I have lived in Los Angeles for over three years now, and I can say quite confidently that myself and my family are allergic to this city. How can you be allergic to a city? Well that's pretty easy. Shortly after our move here, my son and I started experiencing severe sinus infections. They came on quickly and never seemed to go away. After many doctors visits, repeated rounds of antibiotics (Yuck) we gave up. After all, you can't change the air quality.
This year brought a very difficult flu season and this was the beginning of an escalation of frustration with our family doctor. I had my first visit to an emergency room in a very long time with breathing problems that required breathing treatments, steroids and an antibiotic. My son was put on inhaled steroids, nasal sprays, antibiotics, and inhalation treatments. This was awful. My doctor just did not understand my belief that masking all of his symptoms with medication did not solve anything, and that isolating the cause of the problem could be a better plan. I angrily agreed that I would allow my son to be put on inhaled steroids for a longer course as long as he allowed him to see an allergist if this did not work. Who would have thought that I would have to barter with my doctor for comprehensive care.
My son continued to have problems and developed petechiae on his face several times and presented with an eosinophil count of over twenty percent. This count is a marker of an ongoing allergic response in the body. At that time my sons platelets where normal. The doctor reluctantly signed the referral to send my son to the allergist, but not without insisting that this was more for me then him. You know, the hysterical mom syndrome. I promptly left the office, and disregarded his advice to wait an additional thirty days, making an appointment on the spot.
His appointment time came and, after three days of test we have discovered that he has both environmental and food allergies. We are now in the stage of trying to remove these allergens from both his diet and environment as much as possible for thirty days to see if he has any visible improvements in his symptoms.
As a parent, anytime a doctor wishes you to give your child multiple medications, I feel like it is our job to research these meds and be as educated as possible with their use and side effects. Even if your doctor feels offended by your educated questions, remember, this is your child and in no way is it wrong to ask all the necessary questions. The allergist made the immediate decision that my son was over medicated and took him off of everything except for Asmanex. If he should have petechiae again he said to go back to our primary doctor and demand another blood test. What is the harm in ruling out all the terrible things that can include this as a symptom.
Finally, a doctor that allows me to be proactive in my child's health. And even if he is allergic to Los Angeles, in the end we can learn some good coping skills to cut down on the health problems. This is how health care should be. While he is not looking forward to weekly allergy shots he to is willing to be an advocate for his own health, rather then just continuing the cycle of illness and antibiotics indefinitely.
This year brought a very difficult flu season and this was the beginning of an escalation of frustration with our family doctor. I had my first visit to an emergency room in a very long time with breathing problems that required breathing treatments, steroids and an antibiotic. My son was put on inhaled steroids, nasal sprays, antibiotics, and inhalation treatments. This was awful. My doctor just did not understand my belief that masking all of his symptoms with medication did not solve anything, and that isolating the cause of the problem could be a better plan. I angrily agreed that I would allow my son to be put on inhaled steroids for a longer course as long as he allowed him to see an allergist if this did not work. Who would have thought that I would have to barter with my doctor for comprehensive care.
My son continued to have problems and developed petechiae on his face several times and presented with an eosinophil count of over twenty percent. This count is a marker of an ongoing allergic response in the body. At that time my sons platelets where normal. The doctor reluctantly signed the referral to send my son to the allergist, but not without insisting that this was more for me then him. You know, the hysterical mom syndrome. I promptly left the office, and disregarded his advice to wait an additional thirty days, making an appointment on the spot.
His appointment time came and, after three days of test we have discovered that he has both environmental and food allergies. We are now in the stage of trying to remove these allergens from both his diet and environment as much as possible for thirty days to see if he has any visible improvements in his symptoms.
As a parent, anytime a doctor wishes you to give your child multiple medications, I feel like it is our job to research these meds and be as educated as possible with their use and side effects. Even if your doctor feels offended by your educated questions, remember, this is your child and in no way is it wrong to ask all the necessary questions. The allergist made the immediate decision that my son was over medicated and took him off of everything except for Asmanex. If he should have petechiae again he said to go back to our primary doctor and demand another blood test. What is the harm in ruling out all the terrible things that can include this as a symptom.
Finally, a doctor that allows me to be proactive in my child's health. And even if he is allergic to Los Angeles, in the end we can learn some good coping skills to cut down on the health problems. This is how health care should be. While he is not looking forward to weekly allergy shots he to is willing to be an advocate for his own health, rather then just continuing the cycle of illness and antibiotics indefinitely.
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