Wow, the last time I posted it was April! I promise I am not a slacker... I have had a lot on my plate during the last 4 months. My husband was deployed at the end of March, for training in his new career field with the Air National Guard. He was temporarily assigned to Keesler Air Force Base in Biloxi, MS. Anyone who knows me well, knows that I will go to great lengths to prevent any type of family separation. So, we have spent the majority of the summer in Biloxi, MS with my husband. Meanwhile, B is still doing her peanut OI therapy, but instead of biweekly visits, we have been stretching them out to monthly visits. In order to keep the family together (and keep B on her therapy) I made 4 trips from GA to NC, 4 trips from NC to GA, 3 trips from GA to MS, 3 trips from MS to GA, 1 trip from GA to TN, 1 trip from TN to NC and one trip back home from NC to GA... 17 road trips in a 4 month time span. Yes, I am tired.
During that same time period, I was also doing battle with B's school for her protective 504 accommodations. This year B is back in public school and repeating 2nd grade. Although I home schooled her for 2nd grade last year, there are several reasons why we decided it would be best to have her repeat. Reason number one is her size... she is my teeny tiny girl. When she was in public school for 1st grade she was the smallest in her class and we figured having her repeat second would put her in a class with kids more her size. She was also the youngest in her 1st grade class, which brings me to reason number two. Her late summer birthday meant she turned another year older long after her classmates had already reached that same age. Now, she is in a class where she is the oldest, but a lot of the kids are about to turn 8 too... so she will be more in line with their maturity. Reason number three was made from hearing about how hard 3rd grade is. I didn't want B to have to go back to public school entering into 3rd grade. She is going to have to get used to public school after a very lax year of homeschooling, so we thought it better to repeat information than have to learn new material while getting used to public school again. The 4th reason, which may seem silly, was made after consideration that her little brother, who started kindergarten this year, will be in the same hallway as 2nd graders and will be able to walk with his big sis to class. And, lastly, we wanted her to repeat 2nd just in case I missed any material that she was supposed to learn.
Anyway, back to the protective accommodations... I asked the school for several things this year, and spent the majority of the summer digging up facts about how other schools have successfully implemented similar policies. I presented the superintendent with a list of schools from around the nation who have created inclusive and protective wellness plans, all of which I called and verified the info. I wrote letter after letter in support of our requests. I presented legal case precedence to support our requests. I never backed down and, I won! I'm not bragging or anything... but thanks to my hard work and determination for B to be safe AND included, she now has full access to everything her non-allergic peers have. Without my determination, the school might not have changed a thing... but I think credit should also be given to a change in principals (getting a new principal was a HUGE blessing to my efforts. I can honestly say I LOVE the new principal) and also to the many, many women from team anaphylaxis who helped me with everything and anything I needed help with. They gave me unyielding support, answered all of my questions, gave me ideas and encouragement when I needed it. They pushed me not to give up. They pointed me in the right direction to find laws and disability rights. This group of women is more valuable than gold. I could not have accomplished any of what I accomplished without their help. For these women, I am eternally grateful!
Due to all the wonderful accommodations this year, I can finally relax. My stress levels are lower than they have been since 2011, when B started school. It is really difficult to put your child's life in someone else's hands and have to worry about her safety all day long. This year, when I drop her off at school... I feel like I can go on about my day knowing that she is perfectly safe at school. That is HUGE! Part of this new found stress relief is due to the wonderful accommodations that she has at school, but the other part of it is the Oral Immunotherapy that B has been doing for the past year.
In these last 4 months, B has progressed steadily and without any complications. She is now consuming 2100 mgms of peanut on a daily basis. According to her doc, that is the equivalent of 7 peanuts! Next week she will up-dose to 8 peanuts (2400 mgms) and will be in maintenance, which is the 2nd part of her two-year-long journey. For the entire second year, she will consume 8 peanuts a day. Next August (2015) she will graduate peanut OIT and is expected to be able to consume any amount of peanut without having a reaction of any sort. Amazing! I still shake my head in disbelief to think of where B started and where she is headed. To anyone out there reading my blog, who is also considering this therapy. I encourage you to try it. The therapy is a life changer, a life saver, a blessing. I feel so fortunate that my girl was able to get the therapy and that she has done so well with it. So many new doors are open for her. Her life is finally starting to have some sort of normalcy.
About the blog... This will probably be my last post. It takes a great deal of time for me to sit and write all of my thoughts out, and I don't think anyone is really reading. If you are reading and you can think of a good reason why I should continue to keep writing, please leave a comment and let me know. If what I am writing is helping even one person, it would be worth it for me to keep the blog. However, if no one is reading... I have a million other great things to spend time on. Ü
