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I have some allergy fears about anaphylactic shock
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WingZero
Veteran Member
Joined : Oct 2011
Posts : 604
Posted 2/19/2015 6:22 PM (GMT 0)
I went on vacation back in December. I ate a variety of foods at an Indian restaurant, everything was going well. The meal lasted about
an hour and then I left and got on the bus to head back to the hotel. about
10 minutes after getting on the bus (~30mins since actually eating), I had a moment where I felt like I couldn't swallow. It scared me to death! It did pass but by then my heart was racing, I felt like I needed to go to the bathroom urgently, and in general I was just not sure what was happening to me! I made the mistake of going online when everything had passed (about
1-2 hours later and many trips to the bathroom), and of course the first thing that pops up is anaphylactic shock. I have since had constant nausea and am pretty scared to eat most foods, and have been terrified of going out to eat.
I did go to the allergist for a skin prick test and everything came back negative. He does not think I have anything to worry about
and that I can eat whatever I want, but I am struggling. I do believe at this point my fears are in my head and so I was hoping that maybe you guys could tell me what having a food allergy really feels like. My therapist says anaphylaxis is something that develops almost instantly, and that a delayed reaction is something where you would get itchy after. I had no itching or hives or swelling that night. Just the swallowing thing.
Just hoping for some personal stories and extra reassurance so that hopefully I can put this to rest.
Thank you.
Alcie
Veteran Member
Joined : Oct 2009
Posts : 5200
Posted 2/20/2015 12:17 AM (GMT 0)
Hi there, WingZero.
I've had anaphylaxis and it does hit instantly. I bit into a cake that had some sort of nut and felt the throat closing sensation before I reflexively swallowed. Swallowing was a really big mistake, but I had Benadryl and Alevert on hand and had only eaten a small bite. You should keep those with you at all times too. And your allergist should have given you a prescript
ion for 2 Epi Pens. (One's not enough, only lasts minutes while you're trying to get to a hospital, which you should have done!)
But! Sensitivity can be as bad and comes on in a half hour to 2 hours. Usually. I have one that takes 8 hours.
Anyway, obviously you ate something that caused a reaction. (To me, at least. Not a doctor. so see one who really knows something.) Skin pricks don't test for everything!!! I had a GOOD allergist though, and she had me keep a food journal and sort out my trigger foods.
No!!! You DON'T need to have an itchy reaction afterward. That's only for "true allergies," and not even all of those. Dollars to doughnuts, you have a food or chemical sensitivity.
The heart racing, and sometimes the bathroom, is the reaction I get to foods with sulfites, but yours could have been something else altogether. Have you ever had this before or since? If not, it's not likely to be sulfite. That's in lots of foods. Go back to the restaurant and find out what was in that meal if it's remotely possible. If you can't, look up recipes for the Indian dishes you ate. See if there's something, a spice maybe, that you've never used.
The nausea could be just panic. I'm no psychologist. I wouldn't worry. Just see a different therapist if you want some better advice. And next time you get a reaction go to the ER fast and have someone get the recipe of the food! Curry maybe? I really have no idea, but you don't want to repeat this. Personally while Indian food is great, I'd avoid it from now on if I had a reaction to it.
WingZero
Veteran Member
Joined : Oct 2011
Posts : 604
Posted 2/20/2015 12:42 PM (GMT 0)
I don't think the allergist thought it was an anaphylactic reaction. It passed relatively quickly and I didn't have a throat closing sensation, just a moment where it felt like the muscles in my throat wouldn't swallow. Honestly the bigger symptoms were the needing to go to the bathroom a lot and shaking/trembling throughout the night. But the swallowing thing is what sent me into a panic in the first place. I have never had THIS reaction before - not to food - although I did have a similar reaction a few months back at the dentist after they injected me with lidocaine/epi and I swallowed some of the topical lidocaine.
My PcP initially thought it was a reaction to MSG. I'm not sure though because I've eaten chinese and Indian food before with no problems! This was the first time this has happened with food. It's hard to pinpoint what exactly happened that night.
Alcie
Veteran Member
Joined : Oct 2009
Posts : 5200
Posted 2/20/2015 3:12 PM (GMT 0)
Your reaction to swallowing epinephrine at the dentist's is not uncommon. I had that once many years ago.
