My doctor tested me for all kinds of allergies when I was a child.  One of these supposed allergies I was said to have was wheat and milk issues.  Let me tell you I still eat wheat products now as an adult and have no known side effects from these things.  However, the milk was not something that bothered me as a kid.  So why then the strange diagnosis?  How should I know?

       My parents tried putting me on a diet with no wheat or milk for a week or so as a child.  Guess what?  My supposed milk bumps (as was told what my zits came from lol) did not go away.  They were still there.  Why did not the experts notice my skin is naturally oily in the warmer summer months, but dry during most of the rest of the year?

      Also, when I went back to eating the wheat products and milk I was fine.  This was true for most of my life.  It was fine for me to handle them as a child and a teenager.  So when did I first notice issues with Lactose?   

  Well, it was in my thirties I first discovered this problem?  All of a sudden the least bit of a milkshake, ice-cream, or milk would make me have bad gas, horrible cramps, and diarrhea.  Sometimes, I would even gag a  bit afterward. Thankfully it never made me barf.  Still, I was horrified.  Why all of a sudden did this trouble me?

   Unsure how to respond to this strange reaction, I googled lactose intolerance to see the symptoms and all the stuff above that I mentioned was a part of it.  So,  this got me to thinking no wonder I am so sick to my stomach when I drink milk or eat ice-cream.  As an experiment, I stopped eating ice-cream for three months, then quit drinking regular milk.  

   The struggle is real for me as a lactose intolerant person.  I hope this true-life story will help anyone else who wonders if they are allergic to milk or not.  Anyway, no sooner did I switch to lactose-free Fairlife milk and occasional almond milk then I felt healthier and had way fewer diarrhea issues. 

      Plus, I tried lactose-free ice-cream after six months of no plain milk or ice-cream.  It was delicious but expensive.  Now it is hard to find since at least one local store near me no longer keeps this is stock.

    Now it is been over a  year since I switched to the lactose-free stuff and I am way healthier than before and glad for it.  

    Find out more in the next chapter...

-Summer out!