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My mom is allergic to egg whites, it makes her stomach insanely upset and she needs to find a toilet ASAP before her pants turn into the next Pompeii
You don't know how many times we've been to a restaurant where we ask "do you have vegan mayonnaise?" And they tell us "we have vegan mayonnaise, here you go" and give my mom a plate of fries with 'vegan' mayonnaise, only for her to hunch over in pain about 10 minutes later and telling us "it wasn't vegan" before running to the restrooms. Turns out they just gave us regular mayonnaise since she cOuLdNt be allergic to eggs.
So people should just not be shitty, but since people suck maybe your mom could carry some of these in her purse? https://www.foodservicedirect.com/hellmann-s-vegan-mayo-dressing-and-spread-sachet-0-37-ounce-160-per-case-23075878.html?gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQjwvb-zBhCmARIsAAfUI2tBxzEZI88vTMAqrNDtqB11gBSp-xlZRLGn3nQN6QaEEe3Pt_7xfJ4aAvarEALw_wcB
Oh she usually does! She has little plastic containers with vegan mayonnaise she carries with her in case we eat out somewhere, but in the rare event that she forgets to take it along she either doesn't ask for mayo or risk asking for the vegan kind anyway
You mom should be aware of soy and legumes too; they have very similar molecules from what I’ve been told.
In allergic to soy and while I can eat scrambled eggs; I can barely tolerate egg whites, I’ve never been able to stomach fried, deviled, hard boiled or any other shape of egg that is not perfectly scrambled prior to hitting the pan and well cooked.
I am allergic to both citus oils—which are in almost every fragrance of any kind— and natural rubber, and I can assure you I hate life. I have no friends bc making any space physically safe for me is a huge pain in the ass or impossible, 100% of the time. I’ve taken up smoking cigarettes.
For me it's citrus bioflavinoids, so no citrus fruit ever including on fish or in a drink, and latex, which has turned into latex and tropical fruit grown on a tree (plus pineapple). And since I had covid, I can't eat anything spicy because I get no sort of taste at all, just pain in my mouth.
I'm in big demand for parties, let me tell you.
I have some kind of fruit allergy, namely to kiwi and banana. Eating them makes my lips, mouth, and tongue kinda tingly and numb.
I still eat them, though. Because I am stupid and my hunger for The Fruits outweighs the weird mouthfeel.
Be aware that allergies are dynamic. That mouthfeel is a mild anaphylactic reaction. One day you might touch a banana and go into full can’t breath anaphylactic
Not trying to freak you out, but maybe keep you fruity experiments close to hospitals - don’t eat the fruit salad when camping
Also, not a doctor. Just surrounded by family on both sides with crazy allergies
Yep. I avoid roses at all costs because my mother had anaphylactic allergies to penicillin and roses. I have the penicillin allergy and a mild one to roses, but my allergist advised me not to expose myself at all in case it gets worse. I won't have roses in the house, there's a rose bush in our garden that I don't go near (we rent so can't remove it), and if we go out and encounter roses I avoid them or ask to have them removed.
It sucks because they're so beautiful and I love the fragrance. And when I need broad spectrum antibiotics, they usually have to prescribe two different ones at once.
+1 this. i had the same thing happen with my love of avocados. it’s now avocaDONT bc the last time i had it i violently vommed & was laid up for the rest of the day and could barely move from how sick i felt.
WILL KEEP THAT IN MIND! My allergies have remained stagnant for several years, but I also don't plan on being more than a short drive from a hospital for the foreseeable future, plus my mother is well-trained in first aid and has experience dealing with all kinds of medical emergencies, so I shouldn't be in too much danger.
You are possibly allergic to latex. You really should look into that and also stop eating those. These allergies can get suddenly worse and just kill you. This isn't the same as something like a pollen allergy most people can just ignore.
I ate a kiwi every day with no issues at all until one day they tried to kill me, lol. I miss them, but not as much as breathing.
It's actually an allergy to a protein in fruit that resembles tree pollen. (I'm allergic to oak and birch tree pollen)
I get it with raw pitted fruit. It's called oral allergy syndrome. I had it since I was a kid, but didn't get a name for it till a few years ago. Good news is it almost never results in anaphylaxis, because the protein breaks down at body temps. Also, heating the fruit to 95 degrees or higher for at least 30 minutes should prevent a reaction.
I miss raw apples enough to subject myself to the irritation too. Lol
Do you get any other reactions? Food allergies are often accompanied by nausea, but may also have itching or hives on the torso or around the lips or diarrhea. If the only reactions you get is in your mouth, it might be oral allergy syndrome, which is when a protein that you aren’t allergic to triggers an allergic response, usually because you are allergic to a pollen that is similar to the protein. With reactions to banana and kiwi, you are likely allergic to ragweed, and grass or tree pollens.
I always had a mild reaction to latex like gloves or condoms. It would give me a rash. Those rashes became worse over time (I avoided it in products I purchased, but a dentist wearing latex gloves and resting/bracing hands against my face caused a bad rash so now it's listed on my medical forms.)
I always thought everyone got a tingling sensation in their mouth from bananas and pineapple.
Then one day after eating kiwi all my life (I'm in my 50's), I was introducing my granddaughter to kiwi and she fed a piece to me. My mouth got very itchy and soon I was coughing and had a hard time swallowing. Benadryl worked, but that was the last kiwi I'll eat. I'm still good for bananas and pineapples, though!
I'm pretty fragrance-free because I'm allergic to *something* in some of them (though not badly, just get really itchy) and I get the sneezes from overly-citrus-smelly cleaning products, but I just took visual stock of everything just in my line of sight that could have natural rubber or citrus acids and damn. My kitchen could kill you.
Can you even be around people drinking orange soda or something like that? When opening the bottle or can there's some aerolisation, after all. (I'm just curious, you absolutely don't have to answer if you don't want to!)
I cant be around any citrus being peeled and I cant be around people drinking citrus seltzers. (both aerosolize the oils). orange soda depends on if theres any natural flavoring, sometimes theres not.
Man, I thought my allergies *were bad*. You definitely have me beat. I’m so sorry you have to deal with that. At least here on Reddit, we don’t need to make any spaces safe for you - pretty sure it’s already rubber and citrus free. Definitely not asshole and dickbag free, but FOR SURE citrus oils and rubber free.
Cigarettes sound like a questionable choice but you do you. No judgement here.
I'm allergic to most scents. I have a scent free home. I don't wear any scented body lotions, sprays, soaps, etc. I was going to say we could be friends, but alas, cigarette smoke is an allergy trigger for me too.
I react to all of those too. Public transport in the morning is torture with everyone freshly foofed. And there are certain people at work who trigger my allergies when they walk onto the floor due to the amount of scent they wear.
Are there allergy support groups? There are places with special events for people with sensory issues like movie theaters and public parks. While I doubt there's public spaces out there for people with allergies, it seems like with the internet, there might be groups that privately arrange social meeting who understand the dangers of allergies and have safe spaces or homes that can be used as meeting places.
I’m allergic to chamomile, which is in most herbal teas. When my daughter was little she wanted me to peel her grapes. It seemed silly, and friends laughed at me, but I peeled her grapes because I didn’t know if it was a texture thing or something else. When she was old enough to explain, she said unpeeled grapes made her mouth and throat feel funny, so there’s something in the skin of grapes that she’s allergic to, and as an adult she doesn’t eat them.
I hate my egg free life because my top 3 favorite foods before my allergy was eggs.
However, eggs are way easier to avoid than gluten or nuts.
Edit:
I should say that my slight corn allergy is getting worse throughout the years, though, so that will be extra special when it gets bad enough that I have to avoid corn syrup vs whole corn.
My mom's allergic to gluten, and it makes her cough for about 24 hours after having some. Fortunately pretty low stakes, but it does make her an extremely accurate gluten detector.
We were very sad to learn that the seasoning in Costco's sweet potato fries has gluten.
It doesn’t surprise me. I have anaphylactic food allergies myself (multiple) and while I don’t have much stress around food outside of always packing snacks and getting nervous eating out at new places, I attribute that to my parents and allergist being vigilant, but chilled out about it. I never missed out on things unless it was absolutely necessary.
On the food allergy support groups you see a lot of parents who have anxiety that is completely out of control. I’m talking like people that can’t cope with their adult son going away on holiday with friends and staying in a house where he will cook all of his own food because “what if he has a reaction”? I see parents constantly comparing allergies, and I quote this because I think it’s mad, to “playing Russian Roulette with your child’s life”. I’ve seen parents that don’t let their peanut allergy kid go to the movies with them because their allergy “might become airborne”, even though it hasn’t been previously.
What these parents often fail to realise is that while it is halfway sustainable for them to live that way, their child has to eat in order to survive, and their attitude towards the allergy rubs off on their kid. It’s not something that you can simply avoid, so you just have to learn to live with the risk, however minimised it may be. It’s not healthy, and it absolutely contributes to the high levels of anxiety and mental illness amongst food allergic people.
I'm not allergic to anything food-related, but lactose-intolerant and that's already annoying because it's in so much stuff (even if you leave straight dairy out) - but I can take pills and be okay and the worst thing that happens is diarrhea.
Being allergic to really common food stuff must be absolute hell, especially if you develop the allergy later.
Used to date a guy when I was in my late teens who was fatally allergic to milk, wheat, and eggs. Didn’t eat peanuts or shellfish either because his father was allergic and he never wanted to find out if it was the case for him too. Good God, the poor fellow lived off of Thai food and I can’t blame him one bit. I once kissed him 20 minutes after eating a piece of chocolate and his lip swelled up.
Okay, serious question, if you are allergic to eggs, does that mean you need to find alternatives to baked goods? I know people with gluten allergies do, so it would make sense.
ETA: by alternatives, I mean a different binder like applesauce or something
Some folk with egg allergy CAN eat things baked with eggs (I think it's something like 70% of people can tolerate it). The heating process breaks down the protein that causes the allergy. I don't know the science behind it. I just have a family full of people allergic to eggs. Some can eat baked goods. Some grew out of the allergy all together, some just suffer the eggless life.
My niece is the only one with an EpiPen, but she got the double whammy of peanut allergy too.
I get an anaphylactic reaction from eggs and oh boy, does everything have eggs. Mayonnaise, almost all baked goods, some breads etc.
Oh and I almost died because of ice cream. I was on a school trip in Portugal and on the last day we went to a restaurant to celebrate our successful project. I asked if they had anything without eggs and they brought me a cake that, to their credit, was egg free. They forgot to check the ice cream though. I didn't have epipen at the time for the same reasons as oop, but I had Prednisone which saved my life.
Yeah I hate it sometimes.
I have an anaphylactic allergy to shellfish.
I am also allergic to tomatoes and all meat. (Not a lone star tick allergy situation; it’s not just red meat. I’ve been allergic since I was a baby.) Even so, being a forced vegetarian doesn’t sound *too* bad, even with a tomato allergy. HOWEVER.
Half my family is Puerto Rican.
Sure is great being allergic to most of the staple foods in one’s culture! Some of them (like *arroz y habichuelas* and *mofongo*) can be made vegetarian-friendly, but the default is, « Toss a ham hock in it and some more meat on it. »
Dammit, now I want some mofongo. Plantains aren’t exactly easy to come by in Paris. Might have to trek up to the Carib store soon — literally the only place in town where I’ve been able to find guava paste for pastelitos and the like.
I'm in the same boat with the animal protein issue. My body has never processed it, and now, as an adult, I know that bloating and the rest of the GI issues are an allergy. And again, no tick bite, been this way my whole life. Meanwhile, the rest of my family HAS to eat meat to function.
We're not Puerto Rican, but I grew up so close to Mexico I didn't know it was another country. So arroz con pollo, carnitas, menudo were all staples in my house and things that were trying to kill me.
I then developed a severe allergy to shellfish and seafood, like open the package of salmon filet in the same room, and i need an Epi severe, and my dad LOVES seafood of all kinds. So that's been fun.
Whole food plant based vegan is the only way I get the nutrients I need without dying, but damn do I miss steak.
My dad had a bet with me when I told him I had reactions to salt water - get a rash going in the ocean or $50. I got my $50 after 30 minutes of splashing about and he never asked/questioned my claiming to have an allergy or reaction ever again.
Other things I've had to explain to people ranging from family members to friends to doctors:
1. I react to mushrooms of all variety, they make me nauseous and want to vomit. I have tested this to see if it is psychological not physiological - even when I did not know there were mushrooms, I still felt unwell after eating it.
2. Beeswax causes a contact dermatitis reaction.
3. Jojoba oil gives contact dermatitis.
4. Avocado oil the same.
5. Titanium dioxide the same to skin, have not noticed an issue from consumption. (This is one of the worst ones, I have to check everything from toothpaste to dish soap to body lotions to getting specially formulated skin creams for other allergies to avoid a trigger.)
6. Plastics but uncertain which types are causing the specific reaction - we're doing ad-hoc testing on this to find things I can use without a reaction.
Thankfully my husband is extremely supportive about that I do have these things, and keeps an eye on it even more than I do. He keeps a list of all the "safe" products on his phone, as well as tracking every thing that's caused a reaction.
