It's an ugly word, isn't it. Urticaria - it even sounds annoying. I suppose that's appropriate, because it is annoying. In fact, it has managed to strip this Worm of her normally pretty healthy sense of humor.
Back on June 5th, when we had the horrible rain, I posted about the flooding and that Hubby and I had both broken out in hives. What I haven't posted here (but I have complained incessantly to family and friends about) is that we still have the nasty hives! Urticaria is an ugly word meaning "chronic hives", and we both apparently have them.
I've been to two doctors and neither seem to have any good advice. After loading up on antihistamines, I found that the hives actually got worse. I stopped taking the drugs for a few days and found that while I still got hives, they weren't nearly as bothersome. Then yesterday, they came back with a vengeance. I took a benedryl last night and it knocked me out so that I slept well, but today the hives got even worse.
When I said that I've lost my sense of humor, I didn't mention that I fear ever finding it again. This is ridiculous!!!!
To further annoy me, a particularly nasty spot of hives on my hip suddenly morphed into a large patch of ugly broken blood vessels. It looks like someone took a red marker and just went to town on me. The good news is that while this is quite ugly and certainly doesn't appear to be a healthy condition for the skin, it neither hurts nor itches so, sadly, this is an improvement.
The good news is that my face has, to date, been spared any hives. I've had them just about everywhere else. Today I had my first one on my neck. Lovely. It looks like a big red hickey - which at my age is sort of novel and amusing - or would be if I had any sense of humor left.
Some people think that the hives are an allergic reaction to something in the house that got released during the flooding. Maybe. Some people think it's related to stress. I've been working very hard, but enjoying it. We're getting ready to move - also stressful, but a really good stress, so - maybe. I've been stressed out much worse in the past, and never had this reaction. And hubby, who is the king of not stressing has them too (although he doesn't complain anywhere as much as I do - this could be because he's a prince and not a complainer - I like to think that I complain because my hives are be worse - the jury is still out on that).
So....if you have any great anti-itch remedies that you'd like to share, my comments section welcomes you. Otherwise..... Life is good but itchy. We'll be moving next week. Any day now we'll have to pack up the computers, and then it will be a few days before we can get them back up and running.
Hopefully by then we'll be in our beautiful new house and hive free!!
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