Allergic reaction experiences?

[Tinker'n'Fun]

I have always been a horrible pill taker. Many upset my stomach which throw me into a panic.

I am allergic to Sulpha drugs which was an easy find after a day at an amusement park when I was a teenager. No one else got any sun, I was full of hives that looked like a huge sunburn.

Now I am careful. I had to start Augmentin yesterday and I have some little stabs of itches. No rash, no breathing problems, just these quick stabs of itch. I will take my pill this morning an re-evaluate later today. I could very much be doing this to myself.


As for your reaction I worked in a pharmacy. Some pills were closer to expiration than others. Could the antibiotic you took break down into something else like aspirin does? You may want to consider it as you may have a totally different or an extra allergy along with the antibiotic. Plus those fillers are horrible to people with allergies.

Hope you are feeling better really soon!

[fairestoneofall]

i am allergic to amoxicillin. i am never prescribed any of the "cillins" because of it. (sorry--i'm not a nurse, so i know that's not a technical term.)

i had Group B Strep with my last baby. they had to find something they thought i could take. within 20 minutes, my head started itching like crazy! i could not scratch it enough! the nurse had to shoot me full of Benadryl!

DS is allergic to peanuts and walnuts. when he was a toddler, we had to get him tested to find out what he was allergic to. he'd get hives around his mouth when he'd eat certain things. we just wanted to be sure we knew what to avoid.

[Muushka]

Just a side note. If you have a UTI, it is not a good idea to just take an antibiotic, for a host of reasons. Even if they haven't expired.

My sister, a pharmacist, only gives meds up to 1 year after expiration
(at home, not at work) and that is dependent on the drug.

If someone truly has a UTI, by taking that one antibiotic messes up any culture and sensitivity that may be necessary to properly treat the infection.

OP, glad you are all right.

I only had one very allergic reaction (a couple of mild ones). My entire trunk was a mass of swollen and rash. I was physically sick, stomach ache, chills, aching all over. Went to the Urgent Care (I don't go there unless it is serious!) and got treatment. It was a very scary ordeal, one that I have no desire to repeat, just wish I knew what caused it!

[jenjifer]

Oh yes!

At age 38, I suddenly became allergic to NSAIDS. Some backstory -- I was suffering a pretty bad case of chronic hives which we eventually determined was brought on by a latex reaction. I had hives on my arms and torso constantly, and some days I'd wake up looking like a cartoon character with my upper lip protruding! (All this time allergist was trying different meds to suppress the hives). Then one morning I woke up and took some advil ('cause I was sore from joining a gym the day before -- always knew exercise would kill me) soon noticed it was getting really hard to breathe -- throat felt like it was closing. Ended up in ER. Eventually remembered that I had taken some Advil another time during the whole chronic hives experience I had taken Advil and one of my eyes became so swollen I couldn't see.

I wholeheartedly believe change in my body chemistry had to do that I had just weaned my baby from nursing, so things weren't working as they had before. Really weird.

Hope you figure it out -- it's scary!

[lemondog]

OP that reaction actually sounds kind of like erythema multiforme, which is a very serious allergic reaction one step away from Stevens-Johnson Syndrome. Be very very careful!

[Debbie7452]

I once had a serious allergic reaction to an anti-biotic. However, it wasn't your average itchy rash, swelling kind of reaction. First I turned bright red all over, then I began to itch all over (wanted serious meds at this point), then I got this crazy vivid rash all over (it didn't hurt or anything), the next day my joints swelled up: knees, ankles, wrists. Soon after that I was unable to get up as my spine was affected. My limbs just wouldn't operate properly. I started to think I was either going crazy or I was gonna die at this point. I saw all kinds of specialists who thought everything from Lyme disease to Leukemia. They did NOT think it was all from an allergy reaction. It took a month to get over this deal and I was pretty weak for a good while. It was so weird. I never do anything in an average way!

It started to happen a second time to a different anti-biotic. This time I went straight to my Dr. and demanded epinephrine and steroids and it stopped the reaction before all the other steps happened.

[KimR]

I've been getting rashes and itching now for about 9 months and still haven't figures out what is causing it. I suspect it's something I'm ingesting, but I've stopped all vitamins and have tried eliminating obvious foods (wheat, fruit, nuts, etc), but with no luck.

[minkydog]

I am really surprised that as a nurse you would save antibiotics from a previous infection, then take them because you suspected a UTI. Even a new nurse should know better than to do that. The reason the doctor gives you 5 or 7 or 10 days worth of antibiotics is because it takes that many to completely treat the infection. You should take every single dose. You know better. Incompletely treated infections can mutate into a bacteria that becomes immune to that antibiotic in the future.

I hope your suspected infection gets better. If you continue to have symptoms, i hope you will go to the doctor so you can get a real diagnosis and appropriate treatment. Let your doctor know you had a bad reaction to Cipro, too.