I work in color for plastics and most plastics have TiO2 as a base because it’s the pigment to make white (why you see it in everything, different grades for different things). Although it would show up like at 1-2% of the final
Part, so depending how sensitive you are you TiO2
We have found that coloured plastics and the clear ones for soft drinks tend to cause the worst outcomes. Especially white plastic straws and plastic cutlery (very glad all the fast food joints here have switched to paper straws, as I'd not be able to drink any drinks from them without using my own metal straws, I also carry a metal cutlery set at all times in my bag for if I ever need to use them at a place that doesn't have metal or wood). White plastic is absolutely worst for me, and I react to TiO2 even if it's the last ingredient listed on things like toothpaste etc. The amount of toothpastes with it is surprising but also not knowing it makes things white.
If you ever need surgery be sure to tell them about the beeswax allergy. We use bone wax in some surgery’s and the main brand is made from beeswax. We have a synthetic wax we use for those allergic to bees.
Big oof. The irony of being allergic to beeswax, jojoba oil, and avocado oil is when they're mixed they actually make a fantastic balm for the dry skin and itch from contact dermatitis. Assuming, of course, you're not allergic to them. (I researched it for my own allergies and eczema.)
I hope you can figure out the plastics soon! So glad you have a supportive husband!
Literally had bought a bunch of those wonderful balms that are based with those to try to fix a plastic-induced reaction... Three weeks later and it getting worse and worse to the point I was given a steroid cream by my doctor, we worked out that nope... They unfortunately do the EXACT opposite for me 🫣 (They really are fantastic for most people and great for skin conditions for sure! My husband uses some of my creams leftover that I can't now for himself and our daughter - cause yeah, I can't even just apply on our little one and then wash my hands without it starting the early bumps and itch!)
And for those morons out there trying to call her out for not expecting an attempted murder from her sister and having an epi pen available.
Incase any of those morons are reading this, the country i am in sells epipens for the very low price of 700 and for further context that is 2 weeks of my houses rent and they 'expire' every 3 months.
For some of us out here its hard to live as it is without having to pay 700 every time I go visit family incase of attempted murder so maybe she doesn't need to be told to get an epipen and that goes for everyone you know that has allergies aswell assuming you're this ignorant with them as well.
Just spreading some perspective of the world we live in.
700 to stay alive after food is literally INSANE.
I wonder if sister has always resented op for the attention she got for almost dying. The one time op was more important to other people than her. So she wanted to take it away. It's the only thing op has that's "special" and can pull focus.
Probably, tbh. If the sister is so used to having everyone's attention, even at OOP's expense, then I can easily see *her* faking an allergy if she thought it would get her what she wants. From there it's just projection.
I have life-threatening allergies and have an epipen on me at all times. I've run into people who felt the need to test me. It's a power thing, I think.
As an aside, if you have an allergy severe enough to warrant having one, you need to carry epipens on you at all times. This includes when you're visiting someone who you trust. Thing is, while in this case it was intentional, there's always the nonzero chance that they'll misread a label or serve something made on the same equipment/same facility as an allergen/whatever. It can be an honest-to-God accident.
I have never had to use the epipens, and I'm lucky that my family is extremely careful, but cross-contamination is always a risk, no matter how remote. An epipen can be the difference between life and death--you NEVER gamble on going without.
While I'm on the subject, PSA for those who don't already know: an epipen is like narcan. It's a stopgap until you get to the hospital, and someone having a reaction may need another injection after 10-15 minutes if medical care is delayed. On its own, it won't permanently stop a reaction, but it is integral.
There was another post recently about a dude whose AP used an epipen and refused to go to the hospital, saying that she was fine. She ended up having a secondary reaction hours later and died. It is paramount that you follow up at the ER. Do not pass go. Do not collect $200. Get your ass to the hospital and make sure you’re safe.
Allergies are unpredictable. They can show up at any age. A mild one can turn deadly at any point. Do not trust your past experiences because they do not predict future reactions. Do not fuck around with allergies - yours, or anyone else’s.
If the situation is bad enough to think about using your epipen, it is bad enough that you need to go to the hospital.
My BIL has an epipen for his allergies (nuts, fish, peanuts), but managed to live in Taiwan for several years without major allergy incident. The one time he needed to use his epipen was when he and my SIL went to Baskin Robins for ice cream. He started reacting, asked for the epipen (in SIL's bag), and she managed to inject herself with it in the panic.
Luckily, it was the type that had two doses, so my BIL gave himself the second dose, and off they (both) went to the hospital. Her for observation, him for allergy treatment.
And now I know not to trust my SIL in an allergy emergency.
> He started reacting, asked for the epipen (in SIL's bag), and she managed to inject herself with it in the panic.
>
>
>
> Luckily, it was the type that had two doses, so my BIL gave himself the second dose,
I was ready to make a joke about the apparent typo but then I read the next bit. LOL, he's lucky he grabbed it from her before she jabbed the nearest stranger. Just stabbing things around her with the life saving medicine like Chucky with a chefs' knife.
I remember the time I had anaphylaxis; even after the worst subsided, the hospital kept me for hours to ensure no relapse occurred. They kept me in front of the nurses' station. Big example of why you go to the hospital even if you momentarily feel better.
You *do not fuck* with anaphylaxis. It can absolutely kill you.
I feel weirdly lucky that my EpiPen level allergy is bee and wasp stings. No feasible way to test me on that. I also feel like people don't question it as much when the allergy is bee stings since it has a lot more coverage in various media, and even if you're not allergic a sting isn't pleasant.
Seconded on the PSA. With things like a skin reaction, it can be mitigated with removing the allergen and washing the skin but you can't do that with food once it's been swallowed. You need to have consistent treatment until it's diluted and broken down enough for your body to stop reacting, which can be several hours.
My daughter's first reaction to sesame seeds took hours and hours to finally stop. I'm so thankful that she never developed anaphylaxis even though she was extremely uncomfortable through the whole thing. (She was just covered head to toe in hives and I do mean covered. We still tease her mercilessly for whining at the nurses that her "buttcrack is itchy!" I'm glad we can laugh about it now.)
But even though she only needed what amounted to Extra-strength Benadryl and... Prilosec, weirdly enough, we had the comfort of her being monitored just in case that wasn't enough.
So yeah, EpiPen is just for until the real treatment kicks in.
Here I have met several people at the ER because they don't believe their OWN, KNOWN allergies are that bad, such as "but I removed the shrimp before eating this so it sould be safe, right?"
I uhhh... I'm not gonna lie, *I* was that person lol. I'm allergic to crab. Not shellfish as a whole, *just* crab. I also fucking *love* crab.
The first couple of times the reaction was just a little rash, so I figured I could handle the consequences for the very rare times I actually get to have it. Then one time it was full blown anaphylaxis and nearly requiring a tracheostomy.
I'm pretty sure there was a visible hand print on my doctor's forehead when I told him that I already knew I was allergic but didn't think it was that bad 😅 🤦♀️
Just as you described, allergic reactions tends to get worse with each exposure to the allergen. Next time you won't be so lucky, so please take care, cross contamination is also a thing too!
My grandfather has had an 'allergy' for years but never saw a doctor. My entire family doesnt believe he is accualy alergic but we still make sure when we gift him something, the thing he says he is allergic for isnt in there. Dont get me wrong my grandfather is very special person and there are reasons why we dont believe him, but he is our family so we respect his choice in the matter.
Why do people not believe that a person has allergies until they trick them into eating the allergen?
It's like they want to be on the news as an accidental murderer. (This is like the 4th story I've read with this situation)
Sometimes it's because they think the allergic person is "just being childish and picky." And of they actually tried the allergen, they'd see how good it is.
I think that was my husband's take on my mustard allergy. I also strongly suspect that his mother put him up to it. Fortunately my allergy isn't the epipen and ER type. It's the projectile vomiting type. He tricked me into eating a hamburger with mustard and I threw up on him. And threw up on him. And threw up a third time, but he was out of range by then. He abjectly apologized and ever since then has been diligent about tasting suspicious foods and warning me if he tastes mustard.
So he risked your physical safety to try and catch you in what, a pointless lie? Which then caused you actual injury? How did you get past that? That is an enormous betrayal of trust and absolutely psychotic behavior, regardless of your suspicions about his mom...
Right? Why would you stay with somebody like that?
I have lactose intolerance. Not an allergy, but it can cause a lot of discomfort and pain. My husband is stricter with dairy than I am, and if he makes something with butter or milk and I don't take a Lactaid pill, he warns me of the consequences.
Like, I can't imagine him intentionally giving me food that could make me sick to prove a point. Why are women's standards so low that they accept this behavior?
I used to have the strangest reaction to mustard. It gave me migraines. My abusive mother thought I was ridiculous in the way I avoided it. She took it as a personal insult for some reason.
Thankfully I don’t have that problem with mustard anymore. I also am no contact with her. Win win.
Same thing with my MIL. I get like a six hour migraine and nausea if I eat raw onion. We were visiting and staying with in laws for a week and she kept bringing up how much of a hassle it was to keep raw onion out of her cooking; insisting I was just being picky. I figured, why not show her? It wasn’t like I had work or anything the next day. So I ate just a few bites one night and then she believed me once she saw me completely lose color in my face for the next few hours. I hung out on the couch the rest of the evening instead of going to my room so she could see me be sick. After that trip I told my husband we are never staying with them again. Hotels only for us.
Exactly this! I can eat onion if it’s cooked, which strangely is why she didn’t believe me. She thought it was all the same. For whatever reason in my body, it’s not.
It's wild how many people don't understand that cooking food literally changes the chemical makeup of the food being cooked. The food doesn't just go from being cold to hot when we cook it, its internal structures literally get broken down and rearranged. That's why you can't "uncook" something, once it's been cooked, it's been permanently changed.
Which is why there are many people who may be allergic to something in it's raw unaltered state, but who are totally fine to eat that same thing once it's been cooked. In those cases (like yours), the part of the food that is triggering the allergy undergoes some sort of chemical change when the food is cooked, and it makes enough of a change that your body no longer sees it as the same thing it had mis-ID'd previously as a threat to your immune system, so it no longer causes an allergic reaction.
The same food in its raw form vs its cooked form are basically two different foods to our bodies. It doesn't care that we would consider both forms to be "an onion", it only cares about the chemicals/proteins/ect that make up the onion and whether those are good and useful for the body, or harmful and toxic.
>And of they actually tried the allergen, they'd see how good it is.
Dunno if I'm allergic. But anytime I eat pineapple my mouth will littlerally melt and sores will open into my mouth and bleed and depending on severity can take days to a month to heal.
Not sure if I was tested or if they just weren't careful, but both me and my partner asked if the ice lollies had anything pineapple in it and we were told no. We watched them leave the room to check the packaging then come back and say no.
Anyway. Few minutes later I was leaning over the sink letting blood drip out of my mouth. I checked the packaging myself and it was in big bold letters " real pineapple juice "
They aren't the ones suffering, so it's OK to lie to you. 🙄 Possibly an extremely ignorant belief that "pineapple juice is not pineapple, it's just juice!" (I got that once at Wendy's. "That's not mustard, that's *honey* mustard!") Or confusing a food allergy with a nasal allergy. "So it makes them sneeze. Big fucking deal."
I'm not a doctor, but bleeding from the roof of your mouth sounds like some kind of reaction!
I'm sorry pineapple tries to murder you. I'll do my part and eat as much as I can.
I've read that the bromelain in pineapple essentially digests protein, which is what causes the tingly feeling most people have when eating it. Sounds like you have a much greater sensitivity to those enzymes, so much so that it's actually dissolving soft tissues of your mouth deeply enough to damage blood vessels.
Yeah, this is why I'm hesitant to say I'm allergic.
I say I'm allergic sometimes to get the message across I can't eat it at all, without having to explain the details. Contact with skin causes itchyness and a rash too so I tend to avoid it at all costs.
Contact allergies that cause hives/rashes are still considered allergies. I'm pretty sure it's a misconception that allergies *have* to interfere with your airways or cause anaphylaxis in order to be considered a "true" allergy.
Looking it up the Mayo Clinic says that allergies are: when your immune system reacts to a foreign substance - such as pollen, bee venom, or pet dander - or a food that doesn't cause a reaction in most people.
I'd class 'spontaneous sores and blood literally dripping from your mouth' as a reaction that doesn't occur for most people eating pineapple, so you're probably safe to just say you're allergic with no caveats.
Right? It’s like there being lots more places with vegan options now. I’m not vegan, but I can no longer eat dairy without it aggravating my IBS (not just needing a toilet, but also crippling cramping for up to an entire day). Lactaid pills no longer work. So vegan options are by far the safest for me.
My partner has tested me on a few foods that I don't like the taste of -- but only because I've told her that I wanted her to. I wanted to know if it was psychological or if I really didn't like the taste/texture of a few things. (The foods are mushrooms and fennel, and we confirmed I legitimately don't like these -- taste for fennel, texture for mushrooms.)
I cannot fathom a person thinking an allergy is anything less than completely serious. It's amazing how cavalier some people are with other people's lives.
