Please let me know if anyone knows of a good doctor that will listen to symptoms and past history of chronic hives.
I got them in 1994 and they were in such a vicious cycle that they would not stop until I had a series of steroid injections and pills for one month. They would calm down and then slowly start up again in the legs and eventually spread everywhere. They are mostly in the legs and buttocks.
It seemed like I would get them when I had sinus infections paired up with stepping foot on a cold surface. Yes, cold floors set off the hives. Even pressure and touch when they were in overtime.
I had to write down all of my foods, and use a gentle baby soap with no smell made out of corn, I think. The laundry detergent was a no scent, anti-allergic baby laundry soap. Because I have migraines on the side, my food is pretty limited. No soy sauce, no aged cheese, no restaurants, no chocolate. So that is not an issue. I am reviewing the histamine-free diet now and will try to be more gluten-free. What the hay.
All of those medical records with no diagnosis except “hives” and treatment with steroids is in another country where I lived 17 years. The temperature year around was 85°F and it was typical to have marble floors so they were always icy cold. I always wore my thongs (new word-flip flops). My feet take a long time to get warm because I had frost bite at the age of 10. That is what makes me think I am not so intolerant to cold because if I went back to the Midwest over the holidays, it would take a long time for my feet to heat up and they would get red, itchy welts.
When I finally took an aggressive treatment for sinus infection in that country. Changed diet to present, and drank a natural yogurt daily, I did not have them for 3-4 years. The yogurt I drank was a natural form that I have not been able to find here in the U.S. It looks like white coral or a white head of cauliflower. Every day it had to be strained with a plastic sieve, to another glass, then pour sterilized water from a glass bowl, not metal to clean it, and then put it in a sterilized glass, fill up with milk, and put a cheese clothe with a rubber band to keep it clean and breath on the counter. The next day, the same process. That cauliflower looking stuff would grow and you could pinch it off and give to a neighbor for them to start their own. I have no idea how it gets started. That is the big secret. This yogurt was for people with stomach problems. After two months, I had no more symptoms of the hives. I was hive free.
We moved back to the states in 2006 and not until now do I have this again. The doctor in East Peoria told me to not use soap, do not use laundry soap, and make a diary of food. I explained to him that I have done that all before in the past and would like some other kinds of tests. I am back to square one and feel like crying. Of course I will follow those orders but I would just like to be tested properly.
This itch is so maddening and I am not a complainer but it really pulls me down. If you say you broke out again, the family is like, oh, okay. You cannot help but become insensitive about this because it gets old when it happens for years. I am not ready to go back to this itch and waste another $3000 before some doctor decides to listen.
So, does anyone know of a good general physician in the Peoria area? I am on a network of doctors with the insurance and can even go anywhere in the state of Illinois. It would be nice to stay in this area where I live but I just want things ruled out.
Kefir Grains is that yogurt! Take time to "google it" because it is very beneficial to your system. It is intended for people with digestive problems.
I totally sympathize with you. I have had chronic hives for 6 years. I have gone all over the country trying to find a treatment that would help. I live in Wisconsin and have gone to mayo clinic in Minnesota and after seeing that doctor for a year with no results he referred me to Allen Kaplan, an allergist in South Carolina who is supposed to be the best in the country for urticaria, to no avail. He is also a reference given on the thunderworks site.
What has been explained to me is that almost all cases of chronic hives are idiopathic and they will never find the reason, it is an autoimmune problem where histamines are being released for no apparent reason. I do have hypothyroidism but was told that no evidence has really shown that there is a connection.
The only thing that has ever had the slightest effect is prednisone, and believe me I have been on every medication that they could think of, nothing has worked.
Since your insurance covers you anywhere in the state, I would suggest that you make an appointment with an allergist at Rush Presbyterian in Chicago. I knows its a long drive from Peoria, but there is no sense in wasting your time with a GP. They might need you to have multiple appointments at first, but they will run every test available to rule out any underlying conditions that may be causing the hives.
http://www.rush.edu/rumc/page-1099611551289.html
I hope you find a solution, I know it becomes very depressing and is not something you ever get used to. It's hard for others to realize what a really horrible condition this is to have.
God bless
Oh! I was looking for the yogurt that you mentioned and ran across this blog where she had a picture of her yogurt culture. Someone said they thought it was actually a Kefir culture, which led me to this:
http://food.lifeisround.com/kefir-how.html
Take a look and see if this is what you are talking about, I would love to know if this is what you were using to help your hives so that I can try some!
