The 43-year-old shares three sons with her husband, Brian Fichera
Dylan Dreyer proved that she will always go the extra mile for her three kids, even taking cooking equipment on a trip in order to accommodate her eldest child’s ongoing illness.
The Today show star took to Instagram to share the harsh realities of her son Calvin’s celiac disease – a chronic digestive illness triggered by eating gluten – and how she navigates family vacations while preventing him from getting sick.
“You know what takes up a lot of space in your suitcase when traveling with celiac disease…POTS AND PANS AND GF PANCAKE MIX AND SPATULAS AND KNIVES AND CUTTING BOARDS AND SILVERWARE…..” she wrote in the caption, alongside a photo of the array of kitchen equipment stuffed into her bag for the trip ahead.
Dylan’s fans took to the comments to praise her ingenuity and parenting skills. “You’re a great mom and those boys are lucky to have you,” said one fan, while another wrote, “Wow! You are one heck of a mother. I admire all that you do for your oldest son.”
“You are doing so much for your little man. Great parent!” added another fan. Dylan shares sons Calvin, eight, Oliver, five, and Rusty, three, with her husband, Brian Fichera.
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Her eldest was diagnosed with celiac disease at just six years old, after experiencing abdominal pain, headaches, rashes and hair loss.
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Dylan shared how difficult it could be to travel with her son’s illness
Doctors found a stomach ulcer following an endoscopy and later confirmed he had the chronic illness, which is triggered by gluten intake.
“We were very concerned because we thought it was something much more serious because of how some of the results came back,” the meteorologist told People.
“You start Googling and thinking the worst, so when we found out it was celiac, I could say, ‘Okay that’s an inconvenience, it’s a life change, but we can manage that.’ We were very grateful.”
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Dylan’s eldest son lives with celiac disease
Traveling can be difficult for those living with celiac disease, as many restaurants and eateries do not have separate cooking utensils for gluten-free dishes, and often don’t provide gluten-free options.
“With Calvin having celiac disease…it’s honestly all I think about,” Dylan told HELLO! “All I have to do is feed kids all day long and it’s hard to feed him sometimes.”
Despite this, she revealed that the UK was more celiac-friendly than she ever expected.
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He was diagnosed at just six years old
“Kudos to Waitrose and so many of the grocery stores in the UK, because I don’t know if [celiac disease] is not taken as seriously, but it’s more of a nuisance in the United States, you have to really hunt to find items,” she shared.
“[There is] such a difference and I wish it was easier here in the United States and it’s not, it’s very frustrating,” the NBC star added. “So, part of the reason I want to bring my family over to the UK is because it’s just easier; it’s kind of a nuisance to have celiac disease and it wouldn’t be as much of a nuisance over there.”
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Dylan shared that the UK provided a lot more gluten-free options than the US
Dylan works hard to keep Calvin happy and healthy, even if that means taking kitchen utensils on a family vacation.
“He has no idea what I do to make his life totally normal, so he doesn’t know any different,” she told People.
