We probably make a trip to the emergency room at least once every three or four months. We made a trip last week because there was some concern that my wife could have had a small stroke. That didn’t end up being the case, but we did have to make a trip to the ER for an MRI just to make sure.

Over the years, we’ve gotten pretty good about dealing with the ER. Here are some of the things we have learned:

• Bring a copy of all of the medications currently being taken and a list of all known health conditions.
• Make sure that your primary care doctor and/or rheumatologist is informed about your visit to the ER.
• Try and get a copy of all of your test results sent to your primary care doctor and/or rheumatologist so that they don’t have to order the same tests when you go in to see them.
• Bring a book or something to read, because it you may be there for quite some time.
• If you can, try and get on a fast-track so that you can be seen quickly, because you don’t really want to hang around with a bunch of sick people when you are immuno-compromised.
• Sneak in some food and water if you can.
• If you wear contacts, take them out before you go.

That’s all I can think of right now. If you only remember one suggestion, make it the one about bringing a copy of your known health conditions and your medication. That alone has saved us a ton of time and grief.

I’ve heard that it’s fairly common for lupus patients to have a lot of food allergies. I know my wife has a bunch of them. It’s not a huge deal, but it is one of those things that we have to always be aware of when we are out to eat. You would be surprised how many things have nuts in them, especially desserts. Getting a salad is also usually an adventure. Shredded carrots are evil.

Here’s the list to the best of my knowledge:

• NUTS except peanuts but I think they are actually a legume so they don’t count
• RAW VEGETABLES lettuce seems to be safe but raw carrots are bad news
• AVOCADOS no guacamole for you dear
• MELONS this one makes me very sad because I love melons
• KIWIS strawberries are fine, so what’s wrong with these guys?

I’m probably forgetting some of them, but that’s most of them. We try and avoid them as best we can, but I don’t want to remove them entirely from the house because of the kids. Jenny will occasionally take allergy medicine if she really wants something, but that’s not usually a good idea. Does anyone else out there deal with this?