HELP!!! WHY HAS MY BODY SUDDENLY CHANGED??

[Applepies5]

Sorry for shouting for traffic 🥺 !

as a child, I never had any health problems- no eczema, no skin problems, no allergies, no hayfever, no sensitivities, no asthma.

all of a sudden as an adult, I’ve become really atopic over a short space of time. Horrendous eczema and psoriasis to the point I’m under dermatology, stomach issues which we think is lactose intolerance or a severe IBS, asthma, and horrendous seasonal allergies- to the point I need prescription strength antihistamines to go outside. I’ve also had lots of side effects from medications which again, I never really had before, and some of the side affects were so bad I ended up in hospital with it.

does anyone know why this can suddenly come on as an adult and why my body has changed like this? It happened after puberty when I was around 20 and now my life is controlled by steroid creams, antihistamines, remembering to bring my inhaler and always knowing where the nearest toilet is incase my stomach decides to have a tantrum. I haven’t told any of my friends or family as I prefer to keep these sorts of things private so I couldn’t ask any of them, but I haven’t heard of anyone else my age suddenly becoming atopic like this.

does anyone have any more knowledge about this? Tah!X

Do you take a H2 inhibitor as well as an antihistamine? They're typically for reducing stomach acid but also reduce the effects of histamine.
As a previous poster said - look at your birth control if you take it, people report increased allergies when theyre on it.
I'm pretty sure you must be careful with what you eat - but I'd say you should look at reducing high histamine foods and wheat/dairy. Lactose intolerance can develop with age.

Where did you go to medical school? I'm genuinely amazed that you feel able to diagnose someone over the Internet without any kind of history!

OP, do the symptoms tend to come together? As a PP helpfully pointed out, it could be mast cell related.

Some sensible answers already.

Autoimmune conditions can become symptomatic at any age, & have a variety of triggers, e.g viral infections, pregnancy - consider how the mother’s immune system adapts to carry her baby - & environmental conditions. Once the AI response is in overdrive, other allergens top up the load.

We are a family of varying autoimmune conditions & varying symptoms, the bottom line is that we each have highly reactive AI response. You might find it helpful ask about general health in your family group. It may be possible to spot a pattern & this in turn is useful information for the medics, e.g. several 1st & 2nd degree relatives are clinically diagnosed Coeliacs.

IBS - look at low FODMAP eating, search for MONASH Uni as a staring point. This is now a standard protocol for managing IBS & also helps reduce intestinal inflammation associated with other AI conditions. Costs nothing as common place foods are eliminated & nothing pricey added. This will quickly cut down bloating, farting & longer term calm the inflammation response. Overall gut health is a priority & as helpful as FODMAP is, it is important to make sure that friendly bacteria flourish.

The saying ‘you are what you eat’ is sound, but ‘you are what you absorb’ does apply when the gut is inflamed. You can scarf the most nutritious food at every meal, but if the gut wall is inflamed to the point where it does not efficiently absorb nutrients, overall nutrition may be affected.

That said, it is worth keeping a food:symptom diary & going back to the GP to discuss if you need a test for Coeliac disease before you cut gluten out of your eating plan. You may also ask to see an NHS Dietician about FODMAP as you may find their guidance helpful, & it is important to manage the possible impact of cutting out food groups. How likely your GP is to refer you IDK, but they should know that you are changing your eating patterns.

Dermatologist & thorough skin testing: my DD got this on the NHS, if they couldn’t get it now, I would pay for it. Ask your GP for a referral, if they can’t/won’t, ask them to recommend a local consultant Dermatologist. The testing process does take time as the patient returns to clinic to have the reactions monitored over a few days after the substances are applied & dressings put on top. It was a revelation. The tests showed nil, medium & strong reactions to a range of things. She has since avoided - at some effort & small costs - all the known irritants & anything perfumed, all of her chronic skin problems have gone. She still has the underlying atopic responses, & occasionally something unknown/unexpected will invoke a response, but a Fex’ is enough quell it.

HTH.

www.nhs.uk/conditions/contact-dermatitis/diagnosis/

@Applepies5 as you are already seeing a Dermatologist, likely you’ve had the skin patch tests.

Posted as general info.

