“Matt, do you have your EpiPen?†Those six words have echoed throughout my house each morning ever since I could understand them.
“Matt, do you have your EpiPen?†“Matt, do you have your EpiPen?†“Matt, do you have your EpiPen?†How many times have I heard that? Thousands. Growing up with a food allergy was a huge burden requiring constant vigilance. Vigilance about carrying my EpiPen, where to sit at the school lunch table, who would chaperone the field trip, whose birthday party would my mom or dad have to hang out at, whose house was safe for me to hang out at, vigilance about what foods I eat.
Since enrolling and subsequently graduating from a Stanford food allergy study led by Dr. Kari Nadeau, my anxiety surrounding my allergy has greatly decreased, but my vigilance remains steadfast. The Stanford study has given me safety from cross contamination and a life without fear.
Yet, just as Batman has his utility belt, I have my EpiPen. The EpiPen may as well be tattooed on to my skin, as it still travels with me everywhere I go. In my opinion, this should be the same for every severely allergic person. My good friend (who has multiple food allergies) doesn’t carry an EpiPen when he is with me. His rationale behind it is, “I’m with you, so I don’t need one.†I recently met someone who does not carry an EpiPen although she has a diagnosed anaphylactic allergy to tree nuts and peanuts. Her rationale? “I’ve never had a reaction and I am really careful about what I eat.â€
I cannot understand when I meet people with food allergies and they do not carry an EpiPen. Sometimes they say, †I just get hives around my mouth.†Or “I just get a little itchy on my tongue.†Or “I have an EpiPen, it’s in my car.†CAN YOU BE SERIOUS?
Before entering the allergy study, unfortunately for me I had to use my trusted EpiPen several times. It was very tense, scary and thankfully quick. After a person gets over the paralyzing fear of the needle (which is actually hidden inside the pen), the EpiPen is actually easy to use (once you get the hang of it). The EpiPen works so fast. It actually stops the allergic reaction in its tracks. It is the only life saving medication food allergic people can use to help prevent life threatening reactions.
So yes, under the advice of my doctor, I still carry an EpiPen. Even though I successfully eat a lot (4,000 milligrams each) of all of my allergens daily, (which are wheat, rye, barley and oats), my EpiPen is always by my side — at camp, tennis, school or a party. I know the facts of how quickly a reaction can escalate, and I may still have a reaction. I am after all, a living science experiment.
The words, “Matt, do you have your EpiPen?†are still essential to my life.
Follow HuffPost Teen on Twitter | Instagram | Tumblr | Pheed |
Also on HuffPost:
-
“Curiosity is such a powerful force. Without it, we wouldn’t be who we are today.†— Clara Ma
At only 15 years old, Clara Ma has earned her place in NASA history as the teen who named the “Curiosity†Mars rover.
When she was in the 6th grade, Clara wrote an essay about why the rover should be called “Curiosityâ€:
“Curiosity is an everlasting flame that burns in everyone’s mind. It makes me get out of bed in the morning and wonder what surprises life will throw at me that day. Curiosity is such a powerful force. Without it, we wouldn’t be who we are today. Curiosity is the passion that drives us through our everyday lives. We have become explorers and scientists with our need to ask questions and to wonder.â€
Her entry won. In addition to choosing it’s name, Clara got to see the rover being built, and signed the body before it began its travels.
-
“I don’t want to follow what other people expect me to be doing. I want to follow me.†— Emma
Emma is not your average ballerina. Her shoulders are a little wide, and she is a little too tall. However, that does not stop her from enjoying the sport she loves. Check out more inspiring girls like Emma on Clean Clear’s “See The Real Me†Youtube page.
-
“Life is so fragile, with ups and downs just like a bird in flight. We need to protect that bird in all of us.†— Olivia Bouler
Olivia Bouler loves birds. In the aftermath of the Gulf tragedy, the ornithology-loving teenager raised 100,00 dollars for the Audobon Society by selling photos of her beloved creatures. Olivia clearly loves the animals not just for what they are, but for what they can teach us about ourselves.
-
“If we want to be game-changers, we need to be ok with the possibility of failure.†— Niha Jain
Everyone fails at one point or another in their lives. However, it can be a painful, shameful experience, one that many people try to forget or move away from.
However, Harvard student Niha Jain and her friend Tara Suri experienced a major failure in their late teen years, and used that experience to make themselves better and stronger in the long run. In 2010, Niha and Tara attempted to create a startup focused on teaching women in India to support themselves financially. However, the girls failed miserably.
But that failure only fueled their fire to work harder, and become more dedicated to their passion for underserved women. Sometimes the hardest thing is to admit when you are not perfect, but teens like Niha and Tara show us that failure is not only okay, but encouraged.
-
“Whatever happened yesterday is yesterday. Today, this moment, right now, I can do something different.†— Liz Murray
Liz Murray’s upbringing was tumultuous, to say the least. She found herself homeless at age 15, with HIV-positive parents that were addicted to drugs.
Liz’s story might not be your run-of-the-mill tale of adolescence, but she did have love, support and the drive to make a better life for herself. She watched her drug-addicted parents struggle to be better people for her and her sister, and Liz promised herself that she would honor their drive by choosing a different path for her life.
Liz achieved her dreams when she was accepted to Harvard University, and wrote a compelling memoir about her story. Read more about Liz’s compelling life here.
-
“Don’t be afraid to show who you are. Don’t let them tell you that you can’t, when you know that you CAN. And you want to.†– Jasmine
Jasmine wakes up at 5am every morning. After her academic classes, she works with machines and takes shop classes. She loves what she does, and has overcome criticism from people who believed women do not belong in a male-centered industry. Check out more inspiring girls like Jasmine on Clean Clear’s “See The Real Me†Youtube page.
-
“Nobody’s photoshopped in real life.†— Julia Bluhm
While many 14 year old girls look at the glossy pages of magazines and wish they look more like the models, Julia Bluhm wished the models looked more like her. The young activist led a protest against Seventeen magazine for their use of photoshop. Julia’s efforts paid off — Seventeen announced the launch of the Body Peace Treaty in response to the teen.
-
“Us teenagers are at the perfect crossroads of childish naivete and adult realism — we still believe that problems can be solved, and now we also have the tools and knowledge to solve them.†— Adora Svitak
Although Adora has been described as a “child prodigy,†her insecurities and goals are the same as any other teen’s. In her TED talk, pictured, Adora explains why age has nothing to do with the ability to succeed.
-
“‘Pretty’ is just another word. There are so many adjectives to describe ourselves with that we shouldn’t be so focused on just one.†— Alexis Jane Torre
As many of us know, high school can be a difficult time when it comes to self-confidence. For someone like Alexis Jane Torre, who suffers from a skin condition called vitiligo, it has the potential to be downright torturous. However, Alexis did not let her disease get the better of her. As an avid blogger for the Huffington Post, the now-college student talks about her struggles with beauty, and how she has learned to embrace who she is.