to be really pissed off with doctor’s response

[Blackcelebration12]

My 12 year old DS is a bit allergic to things & has asthma. He’s quite sneezy etc. But recently he’s also been complaining of an itchy throat when he eats certain things like walnuts & yesterday his lips swelled up when he ate a cake from a cafe.

So I am obviously concerned and wanted some reassurance from the doctor and their response was essentially ‘what do you want me to do about it’ and ‘carry some piriton’. Eventually after me asking, they agreed to refer DS for some allergy testing but only because I pushed for it.

Aibu? I came off the phone and cried because they were so rude and dismissive. All I want to know is whether swollen lips is a sign of an allergy getting worse/ whether son is at risk of anaphylaxis.

It just made me feel stupid and like I was wasting NHS time

@NichyNoo yes, my son gets a reaction to stings too! I think I am going to start on the cetirizine each evening as a precaution as he’s generally very sneezy & itchy- he’s on quite high doses of steroid inhalers for his asthma too (seretide 125 2 puffs twice daily which is the max dose for his age)

@chucklebubble

YANBU. I recently went to have a lump in my breast investigated. The doctor who examined me said tbh I don't understand your story, why are you prodding at a lump anyway. I can't find anything, if you find lumps you must not prod them. Along with stern face. Felt like an idiot.

At no point did I even mention prodding a lump, only that I felt something strange left it a while due to covid then felt it again so booked an appointment.
Too scared to go back now for any future telling off even though I'm so sure there's something there but I feel like I'm making it up now!

You must go back.

Please keep pushing for the allergy referral. My DS1 has anaphylactic allergies and they scare me. Untested and un-managed scares me.

I was having an issue a few eyars back where i was producing alot of saliva and kept choking on it. Scary choking, including on one occasion blacking out and collapsing. I went to my GP and said to her 'I keep choking on my own saliva'. She said; 'Well don't choke'.

and that was the end of the appointment.

It'c largely cleared up by itself now. But at the time I was terrified there was something very wrong.

OP, this might sound like an odd question, but does your DS have a hotizontal crease across his nose? My DS's symptoms and medication were very similar to the ones you describe and the allergy clinic spotted the "allergic crease", caused by long-term nose rubbing! The nightly cetirizine and nasal spray have resulted in it fading.

If your son's lips swelled up, he should have been seen in A and E, did you take him there?

There was an 18 month waiting list for an allergy appointment pre-pandemic, bearing most of those doctors were switched to Covid-front line (particularly the respiratory trained ones), it's probably longer.

I was seen in six months, luckily, but that's only because I was literally in intensive care once or twice a month.

I hope you figure it all out soon enough, but allergy clinics are there for people with the most severe allergies - if you didn't take him to A and E with swollen lips your GP may not be understanding how serious it is.

Thanks for the help. My GP practise has been absolutely awful. It took about 4 phone calls and insisting on a face to face app. to even get as far as the app. I did have.

OP I hope you sort your issue you out, I am a professional, I can't imagine getting away with what some of the GPs I've seen get away with, however I'm also sure that I don't see half the abuse I'm sure some of them get so it's easy to judge I suppose.
My local practise only has two doctors, one of which is outright refusing to see anyone atm. It's extremely disheartening right now to access any kind of good healthcare.

Just adding my name to those saying YANBU. You Doctor has let you down.

My DS has asthma and is allergic to cat/dog/eggs and peanuts. The nut allergy is the dangerous one, v severe, he carries piriteze (active ingredient ceterizine hydrochloride) at all times and two epipens. He has had anaphylaxis twice and been in ambulance etc.

What you are describing in your son ticks all the signs of a severe allergy. Children with one allergy often have several, asthmatic children more likely to have allergies. I think the phrase is atopic.

Until you can organise skin prick tests the best thing to do is have several places you keep Piriteze, liquid if he doesn’t want to swallow pills (they are tiny though). Avoid all nuts (not just one type is the advice we are repeatedly given by DS’s allergy specialist), ask questions, read labels, avoid takeaways, home made cakes.

I don’t want to frighten or alarm you but a few simple measures will keep him safe. First signs of tickly throat, hives, sneezing or swelling give him some Piriteze as quickly as possible. Unfortunately allergies are unpredictable and what doesn’t provoke a reaction one day can the next.

This is appalling and I would submit a complaint via the practice manager. My son is 14 and also asthmatic. Some years ago, he had a reaction to a cashew nut and the doctor took it very seriously and referred us to the allergy clinic straightaway. His symptoms were stomach pain, tingly lips and later on absolutely loads of hives all over his back and chest. He now carries an EpiPen. I'm glad you pushed for the referral but the doctor's attitude was unacceptable and needs challenging.