What happens when your food-allergic teenager is several hours away from home, and his team’s bus pulls up to an unfamiliar restaurant?
For Megan Lavin’s son, it all went smoothly. But there’s an important reason for that. And it wasn’t something that just happened automatically.
In this episode of Allergic Living’s Megan’s Minute video series, the seasoned allergy mom shares the years and years of work that went into her son managing this challenging moment.
Megan gets how nerve-racking it can be dine out with a child with multiple food allergies. But she explains that, with her son, she took baby steps first, then both he and his parents grew more confident about navigating dining out.
“We researched menus. Then we asked questions. We talked to managers,” Megan says. “And when we found restaurants that worked for us, we went there with him.”
“Because eventually, I wanted him to know how to do this without me,” she tells viewers. And that’s precisely what happened on this away game soccer trip.
Avoiding the Team’s Restaurant
When the bus pulled over for the team to eat dinner, Megan’s son realized he did not feel comfortable trying this unfamiliar restaurant.
Instead, he looked across the strip mall, and saw a Costa Vida Mexican food restaurant. That’s a chain he and his family have eaten at often. He knew the chain to be reliable about handling his wheat, peanut and tree nut allergies. So off he went – to order himself some safe and familiar food.
As Megan notes, this took guts and confidence. “It’s not always easy to be the kid who’s eating something different from everyone else.”
But what’s important to know: her son wasn’t brand new to ordering food. When he was younger, he’d watch how Megan researched menus, and asked staff allergy questions before choosing to order food. As he got older, she stood back as he asked the allergy questions, and then placed orders.
The years of practice dining out under mom’s allergy guidance are now paying dividends in the teen years. Megan knows it was a huge moment to trust his gut and “walk away from something that doesn’t feel safe.”
We hope this video and this successful experience will help others navigating dining with allergic children.
Join Allergic Living monthly for a new installment of Megan’s Minute with Megan Lavin, the creator of the Allergy Awesomeness blog. Follow her on Instagram and Facebook.
More Megan’s Minute Videos:
Allergy Mom’s Boot Camp to Prep Allergic Son for Dining Out
Food Allergy Mom’s Video Tips for Safe Trick-or-Treating
How to Manage Field Trips with Food Allergies
My Food Allergy Tween Masters School Lunch
Food Allergies Didn’t Put Brakes on Bike Trail Trip
By High School, My Son’s 504 Plan Was Far Easier
My Allergy Family’s Trip to Universal: the Good and Bad
