HIVES

[magenta321]

I've had hives all over my body (literally) for a week now. I finally figured out what did it. I was laying on the couch with a blanket on me. I had not eaten anything in hours, yet my tongue was swelling and my throat was closing up. The hives were multiplying by the minute. I took the blanket off and my tongue and throat felt better nearly instantly. The hives stayed.

Since then, I've been avoiding the blanket. My mother bought two of them -- one for each couch. They are nice. They are throw-sized down comforters. I was elated when they came. Once I figured out that they were the cause of the hives, I got rid of the one on "my" couch. I know how Archie Bunker-like I am.

Anyhoo, my mother is in love with hers. She keeps it on "her" couch. The problem is, if someone is on "my" couch, I have to go on "hers". Then the hives start popping up within a minute.

She has seen the phenomenom herself. She belives me that the blanket causes my hives. She has seen the agony I have been in for the past week (the hives don't disappear too quickly, so even if I am away from the blanket -- like when I go to work, they are still itching me. It's not nice when your tits and ass are covered in hives and you are trying to look professional.)

I cannot get my mom to get rid of the blanket. She loves them. Help. Tell me that someone amongst you has experienced this problem. Will getting it dry cleaned help? It's washable. Will throwing it in the washer do anything? I am afraid to even try it out. And of course, my mom just keeps saying "so wash it" but I don't want to touch it, because I instantly get covered in more hives.

I wish she understood. She sees the fact that I am bleeding from itching so much. She still won't relinquish that damn blanket. I just want to burn it, truthfully.

Help. Sigh.

[AmyLEnsor]

What's it made from?

[magenta321]

The first thing I did when we got the blankets was rip the tags off. The cover feels like a cotton/poly blend to my untrained fingers, and the inside is down and feathers. I assumed they were goose.

I think my mom bought it online, I will have to see if I can find the contents on the website.

[cyndilouwhoo]

This is the time when I wish we had a "staff" allergist H&F.

Is there a doctor in the house?

I don't have any solutions for you about the blanket--because with the feathers I don't think it can be washed--and drycleaning might not do much good either.

My SO and my daughter both suffer from allergies--and goose down is one of them. I have just had to banish down pillows and my beautiful feather bed from the house. It just causes too many problems, especially with Rebecca.

However, your mother has given you permission to wash what is in essence, an "impossible-to-wash-without-ruining" item (take my word--you can't wash down comforters. I totally ruined one trying).

So I suppose you could tell your mom you'd be happy to wash the comforter (wear long sleeves/pants and rubber gloves while handling it--if you aren't allergic to latex ) provided she absolve you of any blame if it gets ruined. Then when it gets ruined she'll have to throw it out.

Now if you wash it, use Tide Free or some other additive-free detergent (Ivory Snow is another good one) on the off chance it comes out ok (but it won't) then dry it in the dryer with a pair of clean track shoes or a bunch of new tennis balls to beat the down back into submission.

In short, I hold no great hope for you, the comforter or the relationship you have with your mother . I think if you are allergic, no amount of washing will take care of the problem.

[hadassahchana[$]]

I have a down duvet, and wash it all the time- in fact, dry cleaning ruins the insulation factor of the down,according to the booklet from Eddie Bauer which was attached to my duvet.

TWo of my kids are allergic to dwon, so first of all, I wash any new down item two or three times before using it, and then, I put cotton duvet covers on all down blankets. By doing this, one of the allergic kids can use a down duvet, and the other at least does not react to it.

Try washing it- wrap your hadn in a plastic bag first if you don't want to touch it. Wash on medium with warm water, and run it through an extra rinse cycle. Then, when you stick it in the dryer, use a dryer sheet (helps seal in some of the stuff, according to my doctor) and also remember to stick a pair of sneakers (white if possible to keep from marring the fabric) in the dryer at the same time to fluff up the down.

Try this, and see what happens. Expecially if it is a cheap down blanket, it may take a couple of washings to get the down as clean as possible. Hope this helps.


Cindy

Originally posted by magenta321
It's not nice when your tits and ass are covered in hives and you are trying to look professional.

Yeah, that looks like a hall-of-fame quote to me.

[sylvanb]

Can you ask Mom to wash it? Using Cindy's instructions....Seems fair.

[magenta321]

Thanks for all your help guys.

