Your child\'s PA influence decision about more kids?

My first born, Noah, has the peanut allergy. My daughter appears to have nothing yet, 21 months. We are considering having another and the possiblity of having another PA kid never crossed our minds. I don't think we will have another PA kid, postive thinking. You should not dwell on it, since the chances are most likely minimal. Does anyone on this board have two or more kids with PA allergy?
Good Luck, Kayla

MY 19 MONTH OLD SON IS PA, HOWEVER THAT DID NOT STOP ME FROM CONSIDERING HAVING ANOTHER CHILD. I AM ALMOST 5 MONTHS PREGNANT WITH MY SECOND CHILD. IM NOT WORRIED IF THIS CHILD IS GOING TO BE PA OR NOT. IF IT IS, WELL, WE HAVE TO DEAL WITH IT ANYWAYS FOR OUR SON SO WE WOULD JUST KEEP ON DOING WHAT WE ARE DOING.
IF YOU TRULY WANT ANOTHER CHILD DONT LET THIS STOP YOU.

Miriam, you are not overreacting by taking your DS's PA status into consideration with regards to having more children.
After my DD's diagnosis, I had a similar conversation with my DH. I was reluctant to continue trying to conceive our second child (we had just started trying a few months prior to Emily's diagnosis). My DH did not agree with my concerns (would another child be PA too, can I still give Emily the attention she needs, etc.), but he said that it was ultimately my decision because I am Emily's primary caregiver.
I have decided to continue trying for another child. There are many reasons that I came to this decision. Mainly, we would like Emily to have a sibling to grow up with. I will, of course, do everything possible to prevent another child from developing this allergy. But no matter how many children with PA that God chooses to give me, I know my DH and I will do everything we can to ensure PA doesn't stop them from having full and happy lives.
Again, I don't think you are overreating for taking PA into consideration in such a big decision. It has only been three months since my DD's diagnosis, but PA has already become a factor of just about all of my decisions.
Take care, Anne

Miriam--my husband and I knew my older son was severely PA before I ever became pregnant with my second son, but it was never an issue-we knew we wanted 2 kids. However I was much "smarter" my second time around, never ate peanuts while I was pregnant, never exposed my second baby to any of the high allergy risk foods such as milk and wheat until he was over 1 year old, and breastfed him till he was around 14 months. He is 7 now and has never been exposed to peanuts. Even with all these precautions, he is still PA but at a much lower level than my older son. I am hoping he is one of the lucky 20% that may outgrow his allergy.
So if you do want more children, I think the odds are on your side that if you keep your home and your diet peanut free, and keep your baby away from high risk foods, your next child may not be allergic. I am an "almost only child" (my only sibling is 15 years older than me) and I really missed having a brother or sister closer to my own age.

Hello People! remember there are some others besides me on this website that have PA and I for one am just furious whenever this subject pops up. How can you begin to think that a baby should not be born just because you may worry or be inconvenienced with his/her PA? How do you imagine telling your first child that you decided not to allow another child into the family because the little baby just may come into this world with PA? And how do our lives count? Am I too much a burden on my husband and family because they too have to stay away from peanuts in the house and near me? Get a grip lady. PA is something some of us have to live with and unfortunately so do our immediate families. It's not the big thing you make it out to be. You probably are a very nice person and didn't mean to hurt anybody's feelings but just listen to yourself next time and be careful of what your child hears you say.

Mir, please do not let the possibility of PA influence your decision! I've been PA all my life and to be honest it never crossed my mind that my children WOULDN'T be PA. Sure enough they both are. You say your DD's glasses are merely an inconvenience while your DS's PA is a life-long, life-threatening burden. I beg to differ. I NEVER felt my PA was a burden. It is now and always has been a mere inconvenience. Yes, I am severely PA. Yes, I've experienced anaphylaxis. Yes, I am very touch and smell sensitive. Does any of this interfere with my living a happy, fulfilling life? NO! In fact, most days I don't even consciously think about my allergy just like I don't think about breathing or blinking.
For myself, it is much harder being the parent of a PA child than actually having PA. I'm sure it was difficult for my parents but they never projected their feeling onto me and I try to do the same for my children. I worry about my children's safety, but I have never once felt badly for my children because they have PA.
Rebekah