Sweet. sweet victory
November 12, 2019
🥜 539 days from start to finish
🥜 33 updose appointments at his allergists' office over 18 months
🥜 539 daily doses of gradually increasing peanuts - he did not.miss.a.single.day
🥜 1,078 hours in rest period after his daily dose (2 hours per day.)
And guess what. Brandon can now FREE EAT PEANUTS!!!
🙌😭🙌😭🙌😭
There were so many days that we thought THIS day would never come. November 12, 2019. A day that will forever be a cause for celebration for us.
The daily grind.
The slow progress.
The meticulous tracking of doses, timing, measuring, the crushing of peanuts, mixing doses, and more.
The transporting of solution, dosing foods, dosing materials.
The sacrifices of his time, him having to say 'no' to friends and events he would have rather said 'yes' to, because he was in his dose window.
The sacrifices of my time - managing daily dosing times to fit them in between his already busy schedule, arranging them so subsequent doses would be within the allowed window, taking him to all 33 updose appointments, and bringing little brother to over half 😉.
But what did we gain in return?
Peace of mind. ✌
More security in public settings, on airplanes, at birthday parties, in the lunch room.
Brandon's increase in confidence 💙, his unwavering commitment to the process, and facing a fear of his every.single.day. Have you ever done something that scares you every day for 18 months? Yeah, that's what this kid just did. And in facing it, he conquered it. 💪
I can't think of many adults who have done something consistently for the betterment of their lives for 539 days in a row without missing a single day. And here he is - a teenage boy who did just that. 😎
The physical benefits of OIT are obvious. And oh so sweet. 😍
But the intangibles of this journey . . . .even sweeter.
I honestly think it will take awhile to fully process all that this OIT journey has meant to our family and the gamut of emotions we have all experienced. A dear, dear friend of mine texted me the day of graduation . . . she always has the perfect words to say at the perfect time, without fail, and the text she sent me prior to Brandon's appointment was yet again spot on. In reading her eloquent and surely divindely-inspired words 😇, my tears finally started to flow. I have been rather stoic through this whole journey, most particularly in front of Brandon. Quite understandably so, he has been on an emotional roller coaster himself. Highs, lows, and everything in between as this has been hardest on him. So as the primary parent helping him through the day to day situations and dosing, I had to be the calm one. Me. Having to be calm and steady. Ha ha! So her words of congratulations - regardless of the outcome of the appointment that day - allowed me to pause and honor, acknowledge, and celebrate just how far we'd come.
So often, when you're in the middle of a journey, you can't truly appreciate it. The whole 'can't see the forest for the trees' concept. In a recent Bible study I went through with dear friends, the leader encouraged us to climb up the ladder with God and look at things from his view - out of the fray, above the daily mess. Little moments like those allow me to breathe in deep the successes we've had, and look forward with hopeful expectation to what's next for my warrior of a child.
For a bit of the nitty gritty of that final dosing day . . . .
We arrived around 3:15, purposely planned at that time so we could spread the doses out over a longer period of time. He took his first dose of 16 peanuts - that was a typical-interval updose for him (from his then-current dose of 12, up to 16.) He continued with the crushed up honey roasted peanuts in cinnamon applesauce dosing method. We waited 30 minutes, and when all was well, he took 4 more in applesauce. All went well, 4 more 30 minutes later. (16 + 4 + 4 = 24) Here's a pic of my 'assembly station' in the room. 😊
It wasn't planned this way, but Disney+ (the streaming service from Disney) came out on the same day as graduation, a service that Brandon was highly anticipating. Lucky for him, we got him logged in that morning on his phone, and he spent much of his 'waiting time' in between doses perusing the myriad of Star Wars shows he now has immediate access to. 😬
Michael (my husband) even left work early to support Brandon on graduation day! That's been his big role in this whole journey - swooping in on big appointment days, keeping me steady when I struggled to stay so, and being the voice of reason for Brandon when fears seemed bigger than possible to handle. He's the rock for our family . . . always has been, always will be. 💙
Aaaaaaaaaaand . . . . drum roll please . . . . . . 🥁🥁🥁
The FINAL dose - GONE!!! Look at that smile!!! I mean, can anything top that?!?!?
