To be worried sick about this!

[sunispoison]

On a family holiday last year my young adult DD had a bad reaction. We sought help and it was diagnosed as sun poisoning. She wasn’t even particularly badly burnt (she wears SPF 50 and avoids the sun anyway) however her body had a huge reaction to the little sunburn she had. I’ve never seen anything like it before- her face was swollen beyond belief from the top of her forehead all the way down to her chin. She was swollen so badly that her eyes were closed over and she couldn’t see properly. It was diagnosed as sun poisoning and she was given antibiotics and antihistamines which didn’t particularly take it away and it gradually improved over a week or so. It’s never happened again although that was the last holiday we went on.

We are going away next month and she is worried sick about it happening again. She has spoken to her GP who advised taking along antihistamines and putting on SPF 50 all over her including her face and scalp, however she did this last time and it didn’t prevent nor stop the reaction. She is fair skinned and avoids the sun as she doesn’t want her skin to age. Although she was embarrassed of the facial swelling it was harmless itself, however she is worried sick that her eyes will swell over again, or more seriously that her neck and throat will start to swell. She was told last time that she was extremely lucky this hadn’t happened as throat swelling can obviously be very serious. Last time the swelling extended slightly under her chin and she was aware of it when she was swallowing. She was told it could happen again and is terrified of next time the swelling being on her throat.

She is worried sick about it and it is ruining the build up to her holiday. Please, does anyone have any advice?

Wearing a wide brimmed hat to shield her whole head would be a good idea

A parasol could help.

Why have you booked a sunny holiday knowing your DD could have a life threatening reaction?

Apologies I missed that from my original post. She was wearing a wide brimmed hat last time and will most definitely be this time too, as well as loose fitting cool clothes covering her skin. She is obsessed about stopping her skin from aging so did this anyway!

Sorry OP but if you're worried sick why on earth did you book a sunny holiday?

I experienced this last summer in the very hot weather when sitting outside under a parasol. My face went really red and was swollen but it faded in a day or two. I think the parasol I have doesn’t have UV protection in it. I know you can buy clothes and hats with it so that might be worth investigating.

Everywhere is sunny in summer now! It was 40 degrees last year in London. The place we have booked isn’t even particularly sunny (we haven’t booked a week in the Bahamas!) although everywhere is sunny in July. But thanks for your judgement. She’s also an adult and she chose and wanted to go. She’s going on holidays with her friends the following week. She doesn’t want to be different and miss out and it’s not like she can avoid sun forever. So her concern is the holiday aswell as summer in general when the weather starts to pick up. But like I said, thanks for your judgement.

Like this

https://www.solbari.co.uk/products/ultra-wide-cotton-linen-hat-upf50?variant=39964902948966&gclid=Cj0KCQjw98ujBhCgARIsAD7QeAgaMJdDiXBNOuL1_vRyWRMv4IF8Aq-qk_f-9FDMcHovuBdwg3qZ6rUaAmifEALw_wcB

That’s fantastic, I don’t think she was aware of UV protected clothes- I certainly wasn’t. I’ll let her know.

that’s her concern too- I didn’t make it clear in the OP unfortunately but she is concerned about summer in general!

Nobody forced her to come! She’s an adult FGS. She doesn’t want to be different and miss out but is also allowed to be worried. And everywhere is sunny in summer- as I said, we’re not going to lounge about the pool all day in the sun and it’s not as if we are going to the Caribbean. We are going to a place in Europe where we will be in and out of shops, malls, cafes and such. Unless she moves across the world she can’t avoid the sun in summer. She wants to come along but is worried about it. And is worried about summer in general- at times it was hotter in London than the med last summer so her concern is about the sun in general.

Uniqlo do some light UV protected light thin cardigan things, might be worth looking up

I think in your position I would see an allergy specialist . She might be given some form of Epipen in case of extreme reaction ?

Was it caused by the sun activating an allergen that was on her face? If so, she needs to be certain not to use the same products as last year. I know she wants to protect her skin from aging but it could be the sunscreen, or whatever combination of products she used, that caused the reaction so she needs to bear that in mind.

