Allergic Reaction
So about two weeks ago, I had a very bad allergic reaction. I broke out really bad and didn’t know why. I waited a few days to see if it would go away eventually but no such luck. It actually started getting worse. I was scratching to the point where I was making myself bleed. That’s how bad it was. I ended up going to the emergency because it wasn’t going away, no matter what I did. Doctor asked me if I had made any changes to my eating, drinking or normal every day activities. I couldn’t really think of anything so I said, “No”. She looked me over and said it was an allergic reaction and to try and think of what I did different so we could maybe pin point the problem. She sent me home with a prescription for prednisone and famotidine and told me to take benedryl an use calamine lotion. I did all that and it still didn’t go away. A few days later, I had a follow up with my regular doctor and she didn’t really offer any new advice, prescriptions or suggestions. She told me I needed to see a dermatologist. Well, I made an appointment and the soonest they can see me is next Monday. In the mean time, I am miserable. It keeps flaring up and I get certain parts on my body that itch like crazy. I can’t seem to find anything that calms or soothes it. Then, I started to think back about what could have caused it and I remembered that we switched our laundry soap to GAIN. I googled it and found a lot of things about it and TIDE allergic reactions. It suggested I rinse everything I had washed with GAIN like two or three times to remove any residue that may be lingering. So, I did and it took like two freakin days to redo everything. I’m talking about my clothes, the hubby’s clothes, the kids clothes, towels, sheets and blankets. I did it all. I didn’t want to take any chances. Well, last night, oh my gosh! I wanted to pull off every inch of skin off my entire body. I couldn’t stop scratching and I made myself bleed and it’s just all bad. I am going insane. I thought for sure it was the GAIN. Now I’m not so sure. I don’t know what else to do. I don’t think I can last until Monday. I might just have to go to the hospital again. This sucks! Hey, wait! Do you think I could be allergic to the cat?? I’ve never had an allergic reaction like this before and it’s already been a couple of weeks with no sign of it getting better. Maybe I should have them do a scratch test. Hmmm. Do any of you have any suggestions as to what I can do to find some kind of relief?? I’m desperate. My little sister suggested I take a hot hot shower and it would stop the itching. I did, and boy was she wrong. It burned like hell and made me break out even more. I’m going crazy here!!!
So this is a pic of my arm
and what I am dealing with. 
Blue Insomniak's Blog 
Hey Blue…I am highly allergic to latex-developed at 42 years old. The reaction looks much the same-from the top of my head to the bottoms of my feet and every space in between. I’m not a doctor, but was told by a dermatologist to take children’s liquid Benadryl and a Zyrtec at the same time-liquid for short term and the other for long. I can say that I do this now at the first sign of reaction, and no ER visits since I started this. Ice packs or cool water relieves the itch a little. Hope you find relief, and what triggered it! I know it’s miserable!
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My daughter has severe food and airborne allergies and we always have liquid Benadryl on hand at all times. Works like a charm.
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I’m sorry your daughter has food and airborne allergies. It must be hard to have to constantly watch out for certain things. I’m super paranoid right now about everything. It’s crazy. Since I don’t know exactly what triggers it, it makes it that much harder to know what to avoid. Thanks for the advice.
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Everything got solidified for us when we went to an allergist and did a blood & skin test. Kinda sucked for my daughter when we did it, but now we know for sure.
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I definitely have to get one done for myself. At least for my own sanity. This not knowing and continuously having these flare ups is driving me nuts. I am itching like crazy right now even though I took benedryl, rubbed cortisone 10 all over along with a coat of calamine lotion and nothing is working. Ugh! How long did that skin test take and is it something they can do at the ER because I think I just might end up there sooner than later. Thanks again.
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The skin test took about an hour total. Usually only an allergist will do that, not an ER thing.
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Thank you for the info. Going to have to find one then and schedule an appointment.
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Oh my gosh, then you know my misery. 😞 thank you so much for the info. I will definitely give it a try. I am happy to hear that you know exactly what triggers your outbreaks. I hope I can figure out what causes my flare ups, and soon. Thanks again. Going to walgreens right now. 😃
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It surprised me to learn that allergies can develop at ant time. Hoping for your quick relief!
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I just found that out as well. I thought if you were allergic to something then that’s it. Your allergic to it. I didn’t know you could become allergic to something randomly and over time. Thank you for the well wishes. I appreciate you. 😊
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Scratch and patch tests are the only way you’ll be able to pinpoint exactly what it is. It could be something you are eating. Allergies can come and go. But it’s spring and trees are beginning to pollenate. It could be a fungal spore. Or it could be the cat. Has she been treated for mites? They are so tiny you cant see them.
Have you tried good old calmomile lotion?
Oat baths are also soothing. Place some basic porridge oats inside some muslim or use a pair of tights (panty hose), tie it to the taps so the water runs through it as you run a bath and then have a soak (dont use any soaps or body washes – just soak). But def ask for testing.
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Definitely want to do the whole scratch test. I’m dying here. We haven’t had kitten treated for mites but now that you mention it, I think we should. I’ve been using the calamine lotion and it only helps at the very beginning and then it’s back to itching like crazy. I will give the oat bath a shot. I’m willing to try anything at this point. Thank you for the suggestions. It is much appreciated. 😀
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It sounds miserable — I’m allergic to Tide so I was hoping it was your new detergent, too. (Makes me feel itchy all over, just like you said.
Good luck!
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It really is miserable. I thought for sure it was the GAIN, but when I didn’t feel or see any improvement then I wasn’t so sure anymore. I was told it could to up to a week to notice a difference. So, I guess I’m still hoping that it was the GAIN and can move on from it. We’ll see though. Stay away from that TIDE. Thank you for hoping with me.
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Some medications — including OTC ones — can cause rashes, too. So include any new ones of those when thinking back for anything new!
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Hmmm, you are so right. I can’t think of any that I might have taken prior to my outbreak. Going to have to really think about it though. I could be missing something without even realizing it. It just sucks because it could be any number of things that triggered it. This is going to be a very long weekend. I appreciate you taking the time to try and help me figure this out. Thank you. 😊
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Supplements and vitamins, too. Skin creams. Sunscreens. The works!
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The list is endless. Just have to narrow it down to find the culprit. Like that’s going to be easy. Haha.
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It might be easier to do it the other way. Stop everything and add back in stuff one at a time. That’s how I discovered my migraine triggers.
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Oh, that’s. Good idea. Thank you. 😃
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