Help- severe allergic reaction.

[funbunny]

Name changed as could be outing.
This weekend I suffered a severe allergic reaction- something which has never happened before. It was scary as within the space of 10 minutes my tongue was completely swollen meaning I couldn't hardly talk or breathe and my fingers and joints swelled. I also had hives all over my body. Husband called 999 and I was taken into hospital, treated and released with a referral to find out what im allergic to. In the meantime, I'm terrified to eat anything as I don't know what's caused it and didn't do anything out of the ordinary. Has anyone else been in the same position and just randomly developed a severe allergy? Is there anything anyone can recommend?

Has your husband used a new product or eaten something then kissed you or even just been really close?

I became allergic to the pill, literally overnight. It was really scary and took months to work out what it was.

It doesn’t have to be ingested. It could be contact or even airborne. It absolutely can be something you have been using all your life. Adult onset allergies are more common in women.

mine started with toiletries. I didn’t graduate to developing food allergies until later.

you mentioned a dog. Any chance he went to the groomer the day before?

My DH had a severe allergic reaction that made his face swell up so bad. He’s never had allergies before. turned out he had suddenly reacted to listerine mouthwash. He’s used the mouthwash hundreds of times before. Was so scary at the time. Hope you get answers soon.

@funbunny both my teenage children have severe food allergies (all nuts and eggs), we have experienced anaphylactic shock on three occasions. It is horrible and frightening and you have my sympathy.

Unfortunately allergies are unpredictable, they can come on suddenly, something you’ve eaten or used for decades can suddenly cause you problems out of the blue. A food diary is a good idea. People seem to think you just carry an epipen and you are sorted. You only use an epipen when you have difficulty breathing. It is not a guaranteed cure at all.

My best advice is really simple. Always carry antihistamine tablets (Piriteze is a brand we use but the active ingredient is ceterezine). They are bog standard tiny tablets you can use for hay fever. Have a sachet in your car, in your bag, next to your bed, kitchen, office desk. Antihistamines are the first thing you take as soon as you feel unwell (tickle in throat etc), take it fast, as soon as you can. Hope this is helpful and you find out the cause.

Aah yes, good point on cross reactions, but it is important not to assume it's something new or novel.

It can easily be something you have used for years, I used hair dye for 20 years and then became allergic. Happened during menopause which is common apparently. I also became very sensitive to all perfumed products, some are worse than others. and washing powder. Worst reaction so far though not as serious as yours was to those air fresheners that send out a jet of stuff every few minutes.

Is your dd very young? Do you know what's causing the reaction?

When ds1 went into anaphylaxis (cause unknown) last year he was discharged with epipens. Got his appointment with the consultant a month later. I can't work out why your dd got such different treatment. The only thing I can think is that they said they are more cautious with teens as they tend to be out and about away from parents/teachers more - and take more risks. Or possibly in ds's case because we have no idea what caused the reaction so can't guard against a repeat.

Write down everything you ate, drank, touched, and did for the 24 hours before the allergic event. Food allergy reactions usually occur within 8 hours of ingesting the food but that's just a general guideline. When you see an allergist they will have more knowledge of what it could be. As others mentioned, you can become allergic to something you have eaten/touched in the past. If you used any body lotions after your bath that day, take a photo of the ingredient list and keep the bottle case your allergist wants to do a skin test or anything like that. You might be able to track it down to a particular ingredient, if you get hives again. Anything you ate, same thing, take photos of the ingredient list if you can. Ingredients on foods change so if you don't note the ingredient lists on the actual food, then you might lose that info as to what was in any food you ate that day. Medicines, recent vaccinations, recent illnesses, everything.

Did you take over the counter medication for anything @funbunny ?
A friend of mine had a similar reaction to an anti inflammatory tablet. It happened about 3 hours after she took the tablet.
It happened twice. The second time she had anti histamine to hand as she purposely took the tablet to check it definitely was the cause. It was.
She said it was very scary the first time but was lucky to be near a medical professional when it first happened who knew what was happening and gave her an antihistamine immediately.
I hope you get sorted.

@funbunny are you peri / menopausal ?

I developed anaphylaxis in peri menopause and it always happens to me in the morning before I eat as well.

my allergy tests were all negative so I have been diagnosed with MCAS also known as idiopathic anaphylaxis.

Menopause can be the gift that keeps on giving .

I had a similar reaction to suncream on holiday. It was the brand I had always used.

Thanks everyone.
Not peri-menopausal as I'm 33.
I'm at work at the minute but when I get home tonight I'm going to write down everything I ate and did the day before and the morning it happened and see if I can work out a pattern if it happens again.
Didn't take any over the counter medicines but started taking medicine for anxiety around 3 weeks ago. I missed a dose yesterday (as was nervous) but felt shaky and ill this morning (common withdrawal effect when I googled) so have taken it again this morning and so far I seem okay.

no shes nearly 19 now, never had any allergic reactions up til oct. they did say its possible that an infection could trigger some people to develp allergies and im pretty sure that she had covid a few weeks before that

Yes they think it was an infection (not covid) that triggered it in ds - his blood counts were out when they tested him at the hospital but back to normal a month later when he saw the consultant. Tbf though he had a lot of allergies I childhood so has always been that way inclined.

Given your dd's age then they should have prescribed her some epipens. I'd really encourage her to challenge that decision robustly, esp as she's had multiple episodes.

Can I ask what your symptoms were? I’ve had a reaction to something this week - eyes swelling, face puffy and hives all over my body.
Initially thought it was shampoo but now I’m doubting it cos it’s still going on!