Living with Food Allergy Anxiety

What is food allergy anxiety?

Food allergy anxiety happens when the fear of coming in contact with an allergen and/or experiencing an allergic reaction interferes with a person’s ability to function on a daily basis. Food allergy anxiety can appear in anyone who has been diagnosed with a food allergy or suspects they may have a food allergy. Another aspect of food allergy anxiety involves the caregivers of food-allergic individuals who may be afraid to let their children do everyday activities, like go to school.

A key indicator of food allergy anxiety is if an individual is choosing to avoid certain things in an attempt to “stay safe” from their allergen, whether that’s not going to a friend’s house or avoiding playing sports. There are a few simple questions I like to ask to help determine if someone with a food allergy is experiencing food allergy anxiety:

• Is it impacting how you function every day?
• Are you avoiding circumstances or situations or events because of it?
• Are you isolating yourself socially and making excuses not to see friends and family?

If the answer to any of these questions is “yes,” it warrants further exploration into the symptoms a person may be experiencing.

The difference between food allergy anxiety and generalized anxiety disorder

Examining food allergy anxiety requires a holistic approach, especially when we look at the differences between food allergy anxiety and generalized anxiety disorder. From a psychological perspective, someone with generalized anxiety may say, “I’m so afraid of spiders, I don’t want to go outside.” You can often look at this situation and identify the irrational fears to talk them down. That’s a lot different than someone saying, “I’m afraid of food, I don’t want to eat.” While the fear of food may be rational for someone with an allergy, it can also be fatal simply because we cannot live without food.

As for symptomatic differences between anxiety and an extreme allergic reaction, such as anaphylaxis, these can be bucketed into six primary categories: onset, breathing, pulse, blood pressure, skin/mucosa, and abdomen/GI.

If you are wondering if you may be experiencing a panic attack or an allergic reaction, take a look at the physical symptoms you are experiencing. While in the moment, an anxiety attack might make you feel like you can’t breathe and you might die, but medically speaking, anxiety attacks are not fatal—whereas anaphylaxis can be. It’s important to differentiate as best you can and if you do recognize it’s anxiety, it’s a matter of calming down and taking steps to decrease that anxiety.

If it’s anaphylaxis, this is where preparedness matters and an emergency action plan comes into play. Even if the initial symptoms are mild, there is a risk that they may quickly turn into a serious and severe condition. You’ll want to use your epinephrine auto-injector immediately and then call 9-1-1 so you can be taken to the hospital to monitor additional reactions. Knowing what anaphylaxis might look like is important, so if you feel these symptoms come on, don’t be afraid to administer epinephrine and call for help. Research shows that it can’t harm you to unnecessarily use epinephrine if you feel you need it, but a delay in administration of epinephrine can be fatal.²