How to avoid the corn since its in everything!

If you have this allergy, I want to give you my condolences. No really, I laugh because its not funny. Seriously though, I've learned a lot of good lessons from it but it is very hard to avoid. This blog is not intended to be medical advice. I wanted to try and help others who are struggling with this and give you some ideas about how to avoid the corn. I am not well thought out but if you'll bare with me you may find some information that will help. I have a lot resources now and strategies that hopefully will benefit you. Again I think its important that you know there is no simple solution and just because it works for me does not mean it will work for you or is a good idea. Please don't leave just yet, LOL! Just double check what I say with any good reputable resources you can find before deciding this is the way you should go. I just don't want to hurt anyone that is my main worry with saying anything. What I've learned I think will give some hope somewhere.

I am allergic to corn, wheat, latex which is new for me, penicillin, any medication in a gel cap, or that is made from corn, dust, mold, shellfish, most animals, and everything seasonal allergies can entail. I also have asthma but its not like most. It only bothers me once or twice a year or if I have to run.

Everyone of my allergies expect for wheat, corn and shellfish are minor. The others suck but not on the level of corn, wheat or shellfish. Shellfish is relatively easy to avoid. One word of caution though I would caution you to check vitamins for shellfish content. I know, I know it should be on the label. But its not and I never knew. Chondrontin I believe is another way of saying shellfish I am sure there are others. Again verify what I've said with a source you trust. Use two if you must.

If I remember somewhere in here I am also going to include content on what to ask a manufacture and how to make the best choice off of the information you are given.

Okay here's the ugly truth for me. I hear people say they can avoid corn well I am so allergic to it that I can't eat any vegetable, fruit or meat without a reaction. That does include grass fed meat due to the grass. Yeah I thought I was being smart going for that but my grass allergy got me. Go figure. The positive side to grass fed meat however, is that it creates less of a reaction. Notice though that I didn't mention milk, bread or sugar. Or my beloved chocolate.

Incase you don't know milk can have both corn and wheat and not be declared. How you say? There are a few reason why and again I'd encourage you to check sources on what I say. So here it goes cows eat grass, feed (which could contain corn) and I am sure they get something for healthiness too. Well that means you can get it naturally just from what they eat. You can also get it from the vitamins that are added to milk, the carton or bottle, sugars and any other added ingredient in your milk. Yeah milk, I do drink it because it messes with my mind that its not in my allowable food items but I suffer. I have to watch the amount.

I wish this problem just extended to food. I'd be so happy, but no. This affects perfume, shower products, toothpaste, cleaners, chemicals and toiletries. Basically anything to do with putting something on your body, breathing something in or consuming now affects me. Yeah me! I am laughing sort of which beats crying about it. It does get better though. I will speak about the good lessons I've learned that you could have never got me to understand otherwise. There are positives.

Sometimes the reactions I have are a stomach ache, sometimes body rashes, heat all over and the ever fun one anaphalaxus sorry if this word is spelled incorrectly. This is not a strong suit for me. I can tell you that the amount of stress you have before and during an episode does make a significant difference. You have to not freak out! How do you do this when your throat is closing and don't love the epi- pin idea. I'd say practice de catastrophizing. NLP and meditation. Allow yourself permission to not react to the fear. Then do what is needed to fix the problem and hopefully you will know what that is. If your like me your doctor has already told you what to do in this situation. If not seek medical advice right away. Don't wait 4 hours. Yes you may go to the ER and yes they will watch you but better safe sometimes then sorry. Make sure your doc is on board with that first or that could add up. Again use good judgement on if you should go.

I am able to survive all this basically due to the medication they give me. It makes things manageable since I can't live in a bubble. Or won't rather is the correct way to say this. I am not going to say what it is but any good allergist knows what it is and its not prednizone and Benadryl contains corn. They use it to treat other things with this medication when people need help with from time to time. All walks of life when the road gets tough. Basically the reason this medication is used is that it has the least amount of side affects and sucks out the histamines. Tired you say oh yes, this medication makes me so tired crazy tired is more like it. But when your fighting to stay here it is one of those things that I must do then I must. I would love a non medicated way but I haven't focused my smarts well enough in that direction to understand what that maybe yet. The key word here is yet! Fortunately this is one of the medications and there are only a few that don't have to be compounded for me so that's a plus.

What is compounding you may say? That means make it from scratch. They are all over the country and if not in your area you've got to look on the Internet. I have three I can go to which is like a blessing in Pittsburgh PA. They can make these medications we need without the wheat and corn and its great! They can't just incase you need to know this make birth control. Apparently there are tough legal aspects to this since its a built product. I don't know if that is true for all of them but it seemed concerning to them that I was asking. I'd recommend if you are like me maybe use an IUD or regular birth control if your allergy medication can beat it. Take a look for an IUD that is not made from or with corn products because guess what, it can. Surprise! Also since we are talking about the sex stuff, yep, you will want to check about the stuff used to make condoms and the lubricant. I know this sounds bad but expeller pressed grape seed oil or organic canola oil may be a good lubricant too. You'll have to see what condoms will work with this if that's your plan but it makes a nice lubricant. I didn't find olive oil to be as good.

Gosh I have so much to say and I realize my thoughts are all over but expeller pressed gave me a new direction. Did you know that you can get expeller pressed oils and lotions. Yep mountainroseherbs.com. I think that's the website. I have a jar of Mango butter that is better then any lotion I've ever used. It doesn't hurt my eczema either. I only have to apply it once. I was so surprised. You also can get a lot of the ingredients needed incase you want to try your hand at building shampoos, conditioners or perfumes from them. I use their expeller pressed mint for mouth wash. They have great teas too and honestly if you are creative and want to make something that way they'd be your best bet.