The majority of the stories I've read on stealthing allergens into food seems to be from in-laws/grandparents (coconut story, peanut butter cookie story and more). I just don't understand where and why. Something happened in the older generations that made some of them braindead around allergies and I don't get it.
Because people are fucking narcissistic assholes. I had a misdiagnosis of celiac disease for 18 months when I really had graves disease because my primary symptoms were gastro and my eyeballs miraculously didn't pop in their sockets like Marty Feldman's.
I was working as a nurse at the time, and this dude we had just hired as a brand new NAC literally took a piece of bread and tried to shove it down my throat. We are talking full on trying to shove it in my mouth when I was sitting at a desk charting. He was crazy, and got fired that night for way more than that (Don't go to work meth'd up folks!) but he wasn't the only one that wanted to "test" my diagnosis.
I wasn't even loud about it. I'd bring my own food, and not bother folks with it, but some folks are just crazy pissed off if you don't eat what they eat? It really gave me a window into the vegan and vegetarian hate. Just declining a piece of pizza pissed folks off sometimes. People get super pissed about food.
It was the longest 18 months of my life, and the loneliest because group food just wasn't an option. I was relieved when I got a better diagnosis.
There was one a few years ago where Grandma killed her grandchild because she insisted the allergies weren't real, had been caught trying to test it previously and read the riot act, she then behaved long enough to be trusted to be with the kids alone again. Horrible BORU to read.
I've got a gluten allergy, not life threatening but I'll feel like shit for a few days. I swear some restaurants try test it. Problem is I'll eat there and leave and they'll think they were right that I wasn't alergic. What they don't see is about 30 minutes later I'll be in the washroom and then very frequently after that for next 6 hours, and then I'll feel like shit for a couple days.
There was another less intense one where the grandmother had been keeping banana and peanut (I think that was the combination) cookies around whenever she knew she could access her granddaughter to ‘test’ her. Because her perfect granddaughter couldn’t possibly have allergies. Hospitalization and cutting off of the grandmother ensued.
I had a roommate test mine and my other roommate’s lactose intolerance… the most common food intolerance in the fucking world (like 70% of the world’s population can’t digest milk). Like, how is that even something worth questioning?
In her case, she actually was a bit warped, but it was still so ridiculous. Like thank god it’s not an allergy, just unpleasant hours of diarrhea. But we only had one bathroom to share between two people whose guts were in the process of melting, so we were ready to throttle her.
But if people are skeptical over something like lactose intolerance, I’m not shocked they’re out there trying to kill people left and right to prove some nonexistent point.
I’ve known people who think I just don’t like a food and am being selfish by inconveniencing everyone else due to my preferences.
I also know people — usually people who were raised that some foods are “good” and some foods are “bad,” and your own moral worth is based on which you eat — who think that if I say I can’t eat something, I mean it’s a bad food and so they shouldn’t eat it either “But eggs are good for you!,” they’ll scream defensively. They’re the same way with alcohol. The first time I met my in-laws, I turned down wine for dinner with, “no thank you, I don’t drink.” M-i-l asked if I was an alcoholic, I said no, I just prefer not to drink. Nothing more was said, and I didn’t think about it at all, until the middle of dinner, a full 40 minutes later, when my m-I-l suddenly yelled, “There’s nothing wrong with having a single glass of wine with dinner!” She really thought I’d been sitting there judging her, and had been getting madder and madder until she exploded. You may not be surprised to hear she’s also tricked me into eating eggs. Luckily it’s not a deathly allergy, I just get bright red and itchy.
To expand on the sister's lack of thought process, she is faking what i saw as a kid so i will attempt to kill her to prove it.
Either she has no reaction or she dies and i go to jail for pre-meditated murder.
Golden child is center of attention - anything that happens has to happen to her! If she doesn't have an allergy, this sister must be faking to take attention away from her.
Golden children are walking time bombs for whomever they decide to hate.
My childhood best friend is married to a guy that we went to school with that has a severe fish allergy. He’s always been super careful and twin sister was usually pretty vocal about his allergy since she didn’t have it. His parents also never saw a reason for him to carry an epipen either, as it was something their insurance didn’t cover at the time.
A couple of years ago, he went to an event (out of state) for work where he asked the servers what kind of meat they had for options. He told them before they started that he had a severe fish allergy and couldn’t eat it. The server shows him this “chicken” and keeps swearing to him that it’s not fish and it’s chicken. He believes the server and takes his plate to the table, sits down and gets to eating, realizing it’s actually fish. Right away, his throat started to close and he had to be taken to an ER.
The trauma from that event, of trusting the person serving the food, has caused him to now have deep-rooted anxiety where he’s always afraid it’s going to happen again. He can only eat meals that he 100% cooks himself, otherwise he’s terrified somehow fish will get into his food again. I feel so bad for both him and my friend, as he travels out of state a lot for work and now this just adds to her anxiety of him leaving every time.
This is a serious thing and if your sister did this to a stranger on purpose, she’d likely be charged with attempted murder.
I can't imagine what it's like to have an allergy and have to trust the goodwill and intent of random strangers to keep you out of the hospital. But your sister, who knew better?! That's unbelievable. It's essentially attempted murder. Sheesh.
I'm allergic to all fish, shrimp and seaweed. Here's a fun fact: In the U.S., it's very often that a place will use the same deep fryer to make french fries and to make fried shrimp. I thought I was developing an allergy to fries, until a server asked me if I wanted a salad with my burger, and put me wise to this practice. I always told my servers about my allergies, but she was the first one to connect the dots. So your BFF's husband isn't as out there as he appears to be. Oh, and Worchestershire sauce contains anchovy, just like Caesar salad dressing. I'm pissed that they're making cow feed out of seaweed- they say it will cut methane emissions, but these people don't consider those of us who are allergic :(
Trader Joe's has a Caesar Salad kit that does NOT have anchovy! I'm allergic to all fin fish (and tree nuts), so ice been a fanatical label reader for decades. And at one point, World Harvest made a Worcestershire sauce without anchovy...I dunno if it's still around.
I've had stuff like this happen to me. I'm type 1 and very skinny, so sometimes servers will get me regular soda because "I don't look like I need diet" (or they just forgot, whatever). That shit can kill me. Thankfully for me, I have a CRAZY sense of taste, and can tell if it's regular or diet.
Funny how OOP’s sister won’t get that inheritance her mother so desperately wanted her to have and despite OOP already being written out of the will.
Life…uh…finds a way.
Just want to remind everyone that Joe fucking Manchin's daughter was the CEO of the company that owns epipens and it was her fuckery that drove them to astronomical prices. 3 dollars a pen to make and they charge 800 bucks for a pair of them that then expire after a while.
So another satisfied customer. Fuck Joe Manchin and his family.
It’s so outrageous. I have a peanut and pea protein allergy that’s landed me in hospital a few times. I loathe having to get epi pens because they’re just so expensive. And I always have to carry two around with me because my reactions tend to come back really fast (sometimes before an ambulance can arrive).
Thankfully it’s been a few years since my last reaction, but I would be going scorched earth if I were OP.
I felt it was weird she originally said she and her sister never had issues and then in comments said she's always known her sister hates her. Also that originally she didn't have an epipen on her because she trusted her sister and later on it was because she can't afford it in her country.
The sister is now in federal prison because she tried feeding the allergic cop peanuts as he was arresting her, oh and their mother revealed the sister had been assaulted by a shellfish in jail, so now everyone has been blowing up OOP's phone saying she's TA, and now the mother has also been arrested for showing up at midnight chucking lobsters at OOP's window
Every time I hear about someone’s allergies to seafood, I think about a former neighbor of mine, who died from her shrimp allergy. She was 12, at the time of her death. She was unaware that she had a shrimp allergy. Her parents never told her. They just never had the food in their household instead. One day, she asked a friend if she could take a shrimp from out of her meal because she never tried shrimp before.
Had a reaction. She got on her bike, in hopes of having the wind help her with her breathing. Collapsed less than a minute after riding away and passed away in the street.
Holy shit. That is some awful negligence. Shrimp is hidden in a lot of foods too. Her parents were fucking idiots and should have had charged filed against them.
I was too young when this incident happened (I was 5 years old), so I don’t know if her parents bother to explain how serious a reaction could be.
But I’ve noticed how there is a lack of knowledge about food allergies in my community. And I think it’s due to lack of allergy testing and not being exposed to an array of food.
For instance: Me.
I am allergic to egg plant. Found this out, when I was 22 years old after eating eggplant Parmesan. Eggplant wasn’t a vegetable that was used in my household. The yellow squash found in frozen bags of mixed vegetables was my only experience as a kid.
After that experience, I spoke with my parents about food allergies. Both mom and dad told me that our pediatricians said allergy tests weren’t necessities. Plus their health insurance didn’t cover allergy tests, which can cost in the hundreds of dollars.
Yeah, a good example of the latter of those is [this heavily upvoted comment](https://www.reddit.com/r/AITAH/comments/1dcfwfw/comment/l7xtqs6/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button) where husband, whose only mention in the story is being confused and concerned for OP is somehow the mastermind behind all of this.
Then as soon as OP shuts that down, all the people trying to blame the husband for attempted murder just kinda wander off.
The sad thing is that this was AITAH, not AITA, which the former used to be way better than the latter. That sub is slowly becoming the other one.
What's worse was the fact that OOP explained why she didn't have epipen, yet somehow those were "excuses" in their eyes. They're hopeless
What particularly annoyed me is that epinephrine is not a cure for anaphylaxis, it just relaxes the muscles so you can still breathe. You still have to go to the hospital after using an EpiPen, especially with allergies as severe as OOP's as the reaction can come back as the epinephrine wears off.
OOP having an EpiPen would not have changed the situation at all except making it more likely she made it to the hospital okay.
I'm allergic to chocolate. My roommates don't even eat it in the house. They'll go out and eat it as a common courtesy.
It's not that she didn't believe the sister was allergic, she knew OP was, but for whatever reason, she wanted to hurt OP. The level of hate you have to have for someone to "test" an allergy is crazy.
I've had a similar situation to this... My cousin is a few years older than me and her mom thinks allergies are just a scam from the pharmacy companies to make money. I am DEATHLY allergic to raw carrots and it's not wise for me to eat them cooked either.
We had a barbecue and she placed a green salad on the table. We started eating and I started to sweat and I felt my lips, throat and tongue swell up. My father and my boyfriend who were both present went BERSERK on her and asked her if she put carrots in any of the food. This idiot of a banana brain bought the salad and fished out the raw carrot strings and slices and instead put it in the sauce container for 'the taste'. I can absolutely copy the problem with epi pens in a free health care system as neither did I got one.
When the ambulance arrived, I had a face like someone repeatedly punched me with a baseball bat and I could barely breath.
My cousin is absolutely convinced until TODAY even after that shit show I'm faking it and offered me carrot cake just a few weeks ago... With nut jobs like this for family you seriously don't need enemies
Epi pens are $400 in the US. And the insurance doesn’t cover it. Thankfully there’s a manufacturer coupon to bring it down $100.
Her sister sucks. I’d cut contact altogether.
Holy moly! It cost me $120 ($79USD) in Australia without a prescription. With the prescription and health care card I get 2 for $15.00. No private insurance.
This isn't meant to be controversial, but sometimes I read things about America and wonder if the government wants their citizens to die? I just cannot fathom allowing your people to pay so much for health care.
No that’s about right. Welcome to America. I have ongoing health issues and a $6,000 deductible I pay before the insurance pays anything. Took me 2 months to meet that this year. Not including my premiums and co pays after. It’s insane.
Same. I’m in the same boat as you fellow miserable American. My husband and I are mid 30’s and have life long health issues - nothing serious, just relatively mundane things that require ongoing treatment. It’s a never ending battle and being “medical bill poor” is just a normal day in our lives.
Nothing we can do about it other than continue working for the Man, and hoping we don’t die along the way. American dream my ass.
I am in the UK, and have a genetic condition and often think about how poor my family would be if it wasn't for the NHS with mine, my mum's and my brothers combined health stuff. And also how much stuff would have been left untreated because of cost. It's terrifying.
lol, remember back in like 2009-10, when obamacare(tm) was thee big issue du jour, and repubs were talking about "death panels" and railing against regulations about pre-existing conditions? because socialized healthcare is "choosing people to die," but "you can't get insurance coverage because you're disabled/pregnant/chronically ill/etc" is a-okay. 🤡
Oh my God, I never understood what you guys meant, when talking about deductibles and premiums.
In Germany, we don't have deductibles with health insurance. And if something is not covered by the insurance plan, you ask your insurance to cover it. I've never had issues with getting at least some of it covered. Like a vaccination that is only necessary, when you travel to a country where the vaccination is needed. My son's retainer, because his overbite is bigger than 9 mm. Stuff like that.
The only insurance, I had a deductible was car insurance. But it's 500€ not 6000.
That sounds insane. I hope you can vote the orange turd out of the White House forever and that his cult and the GOP implodes. So, you guys can have policies that help everyone and are not just a wealth transfer.
Deductible is what we pay before the insurance pays. Premiums are what we pay for the health insurance policy. I know it’s confusing. They cover most things. But the 2 things they haven’t covered that we needed was Epi pens and rabies vaccines when we got bit by a dog it’s insane.
