The blog name

I had to pick a blog name. One that wasn't already taken on blogger. Something that at least remotely had to do with food allergies.

The "Goldilocks principle" refers to the need, when dealing with food allergies, to "maintain a balance that is just right between protective and debilitating anxiety." So says Deena Mandell in her study, Families Coping with a Diagnosis of Anaphylaxis in a Child.

The Goldilocks principle really rings true to me. I've read newspaper articles, other blogs, etc., and in so doing I often remind myself of how lucky our family is -- that of all diseases, afflictions, or accidents that can befall a child, a diagnosis of a food allergy really is not all that bad. All you have to do is simply not eat the offending food, and there aren't even any symptoms! And then I go and stumble across another article talking about someone, age 13 or 30 or whatever the case may be, who died from an anaphylactic reaction having maybe only suffered one mild case of hives from his or her food allergy before. WHAT THE? That is scary stuff. As a mom, it really messes with your head!

So, I'm trying to keep it all in check. Not too little caution. Not too much paranoia. Finding the balance that's just right - at least for our family.

Hi.

As a parent of a child with food allergies, I go through phases where I think about, read about, talk about, and worry about food allergies a lot – sometimes too much. And then there are periods where food allergies hardly enter my consciousness as I go about the business of my day to day life. Really, who has the time?

Friends and relatives occasionally ask for updates on our daughter's food allergies. Again, I feel like I sometimes get it all wrong -- either failing to pass on useful information and legitimate updates when they might actually be warranted, or blathering on so much that the person is sorry that they ever asked.

Hence, the creation of this blog. It's kind of a like a diary for me. It's also a place where I can share updates and educational information for anyone who's interested that can easily be ignored by anyone who's not.