PI mom with a PI daughter, a personal experience shared by Jessica

There are only a few things I regret in life and I am barely realizing them now that I have a child with a Protein Intolerance and Reflux. I always had heartburn, hiccups, stomach pain and you name it, but never decided to go into my doctor to find out what was going on. I just felt I needed to suck it up and deal. When I eat certain foods I get extremely sick after and feel horrible with stomach cramps and the whole nine yards, but again I felt I just needed to deal with it. I had horrible seasonal allergies but instead of going to an allergist I took Benadryl as needed. I have severe food allergies to a few foods but instead of getting confirmation  I just avoided those foods.  My father has an IgA deficiency and instead of getting tested before I conceived to see if I was a carrier I let the concern fall to the wayside.

Well after having a child that has all of the above symptoms I honestly regret NOT going to my physician and finding out what could be wrong with me and treat it. Maybe if I did find out I would have had a better sense of what was going on with my firstborn. Instead, she was the one who endured all the tests, sometimes painful, in the name of finding a diagnosis and treatment. It wasn’t until the past few months that I have decided I need to finally take care of myself. But I truly regret that it took this long and a beautiful daughter to get me to this point.

I have reflux, Delilah has reflux. I have a Protein Intolerance, Delilah has the same. I have seasonal and food allergies and like the other ailments, so does Delilah. If I had known some of my diagnosis’s when I saw them in my daughter I could have had a better idea of what could be going on. I know, I know, it might not have mattered but I will never know. I feel terrible that I had to put Delilah through countless tests trying to grasp at straws in finding a diagnosis that fit her. But, like her mom she never has fit any mold or has been a “textbook” case. It can be very frustrating when you don’t know what is wrong with your child and its only natural to put yourself and your health on the backburner.  One thing, of the many,  I have learned the hard way that your health and finding out what is wrong with you is more important than you think.

I  try not to think too far in the future and try to get things under control in the moment, but at the  same time I want answers and I think “if I eat this or Delilah eats that will we be sick?” and then I can’t help but wonder what the future will hold. I go in on Tuesday to have an EGD and colonoscopy (which Delilah has had) so if she can endure it so can I. I’m just hoping mine will give us some more answers then hers did as I am not on an elemental diet. My fingers are crossed that whatever is going on with me will lead to a possible diagnosis of Delilah without her going through more testing! I would much rather be the pin cushion than her and this is finally my chance to not have any regrets