Mystery Diagnosis

I say it every year.

Our summer would not be complete without a trip to the ER.

The boy has obviously inherited his momma's grace and uncanny ability to get hurt. Poor kid.

We spent last summer recovering from a catfish barb to the hand, so this year we had to top that with a case of raging hives. Good times.

The boy has allergies, and we've learned to live with that.
But every now and then, his body throws us a curve ball.

Once - when he was 2 - he broke out in huge horrible hives. Scary-looking hives. And we played the guessing game. What did he wear? Did we change soaps? Did I change detergents? What did he eat?
The only "new" thing he'd eaten was watermelon. Yep. Watermelon. Something that even allergy-prone people are rarely allergic to. So we deprived the poor baby of watermelon for about 3 years.
When he finally tried it again... nothing.
So we really never knew what caused those hives.

Last month, we spent a week with Dan/Daddy's parents on the Gulf. (Yep. The oily Gulf.) About halfway through our trip, the boy woke up one morning with his right eye almost swollen shut and hives all over his face and neck.

I have a photo, but it is a bit yucky. I put it up, and then I took it down.

When did my blog become a place for only the strong-stomached?

After a dose of Benadryl, they didn't go away. Our biggest concern was the swelling all over his face. Swelling on the outside isn't so bad. It's the swelling I can't see that worries me.
So we loaded him into the car and headed to the ER. And the guessing game began again. No new foods. No new clothes. No new detergents. Nothing.
Nothing except he'd been swimming in the Gulf one day before the oil came into Pensacola Beach.
At his point, I'm thinking, "Please let me sue BP."
But the doctor says the words I hear more than I'd like to.
"We may never know."

Agh.

As a bit of a control freak, let me say that those words are hard to swallow.
I want to KNOW.
I feel like I can handle the situation better if I KNOW.
I can even handle bad situations if I KNOW.

But, apparently, being in the KNOW isn't always part of God's plan for this girl.

After week of steroids (again), he was all better.
And the ER doc gave me the advice I had been considering for a while now.
Have him re-tested.
I knew it was probably time... his last allergy tests were done when he was 5.
All those little needle pricks in the skin. Good times.

Who wants to go with us?