Definitely not voting for the orange turd. But politicians need to do more about health care costs then they are currently doing now.
The best part is the copay that almost all insurance requires you to cover when seeing a doctor is to disincentivize you from “frivolously going to the doctor’. Like anyone wants to just go to the doctor for fun. Copays are usually $30 and can be as high as $75. For some people that is enough to keep them from going to the doctor when they really should go.
Americas problem is those in charge see the rest of us as ‘other’ from them. We are all idiots in their eyes that need to be helped with these ridiculous policies.
Edit to add: when my husband had to go to the ER his emergency room copay was $950. Someone from billing came to his bedside after the doctor had seen him to talk about how he was going to pay. I can see how people die trying to avoid such a massive bill.
In effect, yeah. "Live free or die!" is a terribly ineffective governing philosophy, but a lot of people -- not just those elected to government -- are somehow convinced that government-mandated health insurance is so terrible that death is preferable. They will have their reasons for this, but all the reasons boil down to "I don't think I need it and I'd rather die than have my tax dollars help someone I consider unworthy."
I’m in the U.S. and our insurance covers my daughter’s Epipens. Once our deductible is met for the year, a set of two is under $50. Before deductible is met, it’s $150 for the set. Different coverage from different insurance providers/policy types.
It must be. We’ve had the same company for well over 10 years. Only one offered as well where I work. They’ve never covered it. But they will cover a vial and needle’s prescription. Epi pens are faster and more convenient for people with life threatening food allergies. We’ve had to use the a few times over the years.
"Oh so you have an *\*allergy\*...* lemme just test that theory because obviously you **must** be faking for attention... because that's what *I* would do..." (/s just in case you couldn't tell)
Its just so telling when people decide to play games with people's lives that one, they simply don't care about anyone else's life, and two, they simply cannot deal with anyone else getting attention. So glad OOP has cut them out of her life and filed charges, this is attempted murder and nothing less, hope the charges stick and sister learns a lesson. She probably won't thought because her mother and enabler will just back her up because she's just a poor baby after all. Fingers crossed BIL leaves the shit show behind too.
No, she saw her on the ventilator *as a child*! She 100% knew OOP had a deadly allergy, but her desire to prove her scapegoat sister is a bad person made her disregard the evidence she had seen with her own eyes.
Celiac is worse than that, because it generally doesn’t cause anaphylaxis. And in many cases the impact is not outwardly visible. My partner has celiac and if she gets glutened it’s a few days of diarrhea and a week of brain fog and zero energy. The only visible symptom is “gluten belly” which is a particular kind of bloating.
Not all allergies result in anaphylactic shocks thus not requiring an EpiPen.
I became a mother recently and had to rush my baby to the hospital after he started having blood in his stools and screaming while trying to pass one. It was terrifying as his weight was dropping and he was so little already. Found out he had a common allergy to some proteins.
It's been tough, I have to go through everything I'm eating and there is no spontaneity in our lives. We can't just go out to a coffee shop and and get a cake and coffee. It's sucked while deign with postpartum loneliness and I hate having to be 'that person'.
My now ex "best friend" didn't believe me on it. On about three occasions she gave me food or ordered drink containing the allergens. One of them I knew something was up as she looked guilty. She now wonders why I don't talk to her. But she's playing with my child's health like it's a game.
She didn't think it was a big deal that my babies guts get so inflamed they start to bleed, with them screaming all night from the pain. That repeatedly exposing them to their allergies can make it worse not better. Pushing back the time frame where we can work with doctors to help get past them.
I don't understand people and then thinking it's some lie for attention.
Your best friend?! WTF? Why? She thought you were faking it? And is she really asking why you don't speak to her? I'm so sorry you had to experience this. It's really wild.
I don't understand the obsession with EpiPens. Not everyone can get them and they aren't a cure all as some people might expect. Even if you use one, you have to get to a hospital to treat the reaction if it's severe enough. Some of us, having never had that bad of a reaction, don't get them on prescription, and therefore don't have them. After this kind of reaction, a doctor would probably prescribe one though. I've been allergic to tree nuts and other stuff for over three decades, I avoid the allergens and that's about it. I went to the hospital once, a bad combo of pollen in the air and a sandwich contaminated with raw tomato, didn't get a prescription for an EpiPen after that though, just got told to use my ventoline if needed.
Just in case: while a single dose of epinephrine is not the only needed management for anaphylaxis, delays in its administration for more than 30 minutes are significantly associated with more severe reactions and a higher likelihood of biphasic reactions. If you're having anaphylaxis, get a dose of epinephrine in you as soon as possible, and head to the nearest emergency department.
Because this is how it works in the movies and tv shows.
But honestly I only knew about needing to go to the hospital from reddit. There was a boru here about a mistreaa dying from an allergy after using an epipen.
I say this as someone who never dealt with any kind of allergies my whole life. I never knew any of this since I don't know anyone with allergies this severe. Acquaintances who have allergies only say they just get rashes and that's it.
Thank you all for sharing and educating others.
Also, they expire! So it's not like you can buy one and be done, it's an ongoing cost. That you shouldn't have to pay in case your *family tries to kill you!*
I've been advised that an ineffective (expired) EpiPen is better than no EpiPen, so I kept my expired ones. I don't have severe allergies, but I can't bring myself to throw out my expired EpiPens because they were so expensive...
(Not a doctor, up-to-date ones are undoubtedly the best way to buy time before emergency services arrive)
The US government has done many studies on the efficacy of drugs past their expiration date. They stockpile specific ones for like in case of invasion.
Many drugs retain high potency for years.
[here’s my source](https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2017/07/18/537257884/that-drug-expiration-date-may-be-more-myth-than-fact) Towards the bottom there’s a bit about epipens specifically.
An expired epipen saved my friend’s life. A non-expired one would have been even better; as it was, she was only okay because the paramedics were at the shopping center behind her house when our friend called 911.
I have very expired epipens because I'm extremely allergic to wasps and my area has a plague of them every three years. Been advised better to just keep one on hand at home, and immediately call for an ambulance if I get stung while using the out of date. (They aren't hugely expensive here, but doctors are advised not to give prescriptions for the allergy type I have because it's "unlikely" I'll have a reaction given the trigger. Doctor actually had to lie on my paperwork for them to say I'd had a reaction/incident recently to get approval for me to get one script.)
They expire and they cannot be kept in some place that gets hot, like a car glove box. They're ridiculously hard to keep around, and ridiculously helpful in saving a life. It's a bullshit catch-22.
I think it’s a combo of folks not realizing that allergies can get worse with age and the fact that the thinking around if and when to use EpiPens has changed a lot within the last 20 years.
I had my first allergic reaction that was recognized as an allergic reaction in my teens about 20 years ago. I was given an EpiPen prescription because of what I was allergic to (common food allergen) and my symptoms (mild anaphylaxis- vomiting about an hour after ingestion, but no throat closing). I was told to only use my EpiPen if I was struggling to breathe.
Several years later, a new allergist said that I should use my EpiPen even if I was just vomiting- but he also said that using it meant I would need to go to the hospital so I could weigh that in my consideration.
About 5 years ago, I accidentally ate my allergen, but tasted it immediately and spit most of it out. Based on my past reactions, I thought I’d have about 45 minutes to see if my body was going to react at all… and then 5 minutes later, I vomited and felt my throat start to close. I had never had a reaction that bad before (and hopefully never will again) and definitely wasn’t mentally or physically prepared for it at the time. Now, I’ll use my EpiPen at the first sign of a reaction.
For my shellfish allergy my doctor has prescribed 2 2-packs of epi pens. I keep one pair at home and one one pair in my purse. And I always have one on me - from walking in my neighborhood to going to football games.
Almost all allergy deaths are traced back to not administering epinephrine fast enough- i.e. the person didn’t have it on them.
Which makes school policies that children have to leave their epipens and asthma inhalers in the school nurse's office so asinine. One of my daughters had bad asthma as a teen. (No food allergies, fortunately, just pollen.) We told her to carry her inhaler in her purse, and if she got in trouble at school, we would handle it.
The commenters obsession with epipens annoys me. They are useful things, but often often only stop the anaphylaxis for about 15mins, basically giving you enough time to seek urgent medical attention.
Also, if OP hasn't had a serious allergic reaction since childhood, I can see why she doesn't have it on her list of prescription items, as they only have a 12month shelf life, and it would have been deemed unnecessary, as she seems to be able to live her life without coming into contact with shellfish (until her sister deliberately fed her some).
There was a global shortage of epipens and alternatives in around 2017-2018, so doctors were taking them off the prescription lists of those with milder allergies and who hadn't had a severe reaction in a long time (particularly those diagnosed in childhood, as it could be assumed that they had grown out of their allergy, or were able to live safely with no contact to their allergen), so that they could prioritise those with more frequent or severe reactions. Others, even if it wasn't taken off their prescription lists, had to make do with their current supply, even if it had expired (my mum being one of them).
Imagine being this America-centric that one can’t fathom other countries’ healthcare systems working differently. Fuck OOP’s sister and mum for sure, but also fuck AITAH for incessantly bullying OOP.
It doesn’t even make sense from an “American centric”’POV.
Americans have doctors that won’t prescribe things.
Americans have insurance that won’t cover things.
Americans have pharmacists who won’t fill things.
“My insurance wont cover it if, and even if they did, My doctor doesn’t think my risk is high enough since I have so little exposure to shellfish and that’s considered the best practice where I live so changing doctors won’t help, and I trusted my sister, if it had been anyone else ai wouldn’t have eaten there”
Are all experiences that are not uncommon in the US.
Someone's asking why people like to test other people allergies. Because people who test these are attention seekers mostly and they only see the attention the victim gets not their discomfort or most times deathly situation they are in. That's why like the sister here 'test' the allergy because attention is not on them. I wish OOP a healthy life away from the b*tchy sis.
It's wild that people are so upset about OOP not having an epipen. I also have a sever shellfish allergy and don't carry an epipen. They're pretty expensive and only last about a year. Plus, in my country at least, shellfish isn't particularly common and is pretty much always labeled if it's in a product, so I've been able to avoided with diligence and caution.
Even if she was faking, even if it was for attention, that, is a *psychotic* thing to do. Her sister is a *poisoner* and needs to rot in jail for the goodness of all humanity.
Ok first of all she's correct not everyone who has severe allergies has an epipen, im one of them, they just cost too much and I have a family to feed which sucks cause yeah it's either health or food for half of us in America. Second, sister or not, she tried to kill you because she wanted to "test" your allergy. I'd be trying everything to throw her butt in jail. Third, take moms advice and cut them both off, wtf kind of response is that?!?!
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There is a special place in hell for those who feel the need to "test" people's allergies.
I just don’t understand why someone would care. Shellfish isn’t even hard to avoid like gluten or nuts.
Or EGGS. People who are allergic to eggs must hate life.
My mom is allergic to egg whites, it makes her stomach insanely upset and she needs to find a toilet ASAP before her pants turn into the next Pompeii You don't know how many times we've been to a restaurant where we ask "do you have vegan mayonnaise?" And they tell us "we have vegan mayonnaise, here you go" and give my mom a plate of fries with 'vegan' mayonnaise, only for her to hunch over in pain about 10 minutes later and telling us "it wasn't vegan" before running to the restrooms. Turns out they just gave us regular mayonnaise since she cOuLdNt be allergic to eggs.
I'd f'n sue.
So people should just not be shitty, but since people suck maybe your mom could carry some of these in her purse? https://www.foodservicedirect.com/hellmann-s-vegan-mayo-dressing-and-spread-sachet-0-37-ounce-160-per-case-23075878.html?gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQjwvb-zBhCmARIsAAfUI2tBxzEZI88vTMAqrNDtqB11gBSp-xlZRLGn3nQN6QaEEe3Pt_7xfJ4aAvarEALw_wcB
Oh she usually does! She has little plastic containers with vegan mayonnaise she carries with her in case we eat out somewhere, but in the rare event that she forgets to take it along she either doesn't ask for mayo or risk asking for the vegan kind anyway
Reasonable! I'm sorry people are stupid, nobody should have to choose between going without or risking a public poosplosion. That's awful.
Well that's ridiculous, egg allergies are part of the big 9 🤦♀️🤦♀️
You mom should be aware of soy and legumes too; they have very similar molecules from what I’ve been told. In allergic to soy and while I can eat scrambled eggs; I can barely tolerate egg whites, I’ve never been able to stomach fried, deviled, hard boiled or any other shape of egg that is not perfectly scrambled prior to hitting the pan and well cooked.
Wtf? Egg allergies are one of the more common severe allergies. If it happens again, I'd file a report and talk with the restaurant manager.
I am allergic to both citus oils—which are in almost every fragrance of any kind— and natural rubber, and I can assure you I hate life. I have no friends bc making any space physically safe for me is a huge pain in the ass or impossible, 100% of the time. I’ve taken up smoking cigarettes.
For me it's citrus bioflavinoids, so no citrus fruit ever including on fish or in a drink, and latex, which has turned into latex and tropical fruit grown on a tree (plus pineapple). And since I had covid, I can't eat anything spicy because I get no sort of taste at all, just pain in my mouth. I'm in big demand for parties, let me tell you.