She asked to be referred but was told she didn’t need an epipen because apparently it wasn’t an anaphylactic reaction. It happened over several days rather than immediately. But she was also told if she gets tingling in her throat or swelling there next time to go straight to hospital. She actually had some allergy skin tests recently and all was clear with that which was good

Ok I didn't know she was an adult,
I thought she was a child.

And you just said you were worried about the holiday so presumed it was a really hot, sunny place. Yes London was 40 degrees last summer but your OP didn't say you were worried about the summer you just said the holiday!

Anyway, you're getting lots of good advice on here which is great so I hope you get something that works and she doesn't get a reaction here or on holiday.

https://www.solbari.co.uk/?gclid=Cj0KCQjw98ujBhCgARIsAD7QeAjqpV_FyidaKRbkyzBa5G6MbYmWWfCBaPEyoGgqfRVU8HGhLI8CWpIaAtG3EALw_wcB

I used to have a friend that was allergic to sun - he always wore hats and long sleeve shits, and never went on holiday to anywhere sunny.
He was from Ireland (but living here) and joked it was never sunny enough at home to cause a reaction.

I guess after a few bad reactions she'll learn there are some situations she needs to avoid, holidays in the sun being one of them.

Op, my ds had an allergic reaction similar to your DD. He's just a toddler and it wasn't to sun burn but the GP did prescribe two epi pens for him when I expressed much concern.

Id try again with your GP and insist on a referral to the allergy clinic. Your dd's reaction sounds like quite a severe allergic reaction. It's not just a bit of a heat rash. Well in your dd's case I suppose she will have to advocate for herself. If you can afford it I'd go private. Much quicker.

Also, are you sure the reaction was to sun burn and not something else? It sounds like she was very sensibly protected from the sun. Not saying it's not possible but just wondering if it could have been something else she reacted to or if it's definitely the sun..

I can understand why you and DD are concerned and of course she doesn't want to have to stay out of the sun all the time if there are ways for her to safely enjoy the sun. Ignore the judgmentinas.

My gp also said that (and The instructions on the epi pen say the same) that if you have an allergic reaction don't go to the hospital yourself but call 999 stating immediately anaphylaxis. They will send someone in minutes in case of anaphylaxis and I assume that paramedics will have epi pens with them (not sure about that though)

I am extremely sensitive to sun so avoid going anywhere hot June to September. Problem solved.

I'm also struggling to see why you booked a sunny holiday with her only a year after the reaction. It seems a bit silly.

I know London gets sunny and hot, but at least she'd be near her local GP and hospital with no worries about insurance or quality of care (beyond the normal I guess).

The link I sent was for uv protected clothing. Suggest a cardigan or wrap and hat.

I know she doesn't want to miss out. Most allergies abuse people to miss out on things but I personally wouldn't risk it. I burn very easily and stay away from hot weather as much as possible. And I'm not allergic

You’ve said ‘worried sick’ around 4 times and terrified at least once in relation to going on your holidays and then get all defensive stating what you’re allowed to do. No one is saying you aren’t allowed to go or judging you, but it’s reasonable to wonder why you’d be putting yourself through it.

Well, I’ve explained it several times now and I’m not doing so anymore as it’s not the point of the post. I asked for advice about what could make it easier for her, not judgement on the fact she’s going away.

thank you very much everyone who offered advice. The UV cardigans and clothing sounds like a great idea- I’ll let her know about that tomorrow!

Nobody judged, you got unnecessarily defensive. If you don’t want people to comment on it, don’t bring it up in a public forum. People can home in on whatever they want.

Hope you enjoy your holiday, the worry subsides and there isn’t a repeat episode.

They absolutely did judge, and I asked for advice RE the reaction and preventing it happening again, not whether she should stay or not.

thank you very much. Fingers crossed we are all worrying about nothing and it is just one of those freak incidents that happens once and never again!