My father saw me this morning and realized how bad my hives were. He took the throw out of the livingroom and threw it on my mom's bed. Of course, this was after he was laying on "my" couch with that throw on him.

When I saw my mom tonight, I told her how miserable my day had been. I couldn't sleep a wink because of the hives, so by 6:30 (which is really early for me since I work nights) I gave up on trying to sleep and came out to the livingroom to watch tv, only to find my father on my couch with the damn thing. I was really upset about that whole thing. My hives are now the size of welts instead of hives. They're huge. They almost look like bed sores. I woke up with blood under my nails this morning from scratching so much in my "sleep."

I told my mom about this thread and about washing it (note, it is washable and I've asked her several times to wash it). I told her that Daddy, not me, had put it on her bed. I think she finally is getting it that it's making me very ill. Hopefully she won't bring that thing out again until she washes it thoroughly.

Now in the mean time I can't stop with the hives and the bleeding from scratching them. I have hydrocortozone all over my body and am taking benadryl round the clock. I still can't get over the reaction. What's the next step? How do I get over this. This is getting serious now.

[poseidon]

Try washing it in colorsafe bleach. The bleach should kill anything "living" that might be causing your hives.

I'm allergic to my future MIL's carpeting. Everytime I sit on it I get a rash on my arms (and legs if I'm wearing shorts). Pretty soon I'm going over with my carpet shampooer and I'll clean her carpets for her.

In the meantime, if you're not allergic to Benadryl, you might want to get a couple bottles. Nothing stops swelling and rashes faster than liquid Benadryl.

[poseidon]

It's not nice when your tits and ass are covered in hives and you are trying to look professional.

Pardon me for asking, but what profession are you in where you're displaying these... um... assets?

[theeye]

Originally posted by poseidon


Pardon me for asking, but what profession are you in where you're displaying these... um... assets?

I believe she views the public scratching of said areas to constitute the unprofessional appearance.

Unless she's in an unusual profession.

[poseidon]

Originally posted by theeye


I believe she views the public scratching of said areas to constitute the unprofessional appearance.

Unless she's in an unusual profession.

Hmmmm... men aren't that self-conscious. Most of us will scratch our assets without a second thought.

Of course, I show proper decorum...

[magenta321]

Yes, that's it Jeff. I am a receptionist. The normal kind -- so get any dirty thoughts out of your head. I work in a hospital and deal with a lot of really sick patients. So, first of all, having ugly welts on me doesn't look good (luckily, they've only been this bad for a few days, and I've been off for the holidays). I've been reported for *coughing* in my office (which is seperated by a window and a closed door from where the patients sit) by a really sick pt who thought I would make her sick. I can imagine what the welt-covered secretary would be reported for. Secondly, yes, it's impolite to scratch ones tits and ass in public, regardless of gender, although men won't think twice of scratching theirs (its still gross to scratch "private" areas in public, boys).

Thanks for the advice about liquid Benadryl. I actually just got back from the store buying more pill-form Benadryl when I read your post. The pills don't seem to be doing any good, and they say that they are for itchy runny eyes, and nasal symptoms (ie, not what I have right now). I also bought the benadryl spray, which claims to "block the hysamines that hydrocortozones miss", but that says that it is specifically designed for itching associated with poison ivy, sumac and the other itchy plant (can't remember which one it is). It says nothing about hives really, and it is very specific that it is for the treatment of those three plant-related allergic reactions. It does feel good when I first spray it though. It is cool, and it feels like it is sizzling on my hot skin (Jeff, keep your mind out of the gutter. This is not a Hotcandy review )

Any suggestions on how to get the allergins out of the house? Does lysol help, because I am getting high off the fumes right now

[hadassahchana[$]]

If your symptoms are that bad, why haven't you seen a doctor? This sounds like more than just a mild contact dermatitis, and having had a few really nasty allergic reactions I firmly believe that they are nothing to mess with. You may need something stronger now that you are very sensitive to everything around you.

Feel better, and let us know how you're doing.


Cindy

[poseidon]

Originally posted by magenta321
Yes, that's it Jeff. I am a receptionist. The normal kind -- so get any dirty thoughts out of your head. I work in a hospital and deal with a lot of really sick patients. So, first of all, having ugly welts on me doesn't look good (luckily, they've only been this bad for a few days, and I've been off for the holidays). I've been reported for *coughing* in my office (which is seperated by a window and a closed door from where the patients sit) by a really sick pt who thought I would make her sick. I can imagine what the welt-covered secretary would be reported for. Secondly, yes, it's impolite to scratch ones tits and ass in public, regardless of gender, although men won't think twice of scratching theirs (its still gross to scratch "private" areas in public, boys).

