Even Nutrimom Can Lose Her S***

I, Nutrimom have failed as a food allergy mother for today. Or maybe for this year, I'm not really sure yet because I am still ashamed of myself. To make it worse, it's the first day of NutriSon starting eighth grade. The day started off perfectly, truly- the kids both made their own lunches last night (whoa! Whose kids are these?!), we were up and out of the house on time and then we got to sit in school traffic and we were late. But that is not the worst of it and not why I failed.

Flash forward to me returning to school later after all of the first-week-of-school parents have gone on to work and there is no more traffic. I strolled back into the school, medication bag in hand, go to the Guidance Office (he self-carries but I always leave a back-up bag with the school) and I tell them I am dropping it off. I also let them know that I completely spaced and realized last night, as I was printing all of his food allergy action plans, labeling his safe snack bags and trying to make sure everything was in order that I had not gotten the proper school forms for self-carrying and permission to have medication given filled out. I am not proud of this at all but ultimately, it is nobody's fault but my own.

The woman in the Guidance Office was nice, handed me the forms and stated "Just so you know, if something happens, I will not be able to administer any medications to your son." And, in pure Jersey/food allergy mom fashion, I immediately responded back "Well, just so you know, if my son has an allergic reaction and dies because you did not give him epinephrine, I will be really REALLY p###ed." ....did you hear the record scratch?

photo courtesy PandeMommium.com

I have to admit, she kept her cool and was completely polite and professional during my session of several unprofessional words leaping out of my own mouth while students and other parents were present. And, again, ultimately, I am the only person to blame. But reality hit me- how, how could it be possible for a person to tell me that they would refuse to give my son epinephrine if anything happens? Do people really do that, can they really do that? And me- what kind of mother, no what kind of food allergy mother am I to put my son in this position?! I know everyone has bad days, I know we all try to be super mom and do everything but in my eyes, my forgetfulness is unacceptable. If my son dies, it's my fault. Period. He has less than two hours of school left and all I want to do is run, take him home and just stare at him. But I won't. Instead, I am freaking out and writing this. Aren't you all overjoyed?

The moral of the story is 

• We all make mistakes. No matter how difficult is is, we all need to allow ourselves to make mistakes because it is impossible to be perfect, always. Mistakes help us see what to avoid in the future and mistakes give us the memory of what not to do again.
• Know the laws. To keep your child safe when they are not with you, make sure you know what your state does and does not require. It's better to be prepared and that includes legalities in all formats. Like I said- imagine the thought of your child dying because of a simple piece of paper.
• The Good Samaritan Law- Does your state have this in place? In the State of North Carolina, the law states that forms must be on file with a doctor's signature each and every year. But it also includes the Good Samaritan Law, which states "North Carolina (G.S. 143-508(d)(11) Certified persons are authorized to obtain prescriptions of epinephrine and to administer it and are granted Good Samaritan from liability." *
• Remain calm unless you feel otherwise- Normally, I am professional and courteous to everyone but this rule changes when it comes to my children (allergic or not). I have said it before and I will continue to say it- never, ever put your child's life in jeopardy for the convenience of others. Sometimes simply being nice doesn't cut it and I'm sure all parents have flipped out at least once.

photo courtesy 123rf.com

I thought I was prepared. Actually, we were "prepared"- my son had his self-carry of epinephrine, his asthma inhaler, liquid antihistamines and a copy of his food allergy action plan all tucked into his packet just in case. But being prepared is more than just having the necessary objects. It's about knowing your child is safe and knowing that you are doing the very best that you can as a parent. But being prepared is also understanding when your not so nice food allergy mom voice is allowed to come out and roar.

* As written at  https://www.wildmed.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/legal-structure-of-teaching-adminstration-of-epinephrine.pdf