Prairie~Phlox Posted December 29, 2015 Share Posted December 29, 2015 So I am doing an elimination diet, so far, I have discovered that corn, green beans, wheat and other things related to ragweed pollen (melons, bananas & honey for sure) nightshade family, though potatoes seem fine all give me issues. I am tired of my neighbor constantly telling me that I should have an allergy test. If I were to have allergy testing done, it doesn't mean it would even show anything. The main issues that I have is that my throat swells and I feel like I have something in it. No itching or anything like that. We have insurance but it could still get expensive seeing an allergist and I might not get anywhere. I wish people would just leave me alone and let me figure it out on my own. Ok, vent over. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SparklyUnicorn Posted December 29, 2015 Share Posted December 29, 2015 Just say your doctor put you on the elimination diet. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted December 29, 2015 Share Posted December 29, 2015 (edited) I'm totally on board with your vent. Been there, done that, have a big fat bill from the allergist with little actual help to show for it That said, I'd recommend a relationship with an allergist it only for easier prescribing of epinephrine. Elimination testing for that sort of allergy isn't safe to do on your own without an emergency pen. My throat swells too, no itching or hives with many of my reactions. It nearly killed me several times anyway, despite non-typical presentations. They will still recommend food challenges on your own but those aren't safe without epinephrine if you're dealing with airway swelling (esophagus feeling constricted or a lump while swallowing definitely counts!) or multiple body systems. If you have epinephrine around then I'd say you're on the right track, but an allergist or a GP who is willing to prescribe it for you is a necessary safety precaution here. I'm sorry about your nosy neighbor. They are frustrating! Edited December 29, 2015 by Arctic Mama Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Catwoman Posted December 29, 2015 Share Posted December 29, 2015 If she had said it once or twice out of concern for your health, that would be one thing, but it sounds like she is seriously overstepping her bounds and nagging you about it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ikslo Posted December 29, 2015 Share Posted December 29, 2015 I was going to say pretty much what Artic Mama said. We figured out all but one of my son's food allergies on our own before ever seeing an allergist. Only reason we ended up having the testing done was because ped could only prescribe the initial epi. After that he was required to refer us to an allergist. A swollen throat is pretty serious. Benadryl can't help you if you can't get it down. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ikslo Posted December 29, 2015 Share Posted December 29, 2015 As far as the neighbor is concerned - tell her you would be glad to go, as long as she is willing to foot the bill. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Valley Girl Posted December 29, 2015 Share Posted December 29, 2015 That must be frustrating. Is there a reason a neighbor even knows you're doing this? Cutting off the information flow would help eliminate unwanted comments. Of course, if the neighbor is someone who's involved enough in your life to know what you're eating or not eating on a daily basis, that makes it tougher. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prairie~Phlox Posted December 29, 2015 Author Share Posted December 29, 2015 Our families are friends & we do eat together regularly. I've never gotten to the point that I couldn't breath or swallow & do plan to talk to my GP when I see them in the spring. She just thinks rather than elemintating things that I should just have an allegy test. If I felt it were absolutely necessary, I would, but I don't (at least not yet). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoPlaceLikeHome Posted December 29, 2015 Share Posted December 29, 2015 (edited) You really need a dual pack of epi-pens to carry with you at all times at the very least. Throat swelling has the potential to be life threatening:( Your regular doctor could order RAST blood test is you are so inclined. This site has a lot of useful info:http://www.foodallergy.org/ Edited to add correct site. Edited December 29, 2015 by NoPlaceLikeHome 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellesmere Posted December 29, 2015 Share Posted December 29, 2015 (edited) I'm sorry your neighbor is being a pain. I agree --your neighbor should not be in your business. Especially if you've told the neighbor to stop. And I hear you on the cost. With our new insurance last year, it was only $14 more expensive to go to our long-time allergist as a cash patient because our insurance wasn't going to cover much even if we stayed in network. Paying OOP was not fun. (We see ours regularly for Rx refills. she monitors my asthma and related stuff, and because I had more allergies develop. Also, one of my kids seems to be outgrowing some environmental allergies so we are going back for further testing on that and to see if any related food allergies have gotten better.) I'm relieved to be back on an insurance next year that will cover most of the cost. But if you told me exactly what you posted, I'd have a hard time not saying something. The "throat