Last week, the kids and I packed up and headed north to visit some family and friends. The trip was easy, breezy, with a few snow squalls, but clear sailing and complacent kids for the four hour trip. Apparently, at some point, without my knowledge, I lost a few contents of my handbag. Unfortunately, one of those items was my son’s Epi-pen

Normally, this would not be a huge deal. But this is Northern Pennsylvania in January. After setting in and visiting for a few hours, I go out to unload the car. There it is on the passenger side floor, my son’s lifeline in case of food allergies, frozen. (Did I mention it was six degrees?) Panic ensues. After all, this is the same place where my son so cleverly found the cheese-it that ruined his birthday party. It is night-time. I have no Epi-Pen.

Thankfully, I was able to reach the doctor the next morning and have a prescription called in to the local pharmacy. But I’ve decided that the potential “what-if?” could have been very damaging. Now my travel plans will include:

-Always ensure Epi-Pen is with me when doing my normal allergy sweep upon going somewhere

- Carry the back-up Epi-Pen in a different location at all times (hey, one could have fallen into the ocean, or my bag could have been stolen)
- Have a written prescription for an Epi-Pen with me at all times in the event that both get ruined

What would have happened if I was in a different country, or it was the weekend and the allergist’s office was closed over the weekend? The possibilities are endless. I think perhaps this is a good thing to consider with all necessary prescription medicine. What will you do if it’s suddenly gone?

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