NSBR: hives.

okay. so i made the mistake of wearing a sweater that had BOTH wool and mohair in it. wool makes me itch, and apparently, mohair gives me hives. i have sensitive skin to begin with, so hydrocortisone cream burns my skin. which is what happened yesterday. my arms hurt all day. i wish i could take a picture. my arms are covered, from my shoulders to my wrists, in tiny red hives. kind of sucks.

SO here's what i need. anybody have any sort of ideas on how to keep from itching? benadryl is gonna knock me out, so i can't take benadryl. i'm looking for a cream or something (that isn't hydrocortisone).

what about calimine lotion? or some of the neosporin has a pain block in it

An Aveeno oatmeal bath might help a bit as well. I think I would see if you have a "Ask a Nurse" line through a hospital you can call for advice...or check with your doctor for recommendations.

Being that I have personally dealt with hives and allergy reactions for years ... I would highly advise calling your doctor ... he/she may have something they could recommend or prescribe to help you that won't make the condition worse nor make you sleepy.

I found out in my major outbreak of hives in 1988 that I was actually allergic to the red dye that was found in Benadryl (liquid and capsules) ... thankfully they came out with a dye free Benadryl (wouldn't you think they would just make it all colorless once they figured out they were causing hives?) ...

Don't wear anything close fitting ... and prob want to wear cotton clothing until it dies down ... at least that is what I had to do. Keep your body cool and from overheating with too many layers of clothing...it could make the hives/itching worse.

{{{hugs}}} been there done that unfortunately...mine went from my scalp all the way down to the bottoms of my feet and in-between my toes...and I was very pregnant at the time!

lol i'm not really laughing at you.. but i wiggled cause I'm REALLY allergic to wool.... haha and i just imagined what would happen to me ^_^..
anyway...
things that help me when i get hivey..
clariton.
aveeno lotion.
and relaaaaaaaaaaaaaxing.

I hope you feel better!

i would call your doc. you might need a steroid to get it under control and out of your system. i delt with hives years ago & that is the only thing that helps. Allegra helped, too, but that may be only by perscription.

you poor gal....hives suck.

lisa: i put calamine on last night, it didn't do much. i think i'm sort of immune to calamine. used it too much when i was younger.

sharon: thankfully, i live with a nurse. who laughed at me and said "i told you not to buy that sweater." i usually get itchy, but never hives like this. that's what's frustrating. i have to wear long sleeves to cover them up cause my arms are red and bumpy. not attractive. i didn't call my doctor, only because she's out of the office until thursday. but if they're not gone by then, i will definitely call.

la: you'd be itchy like me. aveeno is what i have on my lap. and relaxing would be great. except i work thursday and am trying to figure out vacation plans. friday, i will relax.

stephanie: if they aren't gone by thursday, i will call. and i think allegra is prescription only. they aren't HUGE hives.. just little ones. but they're all over the insides of my arms and all the way up and around my shoulder. if they were huge hives, i'd have gone to the ER last night when my mother was working.

thanks ladies.
my mom brought home some aveeno lotion. we'll see if that helps.

Allegra is prescription ... but luckily it is in generic form (fexofenadine) which is what I take and it is MUCH cheaper ... my dh's insurance won't pay for allergy meds ... but Claritin does absolutely NOTHING for me...so I have to use Allegra. There are times I need to take Allegra D but the pharmacist advised me since Allegra D is so expensive to just take Fexofenadine and when I need the decongestant to use the over the counter sudafed (in generic form) ... that is saving me a lot of $$.

Hope you get better really soon! I couldn't use any lotion on my hives...the "contact" just made them itchier and kept them 'active'.

^_^ it's so funny how diff the meds are for each person. allegra does nothing for me but DID make me dizzy LOL
clariton only helps with my hives btw not with my reg allergies.. but i can live with my allergies.

LOL... yeah, hives sort of suck. I'm currently dealing with an outbreak that's lasted for 5+ weeks and is so indescribably horribly... covering my arms, legs, and back. It's been an absolute nightmare... but anyway...

Allegra (fexophenadine) does work well, but like the other's said, it's a prescription. I was told to first try Zyrtec (up to 2 doses a day) and it does help some.

Oatmeal baths can also help, just remember warm water, not hot. Cold compresses can help on a really severe spot as well. Also, I've found that the colder the temp is, the more comfortable I am. I've actually been spending most of my time in my room, with the heat vents closed and a light fan on and it's the most comfortable that I've been able to to be.

Hope you are able to get them under control soon!

I haven't read the replies so sorry if it's a repeat..if you can't take benadryl by mouth maybe try the cream? Also you could try Claritin or Zyrtec during the day instead of Benadryl

haha just read thru...Allegra did NOTHING for me either..I prefer Zyrtec and still take it for allergies (my insurance still pays for generic thankfully)

I take benadryl. It sometimes makes me sleepy but usually I can fight the drowsy feeling as long as I do not lay down. I use Ammens powder for itchy skin and also sometimes a hot bath helps the itchiness for me. I get those types of hives randomly. I know some of it comes from detergent but its weird I will break out usually on my chest/neck with certain detergents but nowhere else. Also get them from metal. My ears are pierced but almost every earring I own (silver and gold) cause me to break out and get huge lumps in my ears. Wearing a necklace makes my neck break out. Especially with silver or costume jewlery. Hope you start feeling better soon!!

For those of you that didn't have results on the Allegra... I'm curious what dosage you were taking?

oh gosh i don't remember LOL.. it was a long time ago now. The main issue with me is that i'm really sensitive to meds-- so if there were higher dosages to put me on, my dr just moved onto the next drug to try because of my adverse reactions to the allegra.

HAPPY TO REPORT MY HIVES ARE GONE!

and i'm gonna look into meds again. i was on zyrtec cause allegra interacts with one of my other meds. so i can't take it (and just remembered that last night). cause i can't be getting hives every time i wear that sweater, you know?