[tri-med] Just a thought for conference goers :o)

Hi All :o)
I just thought I'd give ya'll a heads up...although you've probably already 
thought of this :o) I called Southwest (the airline we're flying) to confirm 
and to ask a few questions I'd thought of. If any of you that are bringing your 
children...or even for yourselves for that matter use meds...over the counter 
or rx. In our case I was a little concerned because even before last September 
Devon always received more attention from security at the airport. I know it 
will be even worse this time around. I have no objection to them checking 
him/us out...baggage, carryons and all...as long as we are treated with 
respect. There are some sick people out there who would indeed use a child to 
carry something dangerous thinking that a child..especially one with special 
needs...would be above suspicion. But I got to thinking about the stuff I bring 
for Devon...his meds, the Thick it...stuff like that. Most people are not 
familiar with Thick it and it IS a white powdery substance and could look 
suspect to security people that don't know what it is. So I ask about it and 
the woman agreed that it might cause alarm, delays and extra scrutiny. She 
suggested I get a letter from Devon's doctor on his office stationery 
explaining Devon's need for the Thick it. She said that there shouldn't be a 
problem with rx's that have the pharmacy labels with the person's name and all 
on them but the over the counter stuff (like the Thick it) and anything that 
looks like it could be a bio weapon or that could hide something sinister in it 
will get more scrutiny. When I asked about carryons like Devon's bottle bag 
with his juice and stuff to munch...she said we may be asked to take a sip of 
the juice. 
I called Devon's pediatrician and drafted my own letter for his signature. I 
asked permission to paste my letter onto their letterhead since our print shop 
is the one who prints it and they said that would be fine :o) My letter just 
states that Devon is a 7 year old male with a severe chromosomal/genetic 
anomoly called Trisomy 13 and that as a result of this condition he must have 
this modified starch, over the counter additive added to all his liquid 
consumables. And just to be on the safe side I added a blurb about the Flovent 
and Albuterol inhalers and aerochamber. I dropped it off yesterday and got the 
call telling me it was signed before I even got home...Joe picked it up today 
:o) Call me ridiculous but I like to avoid problems wherever possible :o) You 
can bet I will be cleaning out my purse and all our backpacks to make sure 
there's nothing in them that could cause alarm :o)
Love,
Penny...devoted wife to Joe and "Mom" to Nick (11 1/2 yrs...lover of Harry 
Potter, Pokemon, Fishing, Legos, Zelda, Popcorn Chicken, Pizza, cheese sticks 
and chocolate icecream w/ovaltine sprinkles) and "Mommy" to Devon (AKA-Stinky 
Boy, The Chief or Devonrude...Lover of Bear, Elmo and the Muppets, Stuart 
Little, Barney, Blue, Pooh and Co. and food in general, 7 years old (6-15-95) 
!!! Full Trisomy 13 w/balanced translocation 5 and 13)...Brat and KC (the 
feline children), Snitch and Lil' Dude (Nick's turtles :o) 
:o) DeLand, Florida
Meet our family at http://www.trisomyonline.org/victor.htm  (Compliments of my 
dear friend Karen!
And last but not least, check out the homepage I made! 
http://www.geocities.com/penvic4/Penny_sPage.html
The stone that was rejected by the builders, has become the cornerstone (Psalm 
118)

                  Building ___ooOOoo__ Rainbows
                       www.trisomyonline.org
                  Families Helping Families On-line

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