Shampoo, I've tried the kinds that say corn free and wheat free and burned like crazy in the shower. FYI, you may need a chlorine removing shower head and clear and free shampoo, their basic type and soap. They also make a hairspray. They are special order products. They don't smell good, don't lather like you'd love but will save your life. Also use a razor without that great strip on it or your legs will look like road kill. Yeah did that too oh was that fun!

Deodorants, I know of no good options that I've found yet except Almay Hypoallergenic Solid Fragrance Free deodorant stick. I tried making shampoo with soapwart and failed so I had to look for alternatives for deodorants and tooth paste. The Almay product is corn free but may contain wheat. Call them. You'll like this apparently deodorant is more closely guarded then our food supply and for some manufactures when checking for corn you'll have to get a fax from your allergist have it sent to the manufacture and then they will decide if they can investigate if wheat and corn are in the product. I was like are you serious? She was oh she was. Almay is not bad but again if Wheat is your strong allergic point I'd recommend not using my advice.

The tooth paste I use is Crest with the pink band on it their original. Still again has corn but its not as bad for me. Or if you can stand it Tom of Mains Silly Strawberry toothpaste which tastes no so great but if that's all you can tolerate that's just what its got to be. Kids would love it, but not so much a grown up.

Makeup- I don't put on foundation, but do mascara and eye shadow and lip gloss. Read your labels but I've not had a problem with this.

I've heard people say TP is a problem. Sometimes yes and sometimes not. I'd encourage you to find one that works and carry it around. You should have seen how stupid I looked with free and clear soap in my soap dispensers every time I had to go to the bathroom and that I had to have hand towels with me everywhere I'd go with me. This was all pre medication. Thank you Jesus that I don't have to do that now. But oh that was not fun.

****I left out a very important part ,words to look for. Get this oh yeah your going to love this but if you get the book the Corn-Free Cookbook & Survival Guide by Laurel Lee Steel and Merelee Knott your going to see in the back of the book the words we can look for I think there over 190 ingredients, yeah that's right that mean corn! Good luck! We are doomed. I don't want to know the many ways wheat is listed. Its funny, it really is, its sick! You have to laugh just cause you do!

*Oh the fun places you don't go or do only if you got something to protect you.*

Swimming they either use calcium chloride or Citric acid in those pool chemicals yep swimming's out! I forget which one. Beautiful lovely ocean is in! Yeah!
Movies I can go, but have to bring my own water. I will challenge them if they ask me why I brought water in. LOL! The movies aren't that bad for me as long as its not crowded. The popcorn smell is strong. My medication usually can take care of it mostly unless someone is breathing down my neck. Darn neck breathers! :)

Stores filled with perfume. I will say it now, have someone get you a sample and stand outside. Or if you are brave and the store stinks because of corn. Get yourself a chemical air mask. March in with pride and pretend you are from another country, get what you want,pay of course :), then get out! That's what I do at work too. You should see the looks I get! Still laughing. You may even want to order online there are great places to go.

Speaking of the Internet. OMGeesh! Where do you go, how will you know? You won't know sure with most products. Your just going to have to really do research and talk to the service reps to see if what they are saying. Try it and see if they lie. Its the only way I've found.

Okay my brain is cooked. I've been typing for two hours and emotions come to mind. How do you deal with this. NLP I know not everyone loves this but you can remove some of the big stresses with this by trying some of the techniques. You can do EMDR which is really simple. It discharges the emotion. Obviously this all needs to be done in proper ways. There are a lot of good mental health people out there now that do nothing but this. Meditation which is great too! I lean on the Lord! This situation is like a bull horn calling me to his side if I ever saw one. I mean when do you have to be smarter then the doctors in figuring this out. Nobody seems to have this nailed down yet somehow your expected to survive from day to day. May be a curse but maybe its needed to get you to lean on him. I've done all kinds the simplest thing is to relax. Just try focusing your breathing and don't wig if your mind slips away. I used to think you had to control that. No, just try to see if you can keep at it for a bit, don't count the time. I think that frustrates people. Don't be a perfectionist about it either. Just set time aside and play with it.

Crying yes done it, been there keep going there. I've only been at this madness since April of 09. Nobody gets this. LOL Nobody! People love you and people try but its not about them being in it with you its about leaning on them, learning that this isn't the end of the world and you have other things to focus on. Nothing will teach you that then a friend of yours who can't get to excited like you about this issue you seem to be having! LOL The key to not losing your mind with it is to focus on something else. For me that's Love and weight loss! For you well you'll have to find it. I was not a finder of these things. Hated the idea of that too. I had to make myself since all the fun things are gone like, drinking, smoking and eating. Okay they are not fun but they are outlets and a lot of people think and use them. I was one of them. Now not so much and I am happier for it but it did not come without tears. Okay I've talked way too much tonight. Will reassess what I've written at another time and which words are missing, thoughts and all my spelling errors. Sorry that this was poorly written. :)

Other things I want to discuss in the future. Where to get your supplies, emotions we can all use the help we can get, how come we don't have a wide body support group. I feel jaded about this and why aren't their more resources for us. Manufactures what they say and what does this mean. So next time I will try to address this. See you all soon!