Anyone have a tried-and-true cure for hives?
#346903 - 06/05/09 08:54 PM
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Nelly
Reged: 08/06/04
Posts: 4381
Loc: Within stray mortar fire of DC
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THEY ITCH! They're all over my back and a buckshot's worth on my chest. I get them in stressful situations-- I stop breathing when I get over-the-top anxious, and POW!! Massive histamine reaction, hives everywhere.
They look like teensy, raised, hard, brick red needle pricks. They're tiny, dark red and feel like sand all down my neck and all over my back. I can see them on my chest, in between my boobs, but just a smattering.   yuk!
This is not sexy or cute! And certainly not fun! I let my anxiety get this high ag-ain! Where was my lamaze breathing and yoga relaxation techniques?
I''ve gotten them from the dentist before. Different dentists. Sometimes I have them on the inside of my arms and legs, or on my stomach. Had them 3-4 times from age 29-38, never before. I hear that drill, I freak. It was a marathon session and 4 teeth got seriously drilled and cut for veneers (my new teeth will be the bomb. I'm wearing the temporary now and I'm smokin' hot), but 2 hours in the dentist chair is too much for nelly.
HOW DO I GET RID OF THESE TINY RED ITCHY DOTS?? (Sorry, stress.) Does calamine lotion work? I've been taking benedryl and some claritin, but the last time it took 2 1/2 weeks for them to flatten down and change to light brown before they disappeared.
And these are all over my back, I mean a LOT of them. Must not ITCH NECK!!! Ugh. 
Does anyone know about cortical steroids? How fast do they work?
I will try anything. Have I mentioned THEY ITCH?? Oh and bathing suit season! Ugh...
~nelly~ 
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I think you're basicallly doing the right thing already, antihistamines, not cortisone which isn't supposed to do much for them. (not sure if you should be taking both benadryl and claritin though) I was once told by an MD that the general rule of thumb to be careful about drug interactions, is not to take multiple drugs that target the same symptoms. There's another otc antihistamine, zyrtec, which I think is better than claritin for seasonal allergies but even though its supposedly the non-drowsy type like claritin, it makes me a bit sleepy, you might try switching to that.
There are creams you can get at the drugstore to ease the itching, but I don't think they do much to actually get the hives to go away.
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Ladies & gentlemen take my advice, pull down your pants and slide on the ice.
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Never had a chance to take zyrtec. Calamine lotion? Heard about that as a cure? I've never had poison ivy (I'm a little convinced I'm immune).
But when I think calamine, I can only think of my poor, long blonde hair stuck down my back in this mess of pink, pepto-colored dried junk, ruining my locks and soft cotton t-shirt weekend wear at the same time.
BTW, I'm quite proud of my shabby soft t-shirts, perfect for lounging yet tolerable for being worn in public! OK, so off the topic. Maybe the anxiety is making me overthink? (Ya Think?)
The benedryl and claritin combo came about when I had sore throats from mono (reoccurring, brought on by Epstein-Barr disease), and realized 2 benedryl got rid of the sore throat but made me shake to bits (OD symptoms). No bother, I did 1 benedryl plus 1 claritin every 4-5 hours, and the sore throat went away with none of the OD symptoms.
The benedryl still makes me tired (normal), and the claritin gives me dry mouth (normal), but I can take them in the daytime or both at night with no hangups.
~nelly~ 
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Hives UPDATE
#346938 - 06/06/09 02:20 PM
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Nelly
Reged: 08/06/04
Posts: 4381
Loc: Within stray mortar fire of DC
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OK, I did the benadryl/claratin thing last night and this morning and the hives are still there, but the color has gone away! So I still have a sandy smattering on the front and covering my back, up to and including my neck, but they're skin color, so I'm happy!
I got a great night's sleep last night from 11pm til NOON!! Yea for Saturdays!! 
~nelly~
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Re: Hives UPDATE
#346941 - 06/06/09 03:31 PM
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Toady
Reged: 04/06/06
Posts: 1299
Loc: A small city, Northwestern Ontario, Canada
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Glad you're feeling better - Sorry I wasn't around when you first posted. You can use oatmeal lotion (like Aveeno - I buy the generic one, it's cheaper) and that I find helps the itch and you aren't pink and sticky!! And a bath with baking soda is supposed to help too. I haven't tried the bath thing since I had chicken pocks at 3.
Good luck,
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Cassandra
Live like there's no tomorrow. Love like you've never loved before.
IBS A 20+ years, Chronic Migraines, Chiari Malformation (decompressed June 22, 2010), Brachial Neuritis, and ??? the list just keeps growing, but I'm still shiny side up! 
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Re: Hives UPDATE
#347163 - 06/13/09 09:21 AM
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Nelly
Reged: 08/06/04
Posts: 4381
Loc: Within stray mortar fire of DC
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Thanks for the advice-- I still have them on my chest and back 2 weeks later, and have a serious dentist appt on Monday (it's Saturday).
I was hoping they'd be gone by now, but I'm guessing I'll get a fresh new batch as soon as I hear that drill. I loaded up my MP3 player with lots of KMFDM, so I'm hoping of drowning out the sound of the drill...
Sigh.
~nelly~
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