If you are open to alternate therapies please google health kinesiology as it helps with allergies. Kinesiology was originally developed by chiropractors.

If echo this 100% and it's really well put, if I may say so.

Modern diets are hideous. Maybe it's time to bring everything back to basics?

*I'd (not if)

Stress!

I developed a few new allergies and a horrendous stress related skin response (flares up still in periods of high stress) after a stressful divorce. Also developed skin problems after pregnancy.
I'm always better when less stressed (haha, i have 2 under 4 😂) and eating clean

Almost the same happened to me when I turned 39. It took years of fodmap diets to work out it was preservatives in processed food and pesticides on vegetables. Now on a much cleaner simpler diet. Skin probs and IBS gone - so there is hope.

Have you had covid? Apparently it can trigger MCAS/histamine intolerance in some people.

Although well intentioned, as a PP said, before cutting out food eg dairy and wheat, keep a very detailed food, mood, and symptoms diary. See if you can spot a pattern, then ask your GP if a referral to a dietitian is an option (they may not be allowed, it depends on what the referral protocol is). Or if you can afford to, book a freelance dietitian. If you're in Britain you can find a registered one here

I developed horrendous IBS and acne on the Mirena coil. It was awful.
Ivd had it sour and things are so much better, however peri menopause has since played havoc with my gut.

It sounds as though there isn't a particularly joined up way of looking at all your symptoms at present.

First and foremost, you have a giant klaxon shouting autoimmune disease - the Psoriasis. It's not an allergy, it's an autoimmune disease.

Once you take that as your starting point, 'IBS' (and why do they always say that about women? As though being 'irritable' is the automatic response when there's an unwell female in the area) and lactose intolerance are less likely to be something completely random and more likely to be Coeliac - untreated coeliac causes lactose intolerance. And what I'd describe as a smell of death from your arse when you get glutened. Untreated Coeliac can also present with skin issues - dermatitis herpetiformis needs to be considered; it looks very much like awful eczema but won't always be considered if there isn't already a Coeliac Disease diagnosis.

Have Dermatology started you on DMARDs/Biologics? Have they considered giving an im steroid pulse? Have they fully taken into account the gut issues and given a reason why somebody with at least one unequivocal autoimmune disease presentation cannot possibly have another two they have symptoms entirely consistent with?

Diet does feature in autoimmune disease for many people - but it is never a cure. It's a way of reducing symptoms when you know what triggers the response and eliminate it from your diet permanently. With a diagnosis of Coeliac, that means no wheat/barley/contaminated oats (sometimes no oats at all because avenin is reacted to as well as gluten)/food that is contaminated with these substances in preparation. Which instantly excludes at least 85% of mid-high-ultra processed food (obviously, the small percentage of specifically Coeliac friendly foods and the occasional fluke item can still be safe, but there's not a great deal of that around now going gluten free isn't fashionable).

These things can happen in childhood and they can happen in adulthood. The immune system is a very complicated and amazing thing that sometimes just decides to turn into an absolute arsehole. Beating yourself up about it doesn't serve any purpose. But advocating for yourself and ensuring that the full spectrum of symptoms are taken into account does mean you're more likely to find some effective treatment and respite sooner.

If you have been diagnosed with psoriasis, that's most of the explanation you need. Psoriasis is an autoimmune disorder.

Food is well intended as an explanation here, but that's failing to consider WHY anything, even food or drink, might be an issue.

If you have not been diagnosed with psoriasis but have visible plaques, I'd start there with getting a diagnosis, and getting the best clinical advice and treatments for that. Then address whether this is causing the other issues

I know this is 3 months late but I have MCAS and agree to look into this. I have had severe digestive/stomach issues caused by the brain that started when I was 11..

due to the stomach issues I was taking antihistamines to help nausea and vomiting which masked a lot of my allergies to the world and I wouldn’t miss a day of meds incase I became sick.

every medical issue I have now, turns out to all be linked to one another so all your symptoms are likely all connected to one thing.

Its kinda hard to get it looked into but for me a tell tail sign is that I ALWAYS have raised white blood cell counts! I don’t think it has ever been normal or even low.

@Inezza do things dettle down and then flare when uour stressed ? X