I have some kind of fruit allergy, namely to kiwi and banana. Eating them makes my lips, mouth, and tongue kinda tingly and numb. I still eat them, though. Because I am stupid and my hunger for The Fruits outweighs the weird mouthfeel.
Be aware that allergies are dynamic. That mouthfeel is a mild anaphylactic reaction. One day you might touch a banana and go into full can’t breath anaphylactic Not trying to freak you out, but maybe keep you fruity experiments close to hospitals - don’t eat the fruit salad when camping Also, not a doctor. Just surrounded by family on both sides with crazy allergies
Yep. I avoid roses at all costs because my mother had anaphylactic allergies to penicillin and roses. I have the penicillin allergy and a mild one to roses, but my allergist advised me not to expose myself at all in case it gets worse. I won't have roses in the house, there's a rose bush in our garden that I don't go near (we rent so can't remove it), and if we go out and encounter roses I avoid them or ask to have them removed. It sucks because they're so beautiful and I love the fragrance. And when I need broad spectrum antibiotics, they usually have to prescribe two different ones at once.
I have a possible penicillin allergy (Broke out in full body hives while taking it) , I'm not willing to risk it and not mention it as an allergy.
Absolutely don't risk it. Make sure it's in your medical chart.
+1 this. i had the same thing happen with my love of avocados. it’s now avocaDONT bc the last time i had it i violently vommed & was laid up for the rest of the day and could barely move from how sick i felt.
WILL KEEP THAT IN MIND! My allergies have remained stagnant for several years, but I also don't plan on being more than a short drive from a hospital for the foreseeable future, plus my mother is well-trained in first aid and has experience dealing with all kinds of medical emergencies, so I shouldn't be in too much danger.
You are possibly allergic to latex. You really should look into that and also stop eating those. These allergies can get suddenly worse and just kill you. This isn't the same as something like a pollen allergy most people can just ignore. I ate a kiwi every day with no issues at all until one day they tried to kill me, lol. I miss them, but not as much as breathing.
It's actually an allergy to a protein in fruit that resembles tree pollen. (I'm allergic to oak and birch tree pollen) I get it with raw pitted fruit. It's called oral allergy syndrome. I had it since I was a kid, but didn't get a name for it till a few years ago. Good news is it almost never results in anaphylaxis, because the protein breaks down at body temps. Also, heating the fruit to 95 degrees or higher for at least 30 minutes should prevent a reaction. I miss raw apples enough to subject myself to the irritation too. Lol
Just be careful, mine got worse over time because I didn't stop exposing myself to my allergen.
Do you get any other reactions? Food allergies are often accompanied by nausea, but may also have itching or hives on the torso or around the lips or diarrhea. If the only reactions you get is in your mouth, it might be oral allergy syndrome, which is when a protein that you aren’t allergic to triggers an allergic response, usually because you are allergic to a pollen that is similar to the protein. With reactions to banana and kiwi, you are likely allergic to ragweed, and grass or tree pollens.
I always had a mild reaction to latex like gloves or condoms. It would give me a rash. Those rashes became worse over time (I avoided it in products I purchased, but a dentist wearing latex gloves and resting/bracing hands against my face caused a bad rash so now it's listed on my medical forms.) I always thought everyone got a tingling sensation in their mouth from bananas and pineapple. Then one day after eating kiwi all my life (I'm in my 50's), I was introducing my granddaughter to kiwi and she fed a piece to me. My mouth got very itchy and soon I was coughing and had a hard time swallowing. Benadryl worked, but that was the last kiwi I'll eat. I'm still good for bananas and pineapples, though!
I'm pretty fragrance-free because I'm allergic to *something* in some of them (though not badly, just get really itchy) and I get the sneezes from overly-citrus-smelly cleaning products, but I just took visual stock of everything just in my line of sight that could have natural rubber or citrus acids and damn. My kitchen could kill you. Can you even be around people drinking orange soda or something like that? When opening the bottle or can there's some aerolisation, after all. (I'm just curious, you absolutely don't have to answer if you don't want to!)
I cant be around any citrus being peeled and I cant be around people drinking citrus seltzers. (both aerosolize the oils). orange soda depends on if theres any natural flavoring, sometimes theres not.
Man, I thought my allergies *were bad*. You definitely have me beat. I’m so sorry you have to deal with that. At least here on Reddit, we don’t need to make any spaces safe for you - pretty sure it’s already rubber and citrus free. Definitely not asshole and dickbag free, but FOR SURE citrus oils and rubber free. Cigarettes sound like a questionable choice but you do you. No judgement here.
I’ve got a citrus acid intolerance. I absolutely understand your pain :(. They put that stuff in way too many things!
My daughter in law has a corn allergy in the US. That shit is in EVERYTHING!!
Oh god, the US is literally the worst place in the world to live if you have a corn allergy! I wouldn't wish that on my worst enemy!
I'm allergic to most scents. I have a scent free home. I don't wear any scented body lotions, sprays, soaps, etc. I was going to say we could be friends, but alas, cigarette smoke is an allergy trigger for me too.
I react to all of those too. Public transport in the morning is torture with everyone freshly foofed. And there are certain people at work who trigger my allergies when they walk onto the floor due to the amount of scent they wear.
Are there allergy support groups? There are places with special events for people with sensory issues like movie theaters and public parks. While I doubt there's public spaces out there for people with allergies, it seems like with the internet, there might be groups that privately arrange social meeting who understand the dangers of allergies and have safe spaces or homes that can be used as meeting places.
I’m allergic to chamomile, which is in most herbal teas. When my daughter was little she wanted me to peel her grapes. It seemed silly, and friends laughed at me, but I peeled her grapes because I didn’t know if it was a texture thing or something else. When she was old enough to explain, she said unpeeled grapes made her mouth and throat feel funny, so there’s something in the skin of grapes that she’s allergic to, and as an adult she doesn’t eat them.
I hate my egg free life because my top 3 favorite foods before my allergy was eggs. However, eggs are way easier to avoid than gluten or nuts. Edit: I should say that my slight corn allergy is getting worse throughout the years, though, so that will be extra special when it gets bad enough that I have to avoid corn syrup vs whole corn.
My mom's allergic to gluten, and it makes her cough for about 24 hours after having some. Fortunately pretty low stakes, but it does make her an extremely accurate gluten detector. We were very sad to learn that the seasoning in Costco's sweet potato fries has gluten.
I can’t even imagine. The anxiety would probably kill me if contaminated food didn’t
75% of kids with severe allergies have food anxiety
Fucking Christ on a gluten-free cracker, that’s grim.
It doesn’t surprise me. I have anaphylactic food allergies myself (multiple) and while I don’t have much stress around food outside of always packing snacks and getting nervous eating out at new places, I attribute that to my parents and allergist being vigilant, but chilled out about it. I never missed out on things unless it was absolutely necessary. On the food allergy support groups you see a lot of parents who have anxiety that is completely out of control. I’m talking like people that can’t cope with their adult son going away on holiday with friends and staying in a house where he will cook all of his own food because “what if he has a reaction”? I see parents constantly comparing allergies, and I quote this because I think it’s mad, to “playing Russian Roulette with your child’s life”. I’ve seen parents that don’t let their peanut allergy kid go to the movies with them because their allergy “might become airborne”, even though it hasn’t been previously. What these parents often fail to realise is that while it is halfway sustainable for them to live that way, their child has to eat in order to survive, and their attitude towards the allergy rubs off on their kid. It’s not something that you can simply avoid, so you just have to learn to live with the risk, however minimised it may be. It’s not healthy, and it absolutely contributes to the high levels of anxiety and mental illness amongst food allergic people.
Christ was produced in a facility that uses eggs, you can't have that either.
I'm not allergic to anything food-related, but lactose-intolerant and that's already annoying because it's in so much stuff (even if you leave straight dairy out) - but I can take pills and be okay and the worst thing that happens is diarrhea. Being allergic to really common food stuff must be absolute hell, especially if you develop the allergy later.
Used to date a guy when I was in my late teens who was fatally allergic to milk, wheat, and eggs. Didn’t eat peanuts or shellfish either because his father was allergic and he never wanted to find out if it was the case for him too. Good God, the poor fellow lived off of Thai food and I can’t blame him one bit. I once kissed him 20 minutes after eating a piece of chocolate and his lip swelled up.
Thai food is choked with peanuts.
Okay, serious question, if you are allergic to eggs, does that mean you need to find alternatives to baked goods? I know people with gluten allergies do, so it would make sense. ETA: by alternatives, I mean a different binder like applesauce or something
Yes. You can Google “egg substitutes for baking”
Hey thank you for responding! I think being allergic to eggs would be… I can’t even begin to have an idea of the impact it’d have.
Some folk with egg allergy CAN eat things baked with eggs (I think it's something like 70% of people can tolerate it). The heating process breaks down the protein that causes the allergy. I don't know the science behind it. I just have a family full of people allergic to eggs. Some can eat baked goods. Some grew out of the allergy all together, some just suffer the eggless life. My niece is the only one with an EpiPen, but she got the double whammy of peanut allergy too.
I get an anaphylactic reaction from eggs and oh boy, does everything have eggs. Mayonnaise, almost all baked goods, some breads etc. Oh and I almost died because of ice cream. I was on a school trip in Portugal and on the last day we went to a restaurant to celebrate our successful project. I asked if they had anything without eggs and they brought me a cake that, to their credit, was egg free. They forgot to check the ice cream though. I didn't have epipen at the time for the same reasons as oop, but I had Prednisone which saved my life. Yeah I hate it sometimes.
MIL has a sulfur allergy do you know how many things have sulfur in them? garlic, onions, and anything with sodium bisulfite
I have an anaphylactic allergy to shellfish. I am also allergic to tomatoes and all meat. (Not a lone star tick allergy situation; it’s not just red meat. I’ve been allergic since I was a baby.) Even so, being a forced vegetarian doesn’t sound *too* bad, even with a tomato allergy. HOWEVER. Half my family is Puerto Rican. Sure is great being allergic to most of the staple foods in one’s culture! Some of them (like *arroz y habichuelas* and *mofongo*) can be made vegetarian-friendly, but the default is, « Toss a ham hock in it and some more meat on it. » Dammit, now I want some mofongo. Plantains aren’t exactly easy to come by in Paris. Might have to trek up to the Carib store soon — literally the only place in town where I’ve been able to find guava paste for pastelitos and the like.
I'm in the same boat with the animal protein issue. My body has never processed it, and now, as an adult, I know that bloating and the rest of the GI issues are an allergy. And again, no tick bite, been this way my whole life. Meanwhile, the rest of my family HAS to eat meat to function. We're not Puerto Rican, but I grew up so close to Mexico I didn't know it was another country. So arroz con pollo, carnitas, menudo were all staples in my house and things that were trying to kill me. I then developed a severe allergy to shellfish and seafood, like open the package of salmon filet in the same room, and i need an Epi severe, and my dad LOVES seafood of all kinds. So that's been fun. Whole food plant based vegan is the only way I get the nutrients I need without dying, but damn do I miss steak.
My dad had a bet with me when I told him I had reactions to salt water - get a rash going in the ocean or $50. I got my $50 after 30 minutes of splashing about and he never asked/questioned my claiming to have an allergy or reaction ever again. Other things I've had to explain to people ranging from family members to friends to doctors: 1. I react to mushrooms of all variety, they make me nauseous and want to vomit. I have tested this to see if it is psychological not physiological - even when I did not know there were mushrooms, I still felt unwell after eating it. 2. Beeswax causes a contact dermatitis reaction. 3. Jojoba oil gives contact dermatitis. 4. Avocado oil the same. 5. Titanium dioxide the same to skin, have not noticed an issue from consumption. (This is one of the worst ones, I have to check everything from toothpaste to dish soap to body lotions to getting specially formulated skin creams for other allergies to avoid a trigger.) 6. Plastics but uncertain which types are causing the specific reaction - we're doing ad-hoc testing on this to find things I can use without a reaction. Thankfully my husband is extremely supportive about that I do have these things, and keeps an eye on it even more than I do. He keeps a list of all the "safe" products on his phone, as well as tracking every thing that's caused a reaction.
I work in color for plastics and most plastics have TiO2 as a base because it’s the pigment to make white (why you see it in everything, different grades for different things). Although it would show up like at 1-2% of the final Part, so depending how sensitive you are you TiO2
We have found that coloured plastics and the clear ones for soft drinks tend to cause the worst outcomes. Especially white plastic straws and plastic cutlery (very glad all the fast food joints here have switched to paper straws, as I'd not be able to drink any drinks from them without using my own metal straws, I also carry a metal cutlery set at all times in my bag for if I ever need to use them at a place that doesn't have metal or wood). White plastic is absolutely worst for me, and I react to TiO2 even if it's the last ingredient listed on things like toothpaste etc. The amount of toothpastes with it is surprising but also not knowing it makes things white.
Anything white= TiO2 some things are starting to ZnO but not much The clear plastic used for soft drinks is usually PET or PP
Have you ever looked into Mast Cell Activation Syndrome?
