Create (and Carry!) Your Personal Allergy First-Aid Kit
By Julie Williamson
Anyone with life-threatening (or potentially life-threatening) allergies should have a personal allergy first-aid kit on hand at all times. I use a low-profile cosmetic bag with a zip-around lid to house my kit, so all the items inside are easy to find and not piled on top of one another. My bag is similar to the one below, although I taped a label on my lid that reads “Julie’s Allergy Kit,” so no one mistakes it for a lunchbox, crayon box or other miscellaneous box of crap.
Here’s what should go […]
Chiropractic’s Positive Impact on Allergies/Wellness: Q&A with Dr. Ashley Waggoner-Jones
By Julie E. Williamson
A brief note from me, Julie Williamson: I’m no stranger to chiropractic care. In fact, my foray into the world of chiropractic began when I was just four years old (as a result of my at least once-a-week migraines and a peculiar and undetermined condition that, out of the blue, left me unable to walk in the mornings; I don’t recall those months of not being able to walk, but my parents paint a vivid picture of me crawling out of bed and landing with a thud […]
Hope for the Holidays: Surviving the Fanfare with Food Allergies
By Julie E. Williamson
I’m not going to try and glaze over the truth: the holidays can be no treat for food allergy sufferers (and even those with less severe, but still annoying intolerances). There we are, surrounded by toasted seasoned nuts, flaky dinner rolls, fluffy potatoes, buttery cookies (a double-whammy for those of us with dairy and wheat allergies), festive mugs filled with eggnog…and the list goes on. It’s enough to turn us into a grumpy, stomach-growling Grinch.
Thanksgiving, at least for me, isn’t the problem, especially because I’m in charge […]
Food Intolerance is a Family Affair:
A Husband’s POV
By Brian Williamson
As Julie’s husband of 18 years, I’ve come to learn a thing or two (or 20) about food allergies, sensitivities and intolerances. Although I personally don’t have any food-related health issues (okay, maybe one: garlic makes me belch), I’ve seen firsthand with my wife how just one bite of the wrong food can wreak havoc on her body.
Even before we were married, I’ve stood beside her, lending support, but feeling helpless when her stomach pain literally doubled her over, when her mouth swelled and was covered in small, but […]
On a Stress/Allergy Rollercoaster?
Studies Show the Two Are Connected
By Julie Williamson
I’m about to make my mom very happy: she was right all these years. See, ever since I was a little kid, she’s been claiming that my food allergy systems were exponentially worse whenever I was stressed or anxious. A test at school? That’d do it. A looming doctor appointment? Yep, that, too. A super-fun week at summer day camp, a slumber party at a friend’s house or our annual family outing at the amusement park? Yeah, even eager anticipation was sometimes read by my hypersensitive body as “stress” […]
We’re More Than What We Eat – We’re Also What We Do
By Julie Williamson
When I’m especially plagued by my food allergies and feeling not-so-hot, I have a tendency to become a human hermit crab. Although I’m social, by nature, when I’m feeling out of sorts, I clam up, become more reclusive and hole up in the house, often watching the world pass me by from a nearby window. It makes sense on the surface because the last thing anyone feels like doing when their stomach is bloated and aching, their head is throbbing or their emotions are on a […]