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Many of us are getting our paperwork ready for back to school, or for a lot of us our child's first year of school--the big K--kindergarten. Even a seasoned food allergy parent like me gets a little queasy just thinking about what can go wrong at school. What helps me feel a lot, lot more in control is having a current copy of my daughter's Food Allergy Action Plan on file at the school office.

Do you have your Food Allergy Action Plan ready yet? Here is a link if you need a copy, available from the FAAN website.

The action plan will show the school staff every symptom to look for and action to take in the event of a reaction. I know that schools use these--we had a false alarm in 2nd grade and the school health aide followed it to the letter. In the end there was no need for medication--but they wouldn't have known this without the emergency action plan.

Make sure that your doctor fills out the form completely and that they include any special info needed. For example, does your child have asthma? Other health conditions? The form provides space for all of these. This form from FAAN is very clear and easy to read--my doctor said it was the best one he ever saw!

Here are a few other tips for a successful Food Allergy Action Plan:

- Print it on neon colored paper so that it's easy to spot in the event of an emergency.

- Be sure to include a current photo of your child--I usually use last year's school yearbook photo--so that substitutes and other staff recognize your child as the one with the allergy.

- Make sure the form is complete before submitting it and include a post-it with your phone number that offers to answer any questions about your child and their allergy.

You have time left before school starts so get this form into your allergists now--why wait? You'll beat the mad rush at the end of the month.

My family plans to move this fall in order to be closer to my husband's (relatively) new job. We are excited about this move and have been planning it for some time, so that's not an issue. I won't bore you with all the horror stories of a buyer's market, but our plan is that our daughter will be in a new school next year.

As our move gets closer, I've started to realize that, just as my daughter has fears about being in a new school environment, so do I. After all, I've ironed out every last detail with regard to food allergy management with so many people: my daughter's school principal, nurse, teachers and even the parents of her friends. But now I'm going to have to start from the beginning.

I'm not going to lie - even for a seasoned "Nut-Free Mom" like me it's kind of scary. Every school has a different policy (more on this in a future blog entry! :)). For food allergy families, school becomes like a box of chocolates: you never know what you're gonna get.

So, I say, Be prepared, not scared. For allergic families, that's as good a motto as any. You need to talk to the school and find out how the district handles food allergies, pronto, so you can prepare your family for a smooth transition.

If your new district does not yet have a formal policy, I suggest printing out the Wilmette Public Schools food allergy policy and sending it to your district's superintendent of schools as well as the principal. This is the policy that was finally adopted by my daughter's current school district after a small group of parents (including yours truly) brought it to their attention. It's a good one!

Other things you can do to prepare:

1. Work with your doctor to prepare an easy-to-follow action plan. Your school is going to want one of these, first and foremost. If there is ever an emergency, your written plan is what people will follow, so make sure it's thorough and clear. FAAN has food allergy action plans you can download and I suggest filling one out with your doctor ASAP. Then, make copies for the nurse, teachers and whoever else may need one. Include your child's photo for easy identification in the event of substitutes or staff changes.

2. Meet with the principal before the first day. A face-to-face meeting is a great idea that will do a lot to a) show administrators you care and b) attach a human face to your child's medical issues. This is a great time to discuss any questions you have about school policy. Principals are busy people so it doesn't hurt to jot down some"talking points" before you meet. I'd schedule this meeting, if possible, before the end of the current school year.

3. Renew prescriptions and make sure you have enough EpiPens for all staff that require them. The school my daughter attends is relatively large, so she has 3 Epis for school: one for the nurse's office, one she carries on her person in a "fanny pack" and one in the cafeteria. That way, no one is racing around looking for one in an emergency.

I'm sure there is more I will think of as I prepare, also, but this is a good start.