I got hives and I'm miserable, any advice?

[sun starved Gayle]

They are all over my torso, limbs and face. And I'm itching like crazy and doing my best to resist scratching.

I went to the doctor yesterday and was given prednisone, along with antihistimines and that has given me some relief, but last night I was up till 2:30 with cold towels on me.

I have not used or eaten anything new or out of the ordinary, have not switched deteregent, shampoo or soap. This has been going on for about a week has steadily gotten worse. I am to wash a weeks worth of clothes in hot water with no detergent as well as my bedding, and shower in tepid water with NO soap or shampoo.

If I'm not better I'm to eat only plain chicken with nothing on it and white rice for several day.

Any suggestions or medications that have worked for you?

TIA
Gayle

 

[SherryS]

Aveno Oatmeal Bath is VERY soothing! Good luck....

 

[nell]

Can't help with the itching but if you take medicine, I have had generics cause the same reaction in me and so has my cousin. I can take the brand name and one particular generic but the others make me either break out in hives or swell like a balloon.

 

[EAM]

See a dermatologist

I suggest seeing a dermatologist. My son had hives and it turned out to be due to a yeast allergy. He had to avoid foods containing yeast (bread, vinegar, many Campbell's soups, etc.) and get desensitization shots; he also had to take some yeast killing medications. He's been fine for years now and can eat anything. (Except for a couple of times that he has taken antibiotics, which resulted in a yeast overgrowth.)

 

[DonM]

See an Allergist asap

 

[KforKitty]

For relief I would also recommend the Aveeno Oatmeal products. I bought the lotion last year when I was in a similar situation last year. Only thing that stopped the itch for a short while anyway.

Kitty

 

[Fern Modena]

Gayle,
If you are diabetic, be aware that prednisone will make your blood sugar give a false high reading. Do *not* adjust your diabetes meds without talking to your doctor.

Fern

 

[caribbean]

Could it be stress related? That was my problem and it keeps popping back up every few months. Every time things get bad at work, there I go itching. Give the prednisone a chance, it should help about day 3. Try to relax since if it is steess related, getting upset just makes it worse. Take a vacation. It never fails that I get better a day after I arrive at a Caribbean island. Good Luck.

 

[Clemson Fan]

Can't help with the itching but if you take medicine, I have had generics cause the same reaction in me and so has my cousin. I can take the brand name and one particular generic but the others make me either break out in hives or swell like a balloon.

Are you saying all generics or just some particular ones? Your post doesn't make a whole lot of sense to me.

 

[Clemson Fan]

Any suggestions or medications that have worked for you?

You're on the right medications, but you may not be on enough of them. You may need to ask your doctor up increasing your Prednisone dosing.

Prednisone has a lot of side effects, but for something that should be short term like this it's really the best and most effective medication.

 

[Malibu Sky]

I got the Chicken Pox as an adult, I am sure you are as miserable I was. I went crazy, finally the Dr. perscribed me some Valium...along with everthing else...it really helped!!

 

[Maddle]

Are you better today? Ask the doctor about something topical for the itching, or a change in the antihistimine....but do call the doctor if you are still miserable.

Maddle

 

[Big Matt]

Here's the thing with hives. There are mild cases that go away with benadryl, claratin, or some sort of antihistimine (the histimine is what causes the hives, the histimine is caused by something bothering your system). I had a real bad reaction (lots of hives) after the stomach virus. They covered my whole body. Anithistimines got rid of them and they never came back. On another occasion I had them for two weeks and they sound just like yours. I would take antihistimines and they would go away for a day and come right back. I was on vacation and they got so bad my face, lips, and tongue started swelling. I went to the hospital and they gave me prednizone. It worked a little better, but not much better than the claritin. The side effects are lousy. They eventually ran their course and were gone.

I went to an allergist convinced I had an allergy to shellfish since I ate lots of shrimp on vacation and the flare ups coincided. Testing showed no allergy. He told me that 90% of the cases he gets for long duration hives have no allergy relation at all. Most are caused by some undeterminable reason and then go away. Another thing he told me was that alcohol consumption made it harder for hives to run their course. Of course I was drinking on vacation at the beach.

