Embrace the Weird

Have any medical condition for long enough and you are eventually going to have to advocate for yourself.

I know, I know, talking to people is scary! Trust me, if I could be perfect, and never bother or inconvenience people in any way, I would.

But living like that doesn’t help anyone, especially not you. At a basic level, sticking up for yourself can keep you safe (See: Talking to restaurants about your food allergies), but things really take off when you embrace moments of self advocacy as opportunities to spread awareness for food allergies and OIT.

In my sophomore year of college, I became a student minister at my campus church, which, among other things, meant I would go on weekend long retreats at the beginning of each semester. It took courage to ask the people in charge for access to refrigeration, but I did, and was able to lug my milk and egg whites up to the retreat center and keep them in the fridge near my room.

At first, I tried to dose super early in the morning so no one would ask why I was randomly drinking a giant glass of milk. Eventually, though, I worked up the courage to bring my dose into the dining hall and drink it with breakfast. People did indeed ask why I was randomly drinking a giant glass of milk, so I explained my situation.

Wonder of wonders, they found OIT really cool!

The bottom line: yes, OIT can make you “different”, but that’s not a bad thing! It might even be a really great thing.