After that final dose was in, and about 20 minutes into his final waiting period in the office, he started getting a bit giddy, and with good reason! That final timer went off, and the staff came in with his completion certificate, and the celebrating began!!
YESSSS!!!!!!! He made it!!!
Here is a picture of him and his ever-faithful doctor, Dr. Anna George. She is a medical hero in our family and always will be. It takes a special kind of doctor to take on OIT, and she fit the bill to a 'T.' She is located in The Woodlands, TX (about 1 hour north of Houston), and we will forever be thankful to her for the way she led our entire family through this journey. She is truly a diamond in the rough.
(And yes, he is wearing a Reese's peanut butter cup shirt! More on that here, in this blog entry.)
Brandon is now in what is called the 'maintenance' phase for OIT. He does still have to eat peanuts every day, for the foreseeable future . . . . my guess would be at least 3 years. He gets to down dose to 8 peanuts, which will be a walk in the park for him at this point. 😀
I am sure there will be more processing on this whole journey - for all of us - at some point in the future. I have used this blog to chronicle our journey over the past 18 months. It has been therapeutic for me, cathartic, and memorable. More than anything, I wanted to capture this whole experience for Brandon to look back on one day. I hope that someone has read our blog along the way and that it has convinced them, too, to undertake this life-changing challenge.
But now, even though our OIT journey has currently reached this milestone, I know this blog won't stop. I intend to use it for more chronicling of our food allergy journey, as we do have several more possible steps ahead of us. More on that in another entry. And in my heart, I foresee it as a way to explore other parts of our family life, both joys and heartaches we have traveled, and hopefully share those with more of you. I find strength in sharing our journeys with one another. And hopefully I will be able to do that with my readers.
So until the next time, I thank you for reading, sharing our journey, laughing with us, praying for us, and sticking with us. This has been the journey of a lifetime, and I can't wait to see where it takes us next.
Until then,
MKB ~ Momma Knows Best 💚🥜🐢✌
🥜 539 days from start to finish
🥜 33 updose appointments at his allergists' office over 18 months
🥜 539 daily doses of gradually increasing peanuts - he did not.miss.a.single.day
🥜 1,078 hours in rest period after his daily dose (2 hours per day.)
And guess what. Brandon can now FREE EAT PEANUTS!!!
🙌😭🙌😭🙌😭
There were so many days that we thought THIS day would never come. November 12, 2019. A day that will forever be a cause for celebration for us.
The daily grind.
The slow progress.
The meticulous tracking of doses, timing, measuring, the crushing of peanuts, mixing doses, and more.
The transporting of solution, dosing foods, dosing materials.
The sacrifices of his time, him having to say 'no' to friends and events he would have rather said 'yes' to, because he was in his dose window.
The sacrifices of my time - managing daily dosing times to fit them in between his already busy schedule, arranging them so subsequent doses would be within the allowed window, taking him to all 33 updose appointments, and bringing little brother to over half 😉.
But what did we gain in return?
Peace of mind. ✌
More security in public settings, on airplanes, at birthday parties, in the lunch room.
Brandon's increase in confidence 💙, his unwavering commitment to the process, and facing a fear of his every.single.day. Have you ever done something that scares you every day for 18 months? Yeah, that's what this kid just did. And in facing it, he conquered it. 💪
I can't think of many adults who have done something consistently for the betterment of their lives for 539 days in a row without missing a single day. And here he is - a teenage boy who did just that. 😎
The physical benefits of OIT are obvious. And oh so sweet. 😍
But the intangibles of this journey . . . .even sweeter.
I honestly think it will take awhile to fully process all that this OIT journey has meant to our family and the gamut of emotions we have all experienced. A dear, dear friend of mine texted me the day of graduation . . . she always has the perfect words to say at the perfect time, without fail, and the text she sent me prior to Brandon's appointment was yet again spot on. In reading her eloquent and surely divindely-inspired words 😇, my tears finally started to flow. I have been rather stoic through this whole journey, most particularly in front of Brandon. Quite understandably so, he has been on an emotional roller coaster himself. Highs, lows, and everything in between as this has been hardest on him. So as the primary parent helping him through the day to day situations and dosing, I had to be the calm one. Me. Having to be calm and steady. Ha ha! So her words of congratulations - regardless of the outcome of the appointment that day - allowed me to pause and honor, acknowledge, and celebrate just how far we'd come.