I haven't had them since.

My son gets them when he plays in the snow. Benadryl or Claratin knocks it out in an hour or two.

I hope you feel better.

 

[sun starved Gayle]

Doing better today

Thank you all for the replys. I went back to the doctor yesterday and got a higher dose of prednisone along with tagament (sounds weird but the MD went into a long story about how the two are helpful together, not just for your stomach) and a different antihistmine. Spacing the prednisone thru out the day has helped me stay on top of the hives and is much more helpful than one dose in the morning.

Fern, thank you for the warning about diabetes and prednisone. While I am not diabetic, I have family members who are and that is good to know. I have been refered to the allery clinic at our HMO. Patty, I know stress can cause hives but I'm not particulary stressed at this time in my life. And I did try the Avenno bath and it helped. Thank you for the recommmendation. I have not switched to any generic drugs so that is not it either.

Big Matt, your story was interesting, hopefully mine will go away and not return like yours did.

Thank you again for letting me vent, and again thanks to all who took the time to reply. Your concern made me feel better!

Regards,
Gayle

 

[KforKitty]

Matt's story is interesting as when I had my bad attack last year I was post-viral as I'd had a really bad upper respiratory thing going on. I've noticed this before but it doesn't happen all the time and certainly not with the severity of the attack last year. Like I said before I got hardly any relief from Benedryl. Maybe it was something that just had to run its course.

Kitty

 

[caribbean]

Gayle-

Really glad to hear that you don't think it is stess related. When it is, it can be be a real problem and pop up at all the wrong times. I can still distinctly remember sitting in an important job interview ( I got it ) and feeling the right side of my lips and face gradually get hot, swell up and itch so much I couldn't keep my hands off my face. I kept licking my lips and that just made it worse. By the time I got out and back to my car, the entire side of my face was bright red and really swollen. The 3 guys interviewing me never said a word, but I know they had to be wondering. Guess in some way the fact that I continued with the interview and somehow was able to answer all their questions showed I could work under pressure. But I left knowing that I had screwed up and would not get the job. I was one surprised gal when they called and offered me the job. Sure hope you get it under control soon and more importantly find out what caused it so you can avoid doing it again. Hives are no fun. Good luck.

 

[jasad]

What worked for Me

I started getting hives many years ago. I went to all the local specialists. No allergies and no other health problems. Tried the anxiety drugs (even though I didn't feel stressed). Allergy medicines didn't seem to help. I was going crazy looking for relief.

I then went to Mayo Clinic to see if they could figure out what would help me. They performed days of testing and called my hives idiotpathic (which means they don't know why). But, they did prescribe a drug that solved the hives and I rarely have them unless I forget to take the medication. They prescribed 20 mg of Doxepin at bed time. This is actually an anti-depressent usually taken in higher dosages for that purpose but also works as an anti-histamine in this low dosage. So if nothing has worked for your hives, I would ask your doctor about this medication. I have been taking it for years now and have been hive free. It also helps me sleep better.

 

[limey]

I thought i was the only one !
They stared about 3mnths ago and got steadily worse even to the piont that i had anapleshic shock IE lips swelling big lumps hard to breath and so on. Was given an epi pen for emercancies. Went to a Derm it was a waste of time my own doctor was stumpped but made an appiontment with an allergist he had it under control in a couple of days, he gave me allegra for the day as it doesn't make you so drowsy and Zirtect for the nights and things have been great for a while. Also gave me the same as the last poster for emergancies. I was also diagnosed with idiopathic hives, and was told it can be caused by an inffection as some others have posted which get your histamine knocked out off whack. He said it usally takes about 2mnth to settle down. I'm now on a take it for a while miss a couple and see what happens if it doesn't reacure then stop if it does keep taking them.
I was really getting bummed out about the whole thing but the more i talked with others the more i found had also had the same problemn.
Good luck with your's sorry about the spelling and welcome to the HIVE CLUB
LOL

 

[Present]

My DH suddenly started getting hives, repeatedly and severely. Over the course of about 6 months, he tried everything. The only thing that even keeps them under control is allegra 180mg, ranitidine 150mg, and clarinex 5 mg, all 2 x day.