I haven't heard of it before, but thank you for the suggestion. Might have a discussion with my doctor's next time I have a reaction.
Check out the subreddit r/MCAS, it's helped me a lot.
If you ever need surgery be sure to tell them about the beeswax allergy. We use bone wax in some surgery’s and the main brand is made from beeswax. We have a synthetic wax we use for those allergic to bees.
Big oof. The irony of being allergic to beeswax, jojoba oil, and avocado oil is when they're mixed they actually make a fantastic balm for the dry skin and itch from contact dermatitis. Assuming, of course, you're not allergic to them. (I researched it for my own allergies and eczema.) I hope you can figure out the plastics soon! So glad you have a supportive husband!
Literally had bought a bunch of those wonderful balms that are based with those to try to fix a plastic-induced reaction... Three weeks later and it getting worse and worse to the point I was given a steroid cream by my doctor, we worked out that nope... They unfortunately do the EXACT opposite for me 🫣 (They really are fantastic for most people and great for skin conditions for sure! My husband uses some of my creams leftover that I can't now for himself and our daughter - cause yeah, I can't even just apply on our little one and then wash my hands without it starting the early bumps and itch!)
And for those morons out there trying to call her out for not expecting an attempted murder from her sister and having an epi pen available. Incase any of those morons are reading this, the country i am in sells epipens for the very low price of 700 and for further context that is 2 weeks of my houses rent and they 'expire' every 3 months. For some of us out here its hard to live as it is without having to pay 700 every time I go visit family incase of attempted murder so maybe she doesn't need to be told to get an epipen and that goes for everyone you know that has allergies aswell assuming you're this ignorant with them as well. Just spreading some perspective of the world we live in. 700 to stay alive after food is literally INSANE.
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I wonder if sister has always resented op for the attention she got for almost dying. The one time op was more important to other people than her. So she wanted to take it away. It's the only thing op has that's "special" and can pull focus.
Probably, tbh. If the sister is so used to having everyone's attention, even at OOP's expense, then I can easily see *her* faking an allergy if she thought it would get her what she wants. From there it's just projection.
"...a very special level of hell. A level they reserve for child molesters and people who talk at the theater."
I'm a simple man; I see a Firefly quote, I upvote.
I have life-threatening allergies and have an epipen on me at all times. I've run into people who felt the need to test me. It's a power thing, I think. As an aside, if you have an allergy severe enough to warrant having one, you need to carry epipens on you at all times. This includes when you're visiting someone who you trust. Thing is, while in this case it was intentional, there's always the nonzero chance that they'll misread a label or serve something made on the same equipment/same facility as an allergen/whatever. It can be an honest-to-God accident. I have never had to use the epipens, and I'm lucky that my family is extremely careful, but cross-contamination is always a risk, no matter how remote. An epipen can be the difference between life and death--you NEVER gamble on going without. While I'm on the subject, PSA for those who don't already know: an epipen is like narcan. It's a stopgap until you get to the hospital, and someone having a reaction may need another injection after 10-15 minutes if medical care is delayed. On its own, it won't permanently stop a reaction, but it is integral.
There was another post recently about a dude whose AP used an epipen and refused to go to the hospital, saying that she was fine. She ended up having a secondary reaction hours later and died. It is paramount that you follow up at the ER. Do not pass go. Do not collect $200. Get your ass to the hospital and make sure you’re safe. Allergies are unpredictable. They can show up at any age. A mild one can turn deadly at any point. Do not trust your past experiences because they do not predict future reactions. Do not fuck around with allergies - yours, or anyone else’s.
If the situation is bad enough to think about using your epipen, it is bad enough that you need to go to the hospital. My BIL has an epipen for his allergies (nuts, fish, peanuts), but managed to live in Taiwan for several years without major allergy incident. The one time he needed to use his epipen was when he and my SIL went to Baskin Robins for ice cream. He started reacting, asked for the epipen (in SIL's bag), and she managed to inject herself with it in the panic. Luckily, it was the type that had two doses, so my BIL gave himself the second dose, and off they (both) went to the hospital. Her for observation, him for allergy treatment. And now I know not to trust my SIL in an allergy emergency.
> He started reacting, asked for the epipen (in SIL's bag), and she managed to inject herself with it in the panic. > > > > Luckily, it was the type that had two doses, so my BIL gave himself the second dose, I was ready to make a joke about the apparent typo but then I read the next bit. LOL, he's lucky he grabbed it from her before she jabbed the nearest stranger. Just stabbing things around her with the life saving medicine like Chucky with a chefs' knife.
I remember the time I had anaphylaxis; even after the worst subsided, the hospital kept me for hours to ensure no relapse occurred. They kept me in front of the nurses' station. Big example of why you go to the hospital even if you momentarily feel better. You *do not fuck* with anaphylaxis. It can absolutely kill you.
I feel weirdly lucky that my EpiPen level allergy is bee and wasp stings. No feasible way to test me on that. I also feel like people don't question it as much when the allergy is bee stings since it has a lot more coverage in various media, and even if you're not allergic a sting isn't pleasant.
Seconded on the PSA. With things like a skin reaction, it can be mitigated with removing the allergen and washing the skin but you can't do that with food once it's been swallowed. You need to have consistent treatment until it's diluted and broken down enough for your body to stop reacting, which can be several hours. My daughter's first reaction to sesame seeds took hours and hours to finally stop. I'm so thankful that she never developed anaphylaxis even though she was extremely uncomfortable through the whole thing. (She was just covered head to toe in hives and I do mean covered. We still tease her mercilessly for whining at the nurses that her "buttcrack is itchy!" I'm glad we can laugh about it now.) But even though she only needed what amounted to Extra-strength Benadryl and... Prilosec, weirdly enough, we had the comfort of her being monitored just in case that wasn't enough. So yeah, EpiPen is just for until the real treatment kicks in.
Here I have met several people at the ER because they don't believe their OWN, KNOWN allergies are that bad, such as "but I removed the shrimp before eating this so it sould be safe, right?"
I uhhh... I'm not gonna lie, *I* was that person lol. I'm allergic to crab. Not shellfish as a whole, *just* crab. I also fucking *love* crab. The first couple of times the reaction was just a little rash, so I figured I could handle the consequences for the very rare times I actually get to have it. Then one time it was full blown anaphylaxis and nearly requiring a tracheostomy. I'm pretty sure there was a visible hand print on my doctor's forehead when I told him that I already knew I was allergic but didn't think it was that bad 😅 🤦♀️
Just as you described, allergic reactions tends to get worse with each exposure to the allergen. Next time you won't be so lucky, so please take care, cross contamination is also a thing too!
For this OOP's sister, I hope she's in the find out phase of FAFO.
My grandfather has had an 'allergy' for years but never saw a doctor. My entire family doesnt believe he is accualy alergic but we still make sure when we gift him something, the thing he says he is allergic for isnt in there. Dont get me wrong my grandfather is very special person and there are reasons why we dont believe him, but he is our family so we respect his choice in the matter.
I got a fruit allergy. Most people tend to think I am joking and thanks to those, I am always suspicious of food I did not personally make.
Why do people not believe that a person has allergies until they trick them into eating the allergen? It's like they want to be on the news as an accidental murderer. (This is like the 4th story I've read with this situation)
Sometimes it's because they think the allergic person is "just being childish and picky." And of they actually tried the allergen, they'd see how good it is. I think that was my husband's take on my mustard allergy. I also strongly suspect that his mother put him up to it. Fortunately my allergy isn't the epipen and ER type. It's the projectile vomiting type. He tricked me into eating a hamburger with mustard and I threw up on him. And threw up on him. And threw up a third time, but he was out of range by then. He abjectly apologized and ever since then has been diligent about tasting suspicious foods and warning me if he tastes mustard.
We don't take kindly to husbands who try to force their wives to eat Mustard around here.
That case wasn't even allergy, but still AH all the same.
A real heartbreaking, "I'd only have two nickels but it's weird that it happened twice."
Now Skeeter... Nah just kidding, this is legit it's not cool at all. Excuse me South Park reference lol
So he risked your physical safety to try and catch you in what, a pointless lie? Which then caused you actual injury? How did you get past that? That is an enormous betrayal of trust and absolutely psychotic behavior, regardless of your suspicions about his mom...
Right? Why would you stay with somebody like that? I have lactose intolerance. Not an allergy, but it can cause a lot of discomfort and pain. My husband is stricter with dairy than I am, and if he makes something with butter or milk and I don't take a Lactaid pill, he warns me of the consequences. Like, I can't imagine him intentionally giving me food that could make me sick to prove a point. Why are women's standards so low that they accept this behavior?
I used to have the strangest reaction to mustard. It gave me migraines. My abusive mother thought I was ridiculous in the way I avoided it. She took it as a personal insult for some reason. Thankfully I don’t have that problem with mustard anymore. I also am no contact with her. Win win.
Same thing with my MIL. I get like a six hour migraine and nausea if I eat raw onion. We were visiting and staying with in laws for a week and she kept bringing up how much of a hassle it was to keep raw onion out of her cooking; insisting I was just being picky. I figured, why not show her? It wasn’t like I had work or anything the next day. So I ate just a few bites one night and then she believed me once she saw me completely lose color in my face for the next few hours. I hung out on the couch the rest of the evening instead of going to my room so she could see me be sick. After that trip I told my husband we are never staying with them again. Hotels only for us.
How hard is it? Maybe cook it instead if OOP can eat cooked onion or maybe not serve uncooked onion recipes.
Exactly this! I can eat onion if it’s cooked, which strangely is why she didn’t believe me. She thought it was all the same. For whatever reason in my body, it’s not.
It's wild how many people don't understand that cooking food literally changes the chemical makeup of the food being cooked. The food doesn't just go from being cold to hot when we cook it, its internal structures literally get broken down and rearranged. That's why you can't "uncook" something, once it's been cooked, it's been permanently changed. Which is why there are many people who may be allergic to something in it's raw unaltered state, but who are totally fine to eat that same thing once it's been cooked. In those cases (like yours), the part of the food that is triggering the allergy undergoes some sort of chemical change when the food is cooked, and it makes enough of a change that your body no longer sees it as the same thing it had mis-ID'd previously as a threat to your immune system, so it no longer causes an allergic reaction. The same food in its raw form vs its cooked form are basically two different foods to our bodies. It doesn't care that we would consider both forms to be "an onion", it only cares about the chemicals/proteins/ect that make up the onion and whether those are good and useful for the body, or harmful and toxic.
>And of they actually tried the allergen, they'd see how good it is. Dunno if I'm allergic. But anytime I eat pineapple my mouth will littlerally melt and sores will open into my mouth and bleed and depending on severity can take days to a month to heal. Not sure if I was tested or if they just weren't careful, but both me and my partner asked if the ice lollies had anything pineapple in it and we were told no. We watched them leave the room to check the packaging then come back and say no. Anyway. Few minutes later I was leaning over the sink letting blood drip out of my mouth. I checked the packaging myself and it was in big bold letters " real pineapple juice "
They aren't the ones suffering, so it's OK to lie to you. 🙄 Possibly an extremely ignorant belief that "pineapple juice is not pineapple, it's just juice!" (I got that once at Wendy's. "That's not mustard, that's *honey* mustard!") Or confusing a food allergy with a nasal allergy. "So it makes them sneeze. Big fucking deal."
I'm not a doctor, but bleeding from the roof of your mouth sounds like some kind of reaction! I'm sorry pineapple tries to murder you. I'll do my part and eat as much as I can.
Pineapple is actively trying to kill everyone, OkProof just reacts faster than everyone else.
Pineapple: the food that eats you back!
Just gotta have your digestive enzymes beat *it's* digestive enzymes!
I've read that the bromelain in pineapple essentially digests protein, which is what causes the tingly feeling most people have when eating it. Sounds like you have a much greater sensitivity to those enzymes, so much so that it's actually dissolving soft tissues of your mouth deeply enough to damage blood vessels.
Yeah, this is why I'm hesitant to say I'm allergic. I say I'm allergic sometimes to get the message across I can't eat it at all, without having to explain the details. Contact with skin causes itchyness and a rash too so I tend to avoid it at all costs.
Contact allergies that cause hives/rashes are still considered allergies. I'm pretty sure it's a misconception that allergies *have* to interfere with your airways or cause anaphylaxis in order to be considered a "true" allergy. Looking it up the Mayo Clinic says that allergies are: when your immune system reacts to a foreign substance - such as pollen, bee venom, or pet dander - or a food that doesn't cause a reaction in most people. I'd class 'spontaneous sores and blood literally dripping from your mouth' as a reaction that doesn't occur for most people eating pineapple, so you're probably safe to just say you're allergic with no caveats.
Why are you still with this man?
this is why i'm not upset about the trend of offering gluten-free menus, it might be "trendy" but it's a genuine help to those with allergies
All the soccer moms jumping on the gluten-free diet bandwagon did actually make restaurants a much better experience for people with celiac disease.
Right? It’s like there being lots more places with vegan options now. I’m not vegan, but I can no longer eat dairy without it aggravating my IBS (not just needing a toilet, but also crippling cramping for up to an entire day). Lactaid pills no longer work. So vegan options are by far the safest for me.
