Is there a doctor in the house?

[Lance]

A 13 mm wrench will easily work most 1/2" nuts and bolts though it could slip under high torque. And a sloppy, worn-in 12 mm wrench can sometimes work that same 1/2" bolt.

So, Arneb, here are a few more details; Cyndi was born (far too long ago) at a gestational age of c. 25 weeks. She has asthma and many allergies.

Her responses are always asthmatic though, never anaphylaxis. Though there was a time in her youth when half a peanut put her in an oxygen tent for several weeks. I have no idea what you would call that.

So how do these change over time? She can now slather up a piece of bread and enjoy a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. If she has too much of something in too short a time she notices it and just avoids the food for a while. This is also true of tomatoes which are related to the tomatillos we discussed earlier but not to potatoes. She couldn't eat anything tomato based at all but now she can. Eggs too.

All that said, what I really want to know is if there is any way she could ever safely "try" a bit of, say, lobster tail.

[Lance]

There is indeed - the Head Llama and his mate. :)

I think you misspelled "the Head Llama and HER mate"

[Cyndi]

Yes - I did Lance - Thanks for the correction! ;)

Oh - and I not only was in an Oxygen Tent for several weeks, it took me a few months to totally recuperate from the peanut incident and go back to school. And, that was the last time (at age 7) that anyone has been able to talk me into eating something that I am allergic to!!

To me, it is simply not worth the risk to my health and possibly my life.

[Enzo]

Ah, Cyndi.


Now we can go for years and not see you here, while we fight among ourselves, and that brings up a question. Should we now just heap on all the abuse we should have been serving, or are you expecting some sort of pass now? I figure karmically speaking, we collectively owe you a bunch of baloney that has accumulated.

[Cyndi]

LOL Enzo -

Bring it on...
oh wait.... is that why I disappeared for a while to begin with??? hmmmm
I don't remember now.
LOL

"Hit me with your best shot!!"

Still...and always the Silent Observer!! ;)

[Lance]

Still...and always the Silent Observer!! ;)

Who are you trying to kid? You don't come here and observe shit unless I ask you to.

[tubeswell]

Maybe she observes you more than you know?

[Lance]

But here, on the forum. She is nothing more than the occasional vapor trail.

[Cyndi]

Ouch!

[Lance]

Ouch!

Proof that the truth hurts.

[tubeswell]

[Lance]

Arneb,

Just wondering if you saw this through the noise level that has come up.

A 13 mm wrench will easily work most 1/2" nuts and bolts though it could slip under high torque. And a sloppy, worn-in 12 mm wrench can sometimes work that same 1/2" bolt.

So, Arneb, here are a few more details; Cyndi was born (far too long ago) at a gestational age of c. 25 weeks. She has asthma and many allergies.

Her responses are always asthmatic though, never anaphylaxis. Though there was a time in her youth when half a peanut put her in an oxygen tent for several weeks. I have no idea what you would call that.

So how do these change over time? She can now slather up a piece of bread and enjoy a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. If she has too much of something in too short a time she notices it and just avoids the food for a while. This is also true of tomatoes which are related to the tomatillos we discussed earlier but not to potatoes. She couldn't eat anything tomato based at all but now she can. Eggs too.

All that said, what I really want to know is if there is any way she could ever safely "try" a bit of, say, lobster tail.

[Arneb]

I' ve been thinking about a post adressing those questions vor some time now, but I am not ready yet. And I've been enjoying the noise, too.

[Lance]

[Arneb]

OK, allergies again.

The story you tell, Cyndi, is rather typical. The disease tends to be more severe if it manifests early in life. Preterm birth is a known risk factor for allergic disease, but it would be exaggerated to say that this is what "made" you allergic. Many factors are at play here - genetics, preterm birth, allergen exposure, breast-feeding, cigarette smoke exposure, hygiene, etc. etc. etc.. Allergy also tends to vary during life, with the worst phase often occurring during puberty - when, really, we can cope with it least - and improving in later life. Also, the sole manifestation in one organ (here: bronchial asthma) is not untypical. But it would still be possible to spill over into one of the other mainfestations of the "atopic spectrum" (atopic meaning simply non-local in that the allergy does not manifest at the site of exposure-other than, say, nickel allergy). Other members of the spectrum are hayfever, allergic shock and the gastrointestinally-mediated allergies - You could still get those even as grownup, but you seem to have been lucky so far.

Another typical point: The story of how you can now eat allergens that woulf have killed you (and nearly did) during childhood. The one hard and fast rule of allergology is that allergen avoidance or at least minimization of exposure is the single most important key to a favourable course. If you hadn't been circumspect about your exposures as child/teen/twen, you might, apart form being dead, still suffer from frequent severe, crippling reactions. Your allergen discipline, along with the blunting of the reactions that can occur later in life, have given you back some terrain on your allergy map. You do it exactly right. Enjoy a "yellow flag" food here and there, and cut back to zero immediately when it doesn't turn out well.

However, I wouldn't for the life of me, egg you on to try that lobster tail. The fish/crustacean/mollusk group of allergies tend to be fairly malignant. You might want to have yourself prick-tested it first or even go all-out for hyposensitization therapy. If you try it "in the wild", make sure you have all your emergency meds ready and loaded, have your mate with you and a hospital nearby. This isn't one to try on the spur of the romantic moment in a remote restaurant in the Carribean...

Before turning this into an online consultation, which I've vowed never to do, let me give you this one piece of advice: Find a board-certified allergologist/pneumologist you trust, and talk it over with him/her. Everything I say is strictly hypothetical and strictly some idle play of thoughts I get because what you tell resonates with what I have learned and with what I have seen in my own life as an allergic asthmatic.

