05/04/2026
I hear a lot of opinions about food allergy treatment.
“You HAVE to consider this—it changed our lives”
“What does cost matter if your child could live a normal life?”
“If not this treatment then you should at least try that one—totally worth it.”
“That treatment caused so many terrible side effects for my child. Don’t do it.”
And I get it—these stories are powerful, and people are passionate about sharing them. But to map someone else’s cost-benefit analysis onto our family, to claim what’s “worth it” for anyone else…just doesn’t work.
After thinking through all this, I landed on a treatment that could make sense for my daughter. But when I actually talked to her about it, her answer was clear: the cost felt too high—for her. Right now.
Not out of fear. My 8yo just didn’t feel like the effort would be worth what it could add to her life. And that told me what I needed to know. So for now, for this child with high quality of life, a higher threshold of reactivity, we’re not pursuing it (and instead we’re considering something of lower cost and lower benefit).
I’m holding her “no” with open hands—knowing that how she calculated cost and benefit may change over time. And I’m asking her to keep the conversation open.
💬 Share with us how you decided whether to pursue or not to pursue treatment 💟
