Cholinergic Urticaria

How I cured my cholinergic urticaria (from a pharmacy student)

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I was diagnosed with cholinergic urticaria when I was a freshman in high school. After going to the dermatologist all they told me to take was Benadryl which helped with the itching a little but that was it. So after doing a ton of research on it (along with the help of my dad… have to give him credit) I finally discovered a mix of three drugs that ended up completely getting rid of my symptoms and may have completely cured me (not sure if it cured it because I started tapering off the medication two years later around the time that it could start going away on its own).

I started taking one Claritin, one Pepcid AC, and two super Quercetin every night. I had to take it every single night for about a month and then my symptoms disappeared. But if I missed just one pill for one night then my symptoms would return and it would take another month to completely get rid of my symptoms again. But I did this for about two years and started tapering off my medication one pill at a time (starting with one quercetin, then the next, then the Pepcid, and then the Claritin) and I haven’t had an outbreak since then (six years later).

I just finished my second year of pharmacy school and was motivated to become a pharmacist because of this disease in order to understand how this could work and to educate other people like me. All three of these drugs block different histamine receptors in your body that results in the production of hives (Quercetin is natural and its mechanism isn’t widely known but somehow it works – also I’m not sure what the difference of quercetin vs. super quercetin would be but that’s what I used).

-Kristen

(Note: Please talk to your doctor before trying antihistamine combinations or other medications / supplements, as they may not be safe or appropriate for all individuals).

Comments

  1. Thank you so much for taking the time to share your story, Kristen. I hope your hives remain gone forever, and I wish you the very best in pharmacy school.

    • I’m glad you were able to cure your flushing. However, taking pills only masks the problem. I started with this last June and have been to many doctors and no one knows what is causing this. I want to cure it. Some people have reported that a Paleo diet works, but not sure I could stay on that for life. I will discuss your meds with my doctor. At this point, I’m ready to just give up finding a cure and try to mask the problem with pills. thx

      • I was actually on a Paleo diet when I got cholinergic urticaria so I am not convinced it’s going to cure it.

  3. Thanks Kristen for the advice! I will try this route and hopefully it works for me as well! By the way was it maximum strength Pepcid or original strength? Please let me know. Once again thanks

  5. I’ve had a nurse tell me this works as well. I didn’t really follow through so I’m going to try this exact dosage and follow through beginning today! My nurse friend said that Zyrtek also works in place of Claritin.

  6. Interesting. Personally, I think this is an allergy to a new food additive or some additive possibly being added to detergent or possibly something like Febreeze air fresheners. Since it is happening to men and women, it’s probably not a hormone thing. Since it is happening to people all over America and I’ve even seen posts from people in Australia, Norway and Canada, I doubt it is environmental. We had our house checked for mold and do not have any, except for that occasional mold that forms in the tub and I try to stay on top of that with Lysol. I did start using Febreze air fresheners – the ones that plug into the wall last May and I was still using them until about 2 weeks ago. I’ve stopped those now. Go to google and search dangers of Febreze. I also had a pharmacist tell me I could have a manganese deficiency, so I am researching that too. I’ll keep reading this forum. Hopefully, someone-somewhere will figure it out. Thx

    • Taking any of the above mentioned drugs could be safe or deadly for you. That’s why you should consult your doctor. He or she will know what medications you’re on, your health history, allergies, etc.