The weird thing about trauma exposure is that it can come back in unexpected, powerful ways. Even years after the trauma has occurred, and you have been mostly symptom-free, something can trigger a trauma response and you are nearly powerless to its might. Trauma affects the way our brains develop, how we behave, and how…
FIVE YEARS!!! It has been exactly five years since my last anaphylactic allergic reaction. This is HUGE for someone who is deathly allergic to egg, seafood, nuts, moldy cheeses, and possibly Vitamin E. Someone who has had around 42 hospitalizations due to anaphylaxis for the first 23 years of life, and seems to have new…
I saw her photos on Instagram and was immediately drawn to them. We had a lot in common, it seemed. We both owned chocolate labradoodles, had anaphylactic allergies, and lived in the Carolinas. The more I got to “know” Brynn Duncan, however, I realized that while we did have things in common, our lives were…
Yesterday I read a tragic article about a 13-year old girl, Natalie, who died from anaphylactic shock due to accidentally ingesting peanut butter. After reading the first few sentences of the article, I grew angry with several questions racing through my mind. Why the hell didn’t they have an EpiPen on hand? Why did she…
As the wheels of our plane touched down in North Carolina at the end of our honeymoon, I gave myself a mental high-five and said “you did it!!!!” I didn’t learn to surf. I didn’t learn to hula dance. I didn’t even go snorkeling in the tropical freezing cold Hawaiian waters. No, I was proud…
Amanda over at Celiac and Allergy Adventures asked me to write a guest post for her blog, and I was honored and excited to take on the task! She asked me to write about my experience with anaphylaxis and how it can take a mental and emotional toll on you. It was therapeutic to write about my…
The Other Courtney 