Earlier this week I wrote about Bullying Awareness Week and some of the great initiatives going on, as well as things we as parents, teachers and friends can do to help spread awareness. I would like to invite you to read a little bit about Bailey, a high school food allergy sufferer who has joined Team Allerject to spread awareness about food allergies and in particular the bullying that many children with food allergies are subjected to.
1) Bailey, can you tell me a little bit about yourself please? When were you first diagnosed with food allergies and what are you allergic to?
My name is Bailey Francis, I am eighteen years old, and am a grade 12 student in Halifax. I’m a student, athlete, and I enjoy doing volunteer work/ community service including raising awareness about anaphylactic allergies. I was first diagnosed with anaphylactic allergies to peanuts and tree nuts when I was one and was later diagnosed with an allergy to chickpeas when I was ten.
2) As a young lady growing up, were you ever bullied because of your food allergies? Can you share what that was like? How did you deal with these difficult situations?
I have only been bullied a few times because of my food allergies. One time I was accused of making up my allergies for attention. This was a very unfortunate experience because I don’t know why anyone would make up having this condition. I was very overwhelmed when I was in this situation but luckily I had a friend stand up for me.
There have been a few other situations where people have refused to stop eating my allergens while I am present. This is very discouraging as my allergies are life threatening so having/eating food I’m allergic to around me is compromising my health. I don’t think people truly understand the severity of anaphylaxis. I usually deal with these situations by completely removing myself from them.
3) As a teenager can you share with us how bullying differs from when you were younger? Do you still get bullied, or face negative attention, due to your food allergies?
I never faced bullying because of my food allergies until I was in junior high. I’ve actually found that as I’ve gotten older more people seem to disregard the fact that I have severe food allergies.
4) Bailey, I have heard wonderful things about Team Allerject. What made you to decide to join the team?
I wanted to join Team Allerject because I think it’s important that awareness is raised about anaphylaxis and bullying of kids with food allergies. 300 000 kids across Canada have food allergies and 1/3 of them are bullied because of it. This statistic is far too high. Food allergies are not a joke and should be taken seriously at all times.
5) Bailey, what do you hope to gain from your time with Team Allerject? What message would you like to share with food allergy sufferers, especially children?
I think children with food allergies need to learn to advocate for themselves at a young age. If you educate those around you about the severity of anaphylaxis then they are less likely to eat your allergen while you are present. Although it can be tough I have found that people who are educated about anaphylaxis are more willing to compromise than those who aren’t.
6) During Bullying Awareness Week what sort of initiatives will Team Allerject be spearheading? Will these be on-going?
Allerject has put a team together of young adults to speak out about their food allergy bullying experiences. They have contacted media all across the country in the hopes of each of us being able to share our story. More information about us and the projects can be found at allerject.ca
7) Bailey, are you able to talk about the future of Team Allerject and what else may be in store for young food allergy sufferers?
Although I’m not exactly sure what the future holds I believe we will continue to advocate to those with allergies. I think allergy education will continue to progress and I am hopeful that there will be a decrease in the number of children who are bullied because of there food allergies.
8) Lastly, Bailey is there anything else you would like to share with our readers?
I encourage everyone to educate themselves on anaphylaxis and how to use an auto-injector such as the Allerject. Also, if anyone wants to know more about me and/or my story you can check out the radio interview (discussing food allergies) I did with CBC Radio here.
Thank you to Bailey for sharing her story and for having the courage to spread awareness about food allergy bullying. To read about more great teens and young adults like Bailey head over to Allerject.ca.
FT&PD
Suz
Such a crazy thing, those serious allergies! I have a friend whose little boy is allergic to peanuts and the thought that something (that seems harmless to so many of us) could be SO harmful to him is scary! It’s so important to try to get the seriousness of it into people’s minds!
Hey! If your friend ever needs to talk to someone who’s grown up with allergies or if her little boy ever needs some encouragement I’m always ready to share! Please let me know!
I still can’t believe that a person would be bullied for having an allergy. That just seems like a cry for attention, wow.
Bailey sounds like such a smart young woman and she is the person ambassador.
Thank you so much! I love advocating for people with food allergies and will continue to do so until the bullying stops!
I’ve never really considered food allergy bullying…something to think about! I love seeing any bullying brought to the attention of people, it happens way too often
I agree completely. Bullying happens far too often. I’m glad I can shed a bit of light on this very small portion of the larger issue at hand.
I have never heard kids being bullied over food allergies. This is down right horrible!
I completely agree! No one should be bullied especially because of their food allergies! That’s why here at Team Allerject we are taking a stand!
I think it’s fantastic that Bailey is bringing two causes to light: bullying and allergies. My child’s school is peanut-free, and there are 20 kids in the school with serious allergies–mostly peanut allergies.
Both causes are very important to me! Thanks so much for reading!
Such a inspiration, well done bailey. I know how hard it is living with allergies sometimes and you are doing fab x
Thank you so much!
