Feel So Guilty!

[taweavmo3]

I feel so awful for my baby girl right now.......hubby took her with him to a boy scout meeting last Thurs. night, and he didn't know they had cookies upstairs. He caught her with one in her hand, but apparently she had already eaten one.

She started throwing up about two hours later, but she seemed fine the next day. I thought we were over the worst of it, but now she's having D, running a 102.5 fever, and holding her head saying it hurts. It's so hard watching my little 3 year old get sicker than I have ever been, knowing we could have prevented it.

I'm a little ticked off at dh, since he should have been watching her more closely. I asked if he washed her hands after he took the cookie away from her, and all he said was "no, she ran off". UGH! I thought after her last reaction (lasted two weeks, it was terrible) that he understood the seriousness of this. I guess since it's been 3 months since an accident, he's already forgotten how sick she gets and he's been more lax. I have told him a million times, but if I harp on him too much he gets defensive. I didn't dare say anything to him this time, I know he feels bad enough, without me adding to it.

Anyway, I just needed to vent a bit, since I can't really vent to anyone else! We are doing our best to educate Emmie about not eating what other kids are, but she doesn't quite comprehend it yet. She does great at home, but when she is out with other kids, she forgets. I was so happy, b/c we had a good few months without an accident....then wham, she eats a whole cookie and is now sick as a dog. Sometimes celiac just sucks .

On a brighter note though, I made gluten-free Pantry chocolate truffle brownies yesterday and my whole family ate them! It is our first gluten-free treat that tastes like the original, they are awesome. I cut them in small squares so they'll last longer!

Thanks for letting me vent.......I'll go take care of my doodle bug now.

[skoki-mom]

Sorry your little one is feeling sick I think this is probably a situation when your DH sees now how ill she does get and he will probably watch her more closely in the future. Someimes these lessons are hard learned. Even a lot of adults here have posted how the temptation just got the best of them and they paid dearly for it later! Seems to be human nature in a way. Sounds like you are doing a great job keeping her gluten-free, and as more of the people in your community/social network learn about her condition, they will hopefully be a little more aware.

[Jnkmnky]

Use this time to demonize gluten. Help her to understand the gluten did this to her body. Remind her to ask permission before eating any food she comes across no matter how delicious it looks. Reinforce the fact that cookies withOUT gluten would never hurt her stomach, head, etc like this. She'll remember this incident for years if you use this experience to your advantage. The next time you see her struggling with temptation, pretend she's so smart that she's already made the decision NOT to eat the gluten containing food.... *even if you happen to know she's NOT making the smart choice-- pretend she was -- * She'll eat up the praise and go for more at the next gluten encounter. It's all about crafty manipulation at this age.

[e&j0304]

I'm so sorry that little Emmie got so sick. That's so sad and frustrating for you since you'd gone so long with her doing well. I hope she bounces back sooner this time than she did last time.

I know what you mean when you say you were a little frustrated with your husband. I think that sometimes I feel as though no one can watch over Ella as well as I can and it's been really hard for me to let her go with others knowing that she could accidentally get something she shouldn't have. It's hard, but I guess it's just part of life. I'm sure your husband feels awful and will be much more careful in the future although accidents will probably still happen...

Take care of Emmie and hope she feels better soon!

[Merika]

I suppose a lot depends on the child's personality, but by age 2 1/2 my ds was asking anyone and everyone if something was gluten free and soy free. He's now 3 1/2 and still does.

I gotta agree with Jnkmky - use this as a reminder of what gluten does, so that (hopefully) she will always ask you if something is gluten-free before she eats it (something that's not her normal food at home, that is). I don't mean as a punishment. But talk about it ie "remember how your tummy hurt so bad? That was from eating gluten. There was gluten in that cookie. Gluten makes your tummy hurt. Next time you find a food, come ask me if it's gluten free. That way your tummy won't hurt"

Merika

[Smunkeemom]

once I let Annika have a drink of chocolate milk from a restraunt before I checked it. turns out it had malt in it, and she broke out and had diareha for like 3 weeks I felt sooo bad.

we have all been there. I am so sorry that it happened to you, it is stressful, and emotionally painful to see your kid sick and know you (or another adult) could have prevented it.

look at the bright side, she will recover and now you have a teaching moment for her and your husband.

(still isn't great though )

[taweavmo3]

Thanks everyone! I feel better now Emmie is on the mend, but the gluten is still rearing it's ugly head! It shocks me how long it takes for a reaction to run it's course. She isn't running a fever anymore, she's just incredibly tired and CRANKY. She has been screaming on and off over every little thing these past few days. I swear, I half expect little horns to sprout out of her head! I had so many people staring at me in Wal-Mart this morning, a little old lady even came up and asked me what was wrong with Emmie. When the lady tried to talk to her, Emmie screamed louder. I wanted to crawl in a hole!

God bless my mother, she is coming over tomorrow so I can get a break. Just one more week, and I should have my sweet natured little girl back. Gluten is evil!