Weird allergy phobia - advice?

[Suzzie666]

Thank god I found this thread.

12 months ago I had a severe reaction to penicillin. Within 10 minutes of taking it my throat was closing my tongue had swelled, I was struggling to get my breath, was tachycardia, shaking from head to toe and I was covered head to toe in a measles type rash. I had to have an ambulance and was taken to resus where they gave me all sorts of drugs and got things under control. I was discharged 6 hours later. They never said it was anaphylaxis but they also never said it wasn't.
The thing is I had taken penicillin many many times throughout my life.

Ever since then I have been getting anxiety and panic attack which have been worsening over the months.
I can't take any tablets through fear of this happening again. I can just about take paracetamol but I'm on hyper alert every time for about half an hour.

The fear is now spreading into other aspects of my life such as food. I can't try anything new and even food I've had many times sends me into panic.
I made fish tonight for tea and was unable to eat it. I was sat having palpitations at the thought.
My fear is if I can have such a severe reaction to penicillin which I've take many times throughout my life then surely I could have a reaction to anything I've had before. The panic attacks seem to be coming from nowhere now, even when I'm not thinking about the triggers.

I also started suffering with hives ( around 6 months following penicillin event) which the GP say is dermatographism ( a type of hives caused by pressure to the skin) I come out with red itchy lumps when my skin is scratched or pressure is applied. As you can imagine this really isn't helping. GP says stress has caused this. My irrational thinking says I'm reacting to something and then I start panicking which mimic reaction symptoms IYSWIM.
I seem to be in a vicious circle and I don't know how to get out.
Anyway i am to start my first therapy session in 2 weeks. I so hope this is going to help me.

Thanks again for this site.
X

[anthrokid]

Hey Mrsstew, sorry for the late response. I hadn't realised somoene had commented here in recent weeks. I'm sorry to hear of your experience. Like you, I have many slight allergies, and a couple of severe allergies. When I was at the height of my anxiety and panic attacks I was terrified to eat anything in case I had a reaction. Like you, I also had panic attacks when I ate and thought these were reactions and that I was dying. It's an awful cycle, isn't it. How are you coping now? I hope your holiday went well.

---------- Post added at 13:49 ---------- Previous post was at 13:43 ----------

Hi suzzie, welcome to the allergyphobe thread. Although I wish I didn't have to welcome you, because I know how difficult it is to cope with this anxiety. I'm sorry to read of your experience. It sounds like that was really frightening for you, and I understand why you are so anxious about further allergic reactions. Hopefully working together with your GP and a therapist will help you manage this anxiety and hopefully overcome it. It is great to hear that you've sought some support. I managed to push work through this and, whilst I still suffer from a little allergy anxiety, it is now only limited to the two things I actually have severe reactions to, which is a fantastic result compared to the anxiety I had around every single food! It can take a lot of work, but you can definitely learn to manage and work through this. Please keep us updated with your experience and journey. It can be really helpful to share your experiences with people who understand

[worrywart29]

I'm so glad I found this thread I've been suffering from the same thing as all of you. It started when I bought some fresh coconut and made a smoothie before I drank it I remember thinking to myself I hope I'm not allergic. I still drunk it any way, within seconds of swallowing it I felt like my throat was closing it was itchy and I couldn't swallow however I was able to gulp down three bottles of water which should have told me my throat was not closed Lol but at that moment I wasn't thinking rationally I ended up driving myself to the emergency room walked in saw how crowded it was then left as I started feeling better on the drive over. Since then foods that I used to eat daily scares me I used to eat all type of things with no regard to getting sick now I have a list of things I consider safe and just last night one of the items on my safe list got removed because I thought before eating it that I hope I don't go in to shock which of course made me feel like I was going in to shock. I want so badly to feel better and eat like before but seems like if I even think that the food might make me sick I start to feel sick. I don't know how to get out of this I tried something new for lunch and now I'm sitting here at work with a tight throat and panicking which is What made me search for this thread in the first place. Im just so fed up with this

[saridaki]

Hello everyone.I am a new member on this site and I am learning how to use it..Anyway great to read your articles about fears because I have also developed fears as such and its taken me by surprise because I was never like that before. Such an overwhelming feeling that causes me to feel sad Anyway my worse fear has been that I will get an allergic reaction when I colour my hair..Its so stupid as I have been coluring my hair for years and all of a sudden I panic and I imagine all sort of catastrophic scenarios. I want to wish you all that you get a pwerful mind not to let nothing scare you,..

