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Back in the '90s, I was the only student in my school with food allergies. My teachers had a secret stash of my own snacks (usually Zebra Cakes) so I wouldn't feel left out if someone brought in nut-laden birthday treats. Going out to dinner with a friend's family would result in odd looks when I explained to the server in shy-kid terms why he really did have to check to see what oil the onion rings were fried in.

Oh yeah, I had to learn the word "anaphylaxis" at age 7, which is probably why I straight-up annihilated every spelling test.

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Today, our society is far more accommodating to food allergy sufferers -- I'm honestly shocked by it. Schools have peanut-free lunch tables, restaurant menus have disclaimers about allergens, and airlines increasingly hand out pretzels instead of nuts. It certainly makes living with this less of a struggle.

As an adult, the "fate is in the balance" hold the allergy has over you fades -- at least it did for me. So much so that it's not even frightening anymore; it's just really frigging annoying, another inevitable nuisance of everyday life. Like dealing with insurance providers, or being stuck in a group text. Let me explain.