More questions than answers

OK, so the allergist says we're on our own figuring things out by trial and error, since he doesn't consider Baby E's previous positive skin-prick tests to be valid and his push-and-twist test and the RAST test came back negative.

He agrees that she has food reactions but he doesn't think they're likely to be allergies, although he can't say for sure one way or the other. Which is fine--I'm glad he admits it when he doesn't know something.

But if the allergist can't help us figure out what's causing her reactions or how to manage them, when they're clearly food-related and severe, then who can??

How can they be immediate food-triggered reactions with rashes, itching, facial swelling and GI symptoms, and go away with Benadryl, and NOT be allergies? If they're not allergies, what are they, and what's making them happen?

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Are they going to continue getting more severe, and happening in response to more triggers, like they've been doing? Is there a way to stop them from getting worse?

How do we go about testing the foods we think cause reactions, or caused reactions in the past, but we're not sure about now? How do we figure out how strictly to avoid the foods that cause only mild or delayed reactions?

What about medicines? How do we decide when the low-grade reaction is worth the potential benefit?

With her history of reactions that seem to get worse with continuing exposure, should we be trying to completely avoid anything that clearly causes a reaction, no matter how mild? Or does it just depend on the symptoms and severity in each case?

Are there even answers to these questions?

I just feel like we keep getting shuffled from allergist to GI specialist to pediatrician and back, and nobody seems to know what's going on with her but it's not THEIR area of specialty, so we're just on our own.

I gave Baby E more applesauce at lunchtime. She really loves it.

But then she had another not-really-normal stool within an hour or so. She was really gassy and had a lot of abdominal discomfort, too.

Now all afternoon she's been tired and fussy, clingy, needs a nap but won't nap, wants to nurse constantly but squirms, grunts and fusses while nursing. All common symptoms with her milder delayed food reactions.

I'm not sure how long I should I keep giving her the apples to be sure whether this is from the apples or something else. It's quite possible that something other than the applesauce is causing it. It could be completely unrelated to food.

I think I will probably give her apples for a few days, remove them for a week or two and see if this type of thing goes away, then add them again and see if it comes back.

What I need to figure out is how many times to trial things, and how often, before we can be sure it's a specific food causing specific symptoms.

The immediate rash/swelling/itching/severe GI symptom reactions she gets to a few foods are scarier, but at least they're easier to identify.

This kind of thing is much more murky.

I'm getting tired of having so many questions with no clear answers.