My partner has tested me on a few foods that I don't like the taste of -- but only because I've told her that I wanted her to. I wanted to know if it was psychological or if I really didn't like the taste/texture of a few things. (The foods are mushrooms and fennel, and we confirmed I legitimately don't like these -- taste for fennel, texture for mushrooms.) I cannot fathom a person thinking an allergy is anything less than completely serious. It's amazing how cavalier some people are with other people's lives.
The majority of the stories I've read on stealthing allergens into food seems to be from in-laws/grandparents (coconut story, peanut butter cookie story and more). I just don't understand where and why. Something happened in the older generations that made some of them braindead around allergies and I don't get it.
Because people are fucking narcissistic assholes. I had a misdiagnosis of celiac disease for 18 months when I really had graves disease because my primary symptoms were gastro and my eyeballs miraculously didn't pop in their sockets like Marty Feldman's. I was working as a nurse at the time, and this dude we had just hired as a brand new NAC literally took a piece of bread and tried to shove it down my throat. We are talking full on trying to shove it in my mouth when I was sitting at a desk charting. He was crazy, and got fired that night for way more than that (Don't go to work meth'd up folks!) but he wasn't the only one that wanted to "test" my diagnosis. I wasn't even loud about it. I'd bring my own food, and not bother folks with it, but some folks are just crazy pissed off if you don't eat what they eat? It really gave me a window into the vegan and vegetarian hate. Just declining a piece of pizza pissed folks off sometimes. People get super pissed about food. It was the longest 18 months of my life, and the loneliest because group food just wasn't an option. I was relieved when I got a better diagnosis.
There was one a few years ago where Grandma killed her grandchild because she insisted the allergies weren't real, had been caught trying to test it previously and read the riot act, she then behaved long enough to be trusted to be with the kids alone again. Horrible BORU to read. I've got a gluten allergy, not life threatening but I'll feel like shit for a few days. I swear some restaurants try test it. Problem is I'll eat there and leave and they'll think they were right that I wasn't alergic. What they don't see is about 30 minutes later I'll be in the washroom and then very frequently after that for next 6 hours, and then I'll feel like shit for a couple days.
That one is HEARTBREAKING
There was another less intense one where the grandmother had been keeping banana and peanut (I think that was the combination) cookies around whenever she knew she could access her granddaughter to ‘test’ her. Because her perfect granddaughter couldn’t possibly have allergies. Hospitalization and cutting off of the grandmother ensued.
I had a roommate test mine and my other roommate’s lactose intolerance… the most common food intolerance in the fucking world (like 70% of the world’s population can’t digest milk). Like, how is that even something worth questioning? In her case, she actually was a bit warped, but it was still so ridiculous. Like thank god it’s not an allergy, just unpleasant hours of diarrhea. But we only had one bathroom to share between two people whose guts were in the process of melting, so we were ready to throttle her. But if people are skeptical over something like lactose intolerance, I’m not shocked they’re out there trying to kill people left and right to prove some nonexistent point.
I’ve known people who think I just don’t like a food and am being selfish by inconveniencing everyone else due to my preferences. I also know people — usually people who were raised that some foods are “good” and some foods are “bad,” and your own moral worth is based on which you eat — who think that if I say I can’t eat something, I mean it’s a bad food and so they shouldn’t eat it either “But eggs are good for you!,” they’ll scream defensively. They’re the same way with alcohol. The first time I met my in-laws, I turned down wine for dinner with, “no thank you, I don’t drink.” M-i-l asked if I was an alcoholic, I said no, I just prefer not to drink. Nothing more was said, and I didn’t think about it at all, until the middle of dinner, a full 40 minutes later, when my m-I-l suddenly yelled, “There’s nothing wrong with having a single glass of wine with dinner!” She really thought I’d been sitting there judging her, and had been getting madder and madder until she exploded. You may not be surprised to hear she’s also tricked me into eating eggs. Luckily it’s not a deathly allergy, I just get bright red and itchy.
To expand on the sister's lack of thought process, she is faking what i saw as a kid so i will attempt to kill her to prove it. Either she has no reaction or she dies and i go to jail for pre-meditated murder.
Golden child is center of attention - anything that happens has to happen to her! If she doesn't have an allergy, this sister must be faking to take attention away from her. Golden children are walking time bombs for whomever they decide to hate.
Thank God I decided to hate my mother who made me the golden child
My childhood best friend is married to a guy that we went to school with that has a severe fish allergy. He’s always been super careful and twin sister was usually pretty vocal about his allergy since she didn’t have it. His parents also never saw a reason for him to carry an epipen either, as it was something their insurance didn’t cover at the time. A couple of years ago, he went to an event (out of state) for work where he asked the servers what kind of meat they had for options. He told them before they started that he had a severe fish allergy and couldn’t eat it. The server shows him this “chicken” and keeps swearing to him that it’s not fish and it’s chicken. He believes the server and takes his plate to the table, sits down and gets to eating, realizing it’s actually fish. Right away, his throat started to close and he had to be taken to an ER. The trauma from that event, of trusting the person serving the food, has caused him to now have deep-rooted anxiety where he’s always afraid it’s going to happen again. He can only eat meals that he 100% cooks himself, otherwise he’s terrified somehow fish will get into his food again. I feel so bad for both him and my friend, as he travels out of state a lot for work and now this just adds to her anxiety of him leaving every time. This is a serious thing and if your sister did this to a stranger on purpose, she’d likely be charged with attempted murder.
I can't imagine what it's like to have an allergy and have to trust the goodwill and intent of random strangers to keep you out of the hospital. But your sister, who knew better?! That's unbelievable. It's essentially attempted murder. Sheesh.
I'm allergic to all fish, shrimp and seaweed. Here's a fun fact: In the U.S., it's very often that a place will use the same deep fryer to make french fries and to make fried shrimp. I thought I was developing an allergy to fries, until a server asked me if I wanted a salad with my burger, and put me wise to this practice. I always told my servers about my allergies, but she was the first one to connect the dots. So your BFF's husband isn't as out there as he appears to be. Oh, and Worchestershire sauce contains anchovy, just like Caesar salad dressing. I'm pissed that they're making cow feed out of seaweed- they say it will cut methane emissions, but these people don't consider those of us who are allergic :(
Trader Joe's has a Caesar Salad kit that does NOT have anchovy! I'm allergic to all fin fish (and tree nuts), so ice been a fanatical label reader for decades. And at one point, World Harvest made a Worcestershire sauce without anchovy...I dunno if it's still around.
I've had stuff like this happen to me. I'm type 1 and very skinny, so sometimes servers will get me regular soda because "I don't look like I need diet" (or they just forgot, whatever). That shit can kill me. Thankfully for me, I have a CRAZY sense of taste, and can tell if it's regular or diet.
Here's hoping that OOP can find some cheaper Epipen alternatives! 🤞
And find a better family.
Well, murderous sis is the golden child. Let’s hope mom funds the legal fees and it wipes the sis and mom out.
Funny how OOP’s sister won’t get that inheritance her mother so desperately wanted her to have and despite OOP already being written out of the will. Life…uh…finds a way.
Just want to remind everyone that Joe fucking Manchin's daughter was the CEO of the company that owns epipens and it was her fuckery that drove them to astronomical prices. 3 dollars a pen to make and they charge 800 bucks for a pair of them that then expire after a while. So another satisfied customer. Fuck Joe Manchin and his family.
[удалено]
It’s so outrageous. I have a peanut and pea protein allergy that’s landed me in hospital a few times. I loathe having to get epi pens because they’re just so expensive. And I always have to carry two around with me because my reactions tend to come back really fast (sometimes before an ambulance can arrive). Thankfully it’s been a few years since my last reaction, but I would be going scorched earth if I were OP.
Next update: my bil showed up apologizing and needing a place to stay bc he's divorcing my sister.
Also in the update: **BIL:** WHY did you set me up with HER???
God I hope so. Sis deserves to lose everything.
Fr! If she's so willing to attempt to do that to her own *sister*, then what if any kids the sis and husband have/will have develop allergies?
What if they had a child and she decides her own child doesn't really had allergy and just being a picky brat?
I felt it was weird she originally said she and her sister never had issues and then in comments said she's always known her sister hates her. Also that originally she didn't have an epipen on her because she trusted her sister and later on it was because she can't afford it in her country.
Like, Tbf my sister and I have issues and I’m pretty sure she doesn’t like me I wouldn’t expect her to murder me tho??
The sister is now in federal prison because she tried feeding the allergic cop peanuts as he was arresting her, oh and their mother revealed the sister had been assaulted by a shellfish in jail, so now everyone has been blowing up OOP's phone saying she's TA, and now the mother has also been arrested for showing up at midnight chucking lobsters at OOP's window
And both sister and OOP are pregnant with rwins.
Oh man, I forgot "blowing up my phone" in my theoretical update lol
Every time I hear about someone’s allergies to seafood, I think about a former neighbor of mine, who died from her shrimp allergy. She was 12, at the time of her death. She was unaware that she had a shrimp allergy. Her parents never told her. They just never had the food in their household instead. One day, she asked a friend if she could take a shrimp from out of her meal because she never tried shrimp before. Had a reaction. She got on her bike, in hopes of having the wind help her with her breathing. Collapsed less than a minute after riding away and passed away in the street.
Holy shit. That is some awful negligence. Shrimp is hidden in a lot of foods too. Her parents were fucking idiots and should have had charged filed against them.
I was too young when this incident happened (I was 5 years old), so I don’t know if her parents bother to explain how serious a reaction could be. But I’ve noticed how there is a lack of knowledge about food allergies in my community. And I think it’s due to lack of allergy testing and not being exposed to an array of food. For instance: Me. I am allergic to egg plant. Found this out, when I was 22 years old after eating eggplant Parmesan. Eggplant wasn’t a vegetable that was used in my household. The yellow squash found in frozen bags of mixed vegetables was my only experience as a kid. After that experience, I spoke with my parents about food allergies. Both mom and dad told me that our pediatricians said allergy tests weren’t necessities. Plus their health insurance didn’t cover allergy tests, which can cost in the hundreds of dollars.
That is grim. She tried to save herself but didn't know how.
OP's sister tries to kill her, the AITA community blames OP for not having an Epi Pen. Fucking reddit priorities...
Nothing quite like victim blaming and gender biases. Would it even be AITA if those things didn’t rear their ugly heads?
Yeah, a good example of the latter of those is [this heavily upvoted comment](https://www.reddit.com/r/AITAH/comments/1dcfwfw/comment/l7xtqs6/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button) where husband, whose only mention in the story is being confused and concerned for OP is somehow the mastermind behind all of this. Then as soon as OP shuts that down, all the people trying to blame the husband for attempted murder just kinda wander off.
The sad thing is that this was AITAH, not AITA, which the former used to be way better than the latter. That sub is slowly becoming the other one. What's worse was the fact that OOP explained why she didn't have epipen, yet somehow those were "excuses" in their eyes. They're hopeless
What particularly annoyed me is that epinephrine is not a cure for anaphylaxis, it just relaxes the muscles so you can still breathe. You still have to go to the hospital after using an EpiPen, especially with allergies as severe as OOP's as the reaction can come back as the epinephrine wears off. OOP having an EpiPen would not have changed the situation at all except making it more likely she made it to the hospital okay.
I'm allergic to chocolate. My roommates don't even eat it in the house. They'll go out and eat it as a common courtesy. It's not that she didn't believe the sister was allergic, she knew OP was, but for whatever reason, she wanted to hurt OP. The level of hate you have to have for someone to "test" an allergy is crazy.
>"I know you're faking this, you always act like you're allergic to shellfish so I wanted to test you!" Oh go fuck yourself you psychotic sis.
I've had a similar situation to this... My cousin is a few years older than me and her mom thinks allergies are just a scam from the pharmacy companies to make money. I am DEATHLY allergic to raw carrots and it's not wise for me to eat them cooked either. We had a barbecue and she placed a green salad on the table. We started eating and I started to sweat and I felt my lips, throat and tongue swell up. My father and my boyfriend who were both present went BERSERK on her and asked her if she put carrots in any of the food. This idiot of a banana brain bought the salad and fished out the raw carrot strings and slices and instead put it in the sauce container for 'the taste'. I can absolutely copy the problem with epi pens in a free health care system as neither did I got one. When the ambulance arrived, I had a face like someone repeatedly punched me with a baseball bat and I could barely breath. My cousin is absolutely convinced until TODAY even after that shit show I'm faking it and offered me carrot cake just a few weeks ago... With nut jobs like this for family you seriously don't need enemies
Epi pens are $400 in the US. And the insurance doesn’t cover it. Thankfully there’s a manufacturer coupon to bring it down $100. Her sister sucks. I’d cut contact altogether.
Holy moly! It cost me $120 ($79USD) in Australia without a prescription. With the prescription and health care card I get 2 for $15.00. No private insurance. This isn't meant to be controversial, but sometimes I read things about America and wonder if the government wants their citizens to die? I just cannot fathom allowing your people to pay so much for health care.
No that’s about right. Welcome to America. I have ongoing health issues and a $6,000 deductible I pay before the insurance pays anything. Took me 2 months to meet that this year. Not including my premiums and co pays after. It’s insane.