Thanks for the advice about liquid Benadryl. I actually just got back from the store buying more pill-form Benadryl when I read your post. The pills don't seem to be doing any good, and they say that they are for itchy runny eyes, and nasal symptoms (ie, not what I have right now). I also bought the benadryl spray, which claims to "block the hysamines that hydrocortozones miss", but that says that it is specifically designed for itching associated with poison ivy, sumac and the other itchy plant (can't remember which one it is). It says nothing about hives really, and it is very specific that it is for the treatment of those three plant-related allergic reactions. It does feel good when I first spray it though. It is cool, and it feels like it is sizzling on my hot skin (Jeff, keep your mind out of the gutter. This is not a Hotcandy review )

Any suggestions on how to get the allergins out of the house? Does lysol help, because I am getting high off the fumes right now

Lysol will help only if the allergin will react to the active ingredients in Lysol (or, in other words, if they haven't built up a tolerance to it).

Your body takes time to absorb medication in any pill form. The quickest way for your body to react is by inhalation, the second is from liquid.

When I took my Emergency First Aid class, they recommended that every First Aid Kit have liquid Benadryl because of how immediate it works -- for anything from allergic reactions to food to allergic reactions to bee stings. I'm sure that if your hives are as a result of allergies then it would react in a similar fashion.

I'd skip the spray Benadryl because you're wanting to ingest the stuff, not use it topically.

[magenta321]

If your symptoms are that bad, why haven't you seen a doctor?

No insurance. I gotta be on death's door before I'll shell out hundreds of dollars to a doctor. And I never get away with one Dr's visit... it always ends up being two or three, and then sometimes I am lucky enough to get refered to another doctor. It just seems so futile. I go through this crap way too often with my asthma as it is.

I am hoping that the combo of benadryl and the benadryl spray, plus the fact that the blanket is out of the livingroom will help me. If it gets too much worse I will probably have to suck it up and go to a dr, but that might mean I'll have to borrow money from my parents (which, I've always been too proud to ever do).

It hasn't gotten any worse since the blanket was removed. In fact, I think they are getting slightly better. I noticed a huge difference at the end of my work shift today (my first day in since Sunday). So, this was the first chance my body has had in a while to spend hours outside of the house. Hopefully being back to work will help out too. Now that I am back home again though, I am itchy. Oh well.

[jgibson2[$]]

Magenta,
I hope you have a friend you can stay with until your parents are more reasonable. You are having a serious, potentially life-threatening reaction to that stupid blanket. The fact that it makes you have difficulty breathing proves that. Hives are one thing, but what you have described is much more deadly.

read this article about anaphylaxis Print it out and hand it to your mom. Then find a friend to stay with until she washes the blanket and thoroughly vacuums the couches and anything else the blankets have been on.

You could die from this if you don't. Making your current symptoms go away may take steroids -- either by mouth or by injection. That's a temporary fix if the blanket stays unwashed in your house, though.

[magenta321]

I just wanted to thank everyone for help with this problem!

Judy, I cited your article in a fight to get that blanket out of the livingroom. Even though my mom bought the blanket, there was no reasoning with her. I showed my father what it did to me (after I found him laying on my couch with it on him), and he put it in her room. I don't know what he finally said to my mom (we work opposite shifts, so it was taken while she was working, and discussed while I was working), but she has not taken it back out into common areas.

I still have sores all over my arms and legs. They're like scratched chicken pox, so I some at least will scar (my chicken pox did anyway). At least they weren't on my face this time (got a chicken pox scar on my face, right near my eye and it bothers me). However, new hives are limited. I probably missed something that was contaminated with it, but I still can't figure out what that thing is (maybe my car? I might have carried the dander into it).

I just wanted to update you all and thank you for your help. Crisis is pretty much over Thanks!

[jgibson2[$]]

I'm glad to hear that things are better at your house. If you don't want those scratched hives to scar, try a little antibiotic ointment. Neosporin gets away with advertising that they prevent scarring and things heal faster because they've done the studies and run them past the FDA. They're not the only effective brand, just the one that paid for the studies.

Judy