[burgundysuitcase]

Hi all,

Well where do I start? I have food phobias, all sorts of phobias towards bath foam, shampoo, foods, pills, almost everything, to the point where my diet is limited. I'm also menopausal which means that sometimes I get allergy symptoms. I also have GERD which gives out further allergy symptoms. It's good to know I'm not alone.

So, for some years I've had irrational fear of nuts and mushrooms. I kind of settled into that, thinking 'well, I can live without them' (BOTH foods I have consumed in HUGE amounts through my life, back in the day the mushroom pizza had to be triple mushrooms or I was missing out. I got through maybe a bag of nuts a day. I've never had a major allergic reaction in my life, except to a synthetic progesterone called Desogestrel which was in my contraceptive pill and caused swollen lymph nodes in my groin, and penicillins, that give me green diarrhoea. I hope that's not TMI but those are my only true allergies. I also have to stay away from white sugar as it makes me itch and am lactose intolerant. I mean yes, I do have real reactions to food. Intolerances aren't from the same enzymes as allergies, AKA I've done my research. It doesn't help me. My fears remain. They get worse. I know they are unreasonable. I know I have massive control issues. I know I'm scared, vulnerable and naked, and I have physical illness as well on top. I have ADHD and anxiety too. Lol.

[Seanpat]

I tested positive today for a bunch of food allergies. Milk, whey, wheat, gluten, peanuts, almonds, garlic, beef, mustard and a few others. It is freaking me out. After both meals today I had what I was afraid was anaphylactic shock and it went away after a couple of hours. Tonight after dinner it happened and I was not eating anything that I am allergic to unless it was in the sauces they gave me. I have had allergic type reactions to foods in the past but mild. Sneezing, bloating, indigestion but now my mind is wondering if all of the panic attacks I have been having were really some sort of allergic reaction to food rather than panic. I am now afraid to eat. I called my internist tonight and he assured me I was not going to die and I didn't need an epi pen. For someone with panic attacks getting a "real diagnosis" of food allergies is a bummer. Now my mind is telling me I am having some sort of physical allergic reaction rather than a panic attack and it is worse. Anyone else tested positive for allergies and have this same issue? How did you convince yourself it was panic and not an allergic reaction?

[LaraRhiannon]

Hi everyone,

I can't tell you how relieved I am to find this thread.

I have a peanut allergy, have done for a long time and up until December last year, I was very very relaxed about everything - food is literally my favourite thing and I'd always be super keen to eat just about anything. I'd buy cakes from bakeries, wouldn't ask about peanuts unless it was a high-risk food - was just super chill about it.

Then in December last year, I was working as a waitress at an event. They didn't have the proper allergy information but we'd been told 'everything is nut-free'. I happily tucked into a left-over dessert, then realised pretty soon after my last mouthful - I was having an allergic reaction. I asked 'were there peanuts in that?', 'no don't be silly, that'd be stupid of us' was the response. Long story short - I spent the night in hospital. It was a 'mild' reaction, no anaphylaxis, but puking your guts up with a swollen nose, throat, asthma, and hives is not a pleasant experience.

I was fine afterwards, slightly more cautious but nothing out of the ordinary, I still enjoyed all the food over christmas, including frangipane mince pies and chocolates etc. Then suddenly, one morning, I was eating porridge that I'd mixed a bit of chocolate powder into. I'd eaten the oats, oat milk, and chocolate powder before no problem, but for some reason a slight tingling went through my mouth followed by a wave of nausea. For a split second I thought I was having an allergic reaction, and spent the rest of the day on edge.

It's since gotten worse, then better, then worse again. I love food, I WANT to eat it but as soon as I'm faced with actually putting it in my mouth I can freak out. I'm overly sensitive to ANY sensations happening in my mouth and have given myself full on panic attacks. It can be like I'm hit with a sudden adrenaline rush, I end up trembling and everything. It makes me so so sad because I am genuinely passionate about food and flavour, I want to be a goddamn food journalist in the future - what food journalist is scared of food?!