[minkydog]

Originally Posted by KimR

I've been getting rashes and itching now for about 9 months and still haven't figures out what is causing it. I suspect it's something I'm ingesting, but I've stopped all vitamins and have tried eliminating obvious foods (wheat, fruit, nuts, etc), but with no luck.

You may have something called "chronic urticaria"--urticaria means itching. It's caused by release of histamines into the bloodstream and the itching can be maddening. Usually the rashes move around, rather than staying always in one place. Often, allergy testing reveals no clear allergies. It may be treated with daily allergy meds and sometimes with Zantac, which is a histamine inhibitor sometimes used for acid reflux. (I've had chronic urticaria for over 10 years. it waxes and wanes. Sometimes I can hardly keep my hands from constantly scratching. I'm sure people think I have fleas!)

[Pixiedust34]

Originally Posted by Darcy03231

I hate having to get antibiotics for anything because I'm allergic to penicillan, sulfer, cephlasporins, zithromax, codeine and ibuprofin.

I'm allergic to penicillin, Zithromax, and sulfa medications. I'm prone to sinus and ear infections and am worried there will be nothing for me to take if/when I get sick. Is there an antibiotic out there that doesn't fall under the common allergy list?

My reactions were a rash, being itchy, and numb lips.

[SandrA9810]

Originally Posted by njmom47

My story:
Back about 1982, I dated a guy who made really good money and lived at home. We would go out to dinner a LOT, to a lobster/seafood place.
I must've eaten lobster 20 times that year.
Anyway, fast forward to 1987. Lobster tails for dinner. ER visit ensues.
A few months later, Shrimp Chow Mein. ER visit ensues. A few months after that, very expensive restaurant while on vacation, scallops. Another ER visit.
I have given up shellfish, and to this day, I am afraid to eat it! I miss it terribly.
I have no explanation why I could eat it regularly, and suddenly be allergic.

Sounds like my sister when I was little. My cousin had sent fresh steak and lobsters for Christmas Dinner. Afterwards, we went to our friend's house down the street and she up and left suddenly, telling me I could stay there. I got home a few hours later to learn that she was at the ER for a reaction to shellfish. Now she can eat shellfish again just fine.

[LisaR]

Originally Posted by minkydog

I am really surprised that as a nurse you would save antibiotics from a previous infection, then take them because you suspected a UTI. Even a new nurse should know better than to do that. The reason the doctor gives you 5 or 7 or 10 days worth of antibiotics is because it takes that many to completely treat the infection. You should take every single dose. You know better. Incompletely treated infections can mutate into a bacteria that becomes immune to that antibiotic in the future.

I hope your suspected infection gets better. If you continue to have symptoms, i hope you will go to the doctor so you can get a real diagnosis and appropriate treatment. Let your doctor know you had a bad reaction to Cipro, too.

I read the OP and that is the very first thing that entered into my mind and I am not a nurse.

Why did you even have "leftover" antibiotics? There isn't any such thing as leftovers when it comes to antibiotics! You're a nurse. You'd be ticked if a patient came in and said they were still sick and you found out they only took some of their antibiotic. And I can't imagine rushing to the medicine cabinet because I didn't urinate enough and I didn't have any other symptoms or a test to confirm a UTI. The overuse of antibiotics is common knowledge, so I certainly wouldn't put them in my body because I didn't pee enough in an hour.

[njmom47]

Originally Posted by minkydog

You may have something called "chronic urticaria"--urticaria means itching. It's caused by release of histamines into the bloodstream and the itching can be maddening. Usually the rashes move around, rather than staying always in one place. Often, allergy testing reveals no clear allergies. It may be treated with daily allergy meds and sometimes with Zantac, which is a histamine inhibitor sometimes used for acid reflux. (I've had chronic urticaria for over 10 years. it waxes and wanes. Sometimes I can hardly keep my hands from constantly scratching. I'm sure people think I have fleas!)

I get wicked hives on my hands and feet for no reason. ONLY on my hands and feet! I can't find any rhyme or reason to them, so I asked my Doc and that was his answer. Benadryl spray works pretty well on them, or running my hands/feet under cold water.

SandrA9810, I WANT to try eating shellfish again but my family won't let me! I figure after all these years I should be ok.

[fairestoneofall]

Originally Posted by KimR

I've been getting rashes and itching now for about 9 months and still haven't figures out what is causing it. I suspect it's something I'm ingesting, but I've stopped all vitamins and have tried eliminating obvious foods (wheat, fruit, nuts, etc), but with no luck.

you should visit an allergist.

[pixiewings71]

I'm allergic to Erythromycin, but nothing else. I always take all my antibiotics but I know plenty of people who don't. lol I have had reactions like that to other things, but with Erythromycin I was just itchy all over my legs, no swelling just massive itch, that's how most of my allergic reactions are but they are pretty mild. with the Erythromycin the Dr just gave me a new pill to take.