Epinephrine contains sulfite, which is what I react to, but dentists are stopping using it because of so many people having heart reactions, although not usually from sulfite. It's used to get hearts going in CPR. Make sure you tell the dentist to use anesthetic without it in the future. Since you react to it at the dentist, tell doctors to use local anesthetics without epi for procedures too.
You did have a reaction to that food, just not anaphylaxis. There are a lot of chemicals besides MSG and sulfites that trigger reactions. If this is the only time you've ever had these symptoms it's hard to know what it was unless you find out exactly what you ate. I can't eat at some Italian restaurants, but I know what sets me off.
WingZero
Veteran Member
Joined : Oct 2011
Posts : 604
Posted 2/20/2015 3:21 PM (GMT 0)
My big fear is/was anaphylaxis. It has taken a while to get my brain to stop going there when I eat. I have to battle myself mentally. I've never had food allergies, although I do have Crohns disease. I've wondered if maybe the spice just irritated my system. I'd also had a frozen margarita with everything and maybe dehydration played some part in this?
But the swallowing thing was weird and scary! And going online and having the first thing pop up be anaphylaxis scared the crap out of me. I guess I'm hoping to get a better idea of what happened or atleast hear other experiences to help reassure me that even if it was allergies, that it's not as bad as I am making it out to be in my head.
Alcie
Veteran Member
Joined : Oct 2009
Posts : 5200
Posted 2/21/2015 11:45 PM (GMT 0)
Well, the margarita mix had a bunch of stuff that can cause a reaction in sensitive individuals. I couldn't drink it. the alcohol part in the drink isn't the problem, it's the (unlabeled) sulfited lime juice. I'd still suspect some seasoning though, if you've never had this reaction before.
Your reaction is not nothing. I ignored my tachycardia episodes for a couple of years, until one morning after eating a bowl of cereal with dried fruit, I had tach that continued into a heart attack. My coronary arteries were spasming and the LAD shut down to 5%. Don't yours get that far before keeping a food journal and finding out what you react to.
WingZero
Veteran Member
Joined : Oct 2011
Posts : 604
Posted 2/22/2015 1:51 AM (GMT 0)
Yeah but it only happened the one time? I don't want to get worked up about
it if it was really nothing. :\
TroubledTurds
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Joined : Jan 2004
Posts : 8717
Posted 2/22/2015 4:42 AM (GMT 0)
any chance it was a panic attack ?
WingZero
Veteran Member
Joined : Oct 2011
Posts : 604
Posted 2/22/2015 1:31 PM (GMT 0)
I definitely think I had a panic attack that night. But I'm not sure *why*. The swallowing thing seemed to come out of no where. Although I had been stressed before I went out to eat so maybe that was it? And I did eat and drink way more than I usually do. I wondered if it was my Crohns flaring up or motion sickness, or maybe because I hardly ever eat spicy foods it irritated my throat somehow.
TroubledTurds
Veteran Member
Joined : Jan 2004
Posts : 8717
Posted 2/22/2015 4:31 PM (GMT 0)
i know sometimes (or most times), it's easier said than done, but i wouldn't give it a second thought - and with time, that will be a lot easier -
good luck and enjoy life !
WingZero
Veteran Member
Joined : Oct 2011
Posts : 604
Posted 2/22/2015 10:38 PM (GMT 0)
Thank you, I'll keep trying. It's hard trying to convince your brain to get over something when you don't know what happened. It's weird that it went to the allergy conclusion! Hopefully this will clear up in time.
TroubledTurds
Veteran Member
Joined : Jan 2004
Posts : 8717
Posted 2/23/2015 5:23 AM (GMT 0)
i was reminded today that about
12 years ago, at age 46, I had a TIA - it was scary and changed my life significantly - for about
a month
it was just some freak anomaly, never had another one, most likely never will -
that's life for ya !
WingZero
Veteran Member
Joined : Oct 2011
Posts : 604
Posted 2/23/2015 3:14 PM (GMT 0)
Life has a funny way of knocking you off your feet sometimes, that's for sure! It takes so much longer to get yourself back together than it does to fall apart.
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