I’ve been suffering from anxiety/heat hives since I had a miscarriage in March. I have always had anxiety disorder and anhidrosis. I kept checking into urgent cares and ERs, and every day I still get painful, itchy hives. I stopped drinking alcohol and would keep getting outbreaks but they lessened somewhat.
Mine have no very specific food or drink rhyme or reason. Taking a benzo during a really large panic attack would help. Antihistamines don’t seem to.
In any case, I woke up in the middle of the night, overheated and panicking. My face was swollen shut and my upper lip extended 3 inches forward. I couldn’t breathe. I don’t have anything but catastrophic insurance so this also adds to my fear and stress.
My friend made me go to the hospital. I had to get epinephrine and steroids and antibiotics for an ear issue as well.
I still got the rash and I’m still swollen. This all started with the hormone imbalance from getting pregnant, it feels. I thought the rash was a symptom of the pregnancy but now that I haven’t been pregnant for over 7 months, and reading all the info in the book and on the sites and watching the video, I at least feel like I finally have a step forward towards what to seek out next.
Instead of ignoring it, however, the now upgrading of this condition to include anaphylaxis is worrying me. In March, I went to the ER presenting these symptoms as well and got treated with the same stuff as well.
I am wondering if anyone else here has presented with such a severe reaction? I am going to start to change my diet this week and see about other insurance (but dire financial issues are a catch-22 to treating this, it feels).
Glad but worried, and looking for any insight anyone may have.
-Eff
Hivesguy says
Eff,
Sorry to hear of your health issues and miscarriage. The only thing I can suggest is that I’d definitely avoid any kind of exercise, be sure to carry an epi-pen, and keep tweaking your diet and removing possible allergens from food/environment. You can also keep working with a doctor to try different antihistamines.
When my wife was pregnant (and after she had the baby), her immune system was all out of whack. She became extremely sensitive to foods she could normally tolerate, and she would develop odd rashes. Her eyes would swell and she’d get eczema on the eyelids and all kids of crazy stuff. Finally, most of that has calmed down tremendously. It may be that the hormonal changes from the pregnancy caused your immune system to become more aggressive than normal.
I hope you get well soon.
kentboyerart says
Thank you for this.
I have an appointment for Tuesday to meet with an allergist.
It’s just very nice to hear there are others out there with hormonal changes so I don’t feel like it’s out of nowhere.
I appreciate your input a ton. I haven’t been pregnant since April, so this feels very long-winded and I would have thought it would die down by now.
I’m happy to have found this forum. Thanks!
John says
It won’t cost anything to change the diet and you can do it ASAP….I get the best results with plain rice and vegetables and fruit and then add maybe some chickpeas. At least stay away from fats and animal products that can disturb your hormone levels. Some of the healthiest, happiest people in the world live without animal products and oils, etc. Good luck to you. You will lick this thing. Also it is highly recommended to embark on a path to learn about meditation which can help in many ways.
Deborah says
Sorry, but I don’t agree with John. Animal fat is necessary for health balance, esp. if you are strict and eat grass-fed meat. God gave us canine teeth for an appropriate reason. You also need this for hormone balance via cholesterol which they rely on. Your stress of pregnancy and loss brought this on, more than likely, as what brought mine and many others to this state. Your gut is probably imbalanced and the elusive Candida, in its many forms that most don’t recognize, is probably hiding in there. Menopause and pregnancy and high stress as well as an imbalanced diet/minerals is a possible culprit in this horrible affliction. Also everyone is totally different in what they should take/eat. The sun and sweating helps most of us.
John says
Deborah, You certainly have the right to disagree, but if eating animal products or fat is what God intended he forgot to tell the Seventh Day Adventists who eat no meat and are a much healthier group than the rest of America. Don’t take my word for it though. I recommend you research Dr. John McDougall’s work and also watch on Netflix a documentary called Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead which tells a story of a man that follows along these lines, Not saying you need to go your whole life without eating meat. Clearly, our guru has turkey daily, but any elimination diet has to start somewhere, and I am just suggesting this to help you save time …and it will solve a lot of problems for you in the long run…Here is a quote from that film.
https://www.netflix.com
“Joe took 15mg of prednisone daily to control his symptoms, and was fed up with taking pills. He had tried nearly everything; 6 different doctors, pills, tests, and hospital stays. He had tried massage therapy, herbal supplements, mud baths, and acupuncture, but nothing seemed to cure his chronic urticaria. Finally he decided to take drastic measures, and for the next 60 days vowed to eat nothing but fresh juice made from vegetables and fruits. Joe Cross spent 30 days in New York, drove across America, and spent the next 30 days in San Diego, all the while interviewing different Americans, sharing his story, and giving his card out to over 400 people he met along the way.
The first half of the movie focuses on Joe’s 60-day journey, which had impressive results. On day 14 he was already down 26 pounds and was down to 10mg of prednisone a day. On day 49, he had lost 67 pounds, and was now on 3.5mg prednisone a day. His total cholesterol had decreased from 204 mg/dL to 135 mg/dL, and his LDL-cholesterol decreased from 132 mg/dL to 86 mg/dL. Doctors found all his electrolytes were normal and his lab results were perfect. Finally, on day 61 he had lost 82 pounds total and was down to 2.5 mg prednisone. And, two months after ending the juice fast, he no longer had to take any prednisone for his chronic urticaria, which had disappeared altogether!
kentboyerart says
Thank you both for your opinions.
I will watch that doc again — watched it before and will watch it once more.
My stepsister tried a diet for candida issues but I never saw a difference and I’m not sure how her hormonal reactions are doing. I can ask her for sure.
I get wary because I’ve been anemic all my life — severely at times, and should probably see a nutritionist after I meet with the allergist next Tuesday.
The prednisone makes me feel a little high — I definitely don’t want to be on it long term. Hard to sleep as well.
Thank you both for your input. I appreciate it so much!
Rebekah says
Be wary of taking medications that prevent an out break as this is a warning sign for the anaphylaxis for me. I have tried a ton of meds and at least when the hives come I know I need to be near my epi pen.(you should always have a couple handy) I’m going on 30 years with this xolair is helping me a little but I’m only on my 3rd month.
Best of luck
kentboyerart says
Thank you for this. I will def be aware. The anaphylaxsis seems to come on when I’m sleeping or at night, so I will be sure to mention this to my doctor.
That’s a great point, thank your Rebekah.