One Week Later...

It's been exactly one week since the last allergy flare up occurred, and since I stopped using that cream. The good news is that the skin on my face and neck are no longer lumpy and it seems to have gone back to normal, but there's still a tiny bit of a rash that spread to my ears; It isn't visible but it itches from time to time and I can feel that the skin is dry and flakey when I touch it.

So what did I do to get back to normal? Not a lot really. Time seems to be the best to get over these allergic out bursts, which isn't something you want to hear if you've just had an allergic reaction like mine.  I've found that if I can find the cause and eliminate it immediately, then roughly a week later, I'm back to normal.

I did start really watching what I ate though. I was very strict with making sure that I ate absolutely nothing that I thought would even be remotely contaminated with ingredients that I have to avoid. This also included limiting the amount of soy, which is usually a key ingredient in many gluten-free foods. My meals were therefore kept simple, especially when eating out: Plain steaks (i.e. no sauces), baked or roast potatoes, plain rice, roast beef, roast or steamed vegetables, and lots of fresh fruit. At home, I continued to make sauces from fresh ingredients to add to my meals.

I also avoided caffeine completely, as I've found that when my body goes through an allergic reaction, any caffeine, however small, further stimulates my already over stimulated adrenalin glands, making the entire allergic reaction much worse. I've been drinking herbal teas instead, plus the usual water and fruit juices.

I haven't put any cream on any of the skin that was irritated. It started to get a bit on the dry side as it was getting better, but I'd rather it dry than red, blotchy, raised and itchy. Longer warm showers always makes my irritated skin feel better. No changes to the standard shampoos or soaps either. I should probably also mention that I don't bother following any special facial skincare routine - no special facial scrubs, no fancy cleaners, no toners, and no creams. Straight soap and water works for me. I use the same Perfect Potion soap for my face as I do for my body. I should also point out that most of those facial cleansers, toners, etc., are laced with sulphites, benzoates and other nasties. I have tried them in the past, and it was on my last attempt that I ended up with all of my allergies really flaring up for the first time ever. That was last year, which brings me to where I am now. (I'll have to do a separate post on all of the things that I do use in the bathroom... with photos.)

It's the Australian Food Allergy Awareness Week this week. Tomorrow night on Twitter, there will be an allergy chat at 9pm (AEST). Apparently Australia has one of the highest prevalence of food allergy in the world. From where I'm sitting right now, that doesn't surprise me. I'll be joining the chat as I'm definitely interested on what others have to say on the topic and what tips there are out there for dealing with allergies.

When allergy symptoms reappear

This is the part of my allergies that I hate: When the rash reappears and I can’t figure out what happened to make it appear. Two days ago, I had a small itchy spot on my neck. Nothing big enough to worry about. This morning, I woke up to bumpy skin all over my neck and face, and over the side of my right hand (from the bottom of my thumb to my wrist). My neck’s a bit itchy but I’m resisting the urge to scratch it. Thankfully, you can’t really notice the bumpy skin on my face, and my shirt collar covers up most of my neck. However, I now need to figure out what happened to result in this reaction and this is the frustrating part, so let’s see if I can work it through here and now. (This will give you a good indication of what I go through.)

Two Sunday’s ago, we went and ate at a food court that I’m not familiar with. The only thing relatively safe for me to eat was either hot chips or a made-to-order rice noodle stir fry. I considered just eating chips but couldn’t find a place where the oil that they deep fried the chips in was relatively clear of other foods that may have had preservatives in them. In the end, I passed on that, and opted on the stir fry. I ordered the chilli basil beef, with rice noodles and absolutely no egg. This is usually okay, but I knew that it wasn’t quite right after the first few bites. It was greasy and it tasted like there was butter or remnants of egg in there. (There’s always a chance that pans and cooking utensils aren’t cleaned properly between making meals.) I didn’t finish eating my stir fry. It tasted wrong and I’d rather be hungry than suffer with an allergic reaction. A few hours later, I noticed that the skin around my lips were bumpy, which is a tell-tale allergy symptom for me. From then on, I made sure that my soy intake was kept to a minimum and that any food I ate was 99.99% safe. (100% safe if it was something I made at home.) I also made sure that I didn’t make any changes to my soaps, toothpaste, shampoo, etc.

Before the last Sunday came around, I developed an itchy patch at the base of my right thumb, on the outside of my hand. Within a day it dried and cracked, leaving an open slit, in the crease of my skin there. The following day, an itchy patch on my right wrist, just in the same line as my thumb, appeared. That’s generally a sign for me, that my liver is having trouble processing the chemicals, so I knew something was wrong. At this point in time, I assumed that it would be another week before I’d go back to normal.

Here’s where I think I went wrong: The skin on my hand, where the itchy dry patches developed, kept cracking because they were so dry, so I applied a Vitamin E cream. The cream contains a natural preservative, but it didn’t state what that preservative would translate to in chemical terms. I took a risk and applied the cream on my right hand and neck. I did this daily as it offered relief. After a few days, I used it on my face too, specifically around my lips. That now brings me to today and the lumpy skin I now have.

I think it’s the cream, so I didn’t use it today. The skin on my hand doesn’t look as bumpy as it did this morning, but it’s sometimes hard to tell if I’m seeing straight or not. Just in case though, I’m continuing to monitor everything I come into contact with. I’ve also cut out coffee for the time being, as I’ve found that it can overstimulate my adrenalin glands which are generally in overdrive when I’m going through an allergic reaction. Today, I’m drinking rosehip tea and water. I’ve eaten fresh fruit, potatoes and some meat (that I know is free from preservatives). I’ll probably keep dinner simple too – maybe some vegetable gluten free pasta with pesto. I’d like to say that I’ll give myself some extra quiet time and head to bed early, to help my body recuperate, but I’m a mother to two little kids, so that isn’t going to happen. I am however, going to try to take things easy this week, steer clear of that cream and see how I do. I’ll be sure to let you know in my next post.