My boyfriend's 16 year old daughter was just diagnosed with a latex
allergy. Actually, I figured it out last night(I am a nurse)and
immediately made her dad remove everything in the house with latex in
it and made him promise to get her a medic alert tag today. Being a
nurse I have access to great amounts of information and I'd like to
offer an help to you and anyone else I can. So this is partly why I
have signed up for this group. The other reason is to glean more
information from those of you who have actually lived with the
allergies for some time. (Nurses need to learn too!).

I empathize with your dilemma and wish you the best of luck. Ensure
that you do have emergency kits for your child and talk to the
schools, churchs, and care centers your child goes to and be sure
they understand the need to clear their facilities of latex products.

Good Luck! Donna



--- In LANTERN@yahoogroups.com, "in2eeyore" <in2eeyore@y...> wrote:
> My daughter has a latex allergy. When it was first diagnosed the
> reaction was in a form of a rash and prolonged exposure to the skin
> would cause blister that looked as if someone had put a cigerette
out
> on her skin. As she has grown her allergy reaction has become
worth
> to the point that it now effects her breathing.
> She earned a scholarship to go to a prepartory boarding high
school.
> The school is new... and the contruction of the recreation center
is
> mostly latex (flooring, mats, balls, ectra). Her physician has
sent
> a letter to the school stating she can no longer go into that
> building. The physician also requested that she be kept away from
as
> much latex exposure as possible.
> As a parent I feel frustrated and sometimes even guilty because
there
> are many items that I didn't realize that contained latex that I
> myself exposed her to.
> It is great to know that there is group I can problem solve with.
> Any suggestions are greatly appreciated. I want my child to be
safe
> but not have to live in a bubble.
> Jackie Miller
> Wisconsin