---------- Post added at 16:50 ---------- Previous post was at 16:45 ----------

Seanpat,

I can sympathise and feel incredibly lucky that I have a far shorter list of allergens than you. :( I don't know how to convince myself that it's not an allergic reaction yet, as I'm having the same problem but I guess when it IS an allergic reaction, I REALLY know about it. This isn't much help to me at the moment - I tell myself it but the panic is still palpable, but it could be of some condolence?

[Melkavir]

OMG, for the last 7 years I have thought I was the only person with this!

My psychologist said it was anorexia, but that wouldnt explain why I loved eating and wanted to eat and was so scared of dying when I ate!

Mine started when I was coming off anti-depressants, and was at someones house eating spicy curry when an argument kicked off over dinner...my mouth felt like it was swelling up and I felt dizzy and had to be driven home, and spent 4 hours having nerve twitches in my arms and unable to stand, feeling like I was having a swollen throat etc.

I am not allergic to anything at all that I know of, but, suddenly I couldnt eat stuff not on my "safe" list, which was basically cheese and ham sandwiches (1 brand of bread, 1 brand of cheese etc)

For years I couldnt even drink water that was not of a brand I felt "safe" with, and couldnt wear new clothes, even after washing, or use different shampoo (or even a new bottle of shampoo took me 2-3 hours to get brave enough to use), or any moisturisers or take any painkillers.

Now after a long journey, I am sort of there(ish), I am still scared of using new shampoos, creams etc, and wont take any painkillers not on my "safe" list, but, now I only check ingredients lists for nuts and seeds (although, I cant eat anything with sunflower oil in it, which is irritating the hell out of me at the moment).

The most stupid thing is, I was going to eat a Mars Ice Cream, and I read the ingredients, it had sunflower oil...so, I look through my freezer at labels, see that the Magnum icecreams I eat have sunflower oil, and try to convince myself it is fine to eat the Mars ice creams....nope....not happening.

I have even messaged my brother (who DOES have severe peanut allergy of the anaphalaxis causing kind, he carries 3 epi pens with him) to ask if he could eat coconut, he tells me its not a nut, so of course he can, so now I am trying to get brave enough to eat a muesli yoghurt with coconut flakes.

I have been searching around for years to find people who had the same thing, and, it was only today I found this thread!

I am also annoyed that I should be fine with sunflowers, because, at work the other week, I ate bread that I thought was just plain white bread, and half way through, bit into a seed....I was in the middle of a corporate meeting, so, had the choice of looking like an idiot, or telling myself to wait 20 mins, and see what happened, and even if something bad happened, we have heart starters on every floor at work.....nothing happened ofc (I used to eat peanuts and seeds on a daily basis, so I know I am not allergic), but ,I still cannot eat anything where I see sunflower oil on the ingredients. I just want to get back to how I used to be, its happening slowly, but it is annoying me so much.

[KeeKee]

Although not as severe as some on here, I too have this allergy phobia. Mine also stemmed from a Penicillin allergy. Mine was not as severe as the OP's but my lips and face did swell up, I was vomiting and had the hive type rash all over my body. My fingers were peeling for months and I remember wearing gloves from August through to September as I was so self conscious of my hands.

I'm terrified of taking most medications (I'm fine with painkillers, antihistamines and vitamins and most scared with antibiotics).

Whenever I eat peanuts I have an embarrassing habit of asking my partner if I'm definitely not allergic. I bought some peanut butter reduced a few weeks ago and have only had it once as I'm scared. I'm also petrified of bees and wasps and think it's due to potential severe reactions to their sting. I'm also scared to eat coconut on it's own (or in oil form) and Kiwi due to knowing of people who had severe allergies to these.

[MyNameIsTerry]

My psychologist said it was anorexia, but that wouldnt explain why I loved eating and wanted to eat and was so scared of dying when I ate!

Wow, what a rubbish psychologist! Didn't they pick up on the fact you loved food?!!!