So last night I went to the Opera, or at least attempted to. The Opera started at 8pm, at 6pm I went to a pre-Opera dinner at a very popular well established restaurant and club. It is much more difficult to control what you ingest at events like these since normally one standard meal is served to the masses and there is little variation available. Since I have so much experience in dealing with situations such as this (My career field has made it necessary for me to attend many), I was not worried in the slightest. As soon as I got there I slipped back to the kitchen, explained my severe food allergies to the waiter and asked if there was anything he could make for me that might be ok.

No problem. He could make a nice grilled veggie plate. Good compromise. I go out, sit down and socialize. My meal arrives; I take a bite- STOP- my body says. I asked my date, who understands my issues to taste some and see if I was crazy or if there was some soy oil on them (soy is my biggest TRUE allergy, not just intolerance). He didn’t taste anything. Now angry at myself for being paranoid I eat some again- STOP- my body says. All the sudden my previous voracious appetite disappears, I’m just not very hungry I guess (No actually, my body just wasn’t all that hungry for something that was harming it).

The dinner ends we get up to leave and head over to the performance. As my date is standing in line to get our coats I noticed how incredibly tired I felt, hmmmmmmmmm, how strange, hope I can make it through the performance. My throat was very sore, felt like it was burning and my chest was tightening up, hmmmmmmmmmm, hope I am not getting a cold. Then my sure fire sign, my hands started itching, I looked down at my now balloon shaped digits and knew. Let me rephrase that, my mind accepted, what my body knew all along.

The evening needed to end. We exited the restaurant and turned for the car. By the time we made it home my hands were so swollen I couldn’t bend my fingers, my throat was so tight I couldn’t swallow water, my mind was fuzzy and all I wanted to do is go to sleep.

I got in downed two deflect and a quercetine and even took a Claritin redi-tab (that is right, me that doesn’t take medication and has not for years, I knew it was an emergency situation, better to take it myself then have them stuff more junk down me at the emergency room.

Moral of this story: Listen to your body, it knows what it is doing, it is our minds that can be foolish.