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Food Allergy
TheBub
member
Neighbor vent...LONG
TheBub
member
in Food Allergy
Back story...We have a difficult neighbor. She is nice and means well, but she is kind of nuts. She is definitely a hypochondriac. They go to the ER for everything.
DS has a peanut/tree nut allergy. She seems to like to "play dumb" when it comes to his allergy. Here are a few examples of times she has "forgotten" and we had to explain to her again...
- She made us dinner a couple of times when the baby was born. She made something that she knew our picky DS wouldn't eat...not a problem. Then she says...wait, I made O a peanut butter and jelly, but I forgot it on the counter at home. We explained that he can't have that and she was like, oh yeah. I dont think she ever made a sandwich, just said that to get a reaction from us.
- Another time, we had them over for dinner and she made a big deal about having ice cream at home. DS was excited. Her DH goes to get it and it turns out to be a PB cup ice cream cake! Explained the situation again.
- We recently got DS a medic alert bracelet and taught him how to tell people about his allergy. He told her. I was there.
- Last Sunday, DS was playing outside with DH and her DD came out and the kids ended up going to their house to play for a few minutes before dinner. She called and left a message on the answering machine asking if DS could have a yogurt. Explaining that she wanted to ask first before feeding him anything. Great.
This brings me to what happened last night. I was getting DD situated in the stroller in the garage when the neighbor walked up behind me. DS was with my parents a few feet away. She hands a treat bag to DS and puts one on the table for DD. She explained what was in them...candy corn, M&Ms, and cereal. I was just going throw them away because there were no labels, it was a loose mix. Later, when we were all back inside, DH looks at the bag and asks where it was from and was it a bag of nuts. I told him who made the bag and what it was. Then I opened just to see and I am 99.5% sure that the cereal is Reese Puffs! WTF?! I was so livid I was almost in tears.
DS and I are going to have a long talk today about never accepting any food from her again. I emailed her this morning asking what the cereal was but I haven't heard back yet. I don't get it. Is she just stupid or is she doing this maliciously? I told DH that DS is never to be alone with her again.
This discussion has been closed.
Re: Neighbor vent...LONG
She replied...I was right! They were Reese Puffs. I know that I wasn't going to let him eat them no matter what, but what if she had given it directly to him and opened it up or something. I am sick to my stomach about what could have happened.
AVOID AVOID AVOID! i would think she's trying to test him and/or see if he's really allergic. I would never let my child near that house with out me close by.
she sounds totally careless and clueless.
Well, I'll say this - if you don't accept her food, it will probably turn into her wanting to know why. Be prepared to be really honest, OR "accept" her food and just throw it away.
Sadly, people who don't get it don't get it. They think all these allergies are a crock. I doubt she's malicious, but I wouldn't take my chances and I definitely wouldn't leave DS w/ her alone.
~Benjamin Franklin
DS dx with celiac disease 5/28/10
you said it perfectly... so many people think food allergies are a crock! it's amazing! I get so annoyed when i read comments from CNN articles or other news posts that write about FA and people comment about how FA are made-up. I feel like shaking these people!
52 Choices For Better Health
Thank you for getting it ladies! She has tried to call me several times today, but I haven't answered. I am still very hurt by this and do not want to talk to her yet.
Semi related - This was one of my fears about sending him to school. Children (and adults, I guess) are thoughtless and cruel...what if someone tried sneaking his allergen into something to see what would happen or to hurt him? There are too many TV and movie scenes that make it a joke. This is scary.
You should feel safer with a school than a neighbor. I fear sending my LO to school also, but i would feel safer in a school than with a neighbor who is constantly being careless. Hopefully the school is well educated on food allergies. I do agree that TV and movies make a joke out of allergies and some people will never GET-IT. That's why it's important to educate your child about never taking things from others.