[Мастер]

Find a board-certified allergologist/pneumologist you trust, and talk it over with him/her.

Perhaps worth noting that "board" here does not refer to IRU :)

[Lance]

Before turning this into an online consultation

Yeah, I'm sorry. I didn't mean for it to go that way. I really was just looking to learn more about all this. Thanks for all the good info.

Find a board-certified allergologist/pneumologist you trust, and talk it over with him/her.

Perhaps worth noting that "board" here does not refer to IRU :)

Or does it?

[Cyndi]

Thanks for all the info Arneb.

Most of what I have talked about are things that I have heard at different times over the course of my life. :)

To fill in some extra info... as I have progressed in life, my sever bronchial asthma has lessened over time. The asthma attacks that I have today are not only a little less often, but more importantly, they are not as sever as they use to be when I was younger. Now that is not to say that I still don't use my rescue inhaler semi frequently I would be a lot more panicky if I didn't have it with me. To use the terminology that I used as a kid to describe how bad of an asthma attacks were... most of my asthma attacks are now a "baby elephant" instead of a huge "daddy elephant" sitting on my chest. ;)

Additionally, I have developed those other "atopic spectrum" allergies. Over the years I have had to deal with the itchy watery eyes, sneezing, coughing, etc. of the other typical nasal allergy hay fever reactions along with the bronchial asthma. (I had it all). They told me for years that I would 'grow out of it' and I know most children with sever allergies do, but I accepted that this is just a part of me a long time ago. I've been told time and time again by doctors that I am far more sensitive than is typical asthmatic with allergies.

As far as the hyposensitization therapy I think you are talking about what I know as desensitization allergy shot treatments. I have tried them for periods of times at several different stages in my life, including as an adult. They have always made me very sick. I'm not allergic to the serum medium, but they cannot cut the allergen component itself down to a small enough amount for me not to have a sever reaction to. Also, as an adult, a was convinced to after doing several rounds of all positive scratch tests, to do the sensitivity injections. Not sure what the official name is, but it is where a small amount is put just under the skin for a better more precise allergy reaction. Well, that one almost killed me, even after removing the top most violent scratch test reactions. If it had not been for me knowing my body and feeling something was wrong and my grabbing a nurse that was walking by to tell them that something was wrong with me, I would not be typing this. After a 'full' cc of epinephrine I started to recover from it. To my knowledge, that is the only time that I have gone into analphabetic shock. The doctor was with me the entire time, and she looked pretty scared. They were just about to give me a second full cc of epi when my blood pressure started to come back. The epi injection was prepped and they were ready to give it.

So.... needless to say, I won't be trying anything on the "spur of the romantic moment" when it comes to something that I am allergic to. ;)

Again, Thank You again for all the information you have provided!!
Not only does it helps me make more sense of a few things, it helps Lance to understand too! :)

[Arneb]

Before turning this into an online consultation

Yeah, I'm sorry. I didn't mean for it to go that way. I really was just looking to learn more about all this. Thanks for all the good info.

No worries - you ask legitimate questions, and the responsibility not to act as an online consultant is mine entirely.

Find a board-certified allergologist/pneumologist you trust, and talk it over with him/her.

Perhaps worth noting that "board" here does not refer to IRU :)

Or does it?

I'll leave that to the reader...

So.... needless to say, I won't be trying anything on the "spur of the romantic moment" when it comes to something that I am allergic to. ;)

I was sure you wold say that

That anaphylactic shock story you tell is hair-raising. I never got that far - my worst was a night in my student flat when I gave myself an i. v. of theophyllin. I must have looked like a heroin junkie (although, for sure, not as cachectic), and I was frantically hoping no neighbour was watching me through the drapes...
From a doctor's perspective, severe allergic reactions in young people are among the worst emergencies to encounter because you get very, very acutely aware that FAILURE IS NOT AN OPTION!!!, which is a huge pressure. I am very relieved that during my entire time as an ICU specialist, I've never had to see us losing a young patient to status asthmaticus.

[Lance]

A few years ago we paid a visit to our favorite, now defunct coffee shop. It was late spring so the doors were open instead of running the air conditioning. I think we were the only people in there.

As we approached the counter to place our order, a standard European honeybee (another of her allergies) flew in the door, landed on her forearm, bowed, said "how do you do?" and then proceeded to commit suicide by leaving its stinger and other body parts attached to her. Needless to say, this was not a time of much rejoicing.

Her Eppie Pen was in the car, maybe 20 yards away, so easily accessible. But she immediately started to panic, and rightly so. My concern immediately was that: 1) increased heart rate and blood pressure would circulate the venom more quickly and, 2) if I left to go to the car her panic would spin out of control.

So I didn't go dashing out the door. I stayed and held her hand and calmed her down. We were right across the street from an urgent care facility so that was a plus. I calmed her down and convinced her to wait a bit and lets react to what actually happens and not let fear rule our behavior.

As it turned out, she developed a small welt that itched for a few hours and that was it.

[tubeswell]

As it turned out, she developed a small welt that itched for a few hours and that was it.

Does this sort of thing stimulate one's immune response system to the potential allergen in question?

[Lance]

As it turned out, she developed a small welt that itched for a few hours and that was it.

Does this sort of thing stimulate one's immune response system to the potential allergen in question?

I think it does. I think if she were ever to be stung again the outcome could be very different. I hope we never find out.