Question about allergies

[Wendy]

.

[El Bandito]

From my vast repository of knowledge....

 

 

 

 

 

nope.....I got nothing.

 

 

Sorry.

 

Great to hear from you though!

[Devil Doll]

My seasonal allergies are worse. Much worse actually. My sinuses completely shut down at least twice a year and I am on a ton of allergy meds. Allegra in the morning Zyrtec at night, and Flonase twice a day.

[Dentalfloss]

I have always had a dry scalp but after I quit developed  patches of what looked like cradle cap and it took many different shampoos to find one that worked. I don't know if its still there because I still use the shampoo just because it itched so bad that I dug my head raw and I don't want that again.  My husbands allergies got worse after quitting and he tried all kinds of meds until he found one that works...for now. But it doesn't completely take away every symptom. 

I told him time and time again to go to the doctor but he wont so I'm like whatever, suffer if you want to be stubborn.

He quit last November so I assume they are permanent but who knows.

Everyone is different though.

Are your temporary methods working and are they easier or harder that permanent methods?

If the temporary methods work and aren't too much trouble, I say stick with those for now and if something changes try the other routes.
 

[Tink]

Hi Wendy great to hear from you :)

 

The first year my hay fever was worse, this year normal for the time of year but difficult for me to judge really as am flitting from different areas in different seasons but the first year with a new nose was sensitive to all sorts of smells and pollen etc

 

We don't have that layer of cack and boogers that smoking caused a crust acting as a layer, if you are on medics for allergies I would talk to doctors to up strength or try something new, what worked for you before might not be good now?

 

I only have low tolerance for pollen so no expert in this field I'm afraid xx

[Wendy]

. 

[Evelyn]

Well I have / curiously only on one hand; eczemia between my fingersonly on my right hand. Tried hormon creme from doc, other stuff too... but it won't go away.
Strangely I cannot drink tea anymore the 'herbs' make my throat irritated and coughing. But my asthma has improved.
So i drink lotsa water.
From extreme stress you can develop temproral ecsemia. I had it with all kinds of baindaids winter2 years back and even sensitive ones I got red spots. It went away after I settled down

[Dentalfloss]

The temporary methods sort of work but they are a faff and only partially preventative. I'm stuck with treating mostly. I take antihistamines daily anyway and now have another tablet to take at night to try and stop me scratching whilst asleep - as like you I scratched myself raw. Basically, wherever I sweat I itch madly and come out in a rash - even when showering straight after exercise for example. I also have creams and lotions to use. This is on top of contact dermatitis.

 

If its a permanent thing I'd like to try and find a preventative measure where I don't need the pills and potions. I have no idea how I'm going to accomplish this other than dunking myself in a bucket of extra strong antiperspirant and swaddling in cotton. One of my preventative methods for the contact dermatitis involves using gloves when cleaning for example - but the gloves make my hands sweat ... so I've started using cotton gloves inside my rubber gloves and my hands sweat less ... I'm just not sure how to apply that to the rest of me ... So temporary would be better ...

 

 

Thanks for your input folks.

 

Could the sweat allergy possibly be caused by something in your diet?

You could always try an elimination diet or go to a specialist and ask for tests.

I wish I could help more as I know how miserable it can be.

Have you tried steroids? I've heard they help but I have no experience with them.

[Frezflops]

I have had excema on and off all my life with sensitive skin related to perfumed products and soaps use all-free for clothes and bounce free for dryer sheets.....my allergies have evolved to something a bit different as I got older, I used to be highly allergic to all cats as a kid but now only certain ones most I am ok around. I have slight environmental allergies in regards to respiratory but I have bad reactions to seasonal allergies in regards to my eyes puff up (kind of looks like excema around my eyes) itchy I use a script to ease that up along with zyrtec. I dont believe any of my allergies getting worse or better have anything to do with my quitting, It is a different animal entirely as what I am allergic to has changed over my lifetime, some go away some get worse.

[Wendy]

. 

[Still winning]

Oh no idea Wendy, sounds rough that you're having to struggle with something new though. Good to hear your quit is solid and to just hear from you though. x

[eriklamb]

my reaction to pollen is crazy this year (I quit in Dec), I also got some sorts dry scalp for s bit when I first quit but it was also winter and zi have dreads. Best of luck to you!

[Colleen]

Hi folks, hope your all well.  I'm back with a question that google has only been able to partially answer for me!  I'm hoping you may be able to fill in the gaps!

 

So, since I quit smoking my allergies seem to have gotten worse.  As some of you know, my mouth has become stupidly sensitive without the smoke but so has the rest of me.  Now this may have absolutely nothing to do with quitting and just be that my body hates me more as I'm getting older but the timing fits and t'internet says it's a thing so it must be true right? 

 

I've had eczema for as long as I can remember and am used to self treating/preventing etc.  I know which products work for me and which don't.  But now it appears I'm allergic to my own sweat.  Google says that's a thing too!  Cholinergic urticaria ... who'd'a thunk it?  This is a little harder to treat/prevent/cope with but is doable with adaptation. 

