal or apology.  

Her response: "I'm aware of what the chef was going thru to please you.  There seemed to be a communication issue between the server and the chef."  Aka It's my fault & the server's fault that the chef is an idiot. 

Me: "One day you'll have someone in here that will have a violent reaction because the chef was too lazy to make an allergy free meal.  You got off lucky with me.  I will never ever eat here again and I'll make sure that others with food allergies find out about my experience."

So don't eat at PF Chang's in Reno.  

I've been out with friends when all I could order is a plate of lettuce, avocado, salsa and fresh veggies.  And paying $12 for it.  

When invited over to dinner I offer to bring a dish that's "allergy friendly".  

So I cook.  At home.  A lot.   We entertain at our house inviting friends to eat here so that I can control what goes in the food.  And the majority of our friends are aware of my allergies and try to bring food that would work for me.  As much as I love that they do that I don't want them to sacrifice for my sake.

My allergies are genetic.  Chances are that my family has it.  I think that it's from my Father's side since I have a cousin who's on basically the same diet.  She's not been officially tested but her naturalpathic dr has put her on the same food restrictions. 

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One of my favorite finds!

Steve made cheese-less pizza last night.  

Pesto, chicken, broccoli on one half,  pesto, bell peppers & kalmata olives on the other half.  YUM!

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Me circa 1970-71.

My Sister told me last night that she just looks at the pictures on my blog.  "If I don't see you I don't read anything."

Here you go Sis.  Taken in the Fehring's back yard.  I have my stop sign glasses on that I got in 6th grade.  So I'm figuring 1970-71 ish.  No date on the back of the pic.  Some hair styles never change.