Hola (take fourteen) Amigos!
Again, as freakin’ always, thank you so much for all your feedback. The medication blog definitely brought up different debates through email which I’m sure I’ll talk about at a later date. It’s lovely to hear different views on the same things – whether that be from parents, carers or the ones who suffer with PDA themselves (young or old)!
I haven’t blogged about my allergies in a while though and as Easter’s coming up I feel like this is the perfect time to.
Easter? Everyone loves it don’t they – an excuse to eat lots of fatty but yummy foods and for the children it’s an excuse for a break from school – just what everyone wants! But to someone with a dairy allergy or intolerance it can seem like a really frightful time.
Different family members are coming in and out of your comfort zone with chocolate eggs for all your family to enjoy. Except you. And it’s fine because you’re old enough to deal with it and you’re used to it and here have a teddy instead. But after 15 years of having a teddy it gets a bit boring doesn’t it?
It has to be said and credited that there are now so many more options for those who can’t have dairy in their diet. Chocolate is now much more common and you can even buy it from normal supermarkets such as Tescos! (A very exciting prospect for people like myself) And a few years ago we all crapped our pants with excitement when we saw our very own, first easter egg. I still remember the excitement of having an actual easter egg rather than my usual chocolate bar. Recently it’s got even more exciting when you have a massive selection of 3 – plain, honeycomb or orange! This is more than enough for us! But, compared to the options of someone with a normal diet..is it really? When you fancy a chocolate bar it could be one of many – a Mars, a Crunchie, Dairy milk, or how about even a Snickers? And are Bounty’s really as bad as everyone makes out? For us if we fancy some chocolate – we have one option, one measly option of tescos own plain chocolate bar, unless we’ve had a pay rise this month and can afford a moo moo bar for atleast a fiver..unfair, when you can get 2 double the size for £1 at poundland isn’t it really?
It’s at this time of year when us allergy sufferers have to start being careful, everyone around you is tucking into some creamy chocolate and all you desperately want in this world is to sneak a mouthful of it in – but you have no choice..no choice at all. Instead you’re watching their every move..Where are they putting their hands? Has it touched anything of yours? Staring at the floor space where some chocolate has fallen – making a mental note of cleaning it up later. Not only this but you have your lovely old neighbour that is so sweet she buys you an easter egg and approaches you with it while you’re washing the car, how are you supposed to turn her down and explain your allergies? You just can’t bring yourself too. So instead for the fifth year running you take this lovely, posh easter egg inside, putting it on the table and shouting out ‘She’s done it again – easter egg on the side’ and even though you’re the one that takes her bins out and helps her clean her house, your family get the gorgeous looking deluxe easter egg don’t they? And life just seems as unfair as it can get.
To everyone who’s suffering with allergies this easter please go careful – It’s time to keep an extra eye out on who’s eating what and making sure to check ingredients when someone buys you an item of food – Never just eat it. But most of all, I hope you get that orange flavoured easter egg that you’ve been craving for the last 11 years and it tastes better than you could’ve imagined (because it better bloody do for £20!)
Say it now, it’s worth the chat, and most of the time people understand. Don’t keep it to yourself when your life is on the line. Please. Say something.
Thankyou.
Abigail J
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