 

My question then is this.  Did you have allergies prior to quitting, and once quit, did those allergies get worse or did you develop new allergies?  If so ... is this permanent??  Or, as with a lot of the weird and wonderful "quit symptoms" did it settle down with time??

 

I can adapt my coping methods if its a temporary thing.  If its a permanent change then I need to find new preventative methods and I should probably start sooner rather than later ... I just don't want to go down that road unless it's really necessary.

 

So, what do you think?  Temporary or permanent??  

I am having a horrible time with hives.  I'm on Benadryl around the clock, also take Zyrtec.  Take Pepcid as it's an h2 histamine blocker.  I was at the ER 2 weeks ago, had steroids and Pepcid via iv and given an Epi-pen and a prescription for Prednisone for 2 weeks.  Was great until 2 days after I was done with the Prednisone.  This all started last year while taking a Sulfur antibiotic (Bactrim) and I figured it was an allergy to sulfites which is in everything.  Now I'm not so sure.  I am completely miserable with these hives.  The only time they do not bother me is when I exercise and for a couple hours afterwards.  

 

Logically, allergies cannot be from quitting.  It just doesn't make sense.  Perhaps it is something different we do or ingest.  I'm thinking that why I feel better while exercising is I'm getting rid of toxins.  I can't be sure though.  Somethings gotta change soon or I am going to go beserk.

 

What's with the sensitive mouth?  Occasionally, I get a couple of hives in my mouth/tongue.

[BonnieJ]

I have never had allergies, but when I first quit I could not stop sneezing. It seems more particles get into your sinuses now that all the smoke gook is no longer coating your nose hairs(ewwwww).

 

For me the sneezing stopped after about a month. 

[Ramona]

I am incredibly sorry for all those suffering with these ailments.  YUCK and SUCK!!!  I hope you all find a reliable path to relief!!

[Wendy]

. 

[Colleen]

That sounds rough Colleen ... it's especially bad when you don't know what is causing your reactions.  I had that about 15 years ago when I started getting big red welts on my skin - large red raised skin that was hot to the touch and incredibly itchy ... they would start each day around 4pm and be gone the next morning.  Really odd and stopped as suddenly as it started.  Never did work out what caused it.  The hospital were useless and gave me a list of items that could cause hives and another list of items that could make them worse.  Probably about 200 items on each list!!  

 

You've probably already done this, but just in case (or for anyone else suffering) have you looked at the ingredients in your beauty products??  Specifically look out for: Sodium Lauryl Sulphate; Sodium Laureth Sulphate; and Methylisothiazolinone.  The first two are foaming agents, the last is a preservative to give products a longer shelf life, and all are known skin irritants and are causing a lot of allergic reactions in people.  They're hard to avoid 'cos they're in everything (shampoo, toothpaste, shower gels, creams, makeup, dishwasher soap, etc etc).  Sodium Laureth Sulphate is the lesser of the three evils (it's used specifically in baby products and those for sensitive skin).  Try and avoid all three if you can but definitely the Methyl- or MI as its abbreviated to.

 

The reason I think quitting may be a factor is a simple concept.  As we know, cigarettes contain minute amounts of hundreds of chemicals.  And we take a dose of those chemicals 10, 20, 30, 40 times a day.  Whilst they are usually causing all sorts of horrible side effects (I've had one issue clear up completely by not smoking which I thought was a food intolerance), we could also be self-medicating with these very same chemicals ... my mouth sensitivity backs this up (for me personally).

 

You may have heard part of this story before but when I quit smoking I got a LOT of mouth ulcers/cankers.  And they didn't go away.  As soon as I started smoking again, they went away.  It took me a long time to figure this one out and I'm still working on it.  But my toothpaste and mouthwash were the primary cause along with the products I was using to fight the damn ulcers/cankers - they were making them worse!  Used specifically to counter gum disease caused by smoking, as a non-smoker my toothpaste and mouthwash were burning my mouth and/or causing massive irritation.  I eventually found a toothpaste that worked for me.  I heavily dilute my mouthwash and only have it in my mouth for about 10 seconds - more than that I can feel it burning but without it the gum disease goes mental.  But that wasn't the end of the issue.  Most but not all the ulcers/cankers disappeared.  I've discovered I have a problem with fruit.  I don't yet know if its all fruit or just grapes specifically ... I think it's just grapes from my "experiments".  But yeah, still working on it.

 

And now the sweat thing!  

 

Thanks everyone for your input.

Wendy

Did you ever think about fruit with skin as being the culprit?  I went to urgent care yesterday and she asked me if I eat a lot of fruit with skin.  I don't think that's what my problem is.  Now I am on Prednisone, Zyrtec, and Pepcid in the morning.  In the evening, I am taking Atarax and Pepcid.  

[Wendy]

.