Small Success

[allergyphobia]

Hi guys!

Just thought i'd drop by and write a positive post for a change!!

As many of you know I suffer from quite an extreme phobia of allergic reactions. I have been struggling quite badly since April, at one stage only eating bread and losing nearly two stone but gradually starting to build myself back up again.

I stick to rigid routines with my safe foods, but with the help of my boyfriend and CBT i am starting to try and break my bad habits. I also do silly things like take my own teabags into work because im worried something is different about the work ones!

So my CBT homework was to take a teabag from work home, to drink it there - as my first step. And i can say on saturday, i did it! The next step it to drink a tea at work using their teabag, then the third is to let somebody else at work make me a tea and drink it! I am planning to do the drinking at work stage tomorrow :--)

I also let my boyfriend cook me breakfast at his house on saturday, and had no control over the cooking (something i NEVER do) i also tried a new brand of bread, something i never do!

Then yesterday, i did my most successful thing of the week! i ATE a bowl of chips out in a pub! i haven't eaten out since april/may time so this was a massive step forward for me. i'm feeling really glad that i have started to push myself, as i really want to start running towards recovery and towards a much healthier, less anxious lifestyle!!

So moral of the story i think is that baby steps and lots of support are the way forward. My therapist says we could talk until we were blue in the face about the 'dangers' of an allergic reaction, and how i can tackle it, but that will still never help me overcome my phobia. only 'having a go' as he calls it will start to help me see that i will be okay. on sunday my boyfriend said even if you just hold a chip, youve given it a go - and i think because there was no pressure, (and maybe cause he hadn't fed me since brekkie ) i thought sod it! and just went for it.

just thought i'd share with you all. thanks everybody for your support and all the love, i absolute adore NMP

[JaneC]

That's absolutely brilliant AP, the title of the thread doesn't do you justice. Very well done! x

[allergyphobia]

awwh thanks so much Jane!!

I think it definitely helps me to share my progress and say what i plan to do next, to give me a bit of a kick to keep on going! hopefully it shows that you can come back from a very bad place, even if it's just a few little steps in the right direction.

[paula lynne]

Brilliant positive post allergy! So good to hear your making such fantastic progress and breaking through your problems, keep up the good work!

Little steps...may take longer to get there, but you'll reach your destination just the same....congrats, and enjoy your tea! x

[Vanilla Sky]

You're doing well hun , thats what i did in my CBT , gradual things . You will get to the stage where it wont be an obsession any more .
Keep up the good work , you will get through it

Paige xxxx

[allergyphobia]

Thank you so much Paula, all these words of encouragement really help! I really do feel like i'm starting to get somewhere, which in the darkest days I never thought I would be 'normal' ever again. Like yesterday in the pub I just felt like anybody else, in the pub on a sunday afternoon with some chips and a cheeky shandy x x x

Thank you so much mummy ... i think you're right the key is just gradual things, and also writing down what you have achieved to record it, to show you can do it again. i look forward to it not being an obsession anymore and just being able to forget about it... you know you're my inspiration x x x

[Joexgee]

that is excellent progress very well done to you x x

[michelle123]

Hi, I'm a newbie but just wanted to say a very well done you!!! Brilliant news, keep up that good work sweetie x

[allergyphobia]

thank you so much joe! and hi, don't think i've ever spoken to you before x

thank you michelle how lovely of you to say well done!! i'm feeling rather big headed after all these congratulations ... to NMP x

aliiiiiii thank you so much, how are you doing hun... i think i'll reward myself today with a nice choccy bar hehe! xxx

[Hazel B]

Well done, that's a great achievement!