Excellent awareness team to help and support the victims. Hope it’ll spread worldwide for this purpose. An advocacy with positive effect on somebody’s life.
Thanks so much! I really hope the movement will spread as well. It is a very important issue to me and so many others with food allergies!
I’m so into against bullying. I’ve been bullied growing up. Apart from my shy and quiet personality, they also bully me for my skin. It’s not food allergy, it’s eczema and it’s horrible how other kids can go through all that even though they couldn’t control what they have.
Hey, I totally understand what you’ve been through. Getting bullied for something you have absolutely no control over is never fun. That’s why we’re trying to end bullying!
It’s hard that she had food allergies and to be bullied because of it is harder. It’s a good thing she was able to overcome those.
Thanks you so much!
This is a very interesting topic! This is something we shouldn’t ignore. As a teacher, I would like to include this in one of my class discussion to create more awareness.
Hi Angelo, I’m Bailey (from the interview above!) and I have done a lot of publicity about food allergies! I would be more than happy to help you out with getting this topic into a classroom! Please let me know if there is anything I can do!
Sad to hear about Baileys condition .I can image how discouraging it must be when people around you do not understand what you are going through and have the audacity to bully you. Love and best wishes!
Thank you so much, it means a lot!
It is horrible to think people would be bullied for such thing as an allergy. Allerigies is such a common thing nowadays so we can only hope people will get more aware and more educated about the subject.
I completely agree! I do everything I can to help educate people about the severity of anaphylaxis.
Its disappointing to hear how people can be so insensitive towards other people’s plight. Best wishes to her
Thank you so much!
I remember reading about a child who died after eating a rice krispies because it had peanut ingredient in it that they failed to see. They tried to inject her anti-allergies on her but she still didn’t make it.
Having allergies is not a “bullying” matter, people really need to be educated on it.
Sadly, situations like these do happen. That’s why reading labels is SO important.
Why on earth are kids with food allergies bullied? That’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve heard! I can’t believe my eyes until I read what you’ve wrote! This should absolutely be stopped and prevented!
I agree that’s why we’re trying to stop food allergy bullying! One in three kids under the age of eighteen with anaphylaxis are bullied because of their food allergies. This statistic needs to be decreased and eventually stopped.
No one deserves to be bullied and I hope this event helps improve the problem 🙂
Thanks so much!
I’ve always seen bullying as a weakness & it shouldn’t be tolerated regardless of the reason. No kid should have to go through such a tough time being bullied. I am all for this cause and I hope it creates more awareness.
Thank you so much! We are trying very hard to raise awareness.
So sad to have allergies and be bullied. So dangerous as those bullies can go too far and cause a victim his life.
I agree. Food allergies are very dangerous and that’s why it is so important that people are educated about the severity of them.
What an incredible young woman Bailey is! Reminds me a lot of another wonderful young lady named Emily!
Thanks so much!
Its unfortunate to have these kinds of allergies. Hope they can have proper medicines and can cure soon..
There are many teams trying to find a cure for food allergies. I too hope they find one soon!
It’s good that there are initiatives trying their very best to address these kind of issues. Also, it’s good to know that younger generations are getting more confidence in standing up for themselves and inspiring others. Bailey is very inspiring. 🙂
Thank you so much for your kind words!
I never knew that food allergies could be a cause for bullying. This post was an eye opener for me! Bailey is doing a remarkable job…
Thank you so much!
Why would anyone bully someone because they have an allergy? This is so sad! I’m happy Bailey is helping kids understand allergies more. Good job Bailey!
Thank you!
It didn’t occur to me until now, that someone is being bullied or has been bullied because of food allergies. And such allergy is really life threatening? This is education right here. I have just learned this one. I know people with food allergy and they sometimes eat those foods, and well they suffer the consequences but not to the point of endangering their health. This is informative.
Thank you so much. I am so glad to be helping people learn about the severity and risks of food allergies.
This is really sad. Good thing people stand up for those who are getting bullied. And other kids who get bullied stand up for themselves already.
I agree that this issue needs to be stopped!
I’m glad to read that Bailey is doing okay and that Allerject is offering such a wonderful, supportive service. Bullying is such a debilitating form of abuse, and we need more serious commitment to act and educate about it in our schools.
Thank you so much. I agree. I try to educate about food allergies and bullying whenever the opportunity presents itself.
It’s sad to know there’s such thing exist. Wish more stern action could be taken.
As do I. Thanks for reading!
I’m a celiac and can relate, food allergies are serious.
They are very serious. Thanks for reading!
Bailey sounds like a strong young woman, and I’m happy to hear about Allerject.
Thank you so much!
What an inspiring girl Bailey is. Being one with allergies myself, I know how cruel girls can be and she is right to learn to advocate at a young age. Thank you for posting such an inspiring interview! 🙂
Thank you so much!
Food allergies are so very serious sometimes life/death….parents should be teaching their children about the seriousness of this
It can be hard to understand how severe food allergies are if you don’t have them yourself or know someone personally with them. But we are trying our very best to educate everyone about their severity.