swells and I feel like I have something in it" comment makes me wonder, especially because you said no itching. That's what was happening to me and it turned out to be a very severe allergy. My least severe allergies are the itchy ones -- mild OAS from fresh fruits or veggies. Of course, that's just me and I wouldn't presume you would have similar reactions the way mine progressed. But with the unpredictable nature of allergies, you never know what the next reaction will be like. So I'd be concerned if you don't have epinephrine (and I don't know if you do). Allergies can be very unpredictable. Again, I am not defending your neighbor overstepping at all. I'm just remembering years ago when I knew less about allergies. I didn't know that the no itching thing could still mean I had some big problems ahead. My first serious reaction -- no itching. I've had four bad reactions that I remember where there was no itching, just one severe one where I had some itching. (Different foods I didn't know I was allergic to -- I'm not that bad at avoiding known allergens!) Regarding testing -- just for general info, not to you specifically because we disagree about testing (I think it is easier, though yes, it can be expensive) -- sure, it has a long way to go and it can show a lot of false positives. Negatives, on skin tests, however, are reliable unless the testing went wrong. Positives should lead a good allergist to go over food history again and consider blood testing (Immunocap is available for some allergens) and supervised challenges if they can. It can take some time to find an allergist that is up to date. ETA: Just adding some links, again, just for general information in case anyone is curious about some testing research:http://allergicliving.com/2015/04/16/blood-test-predicts-food-allergy-and-severity/http://www.jacionline.org/article/S0091-6749(14)00728-3/abstract All that said, I've learned to never say anything about it to someone during IRL conversation. (Here, you can ignore me :), especially if this was supposed to be a JAWM). If you were my neighbor, I'd keep my mouth shut.) Edited December 29, 2015 by CaladwenEleniel 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ann.without.an.e Posted December 29, 2015 Share Posted December 29, 2015 The gold standard for allergy identification is strict elimination, even allergists will tell you this. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spryte Posted December 29, 2015 Share Posted December 29, 2015 (edited) You really need a dual pack of epi-pens to carry with you at all times at the very least. Throat swelling has the potential to be life threatening:( Your regular doctor could order RAST blood test is you are so inclined. This site has a lot of useful info: http://www.foodallergy.org/ Edited to add correct site. Yes. A reaction can progress quickly and there's no way to predict future reactions based on past reactions. The major cause of allergy deaths is delaying epinephrine. You could die next time. Please just consider asking your family practice doc for epipens. Edited December 29, 2015 by Spryte 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mamiof5 Posted December 30, 2015 Share Posted December 30, 2015 If I was your neighbor, and you told me what you posted, I'd be very concerned for you and would probably suggest for you to see an allergist or some sort of doctor. If you don't want your neighbor to worry about it maybe you shouldn't share this info? I am assuming neighbor suggests allergy tests because he/she is somewhat aware of what you are going through. I am not the type of person that runs to the doctor for every minor thing, but this doesn't sound minor to me. Maybe your neighbor is a nice, truly concerned person. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prairie~Phlox Posted December 30, 2015 Author Share Posted December 30, 2015 I will make an appointment with my nurse practioner and discuss things with her. But I am not going to encourage allergy testing, as I do not think everything shows up, unless she's adamant that I have it done. I will ask about an epi-pen, but it seems I have issues with things in high doses and if I know what I am mainly responsive to, I will avoid them anyway. I do not eat anything that is prepared by someone else that I am not sure about. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoPlaceLikeHome Posted December 30, 2015 Share Posted December 30, 2015 I will make an appointment with my nurse practioner and discuss things with her. But I am not going to encourage allergy testing, as I do not think everything shows up, unless she's adamant that I have it done. I will ask about an epi-pen, but it seems I have issues with things in high doses and if I know what I am mainly responsive to, I will avoid them anyway. I do not eat anything that is prepared by someone else that I am not sure about. With allergies, there is no way to know what your next reaction may be like so I would not count on only having issues with high exposures at all. In fact, with each exposure, the reaction you have could very well be worse. Throat swelling is an indication for epi-pen administration and is considered a severe reaction as well. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tammyla Posted December 30, 2015 Share Posted December 30, 2015 :grouphug: Vent away...So many people just don't understand. I think your smart to talk with your NP btw. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DawnM Posted December 30, 2015 Share Posted December 30, 2015 So I am doing an elimination diet, so far, I have discovered that corn, green beans, wheat and other things related to ragweed pollen (melons, bananas & honey for sure) nightshade family, though potatoes seem fine all give me issues. I am tired of my neighbor constantly telling me that I should have an allergy test. If I were to have allergy testing done, it doesn't mean it would even show anything. The main issues that I have is that my throat swells and I feel like I have something in it. No itching or anything like that. We have insurance but it could still get expensive seeing an allergist and I might not get anywhere. I wish people would just leave me alone and let me figure it out on my own. Ok, vent over. How much are you talking about it? Was it one casual mention and now she harps on it, or do you talk about it a lot and she is trying help you solve the issue? Personally, if you told me the above, I would also suggest getting tested. Can you call your insurance company and ASK what they will cover or not cover? That is what I do when I know more testing is needed/necessary. I find out ahead of time what codes they will use and call my insurance and find out how much will be covered. My son has the same issue you do and we have had some initial testing done, and are going for more ($35 copay per testing session, so, so far, $35 total.) If you don't want to go, that is fine, it is your decision, but my guess is that she cares about you and is worried. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellesmere Posted December 30, 2015 Share Posted December 30, 2015 I will make an appointment with my nurse practioner and discuss things with her. But I am not going to encourage allergy testing, as I do not think everything shows up, unless she's adamant that I have it done. I will ask about an epi-pen, but it seems I have issues with things in high doses and if I know what I am mainly responsive to, I will avoid them anyway. I do not eat anything that is prepared by someone else that I am not sure about I'm agreeing with what has been said. And I know your reactions may be completely different from mine but it reminds me of before my anaphylactic reactions. I didn't itch, and I thought if I just avoided things that seemed to cause issues, I would be fine. All my reactions were at home, to things I had prepared myself. I am very lucky on my last one (to a rare allergen, so I had never been tested or thought of it as a possibility) that by that time I had already seen my doctor and had an Epi AND I had someone with me who knew how to administer. Now, I am never sure about food. Based on my history, I just never know even if I've avoided everything that I know to avoid. That is why I'm glad I have my doctor's advice and emergency plan. (And I will say, in my area anyway, having a written plan on me so that we had it at the ER was important.) But I know, it is rare, and I'm not at all saying you will have severe reactions. I'm just echoing the concern for you. Anyway, glad you are going to see your NP and hope your neighbor will let up. Food issues are hard enough! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellesmere Posted December 30, 2015 Share Posted December 30, 2015 Again this last part about testing is not to you since you are resisting it -- but it's for anyone else on the fence about testing or is interested in info or why people with the same allergy seem to have different restrictions. Yes, it is imperfect. I was glad to get tested and have (mostly) conclusive negatives on a few things -- it saved me the time and concern about several foods. With some allergens, if someone has a positive skin test, the Immunocap can be extremely helpful in determining if the allergen is to a heat labile or stable protein or if it is to a protein that is more associated with cross-reactions. (In practical terms, I could have discovered someone was only allergic to ara h8 or 9 and that would have made a big difference in food restrictions and how we would handle school, if we weren't homeschooling.) The links here focus on peanut because it is more common and what people tend to think of first with food allergies but it has some good general information about why numbers don't necessarily predict reactions. Another section mentions a situation I'm in -- history of reactions to a food (not peanut), positive blood and RAST, negative Immunocap so we're doing more to figure it all out.http://www.phadia.com/en/Products/Allergy-testing-products/ImmunoCAP-Molecular-Allergology/Peanut-Allergy/http://www.pediatricsconsultant360.com/article/peanut-allergy-diagnosis-simple-ara-h-1-2-and-3http://www.carolinaasthma.com/news/so-someone-in-your-family-has-peanut-allergy/http://www.foodallergy.org/diagnosis-and-testing/oral-food-challengehttp://www.aaaai.org/conditions-and-treatments/library/allergy-library/oral-food-challenge.aspx 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Runningmom80 Posted December 30, 2015 Share Posted December 30, 2015 Also, look into eosinophilic esophagitis. (EoE) Your symptoms sound like that. http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/eosinophilic-esophagitis/basics/symptoms/con-20035681 I guess I'm not minding my own business! :lol: But in all seriousness, my son has that and it might be worth your while to look into. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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