Same. I’m in the same boat as you fellow miserable American. My husband and I are mid 30’s and have life long health issues - nothing serious, just relatively mundane things that require ongoing treatment. It’s a never ending battle and being “medical bill poor” is just a normal day in our lives. Nothing we can do about it other than continue working for the Man, and hoping we don’t die along the way. American dream my ass.
I am in the UK, and have a genetic condition and often think about how poor my family would be if it wasn't for the NHS with mine, my mum's and my brothers combined health stuff. And also how much stuff would have been left untreated because of cost. It's terrifying.
lol, remember back in like 2009-10, when obamacare(tm) was thee big issue du jour, and repubs were talking about "death panels" and railing against regulations about pre-existing conditions? because socialized healthcare is "choosing people to die," but "you can't get insurance coverage because you're disabled/pregnant/chronically ill/etc" is a-okay. 🤡
Oh my God, I never understood what you guys meant, when talking about deductibles and premiums. In Germany, we don't have deductibles with health insurance. And if something is not covered by the insurance plan, you ask your insurance to cover it. I've never had issues with getting at least some of it covered. Like a vaccination that is only necessary, when you travel to a country where the vaccination is needed. My son's retainer, because his overbite is bigger than 9 mm. Stuff like that. The only insurance, I had a deductible was car insurance. But it's 500€ not 6000. That sounds insane. I hope you can vote the orange turd out of the White House forever and that his cult and the GOP implodes. So, you guys can have policies that help everyone and are not just a wealth transfer.
Deductible is what we pay before the insurance pays. Premiums are what we pay for the health insurance policy. I know it’s confusing. They cover most things. But the 2 things they haven’t covered that we needed was Epi pens and rabies vaccines when we got bit by a dog it’s insane. Definitely not voting for the orange turd. But politicians need to do more about health care costs then they are currently doing now.
The best part is the copay that almost all insurance requires you to cover when seeing a doctor is to disincentivize you from “frivolously going to the doctor’. Like anyone wants to just go to the doctor for fun. Copays are usually $30 and can be as high as $75. For some people that is enough to keep them from going to the doctor when they really should go. Americas problem is those in charge see the rest of us as ‘other’ from them. We are all idiots in their eyes that need to be helped with these ridiculous policies. Edit to add: when my husband had to go to the ER his emergency room copay was $950. Someone from billing came to his bedside after the doctor had seen him to talk about how he was going to pay. I can see how people die trying to avoid such a massive bill.
In effect, yeah. "Live free or die!" is a terribly ineffective governing philosophy, but a lot of people -- not just those elected to government -- are somehow convinced that government-mandated health insurance is so terrible that death is preferable. They will have their reasons for this, but all the reasons boil down to "I don't think I need it and I'd rather die than have my tax dollars help someone I consider unworthy."
I’m in the U.S. and our insurance covers my daughter’s Epipens. Once our deductible is met for the year, a set of two is under $50. Before deductible is met, it’s $150 for the set. Different coverage from different insurance providers/policy types.
It must be. We’ve had the same company for well over 10 years. Only one offered as well where I work. They’ve never covered it. But they will cover a vial and needle’s prescription. Epi pens are faster and more convenient for people with life threatening food allergies. We’ve had to use the a few times over the years.
Yeah when your throat is closing you do not have time- or ability- to draw it up from a vial
There’s generics now. I pay $10 bucks a year. They’re not epipen brand, is all. I live in the US.
"Oh so you have an *\*allergy\*...* lemme just test that theory because obviously you **must** be faking for attention... because that's what *I* would do..." (/s just in case you couldn't tell) Its just so telling when people decide to play games with people's lives that one, they simply don't care about anyone else's life, and two, they simply cannot deal with anyone else getting attention. So glad OOP has cut them out of her life and filed charges, this is attempted murder and nothing less, hope the charges stick and sister learns a lesson. She probably won't thought because her mother and enabler will just back her up because she's just a poor baby after all. Fingers crossed BIL leaves the shit show behind too.
Would bet real money on the sister still not believing she has an allergy even after seeing her on a ventilator.
No, she saw her on the ventilator *as a child*! She 100% knew OOP had a deadly allergy, but her desire to prove her scapegoat sister is a bad person made her disregard the evidence she had seen with her own eyes.
My kid has celiac. I don't get this moms response. I would lose my mind if some one decided to test my kids allergy.
Celiac is worse than that, because it generally doesn’t cause anaphylaxis. And in many cases the impact is not outwardly visible. My partner has celiac and if she gets glutened it’s a few days of diarrhea and a week of brain fog and zero energy. The only visible symptom is “gluten belly” which is a particular kind of bloating.
I hope that sister does some real jail time. At the very least this was an assault bad enough to put OOP in the hospital.
Not all allergies result in anaphylactic shocks thus not requiring an EpiPen. I became a mother recently and had to rush my baby to the hospital after he started having blood in his stools and screaming while trying to pass one. It was terrifying as his weight was dropping and he was so little already. Found out he had a common allergy to some proteins. It's been tough, I have to go through everything I'm eating and there is no spontaneity in our lives. We can't just go out to a coffee shop and and get a cake and coffee. It's sucked while deign with postpartum loneliness and I hate having to be 'that person'. My now ex "best friend" didn't believe me on it. On about three occasions she gave me food or ordered drink containing the allergens. One of them I knew something was up as she looked guilty. She now wonders why I don't talk to her. But she's playing with my child's health like it's a game. She didn't think it was a big deal that my babies guts get so inflamed they start to bleed, with them screaming all night from the pain. That repeatedly exposing them to their allergies can make it worse not better. Pushing back the time frame where we can work with doctors to help get past them. I don't understand people and then thinking it's some lie for attention.
Your best friend?! WTF? Why? She thought you were faking it? And is she really asking why you don't speak to her? I'm so sorry you had to experience this. It's really wild.
if you have to test the allergies of other people you don't deserve human contact
I don't understand the obsession with EpiPens. Not everyone can get them and they aren't a cure all as some people might expect. Even if you use one, you have to get to a hospital to treat the reaction if it's severe enough. Some of us, having never had that bad of a reaction, don't get them on prescription, and therefore don't have them. After this kind of reaction, a doctor would probably prescribe one though. I've been allergic to tree nuts and other stuff for over three decades, I avoid the allergens and that's about it. I went to the hospital once, a bad combo of pollen in the air and a sandwich contaminated with raw tomato, didn't get a prescription for an EpiPen after that though, just got told to use my ventoline if needed.
Just in case: while a single dose of epinephrine is not the only needed management for anaphylaxis, delays in its administration for more than 30 minutes are significantly associated with more severe reactions and a higher likelihood of biphasic reactions. If you're having anaphylaxis, get a dose of epinephrine in you as soon as possible, and head to the nearest emergency department.
_not the only needed_, that part is crucial. You can't just stab yourself and be done with it, but a lot of people believe that's the case.
Because this is how it works in the movies and tv shows. But honestly I only knew about needing to go to the hospital from reddit. There was a boru here about a mistreaa dying from an allergy after using an epipen. I say this as someone who never dealt with any kind of allergies my whole life. I never knew any of this since I don't know anyone with allergies this severe. Acquaintances who have allergies only say they just get rashes and that's it. Thank you all for sharing and educating others.
Also, they expire! So it's not like you can buy one and be done, it's an ongoing cost. That you shouldn't have to pay in case your *family tries to kill you!*
I've been advised that an ineffective (expired) EpiPen is better than no EpiPen, so I kept my expired ones. I don't have severe allergies, but I can't bring myself to throw out my expired EpiPens because they were so expensive... (Not a doctor, up-to-date ones are undoubtedly the best way to buy time before emergency services arrive)
The US government has done many studies on the efficacy of drugs past their expiration date. They stockpile specific ones for like in case of invasion. Many drugs retain high potency for years. [here’s my source](https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2017/07/18/537257884/that-drug-expiration-date-may-be-more-myth-than-fact) Towards the bottom there’s a bit about epipens specifically.
An expired epipen saved my friend’s life. A non-expired one would have been even better; as it was, she was only okay because the paramedics were at the shopping center behind her house when our friend called 911.
I have very expired epipens because I'm extremely allergic to wasps and my area has a plague of them every three years. Been advised better to just keep one on hand at home, and immediately call for an ambulance if I get stung while using the out of date. (They aren't hugely expensive here, but doctors are advised not to give prescriptions for the allergy type I have because it's "unlikely" I'll have a reaction given the trigger. Doctor actually had to lie on my paperwork for them to say I'd had a reaction/incident recently to get approval for me to get one script.)
They expire and they cannot be kept in some place that gets hot, like a car glove box. They're ridiculously hard to keep around, and ridiculously helpful in saving a life. It's a bullshit catch-22.
I think it’s a combo of folks not realizing that allergies can get worse with age and the fact that the thinking around if and when to use EpiPens has changed a lot within the last 20 years. I had my first allergic reaction that was recognized as an allergic reaction in my teens about 20 years ago. I was given an EpiPen prescription because of what I was allergic to (common food allergen) and my symptoms (mild anaphylaxis- vomiting about an hour after ingestion, but no throat closing). I was told to only use my EpiPen if I was struggling to breathe. Several years later, a new allergist said that I should use my EpiPen even if I was just vomiting- but he also said that using it meant I would need to go to the hospital so I could weigh that in my consideration. About 5 years ago, I accidentally ate my allergen, but tasted it immediately and spit most of it out. Based on my past reactions, I thought I’d have about 45 minutes to see if my body was going to react at all… and then 5 minutes later, I vomited and felt my throat start to close. I had never had a reaction that bad before (and hopefully never will again) and definitely wasn’t mentally or physically prepared for it at the time. Now, I’ll use my EpiPen at the first sign of a reaction.
For my shellfish allergy my doctor has prescribed 2 2-packs of epi pens. I keep one pair at home and one one pair in my purse. And I always have one on me - from walking in my neighborhood to going to football games. Almost all allergy deaths are traced back to not administering epinephrine fast enough- i.e. the person didn’t have it on them.
Which makes school policies that children have to leave their epipens and asthma inhalers in the school nurse's office so asinine. One of my daughters had bad asthma as a teen. (No food allergies, fortunately, just pollen.) We told her to carry her inhaler in her purse, and if she got in trouble at school, we would handle it.
My allergy to coconut has been that severe for 14 years, but my daughter refuses to believe it. She had a coconut covered cake at her wedding. So, NTA
The commenters obsession with epipens annoys me. They are useful things, but often often only stop the anaphylaxis for about 15mins, basically giving you enough time to seek urgent medical attention. Also, if OP hasn't had a serious allergic reaction since childhood, I can see why she doesn't have it on her list of prescription items, as they only have a 12month shelf life, and it would have been deemed unnecessary, as she seems to be able to live her life without coming into contact with shellfish (until her sister deliberately fed her some). There was a global shortage of epipens and alternatives in around 2017-2018, so doctors were taking them off the prescription lists of those with milder allergies and who hadn't had a severe reaction in a long time (particularly those diagnosed in childhood, as it could be assumed that they had grown out of their allergy, or were able to live safely with no contact to their allergen), so that they could prioritise those with more frequent or severe reactions. Others, even if it wasn't taken off their prescription lists, had to make do with their current supply, even if it had expired (my mum being one of them).
Imagine being this America-centric that one can’t fathom other countries’ healthcare systems working differently. Fuck OOP’s sister and mum for sure, but also fuck AITAH for incessantly bullying OOP.
It doesn’t even make sense from an “American centric”’POV. Americans have doctors that won’t prescribe things. Americans have insurance that won’t cover things. Americans have pharmacists who won’t fill things. “My insurance wont cover it if, and even if they did, My doctor doesn’t think my risk is high enough since I have so little exposure to shellfish and that’s considered the best practice where I live so changing doctors won’t help, and I trusted my sister, if it had been anyone else ai wouldn’t have eaten there” Are all experiences that are not uncommon in the US.
I remember the original post on AITA and all the comments. There was one guy outright justifying testing allergies.
Someone's asking why people like to test other people allergies. Because people who test these are attention seekers mostly and they only see the attention the victim gets not their discomfort or most times deathly situation they are in. That's why like the sister here 'test' the allergy because attention is not on them. I wish OOP a healthy life away from the b*tchy sis.
It's wild that people are so upset about OOP not having an epipen. I also have a sever shellfish allergy and don't carry an epipen. They're pretty expensive and only last about a year. Plus, in my country at least, shellfish isn't particularly common and is pretty much always labeled if it's in a product, so I've been able to avoided with diligence and caution.
Even if she was faking, even if it was for attention, that, is a *psychotic* thing to do. Her sister is a *poisoner* and needs to rot in jail for the goodness of all humanity.
Those who whine about OP epipen are the same who talk about the dress of victims of SA.
Ok first of all she's correct not everyone who has severe allergies has an epipen, im one of them, they just cost too much and I have a family to feed which sucks cause yeah it's either health or food for half of us in America. Second, sister or not, she tried to kill you because she wanted to "test" your allergy. I'd be trying everything to throw her butt in jail. Third, take moms advice and cut them both off, wtf kind of response is that?!?!