So often, when you're in the middle of a journey, you can't truly appreciate it. The whole 'can't see the forest for the trees' concept. In a recent Bible study I went through with dear friends, the leader encouraged us to climb up the ladder with God and look at things from his view - out of the fray, above the daily mess. Little moments like those allow me to breathe in deep the successes we've had, and look forward with hopeful expectation to what's next for my warrior of a child.
For a bit of the nitty gritty of that final dosing day . . . .
We arrived around 3:15, purposely planned at that time so we could spread the doses out over a longer period of time. He took his first dose of 16 peanuts - that was a typical-interval updose for him (from his then-current dose of 12, up to 16.) He continued with the crushed up honey roasted peanuts in cinnamon applesauce dosing method. We waited 30 minutes, and when all was well, he took 4 more in applesauce. All went well, 4 more 30 minutes later. (16 + 4 + 4 = 24) Here's a pic of my 'assembly station' in the room. 😊
It wasn't planned this way, but Disney+ (the streaming service from Disney) came out on the same day as graduation, a service that Brandon was highly anticipating. Lucky for him, we got him logged in that morning on his phone, and he spent much of his 'waiting time' in between doses perusing the myriad of Star Wars shows he now has immediate access to. 😬
Michael (my husband) even left work early to support Brandon on graduation day! That's been his big role in this whole journey - swooping in on big appointment days, keeping me steady when I struggled to stay so, and being the voice of reason for Brandon when fears seemed bigger than possible to handle. He's the rock for our family . . . always has been, always will be. 💙
Here are a few action shots of Brandon eating some of those final doses.
Aaaaaaaaaaand . . . . drum roll please . . . . . . 🥁🥁🥁
The FINAL dose - GONE!!! Look at that smile!!! I mean, can anything top that?!?!?
After that final dose was in, and about 20 minutes into his final waiting period in the office, he started getting a bit giddy, and with good reason! That final timer went off, and the staff came in with his completion certificate, and the celebrating began!!
YESSSS!!!!!!! He made it!!!
Here is a picture of him and his ever-faithful doctor, Dr. Anna George. She is a medical hero in our family and always will be. It takes a special kind of doctor to take on OIT, and she fit the bill to a 'T.' She is located in The Woodlands, TX (about 1 hour north of Houston), and we will forever be thankful to her for the way she led our entire family through this journey. She is truly a diamond in the rough.
(And yes, he is wearing a Reese's peanut butter cup shirt! More on that here, in this blog entry.)
Brandon is now in what is called the 'maintenance' phase for OIT. He does still have to eat peanuts every day, for the foreseeable future . . . . my guess would be at least 3 years. He gets to down dose to 8 peanuts, which will be a walk in the park for him at this point. 😀
I am sure there will be more processing on this whole journey - for all of us - at some point in the future. I have used this blog to chronicle our journey over the past 18 months. It has been therapeutic for me, cathartic, and memorable. More than anything, I wanted to capture this whole experience for Brandon to look back on one day. I hope that someone has read our blog along the way and that it has convinced them, too, to undertake this life-changing challenge.
But now, even though our OIT journey has currently reached this milestone, I know this blog won't stop. I intend to use it for more chronicling of our food allergy journey, as we do have several more possible steps ahead of us. More on that in another entry. And in my heart, I foresee it as a way to explore other parts of our family life, both joys and heartaches we have traveled, and hopefully share those with more of you. I find strength in sharing our journeys with one another. And hopefully I will be able to do that with my readers.
So until the next time, I thank you for reading, sharing our journey, laughing with us, praying for us, and sticking with us. This has been the journey of a lifetime, and I can't wait to see where it takes us next.
Until then,
MKB ~ Momma Knows